This NYT story about Tom Cruise’s bizarre behavior in recent weeks, as he promotes the Spielberg-directed “War of the Worlds” remake, is amusing enough. But what gave me a chuckle is that the Times went to two blogs to get screen shots (actually, photos) of Cruise’s now-infamous jag on Oprah: Defamer.com, Gawker’s LA, Hollywood-obsessed counterpart, and TVGasm.com. I’m not sure what to make of the Times’ color art outsourcing. Does it mean: 1. The newspaper is embracing blogs? 2. Grudgingly admitting they have utility? 3. Getting a cheaper deal than they would through the AP or Getty? 4. Making a simple end-run around some copyright policy whereby they can’t print (or post) content from a DVR? (You can’t sue me for brand dilution, TiVo!) Whatever the cause, I’m glad to see it. Blogs (like TMV) are chock full of useful content that you either won’t see in mainstream media, or won’t see as soon.
I’m a tech journalist who’s making a TV show about a college newspaper.