Media Navel Gaze: June 2, 2014
The Week Unpeeled
No single news story seemed to dominate last week until late when Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl was released by the Taliban in exchange for five Guantanamo detainees, making commentary and explanations the headlines of the weekend on a host of questions including details on the swap.
Elsewhere:
- The US economy shrank at a 1 percent annual rate last quarter (amid talk of a rebound);
- Apple officially bought Beats;
- Former Microsoft Chief Steve Ballmer is buying the LA Clippers for $2 billion;
- Stocks continued their steady march to new highs with the Dow on Friday hitting a record of 16,717;
- White House Press Secretary Jay Carney resigned after 3 ½ years in the job and will be replaced by his deputy Josh Earnest (perfect name for a spokesperson, right?);
- The online privacy ruling in Europe gained media traction with Google putting together a framework on how to deal with the issue where individuals can request links removed that may violate their privacy;
- NBC's Brian Williams interviewed Edward Snowden with seemingly little fanfare really and an opening review line that spoke volumes in The New York Times: "I miss Barbara Walters already" and
- Maya Angelou died amid countless poignant tributes including reminders of what is one of her famous quotes and my favorite: "I've learned you can tell a lot about a person about how (s)he handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage and tangled Christmas tree lights."
