Here's a quote (from Jay Rosen, head of Journalism school at New York University) about The Blog Effect:
"Blogs are undoing the system for generating authority and therefore credibility of news providers that's been accumulating for well over 100 years. And the reason is that the mass audience is slowly, slowly disappearing. And the one-to-many broadcasting model of communications--where I have the news and I send it out to everybody out there who's just waiting to get it--doesn't describe the world anymore. And so people who have a better description of the world are picking up the tools of journalism and doing it. It's small. Its significance is not clear. But it's a potentially transforming development... I like [it] when things get shaken up, and when people don't know what journalism is and they have to rediscover it. So in that sense I'm very optimistic."
October 5, 2003
The Real Patriot Act
Mr. Friedman proposes a $1.00/gallon gasoline tax as a way to reduce the revenue to Saudi Arabia and other OPEC countries. Interesting idea, but the American people would have Mr. Bush's head. Easy for a journalist to propose a theoretical idea because he world not have to deal with the fallout. Instead he could write about it.
Besides. having just bought a new RV, I'm not interested in adding 7-8 cents per mile to my recreation travel.
Any other ideas, Thomas, perhaps a BTU tax, not only on gasoline but all forms of energy?
d-
Besides. having just bought a new RV, I'm not interested in adding 7-8 cents per mile to my recreation travel.
Any other ideas, Thomas, perhaps a BTU tax, not only on gasoline but all forms of energy?
d-
Israeli Warplanes Bomb Target Deep Inside Syrian Territory
The world community will likely be aghast at this response by Israel to the recent Haifa suicide bombing. Nevertheless, Israel is engaging in a very similar action to the preemptive strike policy of the United States.
Terrorists must be attacked and destroyed. I have no viable input from anywhere suggesting a reasonable and immediate alternative to stopping terrorists.
Terrorists must be attacked and destroyed. I have no viable input from anywhere suggesting a reasonable and immediate alternative to stopping terrorists.
October 1, 2003
Spy: Writing: Weblogging (Spiked)
"Nico Macdonald puts Weblogging in the context of the history of online publishing, explaining its novelty and value, and indicating where it needs to innovate. He concludes with a proposal encouraging publishers to properly embrace the Weblogging model."
September 30, 2003
Do-not-call enforcement again in doubt
And the DO NOT CALL beat goes on...Can the will of 50 Million people be thwarted? The solution is to give customers the ability to opt out of the various categories of callers separately. Politicians will not like this solution and it will be an operational nightmare, I believe.
"The battle over the do-not-call list has resulted in a whirlwind of legal and legislative activity over the past two weeks.
In his decision last week, Nottingham said the FTC's attempt to exempt political and charitable organizations amounted to unconstitutional discrimination against commercial sales calls.
Unsolicited calls from political and charitable organizations can be just as annoying to consumers as calls from commercial entities, the judge said. But while Nottingham blocked the FTC program, a federal appeals court on Friday refused to stay parallel do-not-call rules adopted by the FCC. The FCC rules require telemarketers to abide by the do-not-call list, which is maintained by the FTC."
"The battle over the do-not-call list has resulted in a whirlwind of legal and legislative activity over the past two weeks.
In his decision last week, Nottingham said the FTC's attempt to exempt political and charitable organizations amounted to unconstitutional discrimination against commercial sales calls.
Unsolicited calls from political and charitable organizations can be just as annoying to consumers as calls from commercial entities, the judge said. But while Nottingham blocked the FTC program, a federal appeals court on Friday refused to stay parallel do-not-call rules adopted by the FCC. The FCC rules require telemarketers to abide by the do-not-call list, which is maintained by the FTC."
September 29, 2003
2 Servings of Reality, Please
This is probably the Iraq reality. I am deeply disappointed if WMDs are found not to exist or have existed. Are they in Syria or not? Enough time has elapsed for us to have found them.
+++++++++++++++
From Thomas Friedman:
"With Mr. Kay's interim report, it is now becoming clear that this was not a war of necessity at all, it was a war of choice, and, on top of it all, it was a war of choice that is going to be a marathon, not a sprint. And, because the Bush team chose to start this marathon largely alone, the free-riding world is going to let us finish it, and pay for it, largely alone.
This is the cold, hard reality and U.S. politics will now be about how we manage it. So far, notes Jeff Garten, dean of the Yale School of Management, 'the politics of the day, whether by Republicans or Democrats, has not been up to the magnitude of the task. There is disparity between the words people use to describe the challenge and any honest appraisal of what it's going to take to succeed.'
President Bush is deeply morally unserious when he tells Americans that we can succeed in this marathon and still have radical tax cuts for the rich and a soaring deficit, and the only people who will have to sacrifice are reservists and soldiers. And the Democrats had better decide: What is their party going to be about? Wallowing in the mess, endlessly criticizing how we got into Iraq, or articulating a broader, more realistic vision for successful nation-building there?
The lessons learned this week, and their implications, are gigantic. They will shape America's role in the world, its perception of itself and its ability to grapple with both foreign and domestic problems for years to come. I think the American people will see this through, but they want a pragmatic, strategically optimistic, morally serious plan to get behind. The leader who presents that will be the next president — I hope."
+++++++++++++++
From Thomas Friedman:
"With Mr. Kay's interim report, it is now becoming clear that this was not a war of necessity at all, it was a war of choice, and, on top of it all, it was a war of choice that is going to be a marathon, not a sprint. And, because the Bush team chose to start this marathon largely alone, the free-riding world is going to let us finish it, and pay for it, largely alone.
This is the cold, hard reality and U.S. politics will now be about how we manage it. So far, notes Jeff Garten, dean of the Yale School of Management, 'the politics of the day, whether by Republicans or Democrats, has not been up to the magnitude of the task. There is disparity between the words people use to describe the challenge and any honest appraisal of what it's going to take to succeed.'
President Bush is deeply morally unserious when he tells Americans that we can succeed in this marathon and still have radical tax cuts for the rich and a soaring deficit, and the only people who will have to sacrifice are reservists and soldiers. And the Democrats had better decide: What is their party going to be about? Wallowing in the mess, endlessly criticizing how we got into Iraq, or articulating a broader, more realistic vision for successful nation-building there?
The lessons learned this week, and their implications, are gigantic. They will shape America's role in the world, its perception of itself and its ability to grapple with both foreign and domestic problems for years to come. I think the American people will see this through, but they want a pragmatic, strategically optimistic, morally serious plan to get behind. The leader who presents that will be the next president — I hope."
North Korea Calls Rumsfeld Illiterate Psychopath
The North Koreans apparently don't like our US leaders! I guess we don't like them much either. The challenge is to catch a falling dynasty before they do something nuclear.
The Role of the Delete Key in Blog
The debate continues. What is a Blog? Is it the unedited voice of a person or something else. In reality we have hybrid blogs that include the spin of political campaign writers, the teen blogs filled with diary-like thoughts, pundit blogs, war blogs, etc. The phenomenon continues to unfold. As in any new venture, nothing is fixed. No model is sacrosanct.
Perhaps the one truism is a blog is a 'net publishing opportunity in whatever forms make sense to the publisher/person.
Perhaps the one truism is a blog is a 'net publishing opportunity in whatever forms make sense to the publisher/person.
September 28, 2003
The Level of Discourse Continues to Slide
An indictment of PowerPoint presentaions in the NASA Columbia diaster.
+++++++++++++++++
"The independent board that investigated the Columbia disaster devoted an entire page of its final report last month to Mr. Tufte's analysis. The board wrote that 'it is easy to understand how a senior manager might read this PowerPoint slide and not realize that it addresses a life-threatening situation.'
In fact, the board said: 'During its investigation, the board was surprised to receive similar presentation slides from NASA officials in place of technical reports. The board views the endemic use of PowerPoint briefing slides instead of technical papers as an illustration of the problematic methods of technical communication at NASA.'
The board echoed a message that Mr. Tufte and other critics have been trying to disseminate for years. 'I would refer to it as a virus, rather than a narrative form,' said Jamie McKenzie, an educational consultant. 'It's done more damage to the culture.'"
+++++++++++++++++
"The independent board that investigated the Columbia disaster devoted an entire page of its final report last month to Mr. Tufte's analysis. The board wrote that 'it is easy to understand how a senior manager might read this PowerPoint slide and not realize that it addresses a life-threatening situation.'
In fact, the board said: 'During its investigation, the board was surprised to receive similar presentation slides from NASA officials in place of technical reports. The board views the endemic use of PowerPoint briefing slides instead of technical papers as an illustration of the problematic methods of technical communication at NASA.'
The board echoed a message that Mr. Tufte and other critics have been trying to disseminate for years. 'I would refer to it as a virus, rather than a narrative form,' said Jamie McKenzie, an educational consultant. 'It's done more damage to the culture.'"
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