10.22.2006

Conversations with Michael Eisner

Check it out:
OCT 23RD
8PM & 11PM ET
GUESTS:
TED TURNER,
SUMNER REDSTONE &
MARK CUBAN

10.20.2006

Too Good to Paraphrase

Bill Moyers explains why the Internet is the most "Democratic of all media." Read it.

Google Earnings up 92%

Google continues making that money.

NBC is undergoing a Digital Makeover

WaPo:
Network television, for half a century the unquestioned leader in media profitability and viewership, is wrestling with the same challenge facing newspapers, news magazines, radio and other traditional media properties: how to manage costs while converting to digital delivery in an increasingly splintered media landscape. Although the promise of revenue in the new era is great, actual revenues from Internet and mobile media services still are not.
As a result of this, the network is cutting 700 jobs and slashing $750 million from its budget.

Blair Makes an Announcement

Britain will pull out of Iraq in 12-18 months.

10.17.2006

CBS Correspondent Dies

Longtime CBS Correspondet, Christopher Glenn, has passed today of liver cancer.

Universal Starts with the Lawsuits

Financial Times:
Universal Music has launched the established media industry’s first legal action against rapidly growing user-generated websites by filing copyright suits against start-ups Grouper.com and Bolt.com.

In separate lawsuits, Universal alleged that Grouper and Bolt had built up traffic by encouraging users to share music videos from its artists without their permission.
That's odd, Youtube probably shows far more copyrighted videos than these two startups. I wonder if Google's acquisition of Youtube last week had anything to do with this.

The Power of the Book

Howard Kurtz has an great piece on the lasting power of books in a media society currently driven by online and multimedia ventures.
In an age of blogging, podcasting, BlackBerrying and instant messaging, when any thought can be expressed within nanoseconds, an old-fashioned form of technology is making a comeback.

It's called the book, a collection of pages, bound between hard covers, that generally takes at least two years to report, write, edit and publish, using the kind of presses that date to the 15th century.
It is worth a read.

Americans Don't Trust Bush

Raw Story:
A poll conducted last week by the New York Times and CBS news found that just 16% of Americans believe the Bush Administration is telling the truth about what they knew prior to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States.

Juxtaposition of Headlines

Huffington Post does an excellent job of pointing out the absurdity in a recent Cheney statement by placing the following headlines at the top of the page.
CHENEY: SITUATION IN IRAQ GOING "REMARKABLY WELL"

CNN: 64% OF AMERICANS OPPOSE WAR
Brilliant.

Addicted to the Internet

I'm afraid I might fall into this category.

White House on the Offensive

Apparently the White House Communications Office is now in the business of refuting news coverage that they do not view as favorable. This is a broad departure from the type of activities previous administrations have participated in.

The Emperor Wears no Clothes

Andrew Sullivan lays the smack down on the participants in an unannounced Bush pep talk that took place last month.
Who are these people called in to meet the president for a pep talk? Here are the toadies awaiting instructions and talking points: Mike Gallagher, Neal Boortz, Laura Ingraham, Sean Hannity and Michael Medved. It forces one to ask the question: what is the difference between journalists fawning on a president, taking spin directly from him, cozying up to him - and paid propagandists whose job it is to advance the interests of those who already wield power?
The extent to which some of these so called "journalists" are willing to barter integrity for access is appalling. Even more offensive, and just as pervasive, is the manner in which the Bush administration rewards journalists who cover the Republican party line by granting them exclusive interviews. I, like many others, dream of the day when Bush finds the courage to accept an interview by Keith Olbermann, Jack Cafferty, Stephen Colbert, or anyone else who might actually ask tough questions. Unfortunately, I don't see that happening anytime soon.

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EU Seeks to Regulate Video Bloggers

Bad news comes from the Times:
The Government is seeking to prevent an EU directive that could extend broadcasting regulations to the internet, hitting popular video-sharing websites such as YouTube.

The European Commission proposal would require websites and mobile phone services that feature video images to conform to standards laid down in Brussels.

Ministers fear that the directive would hit not only successful sites such as YouTube but also amateur “video bloggers” who post material on their own sites. Personal websites would have to be licensed as a “television-like service”.

I Never Thought the Day Would Come

The New York Times has embedded a Youtube video in an article.

Google Goes Green

From Slashdot:
Reuters is reporting that Google is equipping its headquarters with a solar panel 'capable of generating 1.6 megawatts of electricity, or enough to power 1,000 California homes.' This will make Google's Mountain View campus the largest solar-powered office complex in the United States.
Apparently Google is ahead of the curve in more ways that one.

David Gregory Does Bush

Chief White House Correspondent for NBC, David Gregory, does a quick yet hilarious impression of the president on Leno. Click here to watch it.

Pombo's Blog is Exclusive

TPM:
Apparently you have to be invited by the Pombo campaign to be able to read the Pombo campaign blog.

I signed up for an account with WordPress, as the instructions tell you to do. But I was told "You’re logged in, but don’t have access to this blog. You may contact the blog administrator to gain access."
Somebody apparently doesn't get it.

Coincidence?

Saddam's verdict will be read on November 5th.

10.16.2006

Andrew Sullivan on Colbert Report

Sullivan, one of my favorite conservatives, was on Colbert last night. Video via Daily Dish:


Sullivan makes a great point about the divide over homosexuality within the Republican party. On this, and many other issues, the party seems to have some soul-searching to do.