Archive for the 'Media' Category
The Media Loves Its Slideshows
July 5th, 2008
It seems that slideshows are all the rage these days on big media sites. The LA Times appears to be no exception. This morning I went to their site to check the status of all the wildfires burning in California and the headline “San Onofre’s nude sunbathers will have to take cover” caught my eye. First of all, I went to San Onofre several months ago to take pictures of surfers and had no idea it was a nude beach. No one there appeared to be nude but maybe I wasn’t paying enough attention. Anyway, next to the headline, the LA Times offers — guess what? — a slideshow. Judging by the photos, it’s a good thing it’s no longer a nude beach.
The Daily Show Gives Us Some Insight Into The McCain Camp
June 26th, 2008
This is why I love The Daily Show:
Amazon Launches MP3 Downloads
September 25th, 2007
Amazon.com today unveiled their MP3 download service which is clearly an attempt to compete with iTunes’ dominance. The catalog right now is limited to only Universal Music Group and EMI (I’ve still yet to figure out how consumers are supposed to know what artist is on what label). Anyway, it looks pretty promising. The prices are cheaper than iTunes’ DRM versions of songs and the MP3 format means better compatibility with the majority of portable music players; not just the iPod. It will be interesting to see how much business Amazon.com MP3 gets and whether they’ll be tracking if users are sharing music downloaded from the site.
Sphere: Related ContentWhen Giving Away a $1000 Grand Prize, Make Sure There Aren’t 30,000 Winners
July 23rd, 2007
Today’s story of how not to run a promotion comes to us from Advertising Age and chronicles a major mistake made in Roswell, New Mexico. A local car dealer there ran a promotion whereby customers received scratchers after coming into the dealership. One lucky customer (or so the dealer thought) would be the grand prize winner of $1,000. Instead, 30,000 winning tickets were printed, many of which made their way into the hands of lucky customers. This story would make a perfect lesson for students on why proofreading and attention to detail are so important.
Sphere: Related ContentUpdate: Earth, The Next Hollywood Superstar?
June 7th, 2007
Here’s an update to my previous entry, “Earth, The Next Hollywood Superstar?.” The blog High-Def Digest is reporting that HD-DVD and Blueray sales for Planet Earth have broken revenue records. Although fewer units were sold (The Departed holds the record for that at 100,000), the approximately 42,000 units of Planet Earth are more expensive (around $70 each) which has lead to more overall cash than The Departed raked in.
Go Earth!
Sphere: Related ContentTime Warner Cable to Use Switched Digital Video Technology
June 5th, 2007
According to Multichannel News, Time Warner Cable will be installing switched digital video technology in a couple of their markets. Switched digital video (SDV) is a technology I saw at NCTA this year and in my opinion has a huge advantage over satellite. In a nutshell, SDV allows cable operators to offer a virtually unlimited number of cable channels. Currently a cable operator has to provision a certain number of channels given the limited spectrum. For example, let’s say a cable operator can only handle 100 channels due to throughput restrictions for the medium. Channel 002 is always Station X and channel 003 is always Station Y and even if no one is watching Station X, the operator has to send the station’s signal out. SDV allows the cable operator to reclaim throughput not being used and provision it for other channels. So, if no consumers are watching Channel 002, the operator can use channel 002’s bandwidth to offer a new channel, channel 101. So, the idea behind SDV is more analogous to your home internet. You have a certain amount of bandwidth going into your DSL or cable modem…what you do with it is up to you (50k of your 800k bandwidth isn’t always reserved to do one thing). SDV allows operators to virtually stream programming only when consumers want it. Therefore, a cable operator can offer thousands of channels. If no one’s watching a niche channel, nothing is affected since that space is reclaimed to send signals that people are watching a different channel.
This technology will ultimately lead to more high definition channels and more niche channels. Imagine having a high definition channel that solely consists of a camera mounted somewhere in Yellowstone Park (HD of course) and a channel dedicated to underwater basket weaving. Traditionally, a cable operator wouldn’t dream of such a thing since it would take away their ability to offer more mainstream channels but now the possibility exists to offer almost any channel as long as it’s commercially viable.
Sphere: Related ContentEarth, The Next Hollywood Superstar?
June 5th, 2007
It seems like Earth is becoming a huge star in Hollywood these days. Between Winged Migration, March of the Penguins, An Inconvenient Truth, and the cable television series Planet Earth, there’s no shortage of films about the home planet. Now, according to the UK’s Telegraph, the BBC is releasing a new nature documentary creatively named “Earth.” The article describes what went into the production of the film:
It took 130 cameramen and technicians five years to make the £8 million movie, the most expensive documentary film ever made. Filming in 62 countries, they braved some of the world’s most remote and treacherous terrain to secure footage of previously unseen aspects of the animals’ struggle for survival.
I really enjoyed Planet Earth so I can’t wait for this movie to come out.
Sphere: Related ContentHiding Under a Rock
April 25th, 2007
Since last Monday, I’ve largely been avoiding the mainstream media, especially coverage of the “Virginia Tech Massacre.” Sure, I know the horrible things that happened that day and how a deranged gunman killed 32 people and injured 29 but beyond that, I don’t see much value in knowing the gruesome details of the day’s events. What possible good could come from knowing minute details of the killings or watching interviews with the family and friends of those who were lost? In my opinion, those stories only bring heartache and depression.
This country has an odd way of coping with unexplainable loss. Last week’s American Idol controversy was ridiculous. I don’t watch the show but caught a glimpse of some of the highlights and try as I might, was unable to avoid hearing about the Simon Cowell’s infamous rolling of his eyes. Why anyone cares what that self serving creature does is beyond me but how ludicrous is it that a show like American Idol took time out of the show several times during the episode to express sorrow about the events at Virginia Tech. What family, student, or friends of the victims would be watching American Idol the day after the killings? After tragedy, it’s become hip in Hollywood to express faux sympathy and sorrow. Live show after live show awkwardly threw in an “our hearts are with you, now let’s get on with superficiality.”
Of course the American Idol controversy was short lived. NBC News’ airing of the killer’s video and photos quelled that controversy and started a new one. Should NBC News have aired that video? I believe that as a news organization, NBC News should do whatever NBC News wants. I believe the airing of the video and photographs had extremely questionable news value but in an industry driven by ratings, NBC News clearly wanted to take advantage of the moment and grab some viewers. And, it worked. People often decry ratings, blaming them for all the problems in our society, but when you think about it, what’s more democratic than ratings? Ratings are based on what people are watching. NBC News’ airing of that footage (and the subsequent rise in their ratings) only demonstrates that people were willing to watch the footage. As a result of the ratings boost, given the chance, I bet they (and others) would do it again in a heartbeat. We need to blame ourselves for watching when companies say and air things we don’t agree with. Had people tuned out (like I did), NBC News would not have been rewarded for their actions.
All in all, I think last week’s attempt at avoiding anything but the bare details of the Virginia Tech tragedy proved that it’s all but impossible not to one way or another get swept up in the news cycle of these events. The real tragedy here is that at the end of the day, after all the coverage and money spent on this event, nothing will be learned. Preventing incidents like these aren’t solved by 24 hour news coverage detailing gruesome details of the killings but rather examinations of our society, our interest in violence and sensationalism, and our treatment of the mentally disturbed.
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