May 12, 2008

Judge Says She'll Raise Damages Award in SF Weekly/Bay Guardian Case

Source: San Francisco Chronicle

Judge Marla Miller of San Francisco Superior Court said Friday she's inclined to boost a jury's damages award against the Weekly from $6.3 million to $15.6 million, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Miller, in what she described as a tentative decision, said she would triple the portion of the damages that equals one year of losses, bringing the total to $15.6 million. She also said she'll likely issue an injunction barring the Weekly from continuing to sell ads below cost. She is expected to make a final ruling this week. The Weekly says it will appeal. Read more from the Bay Guardian and the Weekly.

May 12, 2008

David Carr Weighs in On Phoenix New Times Arrests and Lawsuit

Source: The New York Times

"Reporters have ended up in handcuffs in the United States before -- some have gone to jail to protect the identity of sources -- but it is a rare moment when someone here is imprisoned for the crime of typing," Carr writes in today's New York Times. He details how the tumultuous relationship between New Times and Sheriff Joe Arpaio ultimately led to the arrest of the paper's founders last year for disclosing a grand jury probe of the paper and its readers. Jim Larkin and Michael Lacey recently sued the sheriff and other officials for the debacle. "Suing people is not the core of what we do, but our arrest was just the culmination of an ongoing reign of terror that is still continuing," Lacey says.

May 12, 2008

Mountain XPress Spearheads Local Distribution Initiative

Source: AAN News

Facing increased scrutiny and concern over problems associated with freestanding news boxes, Mountain XPress distribution manager Sammy Cox (pictured) and publisher Jeff Fobes organized local publishers to form the Community Publishers Group (CPG). Members of the CPG now share the cost of purchasing and installing new multi-publication distribution units, which are installed in 36 locations throughout Asheville, N.C. According to Cox and Fobes, the new boxes conserve space and reduce clutter, and have pre-empted potentially harmful measures like news rack legislation. They spoke with AAN News recently by phone and email about the benefits these boxes and the CPG have had for Mountain XPress and the local publishing community.