Daily Sabah logo

Politics
Diplomacy Legislation War On Terror EU Affairs Elections News Analysis
TÜRKİYE
Istanbul Education Investigations Minorities Expat Corner Diaspora
World
Mid-East Europe Americas Asia Pacific Africa Syrian Crisis Islamophobia
Business
Automotive Economy Energy Finance Tourism Tech Defense Transportation News Analysis
Lifestyle
Health Environment Travel Food Fashion Science Religion History Feature Expat Corner
Arts
Cinema Music Events Portrait Reviews Performing Arts
Sports
Football Basketball Motorsports Tennis
Opinion
Columns Op-Ed Reader's Corner Editorial
PHOTO GALLERY
JOBS ABOUT US RSS PRIVACY CONTACT US
© Turkuvaz Haberleşme ve Yayıncılık 2023

Daily Sabah logo

عربي
  • Politics
    • Diplomacy
    • Legislation
    • War On Terror
    • EU Affairs
    • Elections
    • News Analysis
  • TÜRKİYE
    • Istanbul
    • Education
    • Investigations
    • Minorities
    • Expat Corner
    • Diaspora
  • World
    • Mid-East
    • Europe
    • Americas
    • Asia Pacific
    • Africa
    • Syrian Crisis
    • Islamophobia
  • Business
    • Automotive
    • Economy
    • Energy
    • Finance
    • Tourism
    • Tech
    • Defense
    • Transportation
    • News Analysis
  • Lifestyle
    • Health
    • Environment
    • Travel
    • Food
    • Fashion
    • Science
    • Religion
    • History
    • Feature
    • Expat Corner
  • Arts
    • Cinema
    • Music
    • Events
    • Portrait
    • Reviews
    • Performing Arts
  • Sports
    • Football
    • Basketball
    • Motorsports
    • Tennis
  • Gallery
  • Opinion
    • Columns
    • Op-Ed
    • Reader's Corner
    • Editorial
  • TV

Apple to hire experienced journalists for news feeds

by

WASHINGTON Jun 22, 2015 - 12:00 am GMT+3
by Jun 22, 2015 12:00 am
Apple is diving deeper into the news business with a new application that could make the U.S. tech giant a key industry player. Apple News, part of the upcoming iOS 9 operating system, aims to be the primary news source for users of the iPhone and iPad - likely at the expense of sources such as Facebook, Google and news apps such as Flipboard.

In a surprising move, Apple has unveiled it will be hiring experienced journalists to manage its news feeds - marking a departure from the algorithmic process used by rivals.

"Apple is eager to have news created by human beings and not algorithms - it fits in with the brand statement Apple has been making," said Judd Slivka, a professor of mobile journalism at the University of Missouri. "The expectation is they will put together a smart team that works well broadly across news and specific content areas." Although Apple has offered few specifics on its plans, the company's jobs listing page said it is "looking for passionate, knowledgeable editors to help identify and deliver the best in breaking national, global, and local news."

The page said the editors should have "great instincts for breaking news, but be equally able to recognize original, compelling stories unlikely to be identified by algorithms." This marks a distinction from rivals such as Facebook, which is crafting formulas that aim to deliver articles users want based on their Web habits, demographics and interests. Although Apple is likely to use some algorithms to filter stories, the hiring of experienced journalists is a positive step, said Dan Kennedy, a journalism professor at Northeastern University. "A lot of people don't want to be fed news that a robot has decided interests them," Kennedy told AFP.

"Especially if you don't have any say how the robot makes that decision. The Facebook algorithm is highly mysterious, and people are starting to resent that."

Kennedy said it is "encouraging that this is moving journalism to the center of Apple's universe." But he remains cautious about technology companies increasingly becoming gatekeepers for news.

"I'm not crazy about the idea of shifting news to huge corporations like Apple and Facebook that have their own agendas," he said. Apple says its news app "follows over a million topics and pulls relevant stories based on your specific interests." Partner news organizations include Conde Nast magazines, ESPN, The New York Times, Hearst, Time Inc., CNN and Bloomberg, but Apple will be opening to other publishers and bloggers.

Joshua Benton of the Nieman Journalism Lab said the app will be important because "through the awesome power of default, Apple distribution puts it in an entirely other league. This app will be on hundreds of millions of devices within 24 hours of its debut."

Benton said it could help news organizations struggling to raise ad revenues, with Apple allowing them to keep 100 percent of money from ads they sell and 70 percent from what Apple's iAd platform sells.

Rob Enderle, a Silicon Valley analyst at Enderle Group, said Apple is following a formula it has used in other areas, aiming for tight control of content to assure quality - and shutting potential rivals out. Enderle said Apple prefers to have its own application on its devices to give iPhone and iPad users easy access without turning to third parties such as Google or Facebook.

He said that when rumors surfaced that Google was interested in buying Flipboard, this spurred Apple to act.
  • shortlink copied
  • RELATED TOPICS
    fight-against-terrorism DEUTSCHE-BANK US-LIBYA-RELATIONS
    KEYWORDS
    business
    The Daily Sabah Newsletter
    Keep up to date with what’s happening in Turkey, it’s region and the world.
    You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
    10. Chihuahuan Desert
    10 largest deserts in the world
    PHOTOGALLERY
    • POLITICS
    • Diplomacy
    • Legislation
    • War On Terror
    • EU Affairs
    • News Analysis
    • TÜRKİYE
    • Istanbul
    • Education
    • Investigations
    • Minorities
    • Diaspora
    • World
    • Mid-East
    • Europe
    • Americas
    • Asia Pacific
    • Africa
    • Syrian Crisis
    • İslamophobia
    • Business
    • Automotive
    • Economy
    • Energy
    • Finance
    • Tourism
    • Tech
    • Defense
    • Transportation
    • News Analysis
    • Lifestyle
    • Health
    • Environment
    • Travel
    • Food
    • Fashion
    • Science
    • Religion
    • History
    • Feature
    • Expat Corner
    • Arts
    • Cinema
    • Music
    • Events
    • Portrait
    • Performing Arts
    • Reviews
    • Sports
    • Football
    • Basketball
    • Motorsports
    • Tennis
    • Opinion
    • Columns
    • Op-Ed
    • Reader's Corner
    • Editorial
    • Photo gallery
    • Jobs
    • privacy
    • about us
    • contact us
    • RSS
    © Turkuvaz Haberleşme ve Yayıncılık 2021