Floridian: Isolating our points of viewing

An interesting look at modern information consumers and how changes in viewing habits resonate through society. Floridian: Isolating our points of viewing

File this under "why gender counts in law and society."

In the USA we lead priveleged lives and do not face this kind of terror, at least in more prosperous neighborhoods. One of the chronic problems in Pakistan and other authoritarian countries is the exclusion of women from positions in governement and the law. It does make a difference that John Roberts is a man, despite whatever fine characteristics he has a jurist. The eye of "The Other" whether it be a person of color, a person of a different gender, someone of a different economic class will pick up nuances and details (and in the case of egregious episodes like the one Christoff write about here) and give voice to those who are invisible to the "official eye." If there were more women in the law, army and police in Pakistan, would this be such a rampant problem? But it is a truism that often oppressed people, such as the Pakistani men, turn to humiliate those closest to them in order to feel better. Getting people to see what is really oppressing them is a first step and it requires that we listen to the voices of "the Other."t r u t h o u t - Nicholas D. Kristof | Another Face of Terror

Newspapers React Differently to 'Poo' in 'Prickly City' than 'Turd Blossom' in 'Doonesbury'

The jokes (comics) get censored with a slant to the right. Joke about Howard Dean--okay. Joke about Karl Rove--censored. Newspapers React Differently to 'Poo' in 'Prickly City' than 'Turd Blossom' in 'Doonesbury'

onegoodmove: Bush Flips Out

Conservatives note: presidential decorum seems to slip. I do not think anyone could say it was his thumb in good conscience.onegoodmove: Bush Flips Out

Senate's Leader Veers From Bush Over Stem Cells - New York Times

Mr. Frist admits ambiguity in moral position. Welcome to our postmodern world, Senator. Senate's Leader Veers From Bush Over Stem Cells - New York Times (registration required or use Bugmenot) "'I am pro-life,' Mr. Frist says in the speech, arguing that he can reconcile his support for the science with his own Christian faith. 'I believe human life begins at conception.' But at the same time, he says, 'I also believe that embryonic stem cell research should be encouraged and supported.'" science

Video game critic wants probe of "Sims 2" content, rating - Jul. 28, 2005

Censorship, open design and mods, and e-games are in the news. Sims as a sexual game? I think the comment that creating mods for games is like doodling in the margin of a newspaper is an apt one. What do you think? Video game critic wants probe of "Sims 2" content, rating - Jul. 28, 2005

One Free Minute

This is cool. You can send an MP3, perform live, or call and record a message...One Free Minute

Citizen journalism: Dealing with dinosaurs

From the UK, a pro blogger weighs in on the journo vs. citizen discussion, and I think it boils down to the fact that writing is journalism if it is journalism. It is the content, not who the reporter is that matters. Citizen journalism: Dealing with dinosaurs: "I don't think the public is dumb. But in the challenging and often uncomfortable transition to the digital age, I'm frequently amazed that so many intelligent, committed and 'serious' journalists are still seemingly unable to overcome outdated and completely unfounded prejudices against a medium about which they appear to know very little." citizen journalism

Teen Journo Draws Fire After Army Sting

Undercover investigation by teenager is in the news.Teen Journo Draws Fire After Army Sting

Kinsley's Folly | Bayosphere

End run around Kinsley's orginal "rant" to what Gillmor says about it. Iverson says "ditto" and agrees with Dan. Note how Dan is using an "honor" tag on his post, signifying this post is Dan the Journalist speaking. I am trying to figure out enough Applescript to create a program that adds tags to my Blogger posts because I can't do it automatically in the "Blog this" window. Then I will tag more faithfully.Kinsley's Folly | Bayosphere

Broadcasting & Cable: The Business of Television

TV news has the blues as MSM struggles to understand where people go for news these days and for the networks, how they can make money on it. Broadcasting & Cable: The Business of Television

The September Project--Get involved NOW

If you blog, please blog this event a spread the word. The September Project ( http://www.theseptemberproject.org ) is a grassroots effort to encourage public events on freedom, democracy, and citizenship in libraries on or around September 11. September Project events are activities of reflection, discussion, and dialogue about the meaning of freedom, the role of information in promoting active citizenship, and the importance of literacy in making sense of the world around us. Events take place on September 11, on the weekend of September 11, or throughout the month of September. In other words, whenever it works best for your library and community. Libraries around the world are collaborating with organizations to host public and campus events, such as: displays about human rights and historical documents; talks and performances about freedom and cultural difference; and film screenings about issues that matter. Over 100 examples of events can be found at: http://www.theseptemberproject.org/pastevents.htm For events tailored to a more academic audience, please visit: http://www.lib.washington.edu/about/events/theseptemberproject Currently, over 160 public, academic, school, and institute libraries in 13 countries are participating. Participating countries include: Bangladesh, Greece, India, Israel, Italy, Nepal, Serbia and Montenegro, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, the US, and Venezuela. You can view a map of all participating venues here: http://www.drizzle.com/~klockner/cgi-bin/tsp/2005/map.cgi If you plan to offer programs that explore these ideas, please sign up. Signing up takes a moment and places your library on the map of participants. Please visit: http://www.drizzle.com/~klockner/cgi-bin/tsp/2005/venue.cgi I hope you and your colleagues will consider participating in this project, and please let me know if you have any questions and suggestions. Respectfully, david silver www.theseptemberproject.org English: http://www.theseptemberproject.org/tsp.pdf Espanol: http://www.theseptemberproject.org/tspespanol.pdf *** Que esta haciendo tu biblioteca el 11 de Septiembre 2005? El dia 11 de Septiembre, o cerca de esta fecha, gente en muchos paises alrededor del mundo se reunieran en espacios publicos como las bibliotecas para compartir y discutir asuntos que son de vital importancia en el mundo que hoy vivimos. Vecinos de distintas areas participaran en foros publicos, representaciones artisticas, y otras expresiones creativas de temas como democracia, ciudadania, y libertad. Las bibliotecas proveen el perfecto espacio para unir y atraer gente: Son espacios libres, publicos, y existen en muchas partes del mundo. Su participación es gratis. Por favor visite: http://www.septemberproject.org Consulta la lista de bibliotecas participantes; Comparte ideas para eventos; Inscribe a tu biblioteca. Esta cerrada en Domingo? No hay ninguna actividad planeada? Muchas bibliotecas estan planeando eventos para el fin de semana del 11 de septiembre y durante todo el mes de septiembre. Algunas bibliotecas en universidades y escuelas estan incluso organizando eventos y presentando exhibiciones que continuan hasta el siguiente periodo academico. El Proyecto Septiembre 11 es una iniciativa de base que tiene como proposito fomentar eventos publicos en todas las comunidades el dia 11 de Septiembre. Para mayor informacion por favor contacte a: info@theseptemberproject.org Espanol: http://www.theseptemberproject.org/tspespanol.pdf English: http://www.theseptemberproject.org/tsp.pdf septemberproject

RED HERRING | Blogging for Free Speech

blogging

A new bloggers guide and support for "cyberdissidents" from Reporters with Borders (Reporters sans Frontieres) an international group is being prepared. The group notes U.S. companies are creating products that allow governments to censor the Internet. Consider what you buy. Can you go open source? RED HERRING | Blogging for Free Speech: "'A Microsoft blog tool in Chinese will censor the word 'democracy' and suggest another word for 'human rights,'' Mr. Pain said. 'We have to respect certain ethical principles, but just obeying Chinese laws is not an answer.'"

Open Mesh - 6/2005

I write regularly about Wi-fi and as Chicago begins to investigate municipal wiring ideas, I came across this clearly written article about how Center for Neighborhood technology is working with Champaign-Urbana Community Wireless Network (CUWiN) to get neighborhoods where folks can't get DSL connected to the Internet. These meshnets sound terrific. You can use old computers to run them, the software is open source (non-proprietary) which means it is free, and it is working. Open Mesh - 6/2005 Techies in Chicagoland get involved, the next public hearing where alderman from the Committee on Finance and Committee on Economic Capital and Technology Development will call for input from the public about low-cost, high-speed internett access is on Thursday July 28, 2005 at 6:30 p.m. at Malcolm X College West Side Learning Center, 4624 West Madison St. Room 105. See you there.

Mattel says battle against bondage Barbie 'ongoing' - Jul. 22, 2005

Barbie alert. Mattel is a real copywronger on the whole regarding Barbie. Mattel says battle against bondage Barbie 'ongoing' - Jul. 22, 2005 The "bondage" site is really more just goth stuff and it looks like something the chicago youth went through several years ago (I did like the leopard hologram lunchbox purse) so I don't see why Mattel is so uptight. As one who has been known at some point in my life as "Barbie" I think the attempt to hijack the name for the exclusive use of Mattel is overbearing. For a toy that someone should complain about, see "Talking Jesus Doll. Idolators will go crazy for these dolls.

donga.com [english donga]

Marc Cantor (Macromedia) and Cyworld might be foreign to each other. This report loses a bit in translation, as I think the writer probably meant that Cantor said USA bloggers are obsessed meaning maniacal, but not maniacs. My impression of Cyworld was similar to Cantor's in that I wouldn't want to buy backgrounds or avatars, I would want to create my own. I think this culture meetup in cyberspace is going to be interesting, but in terms of business and making money, it could end up being tricky. donga.com [english donga]

Wired News: Web Publishers Eye Your Wallet

With this economic model and micropayments will transform the web into a gated community. Maybe, is what I say. Wired News: Web Publishers Eye Your Wallet: "he only thing slowing down the move away from free content is the sorry state of micro-transactional software. Once all the bugs are worked out, the free internet gateway in which publications generate revenue from ads will slowly morph into another, more-lucrative business model: gated content."

Leaking Standard: No pal left behind

Can one say "flip-flopper?" Bush was so quick to call Kerry one, and now who is flip-flopping? Do as I say, not as I do is apparently a White House rule. Leaking Standard: No pal left behind

Telecoms Korea

Tech you will be able to get in the future (but its for sale in South Korea now.) Yes, I do want one of these more than I want an iPod. Telecoms Korea

Looking for green in podcasting | CNET News.com

One of the themes I stress with students is how any new technology is disruptive(see the note below) and here is a real world example. Looking for green in podcasting | CNET News.com: "Podcasting may not be a revolution by itself. But experts at Wharton suggest that podcasting is one more step toward the disintermediation of media--with amateurs usurping the audience of media conglomerates."

[B]roadcast radio, which is under siege from the iPod, podcasting and satellite radio, ... will have to respond somehow.One way, says Leigh, is to embrace podcasting and make programming available on the Web without time constraints. Music labels are also at risk. Although most podcasts are talk, music is likely to follow. If music labels don't license their content, they lose a viable distribution channel and ultimately get usurped by sites like Garageband.com. As for satellite radio, Sirius has already embraced the podcasting movement, giving Adam Curry a channel modeled after his Podshow.com. Another looming issue revolves around digital rights of music.

podcasting Marshall McLuhan Laws of Media notes how all new technologies are disruptive.

• "What does the artifact ENHANCE or intensify or make possible or accelerate? This can be asked concerning a wastebasket, a painting, a steamroller, or a zipper, as well as about a proposition in Euclid or a law of physics. It can be asked about any word or phrase in any language."
• "When pushed to the limits of its potential (another complementary action), the new form will tend to reverse what had been its original characteristics. What is the REVERSAL potential of the new form?"
• "What recurrence or RETRIEVAL of earlier actions and services is brought into play simultaneously by the new form? What older, previously obsolesced ground is brought back and inheres in the new form?"
• "If some aspect of a situation is enlarged or enhanced, simultaneously the old condition or unenhanced situation is displaced thereby. What is pushed aside or OBSOLESCED by the new 'organ'?"

8 great iPhotos

8 great iPhotos
Originally uploaded by biverson.

Mom gets down at the Party Store

Artists drop while they shop to promote art, spread messages - Jul. 20, 2005

Here is a story about artists using the "BLO" method of getting noticed. If you haven't seen the movie "The Yes Men" go get it now. It chronicles the adventures of a couple of guys who find that the corporate world just doesn't get it sometimes. Now one of their modus operandi, the "shop and drop" is becoming an artist's way of getting work out. Artists drop while they shop to promote art, spread messages - Jul. 20, 2005

The insidious part of this story is the discussion of how traditional marketers and big corporations are going to try this out because the glut of advertising in our world has resulted in advertising message fatigue. This advertising trend of "shop and drop" I would classify as part of the Word of Mouth (WOM) trend as in bzzz marketing. Don't remember the "BLO" or Barbie Liberation Organization and "The Yes Men?" adbusting

Wired News: Blogs Taking Off in Cambodia

Blogging, and how to train bloggers.Wired News: Blogs Taking Off in Cambodia

The Flow of Free, Location-Aware News in the Age of Terrorism - All Points Blog

Dog poop girl, happy slapping, citizen reporters, terrorism, and living in the always connected, always instant world of almost total surveillance. Its worth thinking about. The Flow of Free, Location-Aware News in the Age of Terrorism - All Points Blog

Wired News: Mind May Affect Machines

I love this story. I still have a yellowed newspaper clipping from 1980 or so that reports on the Princeton lab and its experiments with thought and machines. Looks like the effects persist, though little can be explained about the phenomena. Anyone who has worked with computers probably suspects there is a human-machine interaction though it is sadly beyond overt control. And don't you wish you could work this effect in Vegas at the slots? Look at your computer now. I am thinking that your monitor will brighten up just a bit, but only for a second. Did you notice it? Wired News: Mind May Affect Machines

MediaPost Publications Home of MediaDailyNews, MEDIA and OMMA Magazines

FCC not taking action yet. Commissioners split on how transparent the process should be, and how much input the public should have. MediaPost Publications Home of MediaDailyNews, MEDIA and OMMA Magazines

Scotsman.com News - Scotland - Scientists develop newspaper of future

E-paper in a handheld? Chic like the iPod? When can I get mine? Here is the next "killer device." Its an iPod size e-paper reader. Charge in up with the Times in the morning and read the WSJ on the way home. Reportedly easy to read outdoors and if it drops, it doesn't break! Scotsman.com News - Scotland - Scientists develop newspaper of future

ABOUT THE UNRAVELING OF A WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY

Media Guy looks at "poor" Scott McClellan and possibly brainwashed Katie Holmes and finds humor and poetic justice. ABOUT THE UNRAVELING OF A WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: "When Haskell writes, 'If Holmes were actually answering the questions posed, rather than simply reciting the same mantra-like love letter ...' I think of Scotty McClellan and his zoned-out, autopilot answers, and I sort of wish he had a Scientologist chaperone, too. Because I'd really like to hear him say, 'Karl Rove is the man of my dreams.'"

Imagining Hollywood's postdigital future | Perspectives | CNET News.com

Entertainment on Demand (EOD) is an idea that could become a reality if the current moguls act rationally. So, what are the chances of that, given the track record in the music industry? wil Hollywood "get it" before they crash and burn? Imagining Hollywood's postdigital future | Perspectives | CNET News.com EOD

Multicultural musings

The 2nd annual Yankelovich MONITOR Multicultural Marketing report presents some findings that any media maven might take a minute to contemplate. You can put a marketing spin on their findings to discover the silver lining in this cloud, but the implications for our civil society and the quality of life in our country are harder to spin as positives.

• There is an evolution of the Hispanic family underway due to the varying levels of acculturation and language proficiencies living under one roof. The Hispanic woman is now adding to the household income and making more decisions. The children are becoming the go-to persons for information about U.S. culture and society. And, the decision making process for Hispanics is a multi-generational group process in which every family member has input.
• In the African American market, the higher number of female-headed households contributes to more liberal attitudes about gender roles. And there are increasing numbers of African-American women who choose to remain unmarried and or childless.
• African Americans are pessimistic about their economic situation, feel out of touch with the current government, and have lost what little faith they might have had in corporate entities, but they still trust the brands that effect their lives. The Hispanic family puts the needs of the family before others. This cultural value is largely due to the lack of trust in outside institutions, which is common in Latin American businesses and government.
• The data suggests that both African Americans and Hispanics are showing signs of marketing frustrations.

multicultural

The Korea Herald : The Nation's No.1 English Newspaper

What an interesting story. It mentions the infamous "dog poop girl" and another story about a girl who was forced to quit school because of anonymous postings on the school's Internet bulletin board. The place is South Korea, not the USA. The underlying issue is whether anonymous posting can be allowed or not. The way netizens in a culture where conformity is the rule in the social or real world act in anonymous cyberspace is upsetting the community. The meaness or harshness and sort of super-flaming that is found in their online postings might become a focus of legislation. Hmm. Interesting to compare with our culture where at least on the surface, we don't buy into conformity. The Korea Herald : The Nation's No.1 English Newspaper

Koreans cybertrip to a tailor-made world - Breaking - Technology - smh.com.au

More on Cyworld, but it kind of just rehashes the original Ohmynews.com story I posted about earlier. Koreans cybertrip to a tailor-made world - Breaking - Technology - smh.com.au

Helen Thomas and the "I couldn't ask a better question myself" post

My sources on what is happening in the Beltway report that "At a White House press conference this morning, Helen Thomas asked, "What is the President doing? Two years and he can't just call Rove in ask him what the hell is going? This has cost millions of dollars, taken how many lawyers? Why can't he just ask him?" Now that is a pretty good question, don't you think?

CNN Plans High-Tech News Show

"Unbundling" the news. Television is beginning to unbundle its videos of events from the cumbersome frame of the television newsroom. While CNN is going to stick Wolf Blitzer in a "situation room" and let him play off of analysis bloggers are doing of MSM news, go to video of breaking news -- will it come from eager phonecam citizen reporters -- and preside over a three-ring circus of news analysts, commentators, and such, other networks are putting their video online. What is the economic model going to be? That seems like the question that is going to determine who succeeds and who fails. CNN Plans High-Tech News Show : "CNN is one of a number of traditional news organizations incorporating video and Web capabilities into their broadcasts. CBS News recently unveiled its free broadband video service on its website and also announced plans to develop a video-on-demand digital network. ABC has its own subscription digital cable channel, which includes a live channel and video on demand."

The New Zealand Herald

I am not totally in the world of wi-fi and so I still rely on my land line phone, more than my mobile. This story brought back to me the fear I felt on 9/11 when my kid was in NYC as a student and I couldn't get through to her for days. The other part of the story, about how phonecams have come of age for recording moments of history is true, but the reliance our society has on technology which can be overloaded or broken in an instant is something that I don't think the Homeland Security or anyone else is capable of dealing with. Redundancy. Meshnetworks. That is what I am thinking. The New Zealand Herald

No, sorry, MSM is not cutting edge in any way

This guy actually thinks the networks and MSM are on top of citizen reporting, by which he means an interactive kind of site where users can put up their photos and stories, in this case, of either the London bombing or the recent hurricane in Florida. While it is "nice" that MSM is finally beginning to catch on to the way that being connected has changed the way people seek and share information, these companies are years behind consumers who grew up with computers. I mean the weatherunderground let users post images of developing weather last year and they have had blogs for at least a year. I suspect the problem is that MSMers tend only to look at the sites of other MSMers. Reporters and editors I talk to don't use the Web for their news, so its like they are missing a vision of the information world. Let's be happy they are catching on, but let's not fool ourselves that they are leaders in any way. Lessons of Internet age - The Boston Globe - Boston.com - Personal Tech - Business

Ohmynews Planet

Vlad, one of the other citizen journalists who met in Seoul, has a blog for citizen reporters and anyone interested in Ohmynews or a kind of citizen global consciousness. Ohmynews Planet

Popcast--like a podcast, but TV

More about this later, but it ties into the rise of video blogging and also the move toward open source ideas. In the olden days, before Internet, open source in the world of communications was the idea of a "common carrier," like an interstate truck or the phone wire--a communication channel that was not running any of the content, just getting the messages from place to place without interference. Popcast Here is more about this from Wired.

Indian portal seeks to fill similar niche to Cyworld

VOIP for 14.4 modem connections? Avatars for cellphones and gaming? Search for those who use phones to access Internet instead of computers? Rediff looks like a future winner. India portal Rediff.com branches out | CNET News.com

Phonecams, blogs, Flickr are transforming the way news is done.

NBC now supplies its reporters and staff with phonecams as it mulls doing more news distribution via wireless devices. Flickr comes into its own as a news tool with the recent bombing in London, UK. Rocky Mountain News: Entertainment

Notes from the front--Tehran July 13, 2005

iran One of the citizen journalists I met at Ohmynews Citizen Reporter Forum is a photojournalist who lives and (tries) to work from Tehran. She sent this message to those of us who know her. It is frightening and shows how quickly repression can work. She is so brave, but cannot publish this information under her name. I am including her letter, but not her name and stuff for fear that it would hurt her. Please overlook her imperfect English, and read about the plight of those who are working for democracy and journalism in Iran, and do what you can do to help.

Hello Myfriends A Legal organization of protest students organized a demonstration to support Akbar Ganji,most famous protest journalist who have been in prison for 62 months and hunger strike since 32 days ago.Mr. Mousavi Khoeeni,the secretary general of the organization(legislator of past parliament) called me 3 hours before demonstration and asked me:what's you plan for 5_7 o'clock ? I told him I will go for demonstration and he told me we will buy some of your photos cause we need them as document ! When I arrived there (infront of Tehran university)there were a big group of protests there , they were singing an old protest song together,police and Basij was trying to dispel people very impolitely. protests started chanting "political prisoners must be freed" and then police attacked and hit them(even women and old people) by electric batons. I was trying to hide my camera and take some photos cause policemen broke several cemras of other photograpghers.they were like wild animals and They detained some protests after hiting. Anyway after 90 minutes hiding ,running and shooting photos the rally finished and I came back home , but Mr.Khoeeni didn't call me anymore ! Today I found out that police has detained him yesterday and nobody knows where is he now ! Unfortunately I can't publish this story and my photos in medias with my name but as a journalist it's my duty to announce what is going on in my country and now I ask you if it's possible write something about these movements in your medias ,Iranian people need international supports!

CBS News | CBS News Unveils Web Strategy | July 12, 2005 14:00:13

News about news. CBS announces it is ""bypassing cable television in favor of the nation's fastest-growing distribution system -- broadband." CBS News | CBS News Unveils Web Strategy | July 12, 2005 14:00:13 The CBSnews.com site claims that "CBS News will move from a primarily television and radio news-based operation to a 24-hour, on-demand news service, available across many platforms, drawing on the experienced, worldwide, award-winning resources of the network." This is a big change and may indicate that at least this part of MSM is catching on to what their core strength and business is -- information, not videos or paper or cute/handsome news anchors. Goodbye "happy talk."

South Korea worries about worker shortage:- - Business News - Webindia123.com

Go East, young worker, go east. Well, this is an example of what Richard Florida is talking about in The Flight of the Creative ClassSouth Korea worries about worker shortage:- - Business News - Webindia123.com

The poop: Big Internet is watching you

Just noting that my other blog, phonecamnews.com was on this story days ago. The ethics and just the whole social framework of a totally connected world will be one of the subjects my students and I explore in the fall. Like Dan Gillmor, I don't have the answers yet, but this can't be ignored. I think that there could be a cultural element to this story, as the cultural significance and taboos around poop may vary between cultures. The poop: Big Internet is watching you

On citizen journalism, the professional premium and quality in pyjamas from Observer Blog

One perspective on citizen reporters, tragedies, and "real reporters" from the Guardian. On citizen journalism, the professional premium and quality in pyjamas from Observer Blog

AlterNet: Google's Bias for Bigness

Big trouble for bloggers and those who seek to cast a wide net when they are looking for news. Google says it planning on altering its search algorithms to try and get stories by "respected" news operations to rank higher thna independent sources. This means a blogger who may know lots about a narrow topic will have their story pushed down in a search for news in favor of a story by an established publication. I am looking into this, and will be writing more about it. AlterNet: Google's Bias for Bigness

FT.com / World / Asia-Pacific - Summer strike season starts in South Korea

Interesting. FT.com / World / Asia-Pacific - Summer strike season starts in South Korea: "Pilots at Korean Air, the national carrier, have been working to rule this week, taxiing planes at the minimum speed to and from runways, while half the 525 pilots at Asiana, the country's second-largest airline, held a one-day strike to push for better working conditions, including longer breaks between flights."

Search Engine Journal » London Bomb Blast Heard Across Internet

Tags come of age as a news tool in case of tragedies. Witnesses with phonecams record the London bombing as they become citizen journalists by chance. Search Engine Journal » London Bomb Blast Heard Across Internet: "Footage from the bombing can also be found on Flickr’s London Bomb Blast Pool and searches for photos with the tags “london” and “london bomb.” Technorati’s top five searches for the day are 1. “London” 2. “London Explosion” 3. “London Bomb” 4. “London Blast” 5. “London Bombing”."

The Star Online : TechCentral - Malaysia Technology

Here is a report on the possible collaboration between Wikinews and Ohmynews. I have Eric Moeller's talk on MP3, and if I get time I will add the best excepts to the blog as audio files.The Star Online : TechCentral - Malaysia Technology

Internet takes on South Korea's powerful newspapers

As South Korea goes, so could go the US, in terms of media and audiences.Internet takes on South Korea's powerful newspapers

Ohmynews gets "Best "Independent Newsite Award"

Ohmynews makes news today. TIME.com: 50 Coolest Websites 2005: News and Information

Tour de Plame-- the course and the contestants

Karl Rove or Bush's Brain is the focus of my latest article for Ohmynews.com go to OhmyNews International

Too cool--live tracking of the Tour

CSC - TDF liveNot as pleasant as sitting in a cafe-bar in Extremadura, Spain, on the Portugese border, sipping cold drinks and watching the Tour on the big screen, but at least you can keep up with the action.

Newspapers still kind of clueless about participatory journalism.

Why Newspapers Are Betting on Audience Participation - New York Times

"But with gloomy financial forecasts and declines in circulation, some papers are starting to see participatory journalism as their hope for reconnecting with their audiences.

If profit is their motive, they will fail to see that "participatory" means that control becomes decentralized. "Public discourse" is no longer dominated by "gatekeepers" like editors, commentators who work for the news organization or even reporters.

In some cases, like Backfence.com, in suburban Virginia, citizens are the only contributors, and the 'newspaper' is an unedited Web site. In Bluffton, S.C., Blufftontoday.com is made up largely of reader contributions, but some of the content is also published in a colorful tabloid newspaper and distributed free to residents. In Colorado, The Rocky Mountain News is creating 39 local Web sites under the umbrella of YourHub.com, with most of the material intended to come from readers."

These writers shouldn't ignore the Ohmynews model, JanJan, Livedoor and other online news operations that are not from the USA. Today's audiences are global, not just local. Consider the three million participants in Live8, who joined together via e-communications and broadcast channels, as well as by going somewhere in the physical world. Most of them felt they were part of Live8. Being there in this day and age doesn't always mean in your corporal form.

When artists attack...

bioart Artists blur the line between genetics and biological research and art these days reports the NY Times (registration required.) In some installations, the results are quirky but fairly benign. But artists who work with living organisms and get into the fuzzy area of live meeting artistic imperatives are coming up against anti-terrorism laws and prosecutors who may end up making them martyrs. "Called bioart or wetware by some of its practitioners, the field is growing rapidly in the United States and Europe, and it is producing bizarre and sometimes disturbing work that seems sprung right from the pages of Philip K. Dick or Koji Suzuki, except that the science involved is not fiction." My friend Eduardo Kac has done transgenic art for years, including his project to make Alba, the glow in the dark bunny (see his site for Alba's saga.) Eduardo's work is provocative and meant to make people think about the science in their lives but it has never been toxic. But as this article points out "... much of the work is provocative and, depending on your Brave New World tolerance, disturbing: creating "victimless" meat by growing tiny steaks from biopsied frog cells and then eating the steaks; using bone cells from pigs to grow wing-shaped objects, a play on the "when pigs fly" trope; coaxing cactuses into sprouting humanlike hair; growing tissue in a petri dish that could theoretically be marketed as a hymen replacement." And some of the artists are releasing organisms out into the world or trying to produce uber-weeds. This seems kind of quirky, but signals a direction in science and art that is not going away.

Cywold addict confesses, explains its allure.

OhmyNews International

Koreans cybertrip to a tailor-made world - Breaking - Technology - theage.com.au

Background on Cyworld in Korea. Koreans cybertrip to a tailor-made world - Breaking - Technology - theage.com.au

Daum - wired

Wired, a source that informs me, now is available in Korean.Daum - wired