Las Vegas Review-Journal
Encyclopedia
The Las Vegas Review-Journal is published in Las Vegas, Nevada
, United States. It is the largest circulating daily newspaper in Nevada
, and one of two daily newspapers in Las Vegas (The Greenspun Corporation
-owned Las Vegas Sun
is distributed with it). It is the flagship publication of Stephens Media LLC
. The paper usually takes what is perceived to be a libertarian
editorial stance. On November 12, 2010, the paper announced that its longtime publisher, Sherman Frederick, would be replaced by Bob Brown and that editor Thomas Mitchell would become a senior opinion writer.
The Review-Journal has a joint operating agreement with the Las Vegas Sun that runs through 2040. In 2005, the Sun ceased afternoon publication and began distribution as a section of the Review-Journal.
and his Donrey Media Group bought the paper. The RJ published a morning and evening edition from that point until the late 1980s, when the Las Vegas Sun began afternoon publication. The paper signed on Las Vegas' third television station, KLRJ-TV, in 1955, later changing the calls to KORK-TV. The station was sold in 1979, changing its call letters again first to KVBC, and then, in 2010, to the current KSNV-DT. Reynolds died in 1993, and longtime friend Jack Stephens bought his company, renamed it Stephens Media and moved the company's headquarters to Las Vegas. The Review-Journal entered into its first Joint Operating Agreement, or JOA, with the Sun in 1990, which was amended in 2005.
The newspaper has won the "General Excellence" award from the Nevada Press Association several times and has also won the "Freedom of the Press" award for its First Amendment
battles from the state-wide organization.
ing", named after its practice of scouring the internet for 'violations' in order to make a profit. The newspaper is currently involved in a controversy over the licensing of its content to Righthaven LLC
, a litigation firm that was "grubstaked" by Stephens Media, the parent company of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, and exists for the sole purpose of suing media outlets, including blogs, over the use of copyrighted content that first appeared in the Review-Journal.
Righthaven sued a Boston
-based cat blogger over her attribution to a Review-Journal story on her blog. Righthaven CEO Steve Gibson's vision is to "monetize news content on the backend, by scouring the internet for infringing copies of his client's articles, then suing and relying on the harsh penalties in the Copyright Act — up to $150,000 for a single infringement — to compel quick settlements."
None of the more than one hundred litigation matters filed in the United States District Court for the District of Nevada have yet gone to trial. Therefore, it has not been tested by the courts to determine if the use of Review-Journal would be protected under copyright law and the Fair use doctrine. Between March and August 2010, Righthaven LLC filed litigation suits against 107 blogs, political forums, major political parties, and several of the newspaper's own sources including NORML, DailyPaul.com, Infowars, Free Republic and others. On August 25, 2010, the Electronic Frontier Foundation
announced that it would make efforts to assist Righthaven LLC defendants to the best of its ability. In September, the EFF, with other pro bono
attorneys (Las Vegas attorney Chad Bowers and attorneys from the firm of Winston & Strawn) filed an Answer and Counterclaim on behalf of Democratic Underground
, a political website that Righthaven sued when a Democratic Underground member posted a five-sentence excerpt from a Review-Journal article. Counterclaim
s were asserted against Stephens Media as well as Righthaven. The pleading
alleged a "sham relationship" between the newspaper and Righthaven, and accused Righthaven of copyright fraud.
In March 2011, a federal judge found that uses of Las Vegas Review-Journal content, including citations of full articles, is generally 'fair use' ref.
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
, United States. It is the largest circulating daily newspaper in Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
, and one of two daily newspapers in Las Vegas (The Greenspun Corporation
The Greenspun Corporation
The Greenspun Corporation is a privately owned corporation that manages the Greenspun family assets. The company was founded by Hank Greenspun and is based in Henderson, Nevada.- Subsidiaries :* American Nevada Corporation- Land development...
-owned Las Vegas Sun
Las Vegas Sun
The Las Vegas Sun is a Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper. It is one of Las Vegas, Nevada's two daily newspapers. It is owned by the Greenspun family and is affiliated with Greenspun Media Group....
is distributed with it). It is the flagship publication of Stephens Media LLC
Stephens Media (newspapers)
Stephens Media LLC is a Las Vegas, Nevada diversified media holding company that publishes over 11 daily and 64 weekly newspapers in 9 states, primarily in Nevada and Arkansas....
. The paper usually takes what is perceived to be a libertarian
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
editorial stance. On November 12, 2010, the paper announced that its longtime publisher, Sherman Frederick, would be replaced by Bob Brown and that editor Thomas Mitchell would become a senior opinion writer.
The Review-Journal has a joint operating agreement with the Las Vegas Sun that runs through 2040. In 2005, the Sun ceased afternoon publication and began distribution as a section of the Review-Journal.
History
The Clark County Review was first printed in 1909 and became the Las Vegas Review in 1926. In March 1929, the Clark County Journal began publication, and in July of that year, the Review bought the Journal and began co-publication as the Las Vegas Evening Review-Journal. In the early 1940s, the owners of the RJ bought the Las Vegas Age, which began publication in 1905 and was the oldest surviving paper in Las Vegas. The word "evening" was dropped from the name in 1949, after Donald W. ReynoldsDonald W. Reynolds
Donald W. Reynolds was an American businessman and philanthropist. During his lifetime, he was best known for his involvement in the Donrey Media Group.-Biography:...
and his Donrey Media Group bought the paper. The RJ published a morning and evening edition from that point until the late 1980s, when the Las Vegas Sun began afternoon publication. The paper signed on Las Vegas' third television station, KLRJ-TV, in 1955, later changing the calls to KORK-TV. The station was sold in 1979, changing its call letters again first to KVBC, and then, in 2010, to the current KSNV-DT. Reynolds died in 1993, and longtime friend Jack Stephens bought his company, renamed it Stephens Media and moved the company's headquarters to Las Vegas. The Review-Journal entered into its first Joint Operating Agreement, or JOA, with the Sun in 1990, which was amended in 2005.
The newspaper has won the "General Excellence" award from the Nevada Press Association several times and has also won the "Freedom of the Press" award for its First Amendment
First Amendment to the United States Constitution
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering...
battles from the state-wide organization.
Copyright infringement
Beginning in 2010, the Stephens Media property Las Vegas Review-Journal has adopted a new business plan based on copyright litigation. This practice has been coined "copyright trollCopyright troll
A copyright troll is a pejorative term for a party that enforces copyrights it owns for purposes of making money through litigation, in a manner considered unduly aggressive or opportunistic, generally without producing or licensing its own works for paid distribution...
ing", named after its practice of scouring the internet for 'violations' in order to make a profit. The newspaper is currently involved in a controversy over the licensing of its content to Righthaven LLC
Righthaven LLC
Righthaven LLC is a copyright holding company founded in early 2010, which enters agreements from its partner newspapers after finding that their content has been copied to online sites without permission, in order to engage in litigation against the site owners for copyright infringement...
, a litigation firm that was "grubstaked" by Stephens Media, the parent company of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, and exists for the sole purpose of suing media outlets, including blogs, over the use of copyrighted content that first appeared in the Review-Journal.
Righthaven sued a Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
-based cat blogger over her attribution to a Review-Journal story on her blog. Righthaven CEO Steve Gibson's vision is to "monetize news content on the backend, by scouring the internet for infringing copies of his client's articles, then suing and relying on the harsh penalties in the Copyright Act — up to $150,000 for a single infringement — to compel quick settlements."
None of the more than one hundred litigation matters filed in the United States District Court for the District of Nevada have yet gone to trial. Therefore, it has not been tested by the courts to determine if the use of Review-Journal would be protected under copyright law and the Fair use doctrine. Between March and August 2010, Righthaven LLC filed litigation suits against 107 blogs, political forums, major political parties, and several of the newspaper's own sources including NORML, DailyPaul.com, Infowars, Free Republic and others. On August 25, 2010, the Electronic Frontier Foundation
Electronic Frontier Foundation
The Electronic Frontier Foundation is an international non-profit digital rights advocacy and legal organization based in the United States...
announced that it would make efforts to assist Righthaven LLC defendants to the best of its ability. In September, the EFF, with other pro bono
Pro bono
Pro bono publico is a Latin phrase generally used to describe professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment or at a reduced fee as a public service. It is common in the legal profession and is increasingly seen in marketing, technology, and strategy consulting firms...
attorneys (Las Vegas attorney Chad Bowers and attorneys from the firm of Winston & Strawn) filed an Answer and Counterclaim on behalf of Democratic Underground
Democratic Underground
Democratic Underground, also known as DU, is an online community for U.S. Democrats and progressives. Its membership is restricted by policy to those who are generally supportive of progressive ideals and support Democratic candidates for political office. DU was established on January 20, 2001,...
, a political website that Righthaven sued when a Democratic Underground member posted a five-sentence excerpt from a Review-Journal article. Counterclaim
Counterclaim
In civil procedure, a party's claim is a counterclaim if the defending party has previously made a claim against the claiming party.Examples of counterclaims include:...
s were asserted against Stephens Media as well as Righthaven. The pleading
Pleading
In law as practiced in countries that follow the English models, a pleading is a formal written statement filed with a court by parties in a civil action, other than a motion...
alleged a "sham relationship" between the newspaper and Righthaven, and accused Righthaven of copyright fraud.
In March 2011, a federal judge found that uses of Las Vegas Review-Journal content, including citations of full articles, is generally 'fair use' ref.
Columnists
- Norm ClarkeNorm ClarkeNorm Clarke is an American gossip columnist for the Las Vegas Review-Journal in Las Vegas, Nevada. His column, "Vegas Confidential," covers celebrities and near-celebrities and their doings in the bright lights of "Sin City." The column appears almost every day.-Early life:Clarke grew up in...
: Clarke is a gossip columnist for the Las Vegas Review-Journal; his column, "Vegas Confidential", covers celebrities and near-celebrities and their goings-on in "Sin City". - John L. Smith: Smith, also an author of Las Vegas-related works, has written a human-interest column for the Las Vegas Review-Journal since the late 1980s.
- Vin SuprynowiczVin SuprynowiczVin Suprynowicz is a U.S. libertarian columnist who writes editorials for the Las Vegas, Nevada based Las Vegas Review-Journal. He is the author of two nonfiction compilations of his newspaper columns: Send In the Waco Killers and The Ballad of Carl Drega...
: Suprynowicz's columns are about his perspective on American society from a Libertarian point of view.
External links
- Las Vegas Review-Journal official web site
- Stephens Media official web site