Monthly Archives: April 2018

Changes To The State’s Circuit Court Access Website (CCAP)

For some time, there’s been discussion about changing what reporters and the general public can see on the state’s popular circuit court access site, known as CCAP.

Most notably, many dismissed cases will be removed from WCCA. Felonies, small claims, and numerous other case types will be removed after two years and misdemeanors will be removed after one year. This represents a large number of court records that have already been removed from the system.

The WBA Newsroom site has a special section about the state’s Open Meetings and Open Records laws, which you can find here.

Posted by Tim Morrissey

 

SPJ Endorses Protection Of Student Newsrooms

If you’re working in broadcast news, odds are strong that you got your first taste of the profession by working on your high school’s student newspaper – and then for your college radio or TV station.

The Society of Professional Journalists is reaffirming its support for independent student newsrooms.

Next Wednesday (4/25) is Save Student Newsrooms Day.

Posted by Tim Morrissey

Tools To Help Spot Fake Videos

Technology has arrived at the point where talented people can make completely fake videos which seem real.

I wasn’t fooled for one second watching the video in a Buzzfeed article from today. While the video itself was convincing, it was immediately apparent to me that the voicetrack was definitely not President Obama.

The article shows the video (which is decidedly NOT safe for work because of vulgar language) and exposes the technology used to create it, and tools to help determine if a particular video is a fake.

The article is here. Again, be warned: strong language.

Posted by Tim Morrissey

Ethics And “Journalism”

In a day and age where Rush Limbaugh refers to himself as “America’s Anchorman”, the lines between Journalism and entertainment have been blurred almost beyond recognition for many Americans.

David Graham of The Atlantic has some thoughts about Sean Hannity’s ethical mess.

Posted by Tim Morrissey

Pull-it-ser Or Pew-lit-ser?

It’s Pulitzer Prize day – and many of the winners have been announced – and now we’ll have the annual difference of opinion on whether it’s PULL-it-ser or PEW-lit-ser.

There is a definitive answer, if you’re a fan of pronouncing surnames the way the owner of the name does.

The official answer is here, but no doubt we’ll hear it both ways on newscasts across the nation.

Posted by Tim Morrissey

RTDNA: There Are More Journalists Working In TV Newsrooms Than In Newspapers

From Poynter this morning:

For the first time in more than 20 years of research, the Radio Television Digital News Association/Hofstra University Survey found the total population of TV newsrooms has surpassed that of newspapers. In the study, out Monday, the average local TV newsroom employment remains just below its all-time high — and nearly 90 percent of news directors expect their staffing to increase or remain the same in the coming year.

Of the newsrooms that were hiring last year, nearly 20 percent of the newly created positions were digital-focused: web, social media or other digital media positions. That’s the highest proportion of new jobs.

The average size of a TV newsroom has been bigger than the average paper’s newsroom for several years, but this was a first in the study for overall numbers of TV news personnel over newspapers. The study hired news consultant Ken Doctor for the newspaper figures, since the American Society of Newspaper Editors stopped counting newspaper jobs in 2016.

Posted by Tim Morrissey