Wednesday squibs

A whole bunch o’ stuff.

• Most People Don’t Watch Web Video For More Than 60 Seconds. Which could mean limited attention spans, too much competition for attention or too much crappy video that’s not worth more than 10 seconds. Hmmmm.
• Would You Pay for a Web App That Delivers the News? My first reaction to the question is “no, I have a network of people, particularly on Twitter, who serve as editors and help deliver my news.” But there’s more to the Information Valet proposal than the headline suggests and, as I slowly get my head around the idea, the possibility I would pay gets a little higher.
• Screw AP style! Ain’t gonna be a journalist no more writes a fourth-year student who has had it. And his prof calls him one of his most promising students. Read both posts for a peek inside the minds of some of those in the j-school classroom.
• Is filming someone in the street a breach of privacy? This posts digs into European law, but the issue is universal and deserves some discussion beyond the usual “you’re standing in a public place.”
• MediaScout shuts down due to lack of funds. A daily online local at Canadian media is no more.
• CBC to overhaul TV news divisions. The National replaces two weekend shows, gets more on-screen text and graphics, may lose the anchor desk.
• 30 Must-have gifts for journalists. Mark Luckie’s sense of humour comes through as the list goes on. I’m asking Santa for the jewel-encrusted USB stick.
• Why not writing a story is innovation. If you read any other j-blogs, you’ve already been pointed to this very-interesting piece by Josh Korr. This is a reminder to go read it.
• Writing on the wall for newspapers. Just because we need another gloom-filled report/dose of reality.
• An Elegy for Us. Read with Newspapers: The Final Solution, for some insiders’ words on the battered industry we all love.
• Keep them coming back (how?) Mindy McAdams ponders what online news sites need to do to draw and hold traffic, and offers some ideas. And before you protest that much of what she’s talking about isn’t big-J journalism, thing about the role columnists, classifieds, TV listings and comics used to play in bringing back readers every day.