If you aren’t already a reader of The Economist, I strongly urge you to try it. Financially conservative, socially liberal, truly international in scope, it’s one of the best magazines and news sources in the world. It can be hard to find on the newsstand in much of the US; in Silicon Valley, travelling away from… Continue reading Suggested Reading: The Economist
Category: media
Product Placement
Amazon, always the pioneer, is experimenting with Amazon Theater, a series of short films freely available (including for download) on Amazon.com. I noticed these a few weeks ago, but didn’t get around to watching any til today, back for my nth Christmas-shopping visit, when Chris Noth caught my eye. Always happy to look at him, so… Continue reading Product Placement
National Differences in Olympics Coverage
Yes, I know the games ended a while ago, but I’m only now getting to see the part I actually care about – the equestrian events. It seems that local television in each country concentrates on those events at which the locals are expected to excel, and Italy didn’t expect much from its horsemen. On… Continue reading National Differences in Olympics Coverage
Italian Hostages in Iraq
The Italian hostages in Iraq don’t seem to be getting much media attention outside of Italy. This evening’s news here is that they have been shown on Al Arabiya television in an apparently-recent video, accompanied by a message from the kidnappers that: “We will show good faith and free them if you sympathize with our… Continue reading Italian Hostages in Iraq
Est, Est, Est
“A policeman called the deaths of six females and three males, all believed to be children of Marcus Wesson, the largest mass killing in the history of Fresno, Calif.” NYT I should certainly hope so. Just how many mass killings have there been in Fresno? The media’s obsession with superlatives has infected us all. We… Continue reading Est, Est, Est