Media

The New York Times is hoping to leverage its success in podcasting into a weekly news program based on several job listings and other chatter.

There’s a new initiative from Facebook that’s meant to support local media, in particular newspapers and I 100% can’t stop laughing because who’s going to fall for this? Especially in light of the news that the social network has claimed yet another victim, with LittleThings shutting down because the changes to Facebook’s algorithm have resulted in dramatically diminished traffic to the site.

Big media companies are sorely lacking in the kind of racial and gender newsroom diversity that would allow them to speak more authoritatively about those underserved communities, a shortcoming that makes members of those communities reluctant to talk to the press. This goes along the same lines as the story from a few weeks ago about how tech companies could avoid a lot of their self-inflicted wounds by hiring more people who aren’t young, white misanthropes. In both cases, a wide array of voices helps identify issues and shortcomings a monoculture would miss.

Epix is the latest media company to throw its hat in the streaming OTT service ring. And Viacom is firming up plans for its offering.

Spending big on original content is obviously working for Netflix, which reportedly will have 700+ original shows and movies available in 2018. That’s total, not new material.

TechCrunch, that old bastion of the days when blogs could scale by sheer force of will, has a new design (at least to some readers) and a new mission statement.

Hard to read the news that PBS is launching a conservative-minded talk show as anything other than someone’s desperate attempt to placate lawmakers who always identify the organization as the bastion of liberal elitism. Funny how government funding was meant to keep it free from the influence of advertisers but now the threat of pulling that funding is a powerful influence in and of itself.

Buzzfeed is looking to supplement some of the revenue it’s lost to various Facebook algorithm changes with the introduction of a line of branded housewares available at Walmart.

A planned collaboration between Vogue and Vice has been squashed for a number of reasons, none of them good.

Marketing / Advertising

Forrester has some insights on and recommendations around how marketers can up their mobile game, including how to make adjustments for voice assistants and more.

Social Media

You should go turn “facial recognition” off on Facebook for many, many reasons. And I can’t even begin to fathom the amount of data it will collect as it expands its job listing service, which is clearly meant to kill LinkedIn, Monster and every other job site.

I think i’d have a more positive appraisal of Vero (which I have not yet tried) as the savior for all that ails social networks if I hadn’t heard the same speech about 10 other apps over the years that all faded quickly from view, often in less time than it would take binge-watch “Bloodline.”

Not surprising at all that it’s only the top 5% who can actually make a living off YouTube while everyone else makes less in ad revenue than it takes to crack the U.S. poverty line.

Twitter is officially introducing a save-for-later feature that isn’t based on Liking.

Everyone on LinkedIn is using the same generic, meaningless and self-inflating descriptions for themselves.

Facebook is ending the experiment it was running in other countries that shunted news into a separate section of the site/app, saying the feedback it received was clear in its disapproval of the change.

Technology

The key to helping rural communities grow jobs and meet the needs of tomorrow’s industry could be as simple as making sure they’re connected to the internet.

Amazon continues to expand the front on which its fighting for ownership of your doorstep with the acquisition of Ring, which follows its “drop it inside your door for you” service and experiments to launch its own delivery service.

Just because it might take older workers a little longer to get their heads around specific technology doesn’t mean companies looking to hire should discount them entirely.

People may still believe technology as a whole can be a force for good and positive change in the world, but they increasingly believe the companies should come under more government scrutiny for the actions – or lack thereof – being taken to protect the public interest.

Interesting AR features are being included in an upcoming Samsung smartphone that could substantially lower the barrier to entry for the technology and make it a more regular part of people’s lives.

Want even more recommendations? Check out my Pocket Shared Items.

Chris Thilk is a freelance writer and content strategist who lives in the Chicago suburbs.