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The Xbox One wasn't supposed to need a remote control. That was the whole point, right? With its high-tech Kinect camera, we could just talk to it and tell it what to do. Remote controls were a thing of the past, a finally bygone relic of the 20th century! Except, well, not really.

A few weeks ago Microsoft released a "media remote" for the Xbox One. They sent one out for me to review, and I've been surprised at just how substantially it has improved the quality of my experience watching movies and TV shows on my Xbox One.

The remote works about the same as an Xbox One controller does. It has one four-way navigational pad, with a center button that functions more or less as the Xbox One's "A" button. It has an Xbox button in the middle to turn the console on and go to the home screen, and lets you hit play, pause, turn up the volume, fast-forward, rewind, turn the volume up, change the channel, etc. It doesn't have a number pad, so its functionality as a cable remote is limited, though you can still use it to navigate channels on cable TV.

The media remote significantly enhances the experience of using the Xbox One as an entertainment hub. That's for a few reasons:

I've always disliked turning on my controller before selecting a TV show or program to run. It's even worse when I need to pause a movie and the "Xbox, pause" isn't working for some reason. Pressing the middle button, waiting while the controller fires up and syncs, pressing the "A" button a few times before it's quite ready to go through it's a little thing that over time becomes pretty irritating. Unlike a controller the media remote, like most remote controls, is kind of just always on, so if you want to quickly pause or flip through channels without relying on Kinect, you can grab the media remote just like you would anything other remote.

It's also nice how, thanks to the Kinect's built-in IR blaster, the media remote lets me control the volume and muting on my audio system. I really don't like using the Kinect to do thissaying "Xbox, Volume Up" over and over again is no way to adjust your volumebut using a remote makes sense. The Xbox One media remote isn't quite a universal remote, but the Xbox One can control a lot of things, and the Media Remote controls the Xbox. So.

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Some people probably won't like the form-factor of the media remote, but I actually really dig it. It's very small and coated in a smooth, rubberized material that feels awfully nice in my hand. It has a rounded back that keeps it from sitting steadily on a table, which I'd imagine will be a point of contention for some but again, I don't mind it. The buttons are springy and the controller is at least water-resistant (it's doing fine after encountering some spilled beer in a coffee table mishap). The controls are all backlit, and making it cool-looking and easy to read in a darkened room. The remote is understated and sleek in a way that the Xbox One itself certainly isn't, and fits right in with my other remote controls.

This is another one where your mileage may vary, but I rarely use the Xbox One's Smartglass app to actually control my Xbox One. It still feels gimmicky, slow, and largely unnecessary. Smartglass takes too longUnlock my phone, open up the app, and use the odd touchscreen controls to do things. Easier to just use a controller, and that doesn't drain my phone's battery. The media remote is much more direct and convenient, more evidence that for all the new tricks our smartphones can do, dedicated devices are still usually easier to use.

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The Xbox One's Media Remote Is Surprisingly Great

Media is considered to be one of the pillars of a modern nation. As an indispensable tool for democracy, the press is expected to act as a watchdog of government and empower the public. But at the dawn of a US-led invasion of Afghanistan over 12 years ago, the media in the war-ravaged South Asian nation found itself in tatters.

Under the Taliban rule between 1996 and 2001, nearly all forms of media in the country were banned except for the regime-run Radio Sharia, which only broadcast religious programs, and a few other Islamic publications. Listening to music and watching television were outlawed by the extremists. The country's communications infrastructure lay in ruins.

But when NATO troops ousted the Taliban from power in the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, Afghanistan's media experienced a renaissance. Vast sums of foreign investment flew into rebuilding the country's crippled press and broadcasting, propelling a transformation of the Afghan media landscape.

Today, Afghanistan boasts a sprawling media sector with some 65 television channels, 174 radio stations and hundreds of print publications. About 86 percent of population has access to telecommunication services; some 8 percent have Internet access, according to Afghan government.

This rapid growth has led many to view the country's media as a remarkable success story in the post-Taliban era. Ordinary Afghans have also placed greater trust in the nation's media than in their government or court system.

There have been many attempts to impose restrictions on press freedom

In a nationwide survey conducted by the US-based Asia Foundation in 2013, public confidence in electronic media stood at 68 percent, while the corresponding figures for parliament and judiciary were much lower at 47 and 43 percent respectively.

Rural-urban divide

But despite the impressive gains made over the past decade, acute challenges remain. The impact of the media boom has largely been confined to urban areas, where access to information is easier and electricity supplies are more reliable.

The picture in rural areas, however, remains starkly different. The Asia Foundation's survey notes that there hasn't been much progress in villages as local community councils continue to be the main channels of information due to a lack of infrastructure and low literacy levels.

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Media gains in jeopardy

Must See! UkrainianGirl Breaks Down Media Lies #Crimea #Ukraine
Must See! UkrainianGirl Breaks Down Media Lies #Crimea #Ukraine An Interview with a Ukrainian girl who breaks down media lies, explains the situation in Ukra...

By: Futli

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Must See! UkrainianGirl Breaks Down Media Lies #Crimea #Ukraine - Video

Media General said it would buy LIN Media for $1.6 billion to create a broadcaster reaching nearly a quarter of U.S. households with a television.

Dwindling advertising revenue and audience numbers have pushed broadcasters to acquire TV stations that have multiple revenue streams, including retransmission fees from cable operators that pay to carry channels.

Media General Chairman Stewart Bryan said the deal would create the second-largest pure-play U.S. TV broadcaster. Tribune ecame the largest after it bought Local TV Holdings for $2.73 billion last June.

Other large recent deals include Gannett buying Belo for $1.5 billion and Sinclair Broadcast buying eight TV stations from the Allbritton family for $985 million.

LIN shareholders will get $27.82 per share in stock and cash, based on Media General's trailing 20-day average price. At that price, the offer represents a premium of 29.5 percent to Lin's Thursday closing.

Shares of Media General, in which Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway held a stake of about 5 percent as of December, jumped 12.5 percent to $19.51 in early trading.

Media General exited the newspaper business in 2012, selling most of its newspapers to Berkshire Hathaway for $142 million.

LIN Media, which owns or operates 43 TV stations and seven digital channels in 23 markets across the country, was founded in 1961. Its initials stand for Louisville, Indianapolis and Nashville, the cities where it originally owned radio stations.

The company's profit has missed analysts' average forecast for the last three quarters.

Bryan will remain chairman of the combined company, while LIN Media Chief Executive Vincent Sadusky will be the CEO.

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Media General to buy LIN Media for $1.6B

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(CBS) For months, the city of Chicago let hundreds of calls about possible inhumane treatment of pets languish in the files and then managed to clear nearly every one in short order.

WBBMs Steve Miller continues his series about Chicago Animal Care and Control. This is the fourth part.

Records obtained by WBBM show the city had a huge backlog of calls about possible mistreatment of animals. There was a backlog until February, that is, when WBBM started asking questions.

For instance, in December of last year just three months ago the city got 554 calls about inhumane treatment of animals.

Thats 58 percent higher than the previous December.

And as it happened, WBBM is told, a lot of employees at Animal Care and Control were on vacation during the holidays.

So, the backlog grew.

Then in January and February, Animal Care and Control Spokesman Brad Powers says, officials made a big push to close those old cases, closing roughly 26 a day.

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Animal Control Clears Hundreds Of Cases After Media Inquiry Into Backlog