Saturday, August 30, 2008
Friday, August 29, 2008
Deep Inside These Walls
Deep Inside These Walls, by JJ Flores and Steve Smooth. Warning: may be NSFW. Your mileage may vary.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Adding value
Here's an angry diary at dKos about television coverage on the liberally-beloved MSNBC.
There's a reason why I don't watch TV anymore; actually, there are a bunch of reasons. First, commercials suck. 15-20 minutes of every hour of programming is commercials. Second, a lot of the programming sucks. And third, the programming that doesn't suck is available through other means: good shows end up on the iTunes store or come out on DVD. (Alternatively, you can get a Tivo).
But news shows are particularly bad because of three factors. First, news shows hire commentators who have agendas. To make up for this they tend to have multiple people on with agendas, as if an increased volume of opinion will actually create insight. Instead it creates rather boring TV where the emotional drama is about ideology and not about a story or a recognizable human relationship. Second, these pundits tend to obsess about process and ignore objectives. It may have been funny to watch cable TV news channels twitter about madly trying to guess Obama's VP choice, but it actually makes for uninformative TV. And third, cable TV shows have bought into the mistaken idea that their job is to provide value above and beyond reporting the news: which is why every cable TV channel provides extensive commentary. The reality is, the power of TV is its ability to show the news, in real time, in pictures. Anything beyond that tends to distract from its true value.
There's a reason why I don't watch TV anymore; actually, there are a bunch of reasons. First, commercials suck. 15-20 minutes of every hour of programming is commercials. Second, a lot of the programming sucks. And third, the programming that doesn't suck is available through other means: good shows end up on the iTunes store or come out on DVD. (Alternatively, you can get a Tivo).
But news shows are particularly bad because of three factors. First, news shows hire commentators who have agendas. To make up for this they tend to have multiple people on with agendas, as if an increased volume of opinion will actually create insight. Instead it creates rather boring TV where the emotional drama is about ideology and not about a story or a recognizable human relationship. Second, these pundits tend to obsess about process and ignore objectives. It may have been funny to watch cable TV news channels twitter about madly trying to guess Obama's VP choice, but it actually makes for uninformative TV. And third, cable TV shows have bought into the mistaken idea that their job is to provide value above and beyond reporting the news: which is why every cable TV channel provides extensive commentary. The reality is, the power of TV is its ability to show the news, in real time, in pictures. Anything beyond that tends to distract from its true value.
Can McCain draw a crowd?
Josh Marshall notes:
Update: Mile High Stadium is packed. Amazing.
If you're bummed about not getting a ticket to watch the Obama speech at the Invesco Center, you'll be happy to know they're still giving away tickets for John McCain's veep announcement tomorrow at the aptly-named 12,000 seat Nutter Cente
Update: Mile High Stadium is packed. Amazing.
ECC groups announced
Man Utd and Liverpool look to be in the most interesting groups. I'm sure the Celtic-Man Utd games will be spectacular.
More info here.
More info here.
Goodbye arctic ice
This animation in Google Earth shows satellite data of Arctic sea ice concentration from May 25 to August 21, 2008. Note how the decline rate speeds up during August, with strong losses north of Siberia. For more details, visit http://nsidc.org/arcticseaicenews/.
(h/t Juan Cole)
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Distractions
Distractions, by Zero 7. I love this song, but the video actually, ahem, distracts from how good it is.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Williamsburg Will Oldham Horror
Williamsburg Will Oldham Horror, by Jeffrey Lewis. This song made me laugh.
Monday, August 25, 2008
Bicycle kicks
One of the hardest and dangerous types of kicks to make in football. Here are two examples by Ronaldinho.
This first example has English commentary, from a game against Villareal in 2006.
This second example is a better example of a bicycle kick, from a game against Athletico Madrid.
This first example has English commentary, from a game against Villareal in 2006.
This second example is a better example of a bicycle kick, from a game against Athletico Madrid.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
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