TV News LIES

The golden age of unions is long gone — and for the radio shows that focus on labor and workers rights, every day is a struggle just to stay on the airwaves.

There are a number of talk radio shows around the country covering — and funded by — organized labor that are still up and running, but like the labor movement as a whole, what remains is a far cry from the time when unions and the concerns of workers were a dominant part of the media landscape.

Climate change got more coverage on broadcast news in 2013 than in the previous few years, but the issue still didn't get nearly as much attention as it did in 2009, Media Matters found in a new analysis.

ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox together featured more coverage in 2013 than they did in 2012. The amount of airtime granted to climate change on both the Sunday shows and the nightly news was up, too -- to a total of 27 minutes, and an hour and 42 minutes, respectively, for the entire year. The progressive media watchdog group Media Matters totaled the time broadcasters devoted to climate change for a new report released Thursday.

Consumer groups reacted angrily to the merger of cable giant Comcast and Time Warner Cable on Thursday, claiming the combination could “throttle” choice on the internet.

Comcast’s proposed $45.2bn takeover of TWC will create a media behemoth that will dominate broadband internet access across the US. Comcast, which owns NBC Universal, will also cement its position as the pre-eminent force in cable TV.

Longtime newsman Tom Brokaw Tuesday revealed that he has cancer.

Brokaw, 74, an NBC News special correspondent and former Nightly News anchor, was diagnosed at the Mayo Clinic in August with multiple myeloma, a cancer that affects blood cells in the bone marrow. His doctors are encouraged with the progress he is making and Brokaw has continued his work for the network, including contributions to NBC's Winter Olympics coverage in Sochi.

"With the exceptional support of my family, medical team and friends, I am very optimistic about the future and look forward to continuing my life, my work and adventures still to come," he said in a statement Tuesday. "I remain the luckiest guy I know."

The Gannett-owned Marine Corps Times has lost its prominent newsstand spot at Marine base exchange stores worldwide, possibly due to its coverage of a scandal involving a Marine commandant, the newspaper reports.

The independent paper, which relies heavily on sales at bases, is normally located with the rest of the popular magazines near the checkout lines, but will now be moved elsewhere in the stores.

News organizations publishing leaked National Security Agency documents have inadvertently disclosed the names of at least six intelligence workers and other government secrets they never intended to give away, an Associated Press review has found.

The accidental disclosures illustrate the risks of even well-intentioned, public-interest reporting on highly secret U.S. programs.

In some cases, prominent newspapers including The New York Times quickly pulled down government records they published online and recensored them to hide information they accidentally exposed. On one occasion, the Guardian newspaper published an NSA document that appeared to identify an American intelligence target living abroad. Before the newspaper could fix its mistake, a curious software engineer, Ron Garret of Emerald Hills, Calif., tried to contact the man at his office.