NEWS 11

Der Spiegel publisher to cut 20% of staff and launch paywall

SUMMARY:

The publisher of the influential German newsweekly Der Spiegel is to cut about 20% of its staff and start charging for some articles online as it tries to fight a decline in advertising and circulation. One of Europe’s largest news magazines, it has a circulation of about 870,000. Known for its investigative reporting, it is seen as required reading for the German political, business and cultural elite.

FACTS:

• Manager Magazin, said it aims to cut its annual costs for materials and staff by about €16m (£11m) by the end of 2017, which would put about 150 jobs on the line.

American Isis Twitter scene' reveals social media's power to radicalise

SUMMARY:

Islamic State sympathisers in America prefer Twitter to any other social media platform and use avatars of black flags, green birds and lions – including the Detroit Lions NFL team – in their online propaganda, a study has shown. Having a Twitter account suspended has become a “badge of honour” among US-based Isis supporters, researchers found, and they are adopting increasingly sophisticated techniques to circumvent the authorities in a “never-ending cat-and-mouse game”.

FACTS:

• US authorities have estimated that several thousand Americans consume Isis propaganda online, the report notes. 
• According to the study, a significant number of American Isis supporters use avatars of black flags, lions, and green birds