By Matt Carroll <@MattCData>

Jan. 6, 2017: Cool stuff about journalism, once a week. Get notified via email? Subscribe: 3toread (at) gmail. Originally published on 3toread.co

1. Fighting against government’s war on press freedom: James Risen’s unflinching reporting about the government’s illegal operations and spying on its own citizens led to years of blistering conflict with the White House and other agencies. But the former NYT reporter also had intense bureaucratic battles with his own editors about getting stories told. Risen details for The Intercept a compelling behind-the-scenes (and long) account of his fights. Interestingly, the stories of the NYT infighting are just as fascinating as the rest.

2. Logan Paul suicide video shows YouTube is facing a crucial turning point — again: YouTube has had trouble policing what gets posted to its site and has been criticized for its uneven hand in applying its own community standards. A recent video by one of its most prominent boggers, showing a suicide victim in Japan, drives home how difficult it is for the video platform to act as an editor for what should and should not be shown on it site. Part of the problem, critics point out, is that YouTube encourages boundary-pushing by emphasizing clicks. So in essence, the controversy is inevitable. An interesting piece by Davey Alba for BuzzFeed News.

3. How to make the New York Times a *lot* better: Margaret Sullivan, the WaPo’s media columnist and former public editor at the NYT, is encouraged by the appointment of the NYT’s new publisher, Arthur G. Sulzberger. But the country’s “paper of record” must be willing to give up what she calls its addiction to power, which she feels allows those in government and business to use the news pages for their own good. An interesting take from one of the best media writers today.

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Matt Carroll teaches journalism at Northeastern University. Twitter: @MattcData. Instagram: mattcarroll54.