Links of Note: June 14, 2007

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Links of Note: June 14, 2007

June 14, 2007 9:28 AM Posted by mac

BBC to lay reporting process bare with multi-media experiment
(Journalism.co.uk)

BBC reporter Ben Hammersley is embracing transparency as he and a Beeb team cover the upcoming Turkish elections.

Hammersley introduces the BBC's behind-the-scenes initiative in the following video (note his excellent broadcasterliness):

This is a bold and exciting project and I hope it leads to a wave of media transparency across all mediums. It doesn't take much to pull off, either: archiving and publishing can be done through YouTube, Google Apps, blogs and other free/low-cost mechanisms.

The Unfortunate Art of the Press Release

Press releases piss me off.

Case in point: CMP is shutting down three magazines and laying off nearly 200 people, but the press release announcing the "change" makes it sound like they invented the wheel and discovered fire during a company retreat.

From the CMP press release:
"In the broad technology markets that CMP serves, the company will shift resources by merging titles to strengthen its market-leading brands, reducing print frequencies, strengthening online networks, launching new digital products, globalizing brands and streamlining sales, marketing and editorial structures. As a result, CMP will provide its customers with easier access to the most comprehensive integrated portfolio of technology media brands, through knowledgeable sales consultants focused on building marketing solutions with maximum return on investment."

Is this fooling anyone? Does anyone (read: "investors") actually believe all this "strengthening" and "streamlining" stuff?