The World Today – Montreal: a tale of two cities
The only problem is actually working out where I am. I’ve been working for about 10 minutes and I’m too ashamed of my French to ask anybody. None of the signs seem to make much sense either.
En fait, il aurait probablement pu demander en anglais…
Jon Stewart interviews Rick Santorum
From the perspective of a cultural anthropologist, some intriguing bits in that interview, including interpretations of the history of “natural marriage” and notions of the State’s involvement in people’s lives.
A lucky thing is that despite a wide gap in point of view (which we might be able to intepret throught the so-called “Culture Wars”) the participants in the interview managed to hold a respectful honest debate. Nice to see such a thing, even if it has to come from a fake news show.
Playlist: Apple changes podcast rankings
Thing is, the very notion of ranking podcasts (or voting for them) seems to run against one of podcasting’s most interesting feature, related to the Long Tail principle. Specialized podcasts with few subscribers are as much part of the “success story” as those so-called “mainstream podcasts” which often attempt to mimmic the ways attitudes of mainstream radio from the US.
When you add the problem with bandwidth for small popular podcasts, it seems that being an obscure podcast only catering to a few like-minded people is the way to go as opposed to having the podcast with the most buzz.
Oh, but, yes, right, they’re thinking in this mindframe of eyeballs and eardrums. “The more listeners you get, the better your advertising revenues will be.” “What? Don’t have advertising yet? Well, this is your chance, got a great deal for you!” Talk about reification…
The Register: Olive conducts Symphony for classical music fans
Quite interesting concept. Let’s hope it doesn’t deceive and/or that other companies will offer similar products.
Was talking to a composer friend a couple of months ago about audio technology and sound quality. It can be a fascinating subject.
“Fidelity” or audio quality isn’t simply about “resolution” (as in sampling rate and bit depth). Fans of Western Art Music are probably more likely than other music listeners to be attracted to this type of technology but not all audiophiles are restricted to Western Art Music.
There might be a more general principle about taste, these days. Refinement in taste that doesn’t necessarily go with condescension. Actually, open-mindedness and refined taste can make a very powerful mix. In music, in food, in life.
Le «Grand Dérangement» ou la «Déportation» de 1755 a été un événement extrêmement marquant de l’histoire de l’Acadie et des Cajuns.
Rock Paper Scissors /// Publicity for the World – Resources: A word to the wise
Some interesting advice for pro musicians.
Business 2.0: Podcasting’s Nonstar System
Really, some of it isn’t uninsightful. Yet, it’s overly simplistic.
Rupert Murdoch speech to newspaper editors
Some actual insight from Murdoch on the many problems plaguing newspapers and “old media” generally. So, he acknowledges there’s a problem and he actually sees where some things are going. The first step to recovery is to acknowledge you have a problem.
Yet, Murdoch launches into this:
And we in this room – newspaper editors and journalists – are uniquely positioned to deliver that news. We have the experience, the brands, the resources, and the know-how to get it done. We have unique content to differentiate ourselves in a world where news is becoming increasingly commoditized. And most importantly, we have a great new partner to help us reach this new consumer – the internet.
And later says that:
Our job now is to bring this content profitably into the broadband world – to marry our video to our publishing assets, and to garner our fair share – hopefully more than our fair share — of the advertising dollars that will come from successfully converging these media.
Myopia caused by greed? Pretty common these days as people seek short-term gains (“Make Money Quick!”) rather than riding the wave in major social changes (at a time when technological and scientific breakthroughs are rare).
Similarly, the “recording industry” is ready to acknowledge that the world is changing but is reluctant to do anything about it. Contrary to Murdoch, who apparently understands that embracing change is the most appropriate solution, they seem to see change as a problem they are committed to fight. The “recording industry” just wants things to stay the same. And they keep on dismissing music lovers as “petty thieves” because they can’t gouge consumers in the same way anymore. Even when told that music lovers want to pay for the privilege of easy access to music, record industry executives raise “the stick.”
So, the “big corporations” that are being hit by social changes might say things that range from somewhat insightful to utterly clueless. Not surprising but still. Why don’t they understand? Maybe it’s because they’re unwilling to take risks. Successes in many domains such as art, science, and technology often come out of experimentation. Trial and error. These corporations “can’t afford” to err, according to their investors? So they will fail, eventually. Not because the world is changing so much. The changes have been minute so far. But because they fail to see the big picture and “go with the flow” without knowing where the flow is leading.
«Qui n’essaie rien n’a rien», as we say. “They” will be left with nothing.
The beautiful ones are not yet born. And this revolution will not be televised.
Playlist: Indie podcasts face challenge from mainstream
The clueful stuff is near the end.
News & Analysis: The killing of Jean Charles de Menezes
En fait, avant de connaître l’identité de la victime, certains journalistes ont parlé d’un «individu d’allure indienne ou pakistanaise» (ou quelque-chose du genre). Incroyable à quel point la perception des gens est conditionnée par leurs idées.
Le coup de la tenue vestimentaire, c’est aussi assez fort.