Story Archives of 'Journalism'

Film critics are in trouble. The century-old profession grew up alongside cinema, and the thoughtful reviews and theoretical writings from high-profile critics shaped how we understand the movies. But as journalism struggles financially and more reviewers are getting laid off or fired, critics wonder what’s to come of their profession.

That’s where film critic Gerald Peary stepped in. He’s been writing about film for over 25 years, and has been a weekly columnist and reviewer for The Boston Phoenix since 1996. He’s now stepped behind the camera for the first time to direct a film about his colleagues.

It’s called For The Love of Movies, and it looks at the past, present, and future of film criticism. It screens tonight at The Music Hall in Portsmouth. We're joined by the film’s producer, Amy Geller, and writer and director Gerald Peary.

Boston Phoenix: Gerald Peary: No Respect?

Los Angeles Times: Roger Ebert: Back to the future of film criticism

Huffington Post: David Sterritt: Do Film Critics Have a Future? Who Cares?

Life In Hell: How To Be a Clever Film Critic

In September, former senate majority leader Tom Daschle spoke at The New School in New York City. He described a health care town hall meeting that was nothing like the shrill, hostile meetings then leading the news. “The next morning,” Daschle says, “I read the newspaper and I’d say 95% of the coverage in the paper was about the demonstrators and quotes that they had, either about me, or about health care that were completely off base. Nothing about the thoughtful, substantive discussion that occurred for an hour and a half in that hall.”

The headlines generated by gun-toting protesters, people decrying “socialized medicine” and “death panels” have faded, but the health care debate continues. This week, Democrats and Republicans in the House of Representatives are expected to vote on their versions of the health care reform bill, bills that are quite different from the Senate’s version.

If you find yourself getting lost in the process, you are not alone. Trudy Lieberman has been following health care and the media’s coverage of the issue for the Columbia Journalism Review. She also teaches health and medicine reporting at the City University of New York and joins us to grade the media coverage of the health care debate.

Columbia Journalism Review: Truth Emerges about the Public Option

L.A. Times: Media needs to deepen coverage of healthcare reform

Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism: Health News Coverage in the U.S. Media

(Photo by Truthout.org via Flickr/Creative Commons)

The day after the US government announced it was taking over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, NPR.org launched a new podcast, Planet Money, as a way to present very complicated economic issues to the every-person, from real estate, the stock market, the job market, health care economics and more. As part of their visit to New Hampshire, they join us to talk about the state of the economy and about their work.

Guests

• Alex Blumberg, contributing editor for Planet Money and a producer for This American Life
• Chana Joffe-Wal, correspondent for Planet Money

A new study from the Pew Research Center for People and the Press finds that public confidence in how accurate the press has reached its lowest level in twenty years. More folks say news organizations fail to report all the facts, project political biases, and succumb to the influence of the powerful. We’ll explore why Americans feel this way and ask what it says about the future of journalism.

Guests

• Megan Garber, news innovation beat reporter at the Columbia Journalism Review
• Michael Dimock, Associate Director at the Pew Research Center for People and the Press

We'll also hear from

• James Pindell, longtime New Hampshire political reporter and author of the political news website NHPoliticalReport.com
• Jeff Bartlett, General Manager of WMUR-TV
• TBA

Consider all the issues taken up by the New Hampshire state legislature this session: there's gay marriage. Medical marijuana. Transgender rights. Repealing the death penalty. Not to mention budget cuts and tax increases to deal with an ongling economic crisis.

Yet only four full-time print reporters cover the statehouse: one each for The Concord Monitor, The Manchester Union-Leader, The Nashua Telegraph, and The Associated Press. There was a time when The Monitor had two full-timers there. Both Foster's Daily Democrat and The Lawrence Eagle-Tribune had desks there as well.

The exodus of journalists from local government beats is playing out across the country. American Journalism Review counted the number of full-time statehouse reporters, and found the number decreased by nearly a third since its last count in 2003. Struggling newspapers across the country pick up national wire copy rather than paying reporters to watch over state-level spending and politics.

Here to tell us more about what those numbers mean are Jennifer Dorroh, managing editor for American Journalism Review, and New Hampshire political columnist James Pindell. His new site, NHPoliticalReport.com, launches June 1st.

American Journalism Review: Statehouse Exodus

(Photo by J. Stephen Conn via Flickr/Creative Commons)