Free Republic

Another 75 editorial staffers were let go at the Los Angeles Times on Monday, including numerous reporters and editors involved in arts and entertainment coverage. The cuts included film critic Carina Chocano, whose departure leaves Hollywood’s hometown newspaper with one full-time film critic, Kenneth Turan. Chocano had been with the Times since 2004. Times editor Russ Stanton cited the growing economic downturn as the reason for the latest round of layoffs in a memo to the staff. The Times eliminated about 130 editorial positions in July as part of a companywide downsizing effort at its beleaguered parent company, Tribune Co....

ABC producer arrested outside Brown PalaceSue Lindsay 2 hours, 18 minutes ago A producer for ABC News was arrested today as he and a camera crew set up on the sidewalk outside the Brown Palace Hotel. Asa Eslocker was arrested for trespass, interference and failure to obey an lawful order. He was being processed from the Denver City Jail and is expected to be released on $300 bail, said his attorney Tom Kelley. Eslocker is investigating the role of corporate lobbyists and wealthy donors at the convention for a series of Money Trail reports on ABC World News. "The Brown's...

Five years after arriving in Central Florida, El Nuevo Día Orlando, the region's only daily Spanish-language newspaper, is closing. The paper, which has a total of 50 employees, will cease operations Aug. 29., said José F. Serra, spokesperson for the Ferré-Rangel family. They own two newspapers in Puerto Rico -- El Nuevo Día and Primera Hora -- and started the Orlando operations in Sept. 2003. "Unfortunately, the losses have been consistent throughout the five years, and we came to the conclusion that we couldn't continue producing the paper," Serra said.

It's pitiful to read the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. You are so pro-Obama that it is sickening. No such thing as an impartial paper.

Bridging the Abyss Why a lot of newspapers aren’t going to survive By Charles Layton Charles Layton (charlesmary@hotmail.com) is an AJR senior contributing writer. Mark Potts is a consultant, based in Washington, D.C., who hires out to newspaper Web sites, dotcoms and the like. He was a reporter and editor (Chicago Tribune, Washington Post, San Francisco Examiner) in the '70s and '80s, that golden age for newspapers before the Internet came along to spoil the party. Ad revenue — four-fifths of a daily paper's income — grew by double digits during many of those years. Last summer, Potts and some...

(Vancouver, WA) The Columbian Publishing Co. has made further job reductions this week as the company struggles to meet operating budgets for the first half of the year. An estimated 20 positions were included in the latest round of layoffs, said Columbian Publisher Scott Campbell. Eight newsroom employees were a part of the job cuts, six reporters, one photographer and one sports clerk/writer. "The economy - both nationally and locally - is pretty tough right now," said Campbell "It is impacting news organizations and companies in many business sectors. We have had another decline in advertising revenue over the past...

The Associated Press, one of the nation’s largest news organizations, said that it will, for the first time, attempt to define clear standards as to how much of its articles and broadcasts bloggers and Web sites can excerpt without infringing on The A.P.’s copyright. The A.P.’s effort to impose some guidelines on the free-wheeling blogosphere, where extensive quoting and even copying of entire news articles is common, may offer a prominent definition of the important but vague doctrine of “fair use,” which holds that copyright owners cannot ban others from using small bits of their works under some circumstances. For...

Cuban leader Fidel Castro blasted Republican presidential candidate John McCain on Friday for his criticism of the Cuban government this week, saying McCain had shown why he finished near the bottom of his class at West Point. In his latest newspaper column, Castro also attacked President George W. Bush for his speech on Wednesday announcing that U.S. citizens would be allowed to send cell phones to Cuba. "A deluge of speeches and lies they directed at Cuba," Castro said in a column published in Communist Party newspaper Granma. "How far they are from knowing Cuba and its people."

By Marc Frank April 23, 2008 HAVANA (Reuters) - An ailing Fidel Castro took partial credit on Wednesday for firing Cuba's long-serving education minister this week, indicating that he would remain influential behind the scenes as long as he is able. Castro, who was succeeded by his younger brother Raul Castro as president this year after almost half a century at the helm, blasted former minister Luis Ignacio Gomez for being "burnt out" and "losing revolutionary consciousness." In a newspaper column, Castro laid into Gomez for travelling abroad too much and taking personal credit for advances in Cuba's education system.

To judge by the ads, the most loyal adherents to CBS' quasi-journalistic programming are impotent and incontinent. It so happens that they share these afflictions with the network's actual news division. Katie Couric is reportedly itching to bolt her gig as the anchor of broadcast TV's worst-rated evening newscast. Last month, Shelley Ross lost her job producing The Early Show, the worst-rated morning newscast, after problems concerning temper tantrums and tequila parties. Most weeks, the perfectly decent Bob Schieffer, who will retire after the 2009 inauguration, sees Face the Nation to a finish as the third-rated Sunday show. And the...

NEW YORK The newspaper industry has experienced the worst drop in advertising revenue in more than 50 years. According to new data released by the Newspaper Association of America, total print advertising revenue in 2007 plunged 9.4% to $42 billion compared to 2006 -- the most severe percent decline since the association started measuring advertising expenditures in 1950.

HAVANA — Nearly 50 years of rule by Fidel Castro ended in Cuba on Sunday as parliament chose his brother Raul to replace him — a transition that leaves the island's communist system unshaken. The new president proposed consulting with the ailing 81-year-old Fidel on all major decisions of state, and parliament approved the proposal. The vote came five days after Fidel said he was retiring, capping a career in which he frustrated efforts by 10 U.S. presidents to oust him. The transition was not likely to bring a major shift in policies of the communist government that have put...

Washington, D.C. — Fidel Castro is finally on his way out. After nearly 50 years of bloody, iron-fisted rule, the world’s longest reigning dictator — and one of the last communist tyrants on the planet — has announced that he is stepping down. That’s good news, but it’s not likely to change much for the 11 million captive people in Cuba. On February 19, Granma, the Cuban Communist Party’s organ, carried a letter purportedly written by the 81-year-old ailing autocrat, announcing that ill health prevents him from continuing to “discharge the duties” of president and commander-in-chief of Cuba's armed forces....

After 49 years of ruling Cuba with an iron fist, 81-year-old Fidel Castro has formally stepped down as president and head of Cuba's armed forces. But there will not be any election to determine his successor. Power in the tropical tyranny is a family matter and Raul Castro, Fidel's 76-year-old brother, will take permanent control of a country he has run for 19 months while Fidel has endured a lengthy illness. Little has changed during that time -- free speech is still suppressed, democracy is crushed, freedom of the press is forbidden, free enterprise is illegal, fair trails are the...

It's mourning in DUmmieland. Their hero, Fidel Castro, has resigned as president (dictator) of Cuba. The feelings of the DUmmies can be described as sadness mixed with grave concern that Cuba may be free again as you can see in this THREAD titled, ""Fidel Castro Resigns As President." Of course, Fidel will be succeeded by his brother, Raul. Ever notice how in hard core commie countries that succession is by blood as in feudal times? In North Korea Big Kim was succeeded by Li'l Kim. Yes, "scientific" communism needs to use feudal bloodlines to determine the succession of their...

Fidel Castro Steps Down...

Tom Glocer Don’t Spin Stories to My FriendsME Liz Strauss wrote this at 11:33 amThe Nice One I was working for a privately-held publishing company for about 9 months. The company had been losing 10% a year for the past three years running. In the morning the Major Partner and Chief Financial Officer were coming to visit to hear our plan to turn the company around. I had been chosen to voice the plan. That night at dinner, the Operations’ Director and close friend said to me over wine and dinner, “You know, the success of this company really depends...

Castro takes another swipe at McCain 19 minutes ago HAVANA (AFP) — Ailing Cuban leader Fidel Castro, whose political future is to be clarified this month, took another swipe at Republican US presidential hopeful John McCain, in an editorial published Wednesday. Fidel Castro, 81, wrote in the Communist Party newspaper Granma that McCain was in the pocket of conservative Cuban-Americans, most of whom live in Florida and strongly oppose his policies. "It is incredible that at this point in history, the Republican candidate, decorated as a hero, would become the pawn of that mafia. No one who believes in himself...

After the star-less Golden Globes and People’s Choice Awards took a ratings hit last month, Hollywood glittered bright during last night’s Grammy Awards, with big names like Beyonce, Kanye West and Amy Winehouse performing. The result, however, wasn’t quite the post-strike celebration that carrier CBS may have hoped for. From 8 to 11 p.m. the Grammys averaged a 6.9 adults 18-49 rating, according to Nielsen overnights, down 17 percent from last year’s 8.3 final rating. That may be the lowest-rated Grammys in at least a decade, though the numbers could change when final ratings are released. Fast nationals measure timeslot...

Apparently USA Today doesn't like having its articles posted here, but this is the link: http://www.usatoday.com/money/companies/earnings/2008-01-31-ny-times_N.htm?csp=34