Comment on Why the chaos in media might be a good thing by rick

Mathew, One point I don't see many people addressing is not only the overabundance of content, but the lack of diversity in that content. I'm 53 (aieee...) and when I was a kid there were 3 networks, 2 daily papers and various weekly and monthly magazines. If you followed the news would thus had 5 choices for local news (3 TV and 2 papers) and you got the news when THEY delivered it. National news? 3 network news programs. In depth analysis? Usually the Sunday paper or weekly magazines like Time or Newsweek. Special interests? Monthly magazines. My point is that a lot of the people running news organizations grew up in similar environments and still seem to assume that their news program is the sole source of someone's news so the national media all repeat the same handful of stories, the local sources repeat national and world events that aren't remotely local, and none of them ask who the heck their market is and what their focus really should be. My local news should be the best source of news about where I live. Cover larger stories if they have direct, relatable effects locally. Drop world and national news entirely unless there's something HUGE happening. Local papers should dig deeply into issues around the region and provide depth that the TV stations can't because of time restrictions. National news should skip wasting time telling me what the stock market did - anyone remotely concerned with that will have that information. None of this is to push aside operational issues like choosing more efficient CMSes etc, but those are playing at the edge. The real questions every news organization needs to ask itself are "Why do we exist? Why should anyone pay any attention to us given the hundreds of sources of information out there?"

Comment on Why the chaos in media might be a good thing by rick

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Why the chaos in media might be a good thing

Everywhere around us we see evidence of chaos and upheaval in the media industry — newspapers laying off staff and even closing, advertising revenues continuing to decline, and so on. What can be done about this state of affairs? Media analyst and journalism professor Clay Shirky says not only is there nothing that can be done about it, but it may actually be a good thing, because it will help spur innovation. Let’s hope he is right, because there is plenty of chaos to go around.

Why the chaos in media might be a good thing

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Why Apple Might Release Two iPhones This Fall

A new iPhone is approaching — this, everyone knows. While WWDC came and went without an announcement, this was expected. Instead, this year it will be all about the fall — with new hardware hitting just in time for the formal launch of iOS 5. But what exactly will the new hardware be? An “iPhone 5″ or an “iPhone 4S”? Or, better yet, both?

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Why Apple Might Release Two iPhones This Fall

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Here's What Those Apple-Samsung TV Rumors Might Be About (AAPL)

One of this week's wackier Apple rumors is that the company is supposedly working with Samsung on some sort of television project.

What's that all about?

We do NOT expect some sort of Samsung-Apple co-branded TV any time soon, or any sort of Samsung TV running an Apple operating system.

If Apple's going to make a TV, it's probably going to do everything itself. That's how Apple makes money.

The most likely answer we can think of -- if there's any element of truth to the rumors -- is that Samsung could potentially be building TVs that support Apple's AirPlay technology built-in. This would allow you to stream video, music, photos, and apps straight from your iPad or iPhone to your TV.

AirPlay is already available for licensing through a company called Bridgeco, and has already been announced for audio gadgets. It's only a matter of time until it's available for video gadgets, too. (Beyond the Apple TV set-top box, that is.)

The AirPlay chip adds about $100 to the cost of the device, we've heard, which is the same price as an Apple TV box, which does a lot more than AirPlay. But there are still probably some people out there who would spend an extra $100 on their Samsung TV for it to be built-in AirPlay-compatible, without needing to hook up an extra device. (And maybe Samsung has figured out a way to reduce the cost.)

How would Apple gain from this? By selling more iPhones, iPod touches, and iPads.

Beyond that, there's also the potential that Apple and Samsung are just teaming up for TV components for an Apple television that could launch sometime in the future. Apple has a big display contract with LG, but it still works with Samsung for a lot of other components, so maybe it's sourcing TV stuff from Samsung.

Either way, we expect to hear more about the next steps for Apple TV sometime by the end of September.

Related: The Next 5 Apple Gadgets To Waste Time Obsessing About

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Here's What Those Apple-Samsung TV Rumors Might Be About (AAPL)

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Here's Why Microsoft Buying Nokia Might Actually Make Sense (MSFT, NOK, RIMM)

Today's wacky mobile industry rumor is that Microsoft could be interested in buying Nokia's mobile phone division, on the heels of the companies' Windows Phone 7 partnership.

Now, this is pretty out-there. The deal would be huge -- Nokia's market cap is $32 billion -- and it would be a big shift in Microsoft's focus. So it's easy to laugh this off as a big, silly rumor.

But there's one reason why Microsoft potentially buying Nokia actually makes sense.

Because it's the only way that Microsoft could ever make enough money off Windows phones to matter.

Apple, HTC, and RIM have shown that when a smartphone company is performing well, there is a healthy amount of profit to be made. Apple likely makes a few hundred dollars in profit per iPhone sold, for example.

Meanwhile, Microsoft has been trying to use the Windows model for mobile operating systems for the last several years, and that just doesn't really work in mobile. The per-device license fees are just too small -- likely less than $15 per phone -- and don't add up to big-enough numbers to make much of a difference, especially for a company as big as Microsoft.

If Microsoft did buy Nokia, and could somehow, miraculously, figure out a near-Apple-like quality of hardware and software integration, and sell a bunch of phones, there's quite a lot of profit that can be made. (Especially if they can do something creative with Skype, which Microsoft bought last week.)

And that's why Microsoft may want to own the whole thing, and not just sell Windows Phone 7 licenses to Nokia, who makes the real profit on the device sale.

(Yes, this could potentially alienate other potential partners, like HTC, Samsung, etc. But if it's not going to get Android-like distribution from those companies, that's a risk worth taking if Microsoft can make all of the profits from Nokia smartphone sales. Meanwhile, a Nokia-Microsoft deal would almost certainly end the potential for Microsoft to acquire RIM.)

Again, this is way out there, and would be very risky. But it's not completely stupid.

Read: How To Use Your iPhone On Vacation (The Right Way!)

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Here's Why Microsoft Buying Nokia Might Actually Make Sense (MSFT, NOK, RIMM)

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The PlayBook Might Get Access To Hulu After All (RIMM)

Hulu wasted no time in blocking the PlayBook's Flash-enabled browser from viewing videos on Hulu.com.

While it wasn't a huge surprise, it was a bummer for those of us who got a taste of how awesome Hulu looked on the PlayBook.

Fortunately, RIM sees the importance of Hulu, and is in talks with the company to bring the Hulu Plus app to the PlayBook, WSJ reports.

Hulu Plus costs $7.99 per month, and works on several devices, including the iPhone, iPad, and a few smart TVs. It also gives you access to full seasons of TV shows, not just the five most recent episodes like non-subscribers get on hulu.com.

Don't Miss: Our Review Of The BlackBerry PlayBook

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The PlayBook Might Get Access To Hulu After All (RIMM)

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