Virtual intern Natalie Chillington rounds up last week’s online journalism-related news

Google

• Google will announce a new metrics tool to measure web site audience, to rival current power players Nielsen and ComScore.

• Lots of debate over whether Google is making us stupid

WordPress

• Puffbox.com announces it will be sponsoring WordCamp UK in July,bringing together around 100 devotees of WordPress in Birmingham for aweekend of code and conversation.

Twitter

• Debate over whether you should use Twitter for live blogging at a conference.

• The same people behind the tech news site WebProNews have launched Twellow, a new search tool and directory for finding Twitter users

Social

• Facebook launched new mini-feed comments

• MySpace partners with NBC News and msnbc.com to find a citizen journalist to cover national conventions of the Democratic and Republican parties later this summer in the US.

• Nokia has acquired German social networking service Plazes,expanding it’s mobile internet services. Plazes offers a location-basedservice, with friends posting messages about their location and whatthey are doing from their mobile or PC – sounds like Twitter.

• Domestic Chinese mobile phone service provider MICAT has announcedan agreement with social-networking website, MySpace. Together, theywill be launching “MySpace MICAT,” a social platform for Chinese mobile internet users.

• Facebook introduces Chinese-language versions of its social networking website, marking its first move into the world’s largest internet market.

Web

• Interactive map shows the aftermath of Parkersberg tornado

• YouTube is home to nearly half of web clips watched in the UK

• Magazine publisher IPC Media buys gaming website Mousebreaker in an effort to increase its access to an audience of young male internet users.

• Yahoo to announce the results of a major staff reorganisation as internet firm tries to reassure investors and staff that it can improve its performance and competitiveness.

• The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) was due to vote on new internet domain names this week. It is thougth that from early 2009, users will be able to acquire generic addresses such as .love

Media

• Debate over ‘Pay-per-view’ future of online journalism

• House of Lords report says growth of news sites is harming investment in news gathering

• Sky News Online prepares to re-launch with a new look

• CNET is also getting a new look

• The Associated Press will begin rolling out details of its new pricing to members this week, a plan that will return up to $21 million to its U.S. member newspapers.

• Debate over the usefulness of blogging to journalists continues

• BBC launches new revamped online catch-up service, iPlayer with integrated radio shows.

• Trinity Mirror launches a series of branded YouTube channels for the video content of its regional newspapers.

• ITN has signed a ‘six figure’ deal with Al Jazeerato make 800,000 hours of archived video content available to thebroadcaster. As part of the deal, the network and production companieswill have access to Channel 4, Reuters, Granada and ITN.

• The Independant hires the former head of the prime minister’s digital PR operation Jimmy Leach, to lead online development.

• Some journalists still opposed/scared of the internet

Other

• Freelance journalist Sean Langan released after being kidnapped by a group associated with the Taliban in a three-month ordeal.