The Internet can change many things, apparently including newspapers’ reluctance to ”become the story” and turn their gaze on themselves. One example: the Associated Press’s disastrously handled announcement of what appeared to be, but apparently wasn’t, a sort of iTunes for the news, complete with digital rights management and ”tracking beacons.” After all, everyone loves the notion of someone tracking what news stories they read.

A series of fumbling clarifications followed. There was no digital rights management, just metadata. They had no interest in tracking individual users. The techno-savvy snickered and the Associated Press’s clueless chart of the new system was profanely parodied.