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Views Preview: Bringing home Bowe Bergdahl

U.S. Army photo

It was 2009 when Army Pfc. Bowe Bergdahl was captured and held as a prisoner of war in Afghanistan.  Saturday, President Barack Obama stood on the White House lawn flanked by Bergdahl's parents, to annnounce his release.

The Taliban freed Bergdahl as part of a prisoner swap.  In exchange for his release, the U.S. government agreed to release five prisoners from Guantanamo Bay.

That part of the story caught fire quickly, as Republicans accused the Obama administration of negotiating with terrorists -- a claim the president denies.  But, another story line has emerged, too.  Some of Bergdahl's fellow soldiers say he abandoned his post and deserted the army prior to capture.

M. Alex Johnson, NBC: “Bowe Bergdahl: What we know about soldier captured by the Taliban

Eric Schmitt, Helene Cooper & Charlie Savage, New York Times: “Bowe Bergdahl’s vanishing before capture angered his unit

Jake Tapper, CNN: “Fellow soldiers call Bowe Bergdahl a deserter, not a hero

James Gordon Meek, ABC: “Vets accuse Bowe Bergdahl of walking away

Kurt Eichenwald, Newsweek: “The truth behind the Bowe Bergdahl POW prisoner swap

Michael Pearson, CNN: “Questions swirl after Bowe Bergdahl’s release

Alice Speri, Vice: “Why was the FBI investigating Michael Hastings’ reporting on Bowe Bergdahl?

Gov. Bobby Jindal, Fox News: “Bowe Bergdahl: Very good news, very bad deal

Credit WallyG / FLICKR
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FLICKR

One step closer to jail?

The United States Supreme Court refused to take up the case of New York Times reporter James Risen.  Risen did extensive reporting on a botched CIA effort during the Clinton administration to thwart Iran's nuclear efforts.  That work is at the center of charges against a former CIA agent accused of leaking government secrets.  Prosecutors want to compel Risen to testify in that trial -- and compel him to divulge sources.

Mark Sherman, Associated Press: “Supreme Court rejects James Risen’s bid to protect his source

Charlie Savage, New York Times: “Holder hints reporter may be spared jail in leak

Margaret Sullivan, New York Times: “Protecting a source, James Risen takes his case to the Supreme Court

David Weigel, Slate: “The House passes a journalism Shield Law and nobody notices

Inquirer owner killed in plane crash

Lewis Katz has been described as a reluctant newspaper owner.  He died -- along with five others -- Saturday in a plane crash near Boston.  Four days earlier, he and a partner won an auction to buy the Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News and Philly.com for $88 million.

Alfred Lubrano, The Inquirer: “Lewis Katz, co-owner of The Inquirer, dies in plane crash

Dan Adams, Jeremy C. Fox & Martin Finucane, Boston Globe: “After Hanscom crash, a hunt for answers

David Carr, New York Times: “Reflections on Lewis Katz, a believer in journalism

Rem Rieder, USA Today: “Rieder: Katz’s lifelong love of great journalism

Laurence Arnold, Bloomberg: “Lewis Katz, who co-owned Nets, Devils, Inquirer, dies at 72

When a minor is charged with a heinous crime

Prosecutors say two 12-year-old southeastern Wisconsin girls stabbed their 12-year-old friend nearly to death in the woods to please a mythological creature they learned about online.  The girls have been charged as adults.  Should the media publish their names and show their faces in its coverage?  Or, should their names be kept out of it because they're minors?

Ellen Gabler, Milwaukee Journal Sentienl: “Charges detail Waukesha pre-teens’ attempt to kill classmate

WITI: “Two girls accused of plotting to kill friend, victim stabbed 19 times

Jill Ornitz, Heavy.com: “Morgan Geyser: 5 fast facts you need to know

WLS: “’Slender Man’ myth prompts girls 12, to stab friend 19 times in Waukesha, Wisconsin, cops say

UPDATE: Student newspaper responds to Isla Vista shooting criticsm

Last week we talked about an op-ed published by a former editor of The Bottom Line, the student-government sponsored newspaper at University of California-Santa Barbara to not cover the Isla Vista shooting. 

The paper has issued a statement in response to criticism it received from members of the media -- including panelists on this program.

Erik Wemple, Washington Post: “UCSBnewspaper board responds to criticism over non-coverage of killings

CalBuzz: “Tale of two papers: Mass murder and student media

Bob Pool, Los Angeles Times: “Isla Vista shootings: University newspaper editor was near crime scene

Hannah Davey, The Bottom Line: “Op-Ed: Why we have not yet published anything on the Isla Vista shooting"

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columbiamissourian.com

Missourian's new survey model

The Columbia Missourian announced it is dropping its paywall revenue model, replacing it with a new survey model.  Readers will be able to access content -- and share it on social media -- after taking a short Google survey.  The paper will be paid five cents for each survey completed.

Tom Warhover, Columbia Missourian: “DEAR READER: “Missourian site is ending its time paywall and moving to surveys for revenue

Lindsey Pulse, KBIA: "Columbia Missourian to drop paywall, move to surveys"

Arrested on the air

CNN's Ivan Watson was live on the air, reporting on the anniversary of violent protests in Istanbul, when Turkish authorities began questioning him.  Watson identified himself as a journalist on assignment for CNN and was taken into custody.

Mariano Castillo, CNN: “Turkish cops harass CNN reporter on air

Matt Wilstein, Mediaite: “Watch: CNN reporter detained by police live on air from Turkey

Adam Chandler, The Wire: “Turkey marks anniversary of major protests by tear-gassing demonstrators

Heather Saul, The Independent: “CNN reporter Ivan Watson detained by Turkish police live on air

25 years after Tiananmen Square

Journalists around the world remember the pro-democracy uprising and subsequent massacre in Beijing's Tiananmen Square.

Mike Chinoy, CNN: “How covering June 4 Tiananmen Square crackdown kicked off ‘CNN Effect’

Barbara Demick, Los Angeles Times: “Marking 25th anniversary of China’s Tiananmen Square takes creativity

Fox News: “Google reportedly banned in China ahead of Tiananmen Square anniversary

Roy Greenslade, The Guardian: “Foreign journalists in China harassed over Tiananmen Square anniversary

The Globe and Mail: “China must confront its past on the 25th anniversary of Tiananmen Square

AMY SIMONS teaches news literacy, multimedia journalism and advanced social media strategies.