audience-funded media

Sniki Wiki> About Sniki Wiki: Your Social Networking Wiki > Social Media > categories > Glossary > Audience Funded Media

You often talk about “audience-funded media.” What do you mean by that?

A: I’m not sure if I invented that term. In fact, it may not even be accurate to call AFM a “new” category. After all, the public has been commissioning acts of journalism and paying for them in advance for hundreds of years, at least since the days of the first commercially published dictionaries. ReelChanges.org merely brings this time-honored business model into the current online networked era. In fact, to this day I remain surprised that no one really focused on doing this here in the United States before us. Not that it’s an easy thing to do, it certainly isn’t. But because it is so obviously necessary. I mean, how else are we going to change and improve the content of our media unless we can figure out how to pay for, how to finance, media that has the increased social and cultural utility we need?

Hal Plotkin Fortunately, the basic ReelChanges.org concept is already working in at least one other country, South Korea. That’s another reason we think it can work here, too. Just last month, South Korea’s popular OhMyNews.com service raised $130,000 from 34,000 people in 10 days to pay for a live webcast of protests about a controversial trade deal. The corporate-owned media in South Korea wasn’t giving the public the news and information they wanted, so the Korean public got on the Internet and paid for it themselves. That’s the basic model. To give the public a workaround so they can obtain high-quality professional media without ceding all the decision-making power about the content of media to big corporations that can have narrow or even undisclosed interests in the stories being covered. Or not being covered.

At present, as an industry journalism is suffering its worst slump in history. Newspapers are rapidly downsizing or closing entirely. Broadcast bureaus and even entire divisions are being shut or decimated. We hope that over time the ReelChanges.org business model, applied initially to documentaries, might also help breathe fresh life and new resources into the larger profession journalism itself as senior decision-makers within the media industry come to understand the basic idea ReelChanges.org demonstrates: that if you do it right, the public will pay to be involved in the decisions about what the news and information media industries cover. Also, we think it is likely the content and focus of coverage will shift in important, socially beneficial ways when the public is invited to become more deeply involved in helping set the agenda.

Q: How does ReelChanges work? Who selects the programming that appears on the site?

A: Filmmakers submit projects, they are screened for quality and then, if accepted, published on the site where tax-deductible donations are solicited and accepted on their behalf. Currently, I am the site’s content editor but expect to share that responsibility with others down the line as we expand and as we begin to accept ReelChanges.org “showcases” on the site. A ReelChanges.org showcase is essentially a channel, where the content options are determined by the owner of the channel, for example, a specific public television station. I’m also happy to report that my old friend and mentor, public radio legend Jim Russell, is taking on a new role as a Consulting Executive Producer at ReelChanges.org. Jim was the first executive producer of All Things Considered and he also created Marketplace, public radio’s long-running business news program, where he was kind enough to hire me as one of his first editors some 20 years ago. It’s great to be working with Jim again. I’m hoping to rope Jim into more of the content selection and content improvement decisions over time.

And one other key thing to note here, which is one of the more important fundamental differences between the ReelChanges.org funding model and the traditional documentary funding model used, for instance, by most foundations. Foundations routinely turn down proposals from documentary makers that they wish they could fund. They just don’t have enough money to support every good project they see. We don’t have that problem. We don’t have to turn down any good ideas. We can promote any and all worthwhile documentary projects and then let the public decide which ones they want to support. So that is one of the big pluses in our model. Our other rules and procedures, some of which are still evolving, can be found on the ReelChanges.org website in the FAQ and the Guidelines for Filmmakers.

Continue reading "Q&A with founder of ReelChanges.org"

August 13 at 02:47 PM in Citizen media, Film | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

August 11, 2008
Did McCain plagiarize Wikipedia today?

CQ Politics: Did McCain Plagiarize His Speech on the Georgia Crisis? Not a big deal, but interesting that McCain's staff who do it, given the candidate's computer illiteracy.

August 11 at 03:27 PM in Politics, Wikis | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

Audience-centric film events

Just got this word from Lance Weiler, a filmmaker and co-founder of two free events in the SF Bay Area this weekend:

From Here to Awesome

Theme: "You Are the Festival Programmer"
When: Friday, Aug. 15, 8 pm
Where: The Mezzanie and Mint Plaza, 444 Jessie St., San Francisco
What it is: a discovery and distribution festival that is programmed by the audience. Audience members will use their mobile phones to program a night of free festival screenings. It's theater on demand and you're in control of what screens.
Admission: To secure your free ticket visit http://www.cinegogo.com/fhta

DIY DAYS - SF

Theme: "fund, create, distribute, sustain"
When: Sunday, Aug. 17, 10:30 am to 7:30 pm
Where: 111 Minna Gallery, San Francisco
What it is: a free series of discussions about funding, creating, distributing, and sustaining as storytellers in the digital age. The free day of panels, workshops and roundtables will show participants how to fund, create, distribute and sustain as a filmmaker in this changing digital landscape.
More info: http://diydays.com

Here's a video that describes the activities in more detail.

August 11 at 12:43 PM in Film, Mobile | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

All of us, the arbiters of news

David Carr in the NY Times: All of Us, the Arbiters of News.

Well, yes. Excerpt:

On Friday, NBC spent the day trying to plug online leaks of the splashy opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics in order to protect its taped prime-time broadcast 12 hours later. There was a profound change in roles here: a network trying to delay broadcasting a live event, more or less TiVo-ing its own content.

Consumers have no issue with time-shifting content — in some younger demographics, at least half the programming is consumed on a time-shifted basis — they just want to be the ones doing the programming. Trying to stop foreign broadcasts and leaked clips from being posted on YouTube — NBC’s game of “whack-a-mole” as my colleague Brian Stelter described it — was doomed to failure because information not only wants to be free, its consumers are cunning, connected and will find a workaround on any defense that can be conceived. …

Emerging technologies that threaten to destroy the current paradigm can have precisely the opposite effect. Remember when VCRs and then DVDs were going to lay waste to the movie industry and ended up saving it instead? The Web leaks of entertainment that NBC bought and paid for served as a kind of trailer for the real thing.

There is a lesson there for rest of the media, most specifically The Philadelphia Inquirer, where the managing editor, Michael Leary, issued a memo last week suggesting that all of the paper’s good stuff — “signature investigative reporting, enterprise, trend stories, news features and reviews” — would not appear online until they first appear in print.

“For our bloggers, especially, this may require a bit of an adjustment,” Mr. Leary informed the staff. “Some of you like to try out ideas that end up as subjects of stories or columns in print first. If in doubt, consult your editor.”

Even to the eye of this reporter — to use a hack newspaper term — The Inquirer seems to be making a mistake. If the future of our business is online, then why set up a firewall, delaying the best content to protect a legacy product? And more adept reporters are beginning to realize that the Web is not just a way to broadcast news, it is a great way to assemble it as well. …

As the former newspaperman and Web evangelist Jeff Jarvis (who has also consulted for The New York Times) has been saying since before broadband, the Web is not just a way to shout, it is a way to listen, one that can lead to deeper, more effective journalism. (His response to the Philly injunction against early Web publishing was predictably measured and careful: “It is suicide. It is murder. You should be ashamed of yourselves.”)

It's unbelievable that the once-respected Inquirer has resorted to such a dead-ender's strategy.

Jarvis: A stake through the heart of the has-been Inquirer.

August 11 at 02:38 AM in Media, New media, Weblogs | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

Awaiting the Facebook attitude adjustment

Natasha Chart at MyDD: Awaiting the Facebook attitude adjustment.

We've all heard hand-wringing over what will become of the facebook generation when their drunken college-age (And you don't have to go to college to do stupid crap at that age, which seems to be getting older all the time, if you know what I mean.) facebook pictures come up in middle age.

Anyway, that's my guess. That people who've grown up in more of a public fishbowl, without the fictional veneer of respectability, where it's shameful to admit nearly universal indulgences, will give less of a damn about stupid non-issues and have more room to worry about big crimes that affect us all. But we don't live in that future.

We live in a present where the Republicans ran three admitted adulterers, including John McCain, for the presidency - and no one cared. But a former Democratic contender's affair is revealed - big news.

Bush is rendered an unfit campaigner for his party successor not because of lies, torture, lawbreaking, economic havoc, an unjust war, the death of hundreds of thousands, the loss of an entire city - but because his poll numbers have tanked. Bill Clinton was rendered an unfit campaigner for his party successor, in spite of being very popular at home and overseas, presiding over an era of general peace and prosperity, winning a war - just because he did, in fact, have sex with that woman.

That's our media world. That's our reality. It's stupid and unfair. It's grossly immoral if your ethical compass includes a measure of the suffering caused by an action …

August 11 at 02:01 AM in Social networks | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

Giving the public access to knowledge

San Jose Mercury News: Open access responds to public's hunger for knowledge.

Albert Einstein is on YouTube. Plato is on iTunes. And professors at Harvard and Stanford have begun freely sharing their work on the Web with anyone who is interested. We may just be entering a new era in the public right to knowledge.

In February, Harvard University Faculty of Arts and Sciences voted to create "open access" copies of all their scholarly articles. In May, Harvard Law School followed suit. Then in June, Stanford University School of Education faculty unanimously voted for a similar motion.

By endorsing this open-access policy, my Stanford colleagues have agreed that publishing an article in a respectable journal is no longer the end of it. They will also post a copy of their work online, where educators and the public can freely read what we have learned about learning. …

August 11 at 12:02 AM in Education | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

August 09, 2008
Kaltura: open source video

Kaltura: open-source video from JD Lasica on Vimeo.

I've been following Kaltura for about a year now. It offers a terrific open-source platform, toolset and nearly free video hosting solution for small and large companies and nonprofits. (I think I have that right — it's hard to explain what they do in a single sentence.) From the site: "Kaltura's goal is to bring interactive video to every site and to create the world's largest distributed video network."

Here's a 9-minute video interview with CEO Ron Yekutiel. They're about to give users the capability to add video and widgets to Wikipedia, and they're working with MediaWiki.org as well. They also offer an extension that provides WordPress blogs with video abilities.

Watch the video in H.264 (QuickTime) on Ourmedia

Watch the video on Vimeo.

August 9 at 10:18 PM in Video | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

Film fest features nontraditional digital video

SF Chronicle: The Disposable Film Festival Film features nontraditional digital video.

The festival is accepting submissions for the 2009 screening; date and time are yet to be determined. For more information, go to www.disposablefilmfest.com.

To watch examples of disposable video, go to www.vimeo.com/disposablefilmfest.

August 9 at 09:44 PM in Film, Video | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

4 tips for shooting live events

Last month social media consultant and photographer Josh Hallet (Hyku on Flickr) not only took some spectacular photos at BlogHer under difficult lighting conditions — but also managed to upload them in near real time.

I asked Josh for his tips, and here they are:

Shooting live events and publishing them quickly

1. Gear: I use a Nikon D3 with a 70-200mm f/2.8 lens (before I used the Nikon D300 and the D80). The single biggest upgrade you'll see is with a good lens. (I agree — especially with poor lighting.)

2. Download: I always carry two memory cards and my external card- reader. That way I can be off-loading photos on my laptop and still taking pictures. Then I just swap cards.

3. Processing: I use Lightroom and make a few minor edits/crops as needed, then export the JPG files for upload. I tend to scale the photo size down a little bit so I'm not uploading huge files.

4. Upload: I use the standalone Flickr Uploadr app. If the wifi works then great, if not I'm on my EVDO [cellular modem].

August 9 at 04:04 PM in Photography | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

Free books on social media

Chris Brogan: 20 free ebooks about social media.

Mashable: 5 books on corporate social media.

August 9 at 12:53 AM in Books, Social-media | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

August 08, 2008
23andMe: DNA and blood ties taken to the next level

23andme_2

Just a quick word about a website and service I had heard about but never really looked into until I sat next to Esther Dyson at the Aspen Institute roundtable I attended last week. Esther — who's on the company's board, an investor and a customer — gave me and VC Arjun Gupta a demo of 23andMe, a site that brings DNA, genealogy and family relationships to the next level.

They've done no marketing but already have lots of customers. Their mission statement says: "23andMe's mission is to be the world's trusted source of personal genetic information." The site's Overview page points out: "We help you understand how your genetics influences more than 80 diseases, health-related conditions and traits. We also help you explore your family relationships and ancestry with the information in your DNA."

Here is Esther's series of Flickr photos about the company. (I'm still surprised how few startups make use of screencasts, which would serve the site quite well.) 23, of course, refers to the number of twin pairs of chromosomes in a strand of DNA.

Sounds easy as cake to participate: just swab the inside of your mouth and mail it to their lab. As more family members participate, you'll be able to compare how much of your DNA you share with your relatives. It's not quite within reach of the masses yet because of the understandable $1,000 price tag — after all, it costs time and money to sequence a DNA swab — but within a year or two this startup will deservedly bust out in a big way. Certainly when it becomes a bit more affordable I'll sign up.

August 8 at 10:58 PM in Science, Web/Tech | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

NBC's Olympics tape delay faces end run by fans

Olympics

NY Times: Tape Delay by NBC Faces End Run by Online Fans. NBC’s decision about the opening ceremonies sent people to their computers to poke holes in a technological wall.

NBC’s decision to delay broadcasting the opening ceremonies by 12 hours sent people across the country to their computers to poke holes in NBC’s technological wall — by finding newsfeeds on foreign broadcasters’ Web sites and by watching clips of the ceremonies on YouTube and other sites.

In response, NBC sent frantic requests to Web sites, asking them to take down the illicit clips and restrict authorized video to host countries. As the four-hour ceremony progressed, a game of digital whack-a-mole took place. Network executives tried to regulate leaks on the Web and shut down unauthorized video, while viewers deftly traded new links on blogs and on the Twitter site, redirecting one another to coverage from, say, Germany, or a site with a grainy Spanish-language video stream.

As the first Summer Games of the broadband age commenced in China, old network habits have never seemed so archaic — or so irrelevant.

Exactly. NBC ought to be ashamed. But myopia remains the rule of the day.

August 8 at 10:23 PM in Sports, Television | Permalink | CommentComments (4) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

Should advocacy organizations do journalism?

Fascinating discussion by Dan Gillmor and others recently at the Center for Citizen Media blog: Helping the Almost-Journalists Do Journalism. Excerpts:

The people who’ve done the best reporting on this scandal [the torture of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay] have not, for the most part, been working for major media outfits. They’ve been working for that famous journalism organization called the American Civil Liberties Union. …

Now consider Human Rights Watch, the mission of which is “Defending Human Rights Worldwide.” It’s another advocacy organization that does superb reporting on the issues it cares about and they produces media to spread its message. Take a look, for example, at its report on Saudi Arabian domestic workers to see an exhaustively researched document on some troubling practices.

And then check out the Council on Foreign Relations “Crisis Guides” — see, for example, this one about Darfur - that provide remarkably detailed coverage of global political crises….

With just a little extra effort, they could be part of the journalistic ecosystem too, in ways that go far beyond their traditional roles.

Dan suggests that these organizations take on the mantle of journalists and suggests: "a) listen hard to people who disagree with you; b) hunt for facts and data that are contrary to your own stand; and c) reflect disagreements and nuances in what you tell the rest of us."

I'm not sure I agree. It's a fine line — advocacy organizations shouldn't slant their findings unfairly. But as a news consumer, I don't expect balance or nuance from the ACLU. Should it really be up to the ACLU to seek out the opinions of those who believe torture is just fine?

I think Dan's observation about these organizations engaging in "almost journalism" is an excellent point, and an increasingly important part of the news landscape. Should they engage in fully baked journalism? I don't necessarily think so. But it will be fascinating to see how this plays out in the years to come.

Related: Glenn Greenwald in Salon: Who is doing real journalism?

So much of the real journalism that is occurring isn't from TV and magazine stars but largely from severely under-paid advocates at public interest groups and anonymous government whistle-blowers who aren't even meant to be "journalists." The function of the ACLU and similar groups isn't really to uncover illegal behavior on the part of our Government. That is the intended function of the Congress, the media and the opposition party. But those institutions haven't done that — with very rare exception, they don't do it (and in the case of Congress, one is hard-pressed to think of any real exceptions at all). As a result, the ACLU and similar groups — with far fewer resources — have been forced first to uncover what the Government does, to try methodically and incrementally to erode the government's wall of secrecy, to perform real journalism, in order then to engage in their real function of opposing Government encroachments and defending the Constitution, basic privacy rights and civil liberties.

August 8 at 12:43 PM in Citizen media | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

On the decline of the LA Times

Ann Taylor Fleming reflects on the decline of her hometown newspaper, the Los Angeles Times, in this audio essay (mp3) from PBS's NewsHour.

August 8 at 02:28 AM in Media | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

Sneaky spam comments

Mark Glaser at PBS's MediaShift blog: Commenters Mix Conversation, Self-Promoting Links to Defeat Filters.

August 8 at 02:25 AM in New media | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

6 steps for creating a social media marketing plan

Lorna Li of Green Marketing 2.0 (sorry about the hard-to-read white type on black): 6 Steps for Creating a Social Media Marketing Roadmap & Plan.

August 8 at 02:02 AM in Social-media | Permalink | CommentComments (1) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

August 07, 2008
At Doggyspace, social networking goes to the dogs

Doggyspace

Associated Press: At Doggyspace, social networking goes to the dogs.

August 7 at 10:19 PM in Social networks | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

John Edwards and his 'love child'

Enquirerje

Aaron Barnhart of McClatchy Newspapers writes about the story of Sen. John Edwards and his "love baby," complete with a fabricated photo (above) in the National Enquirer (would Edwards, if the story is true, really allow his photo be taken with the newborn? Oh, wait, it's a spy photo. I see.)

If Edwards were the presumptive presidential or vice presidential nomine, this would be a big story. As it is, it may cost Edwards a speaking spot at the Democratic Convention this month, the LA Times reports.

August 7 at 09:49 PM in Current Affairs | Permalink | CommentComments (1) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

Develop digital innovations in Knight garage

The Knight Foundation invites participants to develop digital innovations in its "garage." Details:

Fifty coaches are standing by at a new mentoring Web site to help innovative thinkers apply for the Knight News Challenge, a $5 million-a-year contest to move journalism into the 21st Century. The coaches — made up of past jurors and winners — will give News Challenge hopefuls a better chance of winning up to $5 million in prizes annually. They also hope to attract a more diverse range of ideas. Read the news release or visit The Garage.

August 7 at 06:28 PM in New media | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

Follow Olympics on cell phone, computer

Mobile_beijing2008
The San Francisco Chronicle reports on the viewing options for the Beijing Olympics.

Forget TV. This summer, Olympic enthusiasts have a variety of choices when it comes to following their favorite athletes.

NBC and Microsoft have created nbcolympics.com, a Web site where fans will get live, streaming video as well as recorded events on demand.

NBC also has partnered with Wavexpress to create a free download-and-play service called NBC Olympics on the Go (tvtonic.com/ olympics). Any user with a PC running Windows Vista Media Center will be able to subscribe on HD-quality channels and have them automatically downloaded directly to a PC or laptop.

Meanwhile, Sun Microsystems launched MyPicks Beijing 2008, a new social-networking game, allowing fans to compete at Facebook, with their friends and for their country, by correctly predicting medal winners throughout this summer's Olympic Games.

And for those who are planning to follow the Olympics on their cell phones, CNN will bring game results to fans worldwide via SMS anytime, anywhere. Fans can register for the free service from their mobile phones by logging on to cnnmobile.com/beijing08.

Users can also access the NBC Olympics mobile.nbcolympics.com site using their phone's browser or by texting " Olympics" to 51515.

Related: SF Chronicle: Olympics TV coverage won't be so prime in the West.

What else is new? We're used to abuse from the networks. At least now we can work around them.

August 7 at 05:57 PM in Current Affairs, Sports | Permalink | CommentComments (1) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

5 steps to foster innovation in the newsroom

New at the IdeaLab:

Chris O'Brien: Five Steps to Foster Innovation in the Newsroom

Dan Gillmor: How Newspapers Can Re-Engage with Communities

August 7 at 05:28 PM in Media, New media | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

August 05, 2008
Why Americans hate journalism

Marty Kaplan at the Huffington Post: Why Americans Hate [Political] Journalism, Part 62. Dead on. To the cable TV pundits, it's all a game. Line up and take your sides, everyone!

Meantime, author Ron Suskind, who broke the story about the administration's political use of the CIA to break the law, could be found on MSNBC's Countdown with Keith Olbermann.

August 5 at 09:20 PM in Media | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

McCain's lobbyists

Lobbyists

For a fascinating look at independent journalism, take a look at this interactive rundown of Sen. John McCain's web of lobbyists.

August 5 at 06:11 PM in New media, Politics | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

Paris Hilton for president

"I'll see you at the debates, bitches."

As Jonathan Singer says, "Why is it that Paris Hilton is able to speak more substantively about energy than John McCain?"

August 5 at 05:29 PM in Amusing | Permalink | CommentComments (4) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

August 04, 2008
Twitter and the newsroom of the future

A twin pair of interesting posts at the Idea Lab blog:

Chris O'Brien: Is Twitter the Newsroom of the Future?

Ryan Sholin: Five Ways to Gather and Report News with Twitter

August 4 at 10:08 PM in Citizen media, New media, Social networks | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

Top iPhone 3G applications

Iphoneapps

The San Jose Mercury News samples some of the 900 applications available for the iPhone 3G and holds up a few that catch the eye, including Pandora Radio, VoiceDial and such games as Chopper and Labyrinth.

August 4 at 09:58 PM in Gadgets, Games | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

Deborah Kaplan on Zerofootprint.net

Interview with ZeroFootprint from JD Lasica on Vimeo.

Here's a 4 1/2-minute video interview with Deborah Kaplan, executive director of Zerofootprint.net, an amazing organization based in Toronto and devoted to help organizations, cities and individuals recognize their carbon footprint and take specific measures to help reduce climate change. The interview was conducted at the Stanford Summit in July 2008.

They're working with the cities of Toronto, Seattle, Edmonton and Ottawa to help citizens reduce their carbon footprints. For starters, check out their One Minute Calculator.

Watch video in H.264 (QuickTime) on Ourmedia
Watch video in Flash on Vimeo

Note: Ourmedia's servers (along with MediaMobz) went down this morning but are back up now.

Cross-posted to Real People Network.

August 4 at 01:41 PM in Causes, Current Affairs, International, Podcasts & interviews | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

Back from the cloud computing roundtable

Roundtable participants

I'm back from the Aspen Institute, where last week we held a roundtable on "Identity in the Age of Cloud Computing: Implications for Social Interaction, Governance and Money."

Participants included John Seely Brown, Esther Dyson, Bill Coleman, Mark Bregman, Jeff Dachis, Ann Winblad, Mark Rotenberg, Arjun Gupta, Arturo Artom and lots of other smart folks. If you go to the group photo on Flickr, you'll see mouseover IDs for everyone.

Sessions included: Defining the Cloud Scenario; Identity; Implications for Commerce, for Privacy, Personal Well-Being, Governance and Next Steps. The institute will issue a report on the roundtable this fall, in time for consideration by the next administration. My Flickr photo set, with 76 photos, is here.

Upsides of Aspen:

• Hard to think of another city where the physical surroundings are such an integral part of the landscape. It's just plain beautiful, and the surrounding mountains, hiking and horseback riding are a real treat.

• It's hard to spend a couple of days here without bumping into a notable figure from the political realm. Last time (2006) it was Al Gore, Jack Valenti and Madeleine Albright. This time it was … Madeleine Albright. Just missed the Dalai Lama and Condi Rice.

• Very cool to spend three days with two dozen super-smart people.

• A small-town, friendly vibe.

Downsides of Aspen:

• Every night is prom night here.

• Pages of thousand-dollar bottles of wines in the less-upscale restaurants.

• Aspen = Beverly Hills meets Carmel meets La Jolla.

August 4 at 01:01 AM in Web/Tech | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

In Silicon Alley, night life reprogrammed

Nighlife

The NY Times' Style section has a piece titled In Silicon Alley, night life reprogrammed, with quotes from Dina Kaplan, Sarah Austin, Bre Pettis and Ilana Arazie.

August 4 at 12:11 AM in Digital life | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

August 03, 2008
The painful images of war

Public editor Clark Hoyt in the Sunday NY Times looks at the complicated issue of when news publications should publish images of soldiers who are wounded or killed in war. Unlike the Times' Frank Rich, Hoyt disappoints by never linking to online examples of what he's referring to, and today is no exception.

August 3 at 03:40 PM in Current Affairs, Ethics, Media, Photography | Permalink | CommentComments (0) | Bookmark this entry on del.icio.us | blog comments on this post

Browse by month

* August 2008 (34)
* July 2008 (110)
* June 2008 (93)
* May 2008 (92)
* April 2008 (67)
* March 2008 (149)
* February 2008 (128)
* January 2008 (123)
* December 2007 (156)
* November 2007 (156)
* October 2007 (141)
* September 2007 (153)
* August 2007 (140)
* July 2007 (110)
* June 2007 (96)
* May 2007 (95)
* April 2007 (125)
* March 2007 (92)
* February 2007 (132)
* January 2007 (223)
* December 2006 (160)
* November 2006 (137)
* October 2006 (139)
* September 2006 (93)
* August 2006 (84)
* July 2006 (72)
* June 2006 (70)
* May 2006 (35)
* April 2006 (88)
* March 2006 (88)
* February 2006 (91)
* January 2006 (117)
* December 2005 (140)
* November 2005 (99)
* October 2005 (111)
* September 2005 (88)
* August 2005 (119)
* July 2005 (137)
* June 2005 (138)
* May 2005 (157)
* April 2005 (72)
* March 2005 (89)
* February 2005 (158)
* January 2005 (90)
* December 2004 (170)
* November 2004 (142)
* October 2004 (207)
* September 2004 (180)

Browse by topic

* Amusing
* Books
* Business use
* Causes
* Citizen media
* Computing
* Consumer
* Current Affairs
* Darknet
* Digital life
* Digital rights & copyright
* Digital stories
* Digital storytelling
* Education
* Entertainment
* Ethics
* Family & personal
* Film
* Free speech
* Gadgets
* Games
* Hoaxes
* International
* Israel
* Media
* Mobile
* Music
* New media
* Ourmedia
* Photography
* Podcasting
* Podcasts & interviews
* Politics
* Privacy
* Radio/audio
* RSS essentials
* Science
* Search engines
* Social actions
* Social networks
* Social-media
* Sports
* Television
* Travel
* Video
* Web/Tech
* Weblogs
* Wikis
* Youth culture

Unless otherwise stated, the content of this page is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License