The mysterious MI6 print recruitment ad that's popping up in newspapers – including the London Evening Standard and the Sunday Times this weekend – is the work of M&C Saatchi, according to the contact with a copy of the Daily Telegraph under their arm Monkey just sat next to on a park bench. We could tell you who they are. But we'd have to kill you, natch.

By Jay Jones NEVADA — It’s always refreshing to see a journalist who’s not afraid to ask the tough questions—especially the tough follow-up questions. And when that journalist is appearing on television, instead of in print, it’s even more of a treat. Nevadans who’ve watched Jon Ralston’s “Face to Face” TV program for years know of his rapid-fire delivery and his take-no-prisoners style....

In the UK, journalists at Thompson Reuters have voted to strike for the first time in over 25 years in response to a below-inflation pay offer. Journalists will strike for 48 hours next week, just as Thompson Reuters publishes its full year financial results, reports The Guardian.

Africa Times News reported that the first African tablet device, which was presented at the Africa Web Summit in September 2011, has been launched in Congo on January 30. Way-C, which means "starlight" ("lumière des étoiles") in a North Congolese dialect, is the first in the history of these new technologies on the continent, the article says. 

Zimbabwe's media commission said on February 2 that it will ask authorities to ban foreign newspapers that are not registered to operate in the country, news24 reported. Commission chair Godfrey Majonga singled out South Africa's Sunday Times newspaper as having failed to comply with the rules, which require all journalists working in the country to obtain accreditation from the commission, the article said. 

In the UK, journalists at Thompson Reuters have voted to strike for the first time in over 25 years in response to a below-inflation pay offer. Journalists will strike for 48 hours next week, just as Thompson Reuters publishes its full year financial results, reports The Guardian.

Africa Times News reported that the first African tablet device, which was presented at the Africa Web Summit in September 2011, has been launched in Congo on January 30. Way-C, which means "starlight" ("lumière des étoiles") in a North Congolese dialect, is the first in the history of these new technologies on the continent, the article says.

Zimbabwe's media commission said on February 2 that it will ask authorities to ban foreign newspapers that are not registered to operate in the country, news24 reported. Commission chair Godfrey Majonga singled out South Africa's Sunday Times newspaper as having failed to comply with the rules, which require all journalists working in the country to obtain accreditation from the commission, the article said.

Facebook is preparing a mobile ad product that could feature animations and video content, according to a report in DigiDay. Facebook doesn't currently run any ads on its mobile apps, even though 425 million people use Facebook every month on their phones and iPads. The social network says its failure to get into mobile is actually a drag on its revenues.

Razorfish mobile practice lead Paul Gelb told DigiDay his agency was engaged in a pilot program for “mobile and cross-platform rich-media ads”:

Gelb implied advertisers will be able to reach users across all devices with a single buy. Judging by Facebook’s desktop ad formats, it’s likely they’ll be disseminated across users’ networks as they interact with them.

The units themselves, meanwhile, will offer similar functionalities to other mobile rich-media ad providers such as Medialets and Crisp Media, Gelb suggested. Ads powered by those companies typically feature interactive elements and animations, video content, location-based features and various calls to action such as tap-to-call and tap-to-coupon.

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See Also:

• Facebook Claims It Increased P&G's Deodorant Sales By 9%
• Facebook's Ad Business Distilled Into 12 Crucial Facts
• Facebook Says Growth Of Mobile Users Threatens Its Ad Revenue

Saved By The Bell, 90210, Melrose Place, Dawson’s Creek, The O.C., One Tree Hill, Gossip Girl and now Pretty Little Liars, (a show about four teens who are in a bit of a “I know what you did last summer,” scenario), has captured teens, tweens and more by fulfilling that addictive urge for a good, fun, corny, juicy teen drama.  A few years ago, I began writing about television in college when an obsession with Gossip Girl caused me to compare the inaccuracies of the Girl’s NYU depiction. Now that we’re living in a world with a social web that’s more mature, and widespread passion is very easy to hear.

A quick glance at Twitter’s very own 2011 Year In Review ranks ABC Family’s Pretty Little Liars in the top television spot proving that their fans simply can’t stop talking about the show that has over 322,000 followers on Twitter and almost 7 million Facebook likes. ABCFamily.com recently launched a web series called “Inside ABC Family,” to give fans of their popular shows more content when the show’s not airing. We spoke with Beth Johnson, VP of Digital Media for ABCFamily.com about the new series.

Lost Remote: What are the goals with this show?

Beth Johnson: In a lot of ways Inside ABC Family is an evolution of the conversation already taking place on ABCFamily.com, Twitter and Facebook. We’re building on that by pulling together all the elements our fans love most – insider perspectives, exclusive content, sneak peeks and spoilers — plus the latest social media interaction – into one video series. We are also really excited to offer the insider perspective for our Millennial fans from our Millennial network team.

LR: Will it be promoted at all on-air?

Johnson: There are certainly a lot of interesting possibilities but for now we want to really nail the fan engagement online. The series itself will live on abcfamily.com, YouTube and our smartphone-optimized mobile site.

LR: Will Twitter, Facebook, GetGlue, anything else be incorporated into the run-of-show for the episodes?

Johnson: Absolutely, each show has a social media roundup where staffers pull topics that are trending on Facebook and Twitter and speak to those. They address fans questions and offer key insights based on what the fans are talking about in the social space and on abcfamily.com.

Radio 1 presenter Chris Moyles announces more acts for two-day Hackney Weekend, including Dappy and Emeli Sande

Jessie J, Professor Green and Ed Sheeran are among the acts who have been added to the bill of the BBC Radio 1 Olympic event, Hackney Weekend.

Former N-Dubz star Dappy and Brits critics' choice winner Emeli Sande were also among the latest additions announced by breakfast show host Chris Moyles on Friday morning.

The event – also featuring Lana Del Rey and Jack White – is expected to be attended by 100,000 people across two days in June. Already announced for the station's biggest-ever free show, taking place at east London's Hackney Marshes, are Tinie Tempah and Plan B. More than 100 artists will play on six stages as part of the BBC's Olympic celebrations.

Fans can register an interest in tickets from Monday, with applications taking place in March. The majority of tickets are being reserved for people from Hackney and nearby Olympic boroughs. The event is being staged on 23 and 24 June and will also be screened on BBC3.

The magazine circulation report due out next week will show celebrity weeklies are continuing to take a beating on the newsstand, early reports indicate.

Newsstand giant People, usually a reliably strong seller, tumbled 12.4 percent on newsstands to an average of 1.1 million for the second half of 2011 versus the year-earlier period, per the Audit Bureau of Circulations’ Rapid Report. This follows a first half in which the Time Inc. title’s newsstand sales fell 10.5 percent year-over-year.

The industry bellwether still managed to keep its total circ essentially even at 3.6 million by selling 4.3 percent more subscriptions, though. All told, it also delivered a 3.5 percent bonus over its circulation promise, which should keep advertisers happy.

People's results don't augur well for the rest of the category, though. Indeed, Bauer Publishing's In Touch and Life & Style fell about 8.5 percent and 7.5 percent, respectively, on the newsstand.

"The economy wasn't as good as people hoped, and the economy is the biggest factor in magazine sales," said Ian Scott, president of ad sales for Bauer.

American Media Inc.’s Star missed rate base on 12 of the 22 second-half issues reported so far while Wenner Media’s Us Weekly missed its circulation guarantee on five of 13 issues. Numbers are from the Rapid Report. 

David Leckey, evp of American Media, said AMI's newsstand would be down about 16 percent across its titles and predicted an industrywide newsstand decline of about 9 percent. "Fitness, celebrity—I think it was one of the hardest six months that I can remember."

Other newsstand giants also struggled against a backdrop of a sluggish economy and reader migration online. No. 1 seller Hearst's Cosmopolitan was off 6.4 percent to 1.5 million. Time Inc.'s In Style fell 14 percent to 561,630.

Condé Nast’s single copy sales fell 10.5 percent across its 18-title portfolio. The shortfall was caused by declines at its biggest newsstand sellers, Glamour, which was down 10 percent; Vogue, off 5.6 percent; and Vanity Fair, down 20.1 percent.

The glam magazine publisher sold 2 percent more subscriptions, though, keeping overall circ flat with the year-ago period. Numbers were supplied by the company.
 

 

The chance is low for Apple to launch so-called iTV products in the second quarter of 2012 as there are no signs indicating that Sharp is ready to ship IGZO (indium gallium zinc oxide) panels to Apple, according to industry sources.

Advertisers placed many Super Bowl spots on YouTube or social media well ahead of the game, hoping to start a conversation and generate follow-up interest.

Technology increasingly blurs the lines between computer, television, phone and tablet. Online video options grow almost by the hour. A screen, in the era of cyber choice, is a screen is a screen. Still, to fill your screen with popular sports, comedies and dramas from the brands that dominate your television, generations-old economic models will have to be rearranged for the wild, wild Web.

Clay Shirky: "In fact, what [The New York Times, Minneapolis Star-Tribune and Chicago Sun Times] are doing, and I think an increasing number of papers are copying them, is saying we will never get a majority or even a sizable minority of our readers to pay us directly, but we can design a system in which some of our most passionate, engaged readers pay us directly, and the rest of the readers, the casual readers, we can keep around for the advertising revenue." Listen to the full interview here

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J-School Buzz | Student Press Law Center
J-School Buzz, an independent blog covering the Missouri School of Journalism, has found an ally in its complaints about the Columbia Missourian’s policy forbidding its student reporters to work for other… Read more

From rap to 'radicalisation scores', today's e-jihadists are more than just consumers – but they tend to keep it all online

Intelligence analysts remain vexed over the internet's role in radicalising tomorrow's terrorists. Some analysts point to the continued trickle of e-jihadists turned real-world terrorists attracting headlines throughout the west for their ambitions of bloodshed – such as those involved in a recent plot to bomb the London stock exchange – as proof that the internet is a contributing cause of terrorism. Other analysts point to that same small number of terrorists as proof of just how rare it is for one of the thousands of online al-Qaida cheerleaders to try and exchange their keyboards for explosives.

The reality of al-Qaida's online movement today is the result of a winding interplay between the supply of al-Qaida's propaganda, and the demand for it from supporters worldwide. In the early 2000s, al-Qaida supporters flocked to basic websites to get their fix of news about al-Qaida's latest plot, or recent martyrdom. Bandwidth was limited and accessibility constrained so most of the Arabic-speaking online al-Qaida supporters used the internet as library: they logged on, downloaded what they needed and logged off.

As al-Qaida's media specialists began to understand the power of the web, they began opening internet-based discussion forums. They also started centralising their big-think ideological and strategic texts, which they encouraged supporters to download, read and repost. The written word became a critical part of the process by which one came to invest in al-Qaida. In the way that most kids collect comic books or baseball cards, these radical books, monographs and training material became prized possessions among its followers – something to stockpile, trade and read over and over again.

By the mid-noughties, bilingual adherents in the west began translating these written materials, making al-Qaida's ideas more accessible to more people in more places. Ideas, punctuated by operations, drove the movement's growth. But as al-Qaida's core group grew less relevant, due to attention shifting to the Iraqi insurgency, al-Qaida's global following began entertaining themselves in the robust number of discussion forums that had appeared. These forums became a bastion for intellectual, ideological and personal debate, like a jihadi version of salons. Importantly, they also provided a feeling of social connectedness with like-minded individuals, something few of them were able to find in their respective physical world lives.

They were not, however, any sort of assembly line for producing real-world terrorists. Most of these individuals craved blood on their computer monitors, but few were willing to shed it themselves. Those who were willing to sign off and sign up were mostly from Arab countries, interested more in travelling to Afghanistan to join the fight than staying home and blowing themselves up. The overwhelming majority of al-Qaida internet supporters were lurkers from the sidelines, afraid to jump into the online fray.

Then, by 2007, al-Qaida's senior leadership came roaring back and embarked on an aggressive media venture. Those long ideological treatises were falling out of fashion, supplanted by high-resolution, hour-long documentary videos. As al-Qaida released more videos, they began rolling out more personalities to adoring fans. No longer was it just Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri producing videos. Men like Abu Yahya al-Libi, Abu Layth, Mustafa Abu al-Yazid and a host of others became household names for al-Qaida's online fanboys.

Towards the end of the last decade, calls for Facebook, YouTube and blog invasions flooded the online discussion forums. They hoped that social media websites would be the next front for al-Qaida occupation. Facebook and YouTube were ideally structured for the more youthful supporters, less interested in engaging in the online fisticuffs of the discussion forums or reading drawn-out treaties on the meaning of jihad. They wanted action, dynamism and multimedia. Social media sites offered an easy and quick way to host, organise and display propaganda images and videos, the primary form of al-Qaida propaganda these days.

But most importantly, these kinds of sites allowed them to become complete producers of, not just consumers of, al-Qaida's global mission. They could record their own jihadi videos on their smartphones and upload them to YouTube. They could use a webcam in their bedroom to take Facebook profile shots and update their status every 10 minutes. Jihadi kids were recording pro-al-Qaida rap songs on their computers. Taken together with the call for grassroots violence being pushed by al-Qaida's English-speaking pied piper, Anwar al-Awlaki, the line between terrorism and media had been permanently blurred.

Thanks to the internet's 24/7 accessibility, one could spend countless hours online, downloading material, posting thoughts, watching videos or designing imagery. That kind of tireless activity would catapult an average individual through the various ranks of moderator and administrator. They can now acquire "radicalisation scores" and boost their "fundamentalism metres". Thanks to the internet, anyone can become a legend. But for some, even legendary status online is not satisfying. Only the taste of blood in the real world is enough.

In 2012, al-Qaida's senior leadership is several heartbeats away from extinction. Their affiliate groups in Yemen, Algeria and elsewhere remain embattled. What remains is a global support movement that is rabid, technologically empowered, but less concerned with the al-Qaida brand name or all that came along with it. Al-Qaida's global movement today is sloppy and self-centred. It is only the most zealous few who seek to live up to their legendary status in the virtual world these days. The problem for intelligence and law-enforcement professionals is identifying that needle in the online jihadi haystack.

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Ananda Marchildon claims Elite withheld Dutch competition prize money and sacked her because her hips were 2cm too big

A winner of Holland's Next Top Model is suing her agency for refusing to give her the prize money she claims she is due because they say she is "too fat".

Ananda Marchildon said she only received €10,000 (£8,300) of the €75,000 contract she was promised after winning the competition in 2001, aged 21. She was also stripped of her title.

The 1.83m (6ft) model claims she was sacked by Elite Model Management two years into the three-year agreement because her hip measurement exceeded their maximum limit of 90cm. The average European woman has 102.9cm hips. At the time of her dismissal, Marchildon claims her hips were 92cm.

Her lawyers claim she lost rather than gained weight after winning the show. They argue the agency is obliged to work with Marchildon "as she looked in the final", rather than retrospectively forcing her to conform to their rules. The case has started a debate in the Netherlands about the extent to which young women are expected to adhere to near-impossible physical standards.

Dieuwke Levinson-Arps, who is representing Marchildon, claims her client was told by a lawyer working for Elite that she was sacked because "although she has a nice face, she has a fat arse" and that "she never had it in her to become a top model because she was unsuitable for catwalk work". She said Marchildon's physiology meant she had "no chance" of having 90cm hips, even with a strict diet and exercise regime. "Already she was very skinny, almost anorexically skinny," said Levinson-Arps.

In the two years after winning the show, Marchildon received around 20 assignments for Elite, mostly in print advertisements. She did not get any catwalk offers.

Marchildon is suing Elite for unfair dismissal. She wants them to pay out the remaining €65,000 she says she was promised for winning the show. Elite is contesting the claim.

Wikke Kootstra, a lawyer for Elite, said: "It was impossible for Elite to find [Marchildon] modelling jobs since she wasn't in the required shape."

Asked about the reason for a preferred hip measurement of 90cm, Kootstra said in an email: "Elite models model couture. Couture clothing is made in one size only: (très très) petite. This is not something modelling agencies can change. (I imagine they would welcome such a change since it would make their job so much easier … but it is not in their power to change what the market dictates.)

"Hip measurements are not the only criterium for the possibility to find suitable jobs for a model; they have to be in excellent trim and take extremely good care of their appearances, eat right, sleep well, exercise etc. It's not for everybody."

Kootstra said Elite never signed a contract with Marchildon. After winning the show she was given a contract with another modelling agency, MTA. She was then placed with the higher-profile Elite agency, said Kootstra, "as is customary in the modelling world, to obtain maximal exposure".

To support their case, Marchildon's legal team wrote to Tyra Banks, the American supermodel who owns the rights to the Next Top Model brand, saying the incident "exploits" and "grossly neglects" the character of Banks's original format. Banks does not appear to have received the letter as it was subsequently returned unopened.

Banks has been outspoken about her own weight fluctuations since tabloids ran an unflattering photograph of her in a bathing suit under headlines such as: "America's Next Top Waddle" and "Tyra Porkchop".

In March last year a beauty queen in Texas won a case against the pageant's organisers who stripped her of her crown after she allegedly put on weight.

A court judgment in Marchildon's case is expected on 7 March in Amsterdam.

By Felix Salmon Ken Doctor has a very smart and interesting take on the news that the NYT now has 390,000 paying digital subscribers — plus another 16,000 at the Boston Globe. It’s unambiguously good news, on many fronts. First, and most importantly, digital ad revenues went up by 10% in the area of the business with the paywall, while plunging...

One of my New Year’s resolutions is to join Foursquare, the online service that allows you to “check in” wherever you are. (Among my other resolutions: to try absinthe and to be described as “cheeky.” And yes, to exercise more and eat well, with the possible exception of the absinthe.)

On Foursquare, you can earn “points” and “badges,” and you even become the “mayor” of locations that you frequent often. You can share all of this beyond Foursquare itself via Facebook and Twitter.

I have several friends on Foursquare who post their check-ins to Twitter and Facebook, and I was curious about how and why they used it. I wondered why they would feel the need to let the world know that they were at the grocery store, a gas station or the office.

I asked friends and colleagues about Foursquare. What was I missing? Is it worth joining? Here’s how Margret Anne Hutaff, program coordinator for e-learning at UNC’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication, described how she uses Foursquare:

“I try to check in at unique places and events. I’m not one to check in at my apartment (privacy issues) or Starbucks every morning or the j-school every day. That can get annoying for your friends/followers. And I don’t always publish it to Twitter. Usually I say something or post a photo when I post to Twitter.”

That journalistic approach makes sense: Check in when you are doing something you consider newsworthy to friends and followers. They may not care that you are at the grocery store, but they may be interested to know that you are at a workshop on campus, out of state for a conference, or somewhere that’s simply interesting.

Hutaff also made this suggestion: ”Sometimes I use the app to find places to eat or explore, especially when I travel. I sometimes leave tips about places, and it’s helpful to see tips from others, too.”

Again, I see the value in gathering and sharing information, regardless of the medium or method. That’s what publications like Rough Guides and Zagat has been doing for decades, after all.

I’ve been on Foursquare for about a month. So far, I am enjoying it. Yes, it’s a bit of goofy fun to get “points” for checking in somewhere. I’ve earned a couple of badges and even become a mayor of my gym, at least for the moment.

When I share check-ins on Twitter, I aim to offer something of value to my followers. A check-in by itself is a bit like a robo-Tweet. So I include a comment about what I am doing at that place, and I add a photo on occasion.

The idea is to “contribute to the story,” as this Atlantic article about Twitter suggests, and “to be informative or funny — or, ideally, informative and funny.”

On the latter quality, perhaps I’ll check in when I get around to following through on that absinthe resolution. Or maybe not.