Afghan Election Fraud, Times drop its 13,000 word story, Embedded reporters, News Watch, Chevron Film,

Cases of alleged fraud in Afghanistan's elections on August 20th are now so numerous and varied that they may take weeks or even months to deal with. Voter Intimidation, Ballot Box Stuffing, and "White-Ex": Fraud Accusations in Afghan Vote Too Many to Count By Institute for War and Peace Reporting

When New York Times Magazine editor Gerald Marzorati, in the course of pondering the future of long-form journalism in a Q&A with readers, mentioned this week that the magazine was about to publish a 13,000-word story that cost an estimated $400,000 to produce, it was impossible not to wonder what the article would be about. Readers more attuned... The Times Magazine Drops its 13,000-Word Story



At The Washington Independent, Spencer Ackerman flags a pair of stories from Stars and Stripes reporting that journalists who seek to embed with U.S. troops in Afghanistan are screened by a D.C.-based PR firm, which examines “whether their past coverage has portrayed the U.S. military in a positive light.” Military spokesmen insisted to Stars... Stars and Stripes: Military Profiling Reporters [so much for embedding ~t]


Some of America’s favorite chains have concocted some thoroughly repellent dishes that make the Double Quarter Pounder look like a celery stick. The Fast Food Industry's 7 Most Heinous Concoctions By Brad Reed, AlterNet

You might argue that Sony was visionary. In the fall of 2006, it introduced the first eBook with an E Ink screen—long before Amazon's Kindle rolled out with the same technology. The Sony Reader also connected users to an online store, solving a problem that had long bedeviled the e-book market—how do you get books onto your new device? How to Beat Amazon's Kindle.
By Farhad Manjoo on technology

Newswatch

Turkey bans 'Günlük' newspaper over alleged ‘terrorist propaganda’
Iraqi journalists prevented from covering bombings in Baghdad and Babil
West Bank radio station closed arbitrarily by Israeli soldiers
Mozambique newspaper editor Carlos Cardoso's convicted murderer nabbed in South Africa
Pentagon hired controversial PR firm to screen journalists covering conflict in Afghanistan
Georgian journalist released from prison after full four-year term for alleged ‘extortion’
IFJ opposes repressive amendments to media law in Serbia
"Extreme pressure" from government and military forces Pakistani daily to close down
Investigative journalist’s car bombed in Corsica
Mauritanian editor jailed for violating 'decent behaviour' after article on sex education
Third journalist murdered in Bukavu region of DR Congo since 2007
Somaliland cracks down on independent media
Attackers force two Honduran broadcasters off the air
Iran charges journalists with 'lying' as mass trial of dissidents gets under way
Four journalists from Uganda's Monitor newspaper face criminal charges
Ethiopia jails two editors on old charges under obsolete media law
Magazine editor in Kazakhstan sent to jail for collecting state secrets
Turkey bans 'Günlük' newspaper over alleged ‘terrorist propaganda’

The new film exposes an environmental tragedy experts call the "Amazon Chernobyl," and believe is the worst case of oil-related contamination ever. 'Crude': The Film Chevron Doesn't Want You to See By Han Shan, AlterNet