Media Gurus Take Stock of New Website

Rapper bumped up stock of headphones distributor H&H Imports

(NEWSER) - Headphones distributor H&H Imports enjoyed a 240% increase in stock value over the weekend, thanks to … 50 Cent. The rapper plugged one of the company's headphone brands Friday, then went on to tweet all weekend about the stock, Business Insider reports. The result: HNHI, a penny stock, gained a staggering $50 million from Friday. And seeing as the rapper owned 30 million shares and each one gained 29 cents, he earned himself $8.7 million just by tweeting. Click for more on 50 Cent's stock scheme . More»

Starsuckers exposes tabloids' habit of publishing fabricated gossip

(NEWSER) - The upcoming British documentary Starsuckers proves what we’ve always suspected: Tabloids—at least, UK tabloids—will print just about anything, including “complete and utter babble,” the director tells the Guardian. Among the fake stories he got published—and, often, reprinted around the world: Avril Lavigne passed out at a nightclub, Amy Winehouse’s hair caught on fire, and Guy Ritchie got a black eye from juggling cutlery. More»

They are, after all, doing all the same things they used to complain about

(NEWSER) - Jon Stewart made a discovery on last night's Daily Show: Fox News has turned into a big, fat liberal! As proof, Stewart showed a series of clips, including one of Bill O'Reilly praising conservative town hall protesters ("We don't describe the protesters as 'loons,'" he says) contrasted with a 2004 clip in which its talking heads called liberal protesters...“loons.” And it’s not just protesters they’ve flip-flopped on: “Liberals hate the president! And I think you’ll have to agree with me: No one is doing that more effectively than Fox.” More»

From Cooper to Oprah, people weigh in

(NEWSER) - After the passing of Walter Cronkite, the Washington Post wondered who could compare to his level of trustworthiness. Below are a few of the responses they got from a variety of sources:

• Anderson Cooper, “because he always has that slight bit of cynicism when it’s deserved,” says filmmaker John Waters, who cites war and porn as the only reasons to have TV, and adds: "If I had to look at any newscaster in a porno film, I'd pick him."
• Oprah Winfrey, “because she has been so open and so transparent about her own life,” says a Smithsonian director.

Mainstream media overwhelmed by stories from the blogosphere

(NEWSER) - The onslaught of rumors, reports, and sometimes-true-sometimes-not stories about Michael Jackson has given a boost to new media sites like TMZ—which ran more than 150 Jackson stories in the week after his death—while mainstream press finds itself painstakingly sifting through stories to find the truth. “This is random people throwing things up against the wall to see what sticks,” Campbell Brown tells Broadcasting & Cable. “There’s all kinds of misinformation out there." More»