Mother nature is pumping some life into the usually sleepy August news cycle. Earlier this week, an earthquake shook the East Coast and dominated front pages. But there’s nothing like […]
Media and Journalism
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
Herald having difficulty covering itself
It’s a good thing we’re a two-newspaper town — especially when one of those two papers is the subject of a very public libel lawsuit. The Herald reports today that […]
Posted inEconomy, Environment, The Download
Evergreen Solar, R.I.P.
The editorial obituaries for Evergreen Solar, which filed for bankruptcy protection this week, varied depending on the politics of the newspaper. The Boston Herald said the bankruptcy means the state’s […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
The truth about Portnoy’s complaints
You have crossed the line of tastelessness when even Howard Stern, who has made a fortune personifying tastelessness, says you’ve crossed the line. That’s what happened yesterday to Barstool Sports […]
Posted inArts and Culture, The Download, Uncategorized
Back to math class for the Globe
We’re all familiar with the warning to keep matches out of the hands of children. The same should often be said with respect to statistics and reporters. Today’s exhibit: The […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Education, The Download
Just between us, watch what you say
Mark Tremblay is, by all accounts, a reasonably intelligent family man who works two jobs, including installing “kill switches” in police cars. A 5-2 majority opinion by the state’s highest […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics
Unions, think-tank spar in Connecticut
Public sector unions in Connecticut filed a complaint last month with the state’s attorney general alleging a conservative think tank located in Hartford unlawfully tapped into the state’s email system […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
Hyperlocal news in trouble
Whatever the future of news is, Jack Shafer of Slate doesn’t think it will include Patch. Shafer recently wrote a piece deriding AOL’s network of community news sites known as […]
Posted inEducation, Politics
Mixed media
the trend at first seemed heartening. The problems in the US education system had become so compelling that filmmakers recently produced several documentaries on the topic, with some even enjoying […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Politics, The Download
Frank credit
In his column yesterday, the Herald’s Howie Carr skewered US Rep. Barney Frank for recommending his then-partner Herb Moses for a job 20 years ago at Fannie Mae, a housing […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Education, The Download
The Download: Howie Inc.
Howie Carr, the one-man media empire, knows how to promote himself. His latest book, Hitman: The Untold Story of Johnny Martorano: Whitey Bulger’s Enforcer and the Most Feared Gangster in […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
White House all wet taking Herald out of pool
Did anyone with even a passing knowledge of Boston politics and media not know what the front page of the Herald would look like today after the White House made […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
The Download: The Eagle-Tribune and Lantigua
In 1988, the Eagle-Tribune won a Pulitzer Prize for its relentless coverage of Willie Horton and the Massachusetts prison furlough program. The paper published nearly 200 stories detailing how Horton, […]
Posted inEnvironment, Politics, The Download
The Download: Oddfellows: Globe to print Herald
What’s next, Howie Carr sporting a bowtie? Frank Phillips and Brian Mooney acknowledging their Herald roots? The Inside Track finding something interesting in the Boring Broadsheet? The Globe writing a […]
Posted inEducation, Politics, The Download
The Download: KIPP success a matter of degrees
In the world of high-achieving urban charter schools, seeing graduates ultimately go on and finish college has always been the Holy Grail, the goal that school leaders say truly represents […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
Bin Laden’s long time on the lam
By Michael Jonas Just how long was the period between Osama Bin Laden’s emergence as the most wanted man on the planet following the 9/11 attacks and his killing last […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Politics, The Download
The Download: The birtherism of a nation
According to a New York Times/CBS poll released last week, 25 percent of adults surveyed believe that President Obama was not born in the US. Among Republicans, the figure soars […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
The Download: Brown tome wrecker
The Boston Globe, in its review of US Sen. Scott Brown’s new book, Against All Odds, described it as “an incredible life story, told in the safest and most surface-level […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
The Download: What Times is it?
Information may want to be free, but journalists and publishers want to get paid. Since the Internet destroyed the advertising model that fueled newspaper profits, finding a new online profit […]
Posted inEducation, Politics, The Download
The Download: March madness
The NCAA men’s basketball tournament carries the right nickname, but not because of the excitement it generates. The madness is the big-money pursuit of top basketball talent by colleges and […]
Posted inEducation, Environment, Politics, The Download
The Download: Taking a chance on schools
There has been a lot of talk recently about lotteries and education. The documentary “Waiting for Superman” was structured around the stories of children whose families had pinned hopes for […]
Posted inEnvironment, Health Care, The Download
The Download: Clear as mud
The Department of Public Utilities ruling yesterday on the proposed NStar-Northeast Utilities merger is about as clear as mud. For 60 years, the DPU has approved mergers if they cause […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics, The Download
The Download: First and goal
Union matters seem to dominate the 24-hour news cycle these days. From Wisconsin’s governor looking to eviscerate his state’s public sector unions; to Ohio being on the verge of doing […]
