'Big Brother' Watching Bloggers?

Well, not exactly what you may be thinking. The "Internet police" aren't coming after you for writing about your next-door neighbor.

But on October 5, the Federal Trade Commission voted 4-0 to require bloggers to disclose any payments or free merchandise they receive from a company in exchange for reviewing its products. The actual form of disclosure is not regulated, but must be "clear and concise" according to the guidelines.

The new rule is scheduled to take effect December 1, and before bloggers become too nervous about additional scrutiny, Rich Cleland, the assistant director of the FTC's advertising practices division, says that violations are more likely to draw penalties for the advertiser than the blogger, unless the blogger fails to disclose payments or freebies consistently.

For more information, you can read the story here.

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Blogger or journalist?

A judge in New Jersey has been asked to decide a prickly question that could alter the course of online news: is a blogger a journalist? New Jersey software company Too Much Media LLC has sued Shellee Hale, a Washington state mother and activist who runs four blogs, and claims Hale slandered the company in a message posted on one of the company’s online community boards. Hale posting stated security weaknesses in software developed my Too Much Media LLC could allow hackers to access an user’s private information, and cited anonymous sources for her inside knowledge. The company balked, saying the software’s security issues were resolved before any customer information became vulnerable, and argues Hale’s posting slandered the company’s reputation. Hale contends the information was gleaned during her investigation into the company's online security issues, and claims she is protected from revealing her sources under the New Jersey Shield Law, which protects working journalists from revealing a sources indentity in certain situations. The company’s crying foul, saying Hale’s merely a dangerous heckler sounding off on Oprano.com, an online forum, and doesn’t deserve the protections provided to journalists. So, just who is a "journalist?" Bloggers? Tweeters, for that matter? Mounmouth County Superior Court Judge Louis Locasio may be amongst the first judges to weigh this complex question, which is drawing mixed opinions from bloggers and 'traditional" journalists alike.

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Are Newspaper Ads Going, Going, Gone or Just Going?

Interesting discussion on Jeff Jarvis' blog at www.buzzmachine.com. Are newspaper ads vaporizing altogether or are just moving elsewhere to reach customers? According to Jarvis, "...Papers in top markets are down tens upon tens of millions of dollars each in classified revenue that has disappeared."

This conversation comes a week after the nation’s newspapers reported a collective 3.5% drop in daily circulation. Some of the more savvy newspapers have overhauled their sales strategies in hopes of finding profitable digital niche. However, Jarvis has doubts on how successful these efforts will turn out.

"If papers are smart, they can use online and its laser targeting to serve a new population of hyperlocal advertisers that never could afford high-priced papers before. But as I can tell you from first-hand experience, papers are not built for high-volume, low-cost advertising like this. So those advertisers will go to Google and local blogs."

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Cyber Soldier

In September 2006, MTF's Journalism Program gathered military and media leaders to discuss rapidly changing information management during war time. The Internet generation had gone into battle - and controlling messages going to and from the front lines had reached a complexity unlike in any previous time. (The report that came out of that conference is on the foundation's website at http://www.rrmtf.org/publications/militarymedia2006.pdf.)

Chicago magazine's October issue (www.chicagomag.com) has a fascinating interview with blogger Matthew Currier Burden. The Gulf War veteran, a Chicagoan, began a blog (www.Blackfive.net - blackfive being an old military call sign for the executive officer who makes things happen behind the scenes) in 2003 about those fighting the war. When he started the blog, Burden was one of the first to blog about the war. Today there are hundreds. Yet Burden's registers some 4 million unique visitors per year, making it arguably the most prominent military blog (or miliblog) in the blogosphere.

And according to the magazine piece military officials have taken notice: Since April 2005, soldier bloggers in Iraq and Afghanistan must register their Web sites with commanders. The Pentagon also blocks soldiers' access to 13 popular networking, music and photo-sharing sites (including YouTube and MySpace). Burden's book, The Blog of War, reprinting many of the blog's entries - was published by Simon & Schuster in 2006.

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The Big Question

Not all bloggers are journalists, but some bloggers are "without question" journalists, at least according to what's thought to be the first court ruling on the issue, according to the Coalition of Journalists for Open Government. The MTF grantee reports that Federal Judge Henry M. Herlong Jr. "dismissed a trademark violation lawsuit against the blogger, noting that the Lanham Act exempts 'all forms of news reporting and news commentary.' " The judge believed the blogger's article about an auction listings company that sold items on eBay was "clearly journalism, based on both a functional analysis and an examination of blogger's intent."

For more analysis and to see the ruling, visit CJOG at www.cjog.net.

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ICFJ Names International Journalism Award Winners

The International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) named its 2007 Knight International Journalism Award winners today. This year’s winners are Wael Abbas, an Egyptian blogger, and investigative reporter May Thingyan Hein of Burma.

Abbas’ win marks the first time a blogger has received the award. His blog, Misr Digital, has covered stories such as police brutality and corruption—topics that many mainstream media normally don’t—and has attracted so much attention that it’s encouraged the media to begin reporting these subjects. Despite beatings and arrests, Abbas says that bloggers are “the last independent voice,” and are “necessary” for protests to be heard in Egypt.

May Thingyan Hein, who is a freelance journalist, also tackles controversial topics in her investigative reporting. In Burma, stories must be submitted to officials before being released and her coverage of the spread of bird flu into the country was instrumental in forcing the government to take action against the epidemic.

ICFJ President Joyce Barnathan says that Abbas and Hein are “blazing the path in their countries with extremely bold coverage” and that others should follow their example.

The Knight International Journalism Awards are given by the Knight International Journalism Fellows, funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. The Fellows strive to lead the news media into making societies more accountable to citizens.

For more information, visit ICFJ online, or visit The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation online.

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