The 18-24 demographic embraces online news, with upwards of 75 percent consuming online news sources. A global study of young people by research firm Synovate, in conjunction with Microsoft, studied online habits and found that a greater percentage tracked current affairs online than use instant messaging. (continue reading)

News Corp. Chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch believes that journalists themselves are to blame for the media's current woes. He cited new technology and bloggers as pieces to the puzzle that will lead the industry back to a successful path, as long as they re-establish a bond of trust with their readers. (continue reading)

Mike Masnick at TechDirt continues to peddle the belief that "online news has no choice but to be free." I have railed against that sort of view many times in the past, so I won't belabor the point other than to indicate that you can charge for some news. (continue reading)

New York City's Economic Development Corporation stands poised to hire a consulting firm to recommend ways to help the media industry grow in coming years. The government will seek to succeed where much of private media appears to be failing at the moment. (continue reading)

This week Jen Zingsheim and I welcomed Bob Ledrew to the Roundtable. We tackled topics ranging from inappropriate use of tragedy to cash in on an agenda to how the location of the Summer Olympic Games starting today may have affected the public relations surrounding the event. (continue reading)

Last night, Twitter was featured on ABC World News with Charles Gibson. The piece talked about Comcast performing acts of customer service magic by watching the Web for signs of disgruntled customers and then acting as digital detectives to help solve those problems. Are new Twitter users being set up for disappointment? (continue reading)

It will be interesting to see the results after Twitter hits the ABC Evening News this week, in a story detailing how frustrated consumers are turning to Twitter to find customer service. Will we see an influx of consumers flocking to Twitter with service complaints? (continue reading)

Another (print-gasp!) magazine is launched, and Twitter gets its spot with Charlie Gibson. (continue reading)

Last week, the Wall Street Journal covered a new study from Forrester Research that showed business blogs as unimaginative and unsuccessful. Toby Bloomberg takes their criteria and wonders if it really applies--for example, does a blog need comments to be successful? Also: Does Plurk's smaller scale make it the better micro-blogging tool? And no, you cannot require someone to put your on their blogroll. (continue reading)

Welcome to Media Bullseye's weekly Radio Rountable. Joining me as always on this week's episode is CustomScoop VP Jennifer Zingsheim, and our special guest is Todd Van Hoosear. Todd is the social media practice manager at Topaz Partners in Boston, and also heads up the Social Media Club Boston. In this episode, we break down the Associated Press' kerfuffle with the blogosphere, and discuss the impact of Twitter on journalism and PR. (continue reading)

This week the Associated Press made a huge splash in the blogosphere by filing seven takedown notices against the Digg-like social news community the Drudge Retort. According to an article in Monday's New York Times, the AP will "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." Christopher Lynn explores the conflict's historical roots, and the reaction of the blogosphere thus far. (continue reading)

The Associated Press doesn't appear to be making many strides towards clearing up the conflict with the blogosphere that erupted last week, when the news organization sent out take-down notices to bloggers quoting their content. Neville Hobson notes that this week, the organization is claiming that they understand the value bloggers offer--but have a funny way of showing it. Also: Ethics of fair use, Twitter v Plurk, and grammar tips. (continue reading)

Welcome to Media Bullseye's weekly Radio Roundtable discussion. Our special guest this week joining me and CustomScoop VP Jennifer Zingsheim is Bill Sledzik. Bill is a professor of public relations at Kent State university, and a blogger at the popular PR blog Tough Sledding. We inevitably cover the Andrew Cohen ruckus, revisit the ethical concerns regarding Hunter College's recent flog dustup, and wonder whether social media isn't turning us all into annoying whiners. (continue reading)

The traditional newsroom has been getting a lot of bad press lately. Layoffs and other issues have been linked to the expansion of new media and the decrease in the power of print. Jason Falls has some ideas to save the newsroom before it dies off completely. He advises an "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" approach. Also: PR for PR, social media for a good cause, and the best tools for your brand. (continue reading)

I am concerned for Twitter. I may have a case of early adopter hysteria, but what if Business Week is right? What if Twitter goes mainstream and becomes as big as Facebook? Will banner ads and spammy 140 character pitches, and crazy new features be far behind? Let's hope not... (continue reading)

Is bad press is better than no press? The saying goes...but is it really true? Adages like this have been around business for ages. Most people know them, repeat them and offer them as consolation to friends and colleagues as appropriate. Until it happens to them... (continue reading)

A reminder that next Tuesday, the Social Media Club Boston and PRSA Boston are putting on a great program on The Future of Journalism in a Social Media World. (continue reading)

Spam stories interest me because I don't get as up in arms about spam in general the way so many do. Is spam annoying, intrusive, and sometimes downright offensive? Absolutely. Is there much we will ever be able to do to put a stop to it? Probably not. So can't we just try to get along while we work on it? (continue reading)

Public relations belongs to the "girls" in 2008. Some 70% of PR practitioners and 80% of PR students today are women. At Kent State it's closer to 90%. In the communication biz, PR has become the new nursing. I know what you're thinking: So what? Women do well in PR, don't they? They do, indeed. But if you embrace diversity as I do, you have to worry about the trend line. (continue reading)

I'm delighted to welcome John Cass back to the program this week, as he joined Jen Zingsheim and myself for our weekly Radio Roundtable discussion. This week, I wanted to talk to John about his series of posts discussing the "unniversary" of the Cluetrain Manifesto, as well as some other interesting issues that have copped up in the social media world this week. (continue reading)

The Associated Press has announced a new service for iPhone users this week, with over 100 of the AP's member newspapers agreeing to syndicate their content. The news stories will be targeted according to location, with the iPhone user's zip code determining the content they receive. (continue reading)

Often times, miscommunication begins immediately between firm and client, setting the relationship up for failure. Joseph Thornley stresses the importance of setting clear expectations for both sides. Also: Louis Vuitton and branding, reporter-flack symbiosis, and Myspace snobbery. (continue reading)

The sub headline in Frank Washkush's PR Week's Media Survey 2008 is pretty darned appropriate: "A State of Transition." He described how "old media" is attempting to adapt to "new media" and where the two meet - and sometimes clash. Old school vs. new school. NYTimes.com vs. "The Gray Lady." NPR vs. podcasts. Yep. The transition is already here. (continue reading)

Vanity Fair shoots a revealing photo of teen star Miley Cyrus, and the media loses its mind. Am I the only one who thinks this entire scandal and the ensuing media circus was completely coordinated by a PR machine? Whether it was the publication, photographer, Disney or Miley herself, everything about this story seems calculated. Was this reaction truly not anticipated? (continue reading)

Weekday newspaper circulation has continued to drop this year, as every major daily except USA Today and The Wall Street Journal, who both reported modest gains, reported declines, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulation. (continue reading)