CBC TV's The National did not finish first in its time slot on Monday night. I'll let Globe and Mail television critic John Doyle tell you about one of the shows that got higher ratings.*

* (Ding, ding, Ding! My 6,666th posting!)

Kelly Toughill, a journalism professor at the University of King's College in Halifax, makes an argument why Canadian newspapers, if not looking up, at least aren't staring down into an abyss.

The latest Audit Bureau of Circulation numbers for U.S. newspapers tells a grim tale. From the Newsosaur blog:

Following an average drop of 10.6% in the last six months, daily newspaper circulation has fallen to a pre-World War II low of an estimated 39.1 million, according to an analysis of industry data released today.

The first double-digit circulation decline in history means only 12.9% of the U.S. population buys a daily newspaper. The analysis is based on data provided by the Audit Bureau of Circulations, an industry-funded group.

Newspaper circulation now is lower than the 41.1 million papers sold in 1940, the earliest date for which records are published by the Newspaper Association of America. Back in 1940, newspapers were purchased by 31.1% of the population.

I don't understand a goddamn thing being said, but the beauty of this clip is, you don't have to! (seen first on Twitter)

Addendum

A colleague who speaks some Japanese offers up a few snippets of the dialogue (thanks, Phil!)

From the Oct. 21 Guardian:

The BBC is attempting to embrace social media by appointing a social media editor in its newsroom and redesigning its website. As the September traffic figures for US political blogging site Huffington Post reveal, the strategy is clearly a wise one. In short: embracing social media boosts traffic.

Slate editor David Plotz told a University of Missouri j-school audience why he thinks 500,000 loyal, engaged visitors interacting with his site is better than seven million "uniques" every month.

Esther Enkin, the CBC's executive editor of news operations, talks about how her organization handled the ethical minefields of being contacted by both hostage-taker and hostages during an incident Wednesday at the WCB offices in Edmonton.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper was in Toronto on Wednesday at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce convention, answering questions on the economy, when the following came up:

This happened to newsreader Peter Hitchener in Melbourne, Australia:

From News.com.au:

Ever the professional, the news stalwart only mildly flinched on noticing the seagull but later told 3AW radio the studio cameramen hid behind ...   more »

Newsworld will morph into the CBC News Network (the CNN of Canada, if you will) and the Corpse's flagship TV news show, The National, will get a makeover (faster pace, same journalism, says Peter M.).

The intriguing lede to Mitch Potter's story in the Toronto Star: "You attend a press conference. The newsmaker speaks. You run a DNA test to confirm they are who they claim to be. And then you publish."