By William M. Dowd
“I BUY IT FOR THE STORIES”
The Brazilian edition of Playboy has a philosophy Hugh Hefner never dreamed of: newsworthiness.
When possible, the magazine features women who are newsmakers rather than merely gorgeous models or actresses, according to managing editor Edson Aran. Probably just meeting market demand in a nation where the human body is worshipped through a cult of cosmetic surgery and publicly displayed in the barest possible beach attire.
The current issue features nude photos of ex-TV news personality Monica Veloso (seen on cover at right), former mistress of the president of the Brazilian senate who is being investigated for graft. Before that, Brazilian Playboy published nude photo features and stories on such people as a soccer judge fired for poor decisions, a soccer fan who threw fireworks during an international game, and an aide to a senator involved in a 2005 corruption scandal.
“Our best covers are those that have exciting news behind them,” Aran said in a Bloomberg News interview. “It’s a trademark of the Brazilian Playboy, and makes the magazine much more appealing.”
“IN SUMMARY, I’LL BE BRIEF”
USA Today is best known for its ultra-short stories, reliance on quick-hit graphics and charts, and simplistic storytelling. And that’s in the daily editions.
Imagine, then, how much more simplified and stripped-down the “news” will be when parent company Gannett teams up with Tribune Media Services to distribute a new weekly version of the paper outside the U.S.
The news of the entire week will be wrapped up in an eight-page broadsheet edition, in English, to be syndicated to publishers abroad as a supplement for their papers.
Does anyone want this product? Publishers in such gigantic media centers as Armenia, Ecuador, Israel, Mexico and Argentina have signed up for the service. So, you be the judge.
“JOURNALISM WITH A CONSCIENCE, CHEAP”
With most American newspapers reducing reporting staffs and, as a consequence, much of their investigative work, two gaps have opened up: (1.) In the public’s knowledge of what is going on in the murky worlds of government and business, and (2.) in creating a market for such news by whoever is willing to foot the bills for carrying it out.
So, a new venture to be headed up by the soon-to-retire managing editor of The Wall Street Journal will begin producing investigative pieces next year.
ProPublica, to be headed by Paul Steiger, will be based in New York and operate with a budget of about $10 million a year. That’s a small amount of money, all things considered, although it will fund 24 full-time reporters and editors.
Here’s the part that should embarass the mainstream media: ProPublica will provide its articles free of charge through its own Web site as well as to leading news organizations.
The new organization will receive funding from such philanthropies as the Sandler Foundation, and Herbert
Sandler will serve as its chairman.
Thus, if mainstream publications do, indeed, use the ProPublica material, they’ll be guilty of accepting something they de facto admit is good to publish but didn’t think was worth supporting financially.
(Posted 10/15/07)
William M. Dowd is a Capital Region writer and photographer. Besides this blog on current events, he’ll help you keep up with information on food, drink and destinations at Taste for Travel and Dowd On Drinks.