Climate change is starting to get the attention it deserves
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Hello and a big welcome to our new subscribers from City University of New York, Euractiv, Rozana.fm, WRBM, Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, The Story Market, Handwerk Magazine, RIA Novosti, DPG media, Minority Africa, Algemeen Nederlands Persbureau, and many others.
A big step for The Fix!
Last Friday we had the pleasure of launching our brand new German language edition at Medientage München, one of the biggest media industry events in Germany.
A panel featuring German initiator Olaf Deininger, Daryna Shevchenko, Jakub Parusinski and Zakhar Protsiuk presented the concept and goals of the edition and why we are especially thrilled to become more closely engaged with the vast and vibrant German media scene.
We also officially launched the new section of the website – to find it just click on the German flag at the top right of our website. For our readers who want to read us in German: Unser wöchentlicher deutschsprachiger Newsletter startet am 08. November. Hier gehts zur Anmeldung. ;-)
Giving climate change the attention it deserves
Yesterday marked the first day of COP26, the international climate conference bringing together world leaders to deliver major commitments to address the crisis (so far results are not promising).
The summit offers a rare opportunity to draw broad public attention to a topic that has long struggled to find the spotlight it deserves (and, importantly, in a more solution-focused way than the yearly 'disaster porn' of floods, hurricanes and wildfires).
As Jacob Granger notes writing for Journalism.co.uk, “the mainstream media has two big issues: declining trust and vanishing young audiences. Covering climate is an opportunity to tackle both”.
Big media outlets have spent a lot of time preparing for COP26: launching climate podcasts (e.g., Economist), newsletters (e.g., The Guardian) and holding a major nine-day conference (New York Times).
Not every outlet has the resources for such investments, but almost every publication can cover the topic from its perspective. The key is to tie this global story to local context or find a relevant thematic angle. Also helpful are smart visualisations and show-casing existing solutions to the crisis.
For a more detailed overview of tips on how all newsrooms can cover climate change, check The Fix’s new article.
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Covering climate change: Four tips for newsrooms
Anton Protsiuk
Tell local stories, use smart visualization, and offer solutions.
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Does your news outlet need an app? Depends on your business model and resources
David Tvrdon
Making an app today seems like a must; however, you shouldn’t rush if you are only starting.
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The US media sector has seen an uptick in dealmaking. What about Europe? Business Insider looks at the 6 most attractive media for investors. The list counts a few youth-focused players (like France’s Konbini that recently came in 8th in our TikTok ranking), slow news start-up Tortoise, paywall solution Steady, and legacy heavyweight The Telegraph.
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Alternative media – which provides a contrarian take on politics vs. mainstream media – attracts people with an interest in politics, but then erodes that interest, according to a study in Digital Journalism by Franz Reiter and Jörg Matthes. This, in turn, may be degrading political knowledge and the overall health of democracies. |
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Google’s search algorithm is accused of being unfair by The Sun and Mail Online, who noticed that search traffic is directed at secondary outlets that copy a story instead of the original. PressGazette looks into evidence on the matter. |
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Does renaming Facebook to Meta matter? Stratechery argues the move is more meaningful that Google’s Alphabet twist, despite similar mechanics. Ignoring the obvious PR issues for a moment, Zuckerberg continues to be highly involved (unlike Brin and Page) and committed to the idea of building the Metaverse. At the centre of the pivot is Reality Labs, the R&D unit that is set to get $10 billion in funding this year (not all investors are thrilled).
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The publication of Facebook Papers, a trove of documents revealing inner workings of the world’s largest social media service, has been among the biggest media stories last week. The Facebook Papers themselves are noteworthy – they show serious flaws in the company’s moderation system and Facebook losing ground with young people, among others. But there’s also an important media angle here.
The Facebook Papers have been reported by a large and growing consortium of several dozen media outlets. Axios notes that the Facebook Papers show that “ news outlets are increasingly willing to work together on big, multifaceted stories.” The Washington Post’s Paul Farhi also writes about investigative reporters’ growing willingness to cooperate as the complexity of the stories they have to uncover increases.
The cooperation, however, hasn’t come without tension and a few publications breaking the embargo ( still an achievement for the highly competitive US publications). There are also growing calls to make the documents publicly available rather than limiting access to select media outlets. Observers also pointed out that, at the time of formation, the consortium didn’t include any publication from the Global South.
Facebook, in the meanwhile, reported strong financial results and rebranded its parent company to Meta, reflecting its growing interest in building the metaverse, while slamming the investigations as attempts to “paint a false picture of [the] company”. |
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Telegram, a messaging service turning into a media platform, is embracing ads. Advertising will be displayed on public channels with over 1,000 subscribers Telegram’s ad platform, at least in its beta form, will be distinct from competing services.
Notably, the advertising won’t use personal information to target users. This means that “every user viewing a particular channel on Telegram sees the same sponsored messages,” according to the description.
The ads are limited to 160 characters, designed to be unobtrusive, and will be moderated. Telegram’s leadership says they plan to start sharing revenues with channel owners – but at a later stage, once the ads “are fully launched and allow Telegram to cover its basic costs”.
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Authorities in Belarus hit a new low in their freedom of speech crackdown and are increasingly prosecuting people for subscribing to opposition Telegram channels. As Novaya Gazeta reports, “you can get up to seven years in jail for being subscribed to independent Telegram channels.” Early last week, 30 people were detained in Gomel, a city in southeastern Belarus.
People are forced to record video confessions (a tool widely used by the Belarus regime) where they say they are “deeply sorry” for “having subscribed to extremist Telegram channels.”
According to Novaya Gazeta, typical punishments include a 15-day arrest or a large fine. Prosecuting people for subscribing to independent Telegram channels seems to be the regime’s last resort as, unlike with websites, the authorities cannot just block them. The good news is you don’t have to subscribe to a Telegram channel to read it.
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Opportunities and deadlines
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Health security research and reporting. The European Journalism Centre is offering grants of up to $7,500 to facilitate research in journalistic analysis on the topic of global health security (i.a., Covid-19). Reports published in opinion-forming media from France, Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, Italy, Norway and Sweden are eligible.
More info: https://bit.ly/3bjnhbo
Deadline: November 5
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Extreme Heat: Climate Change reporting webinar. Los Angeles Times journalists are hosting a webinar looking into a year-long climate investigation. The session will also dive into strategies, storylines, and fresh ideas for covering climate change.
More info: https://bit.ly/3Epoeva
Deadline: November 3
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Biodiversity story grants. The Earth Journalism Network expects to fund between 10 to 14 grants (of $1,000 to 2,000 each), for investigations into threats to biodiversity. Journalists from most emerging markets, across digital, print, TV and radio, are eligible.
More info: https://bit.ly/3BwGSzs
Deadline: November 15
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Chief of Staff to the CFO and Manager Corporate & Business Development. Axel Springer SE is looking for a candidate to manage finance and corporate projects, working with shareholders. Requirements include a degree in a business-related field and 2-4 years of experience in strategy development and implementation (preferably M&A related).
More info: https://bit.ly/3BlfWmc
Deadline: Open until filled
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Digital Marketing Expert. Bauer Media Group is looking for a digital marketing expert. Responsibilities include planning, developing, implementing, and managing digital marketing strategies. The ideal applicant should be a native UK English speaker and have experience with online marketing tools.
More info: https://bit.ly/3jJlGQL
Deadline: Open until filled
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