Thursday, January 19

Facebook rolls out 60 apps for Timeline

Thursday, (Facebook) will unleash more than 60 apps for Timeline. The aim is to give Facebook's 800 million members additional reasons to spend more time on the site, by sharing their experiences with others as they happen. Millions already use music, video and other apps designed for Timeline. But the prospect of hooking users on apps that show when they exercise, where they shop and what they listen to — as they do it — should have marketers and advertisers salivating, analysts say. Read more at USA Today

Wednesday, January 18

Scripps - TV up, Papers Down

Scripps told investors in Miami Tuesday that its television revenue will jump 50 percent in 2012, thanks in part to nine stations it recently acquired from McGraw Hill Broadcasting Co. Even without the new stations, television revenue is predicted to grow 15 percent. Newspaper revenue will continue to decline, however. Forecasted revenue for 2012 is expected to fall to $400 million in 2012. That would represent a slight decline from 2011, but a dip of more than $168 million from 2008 levels. Read more at the Business Courier

Tracking Cholera in Haiti

Social media and the Internet have become a vast source of information for health professionals, evidenced by a study published today in the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene that shows how data mining was used to examine the spread of infectious disease. Read more here

Tuesday, January 17

Clear Channel Drops ‘Radio’ From Its Name

The largest player in the U.S. commercial radio market is dropping the word “radio” from its name. Clear Channel Radio is now Clear Channel Media and Entertainment, saying the change reflects evolution of its business. Read more here.

Monday, January 16

What's on tap for TVs

With high-definition televisions now in 87% of homes, TV makers have accomplished their mission of selling HDTV to consumers. Their new goal: to whet your appetite for bigger screens with even more impressive picture quality, as much as four to 16 times the resolution of your current HDTV. TV makers that have pushed 3-D television technology for the past two years "are finally focusing on that concept of bringing people television with better pictures. The Consumer Electronics Association forecasts an overall TV sales dip this year to $17.2 billion from $18.4 billion in 2011. And fewer consumers, 32%, intend to buy a TV, down from 35% last year, says consulting firm Accenture. DTC forecasts that TV sales will remain largely flat in 2012 and 2013 (with increases of 1% and 2% annually). What's coming:

Read more at USA Today

New Ladies’ Home Journal, Written Mostly by Readers

While women’s service magazines have long relied on readers to contribute content, from first-person accounts to recipes, Ladies’ Home Journal is taking that strategy to new lengths: beginning with the March issue, it will allow readers to produce the majority of its articles. The 128-year-old magazine, with an average paid circulation of 3.2 million, would be the first major mass-market magazine to draw on user-generated content for most of its pages. While most of the content will be user-generated, editors will continue to check facts in articles. Contributors will be paid the usual standard professional rates. And professional experts will also continue to provide advice, often alongside first-person accounts.

Read more at the New York Times.