Followup On Newark

In keeping with the issue of what is happening in the city of my birth and childhood, I noticed Ken over at the DailyNewarker has just posted an interesting podcast.  It is an interview with someone who works for the Ironbound Community Corporation, the Ironbound being my community.

During the interview Ken builds on what we talked about in our podcast together, just before they closed St. James hospital, about the impact of closing medical facilities on a community.

For my part I will continue to track the closing of hospitals in not only Newark but anywhere in the US or the world.  For now, click over to the Daily Newarker if you want to hear more details about what is happening around the issue of community hospitals and financial constraints.

On a slightly related note, I thought to also mention that for the first time in my lifetime, there will be no Portuguese parade in Newark this summer.  Why? -No money.

Corporate Influence in EU Governments

It is that feeling that never really goes away. No matter how often you might look around at how things work in Europe and admire things, there is the ever present feeling that politics, business, and everything in between is heading in the same direction as the United States.

Yet another piece of evidence to that effect appeared in the Financial Times recently, in an article about the intricate role of business executives within the German government.  In a story that sounds identical to what has been going on in the US for decades, one German executive from a hedge fund was said to be working in the ministry of justice in the area of hedge fund policy. Another classic example, reminiscant of the Reagan years, executives from BASF (the chemical company) are working in the ministry of environmental protection, also in the area of policies – of course.

But the infiltration of government by business experts from large corporations goes beyond the national level. As the article points out in its conclusion, within the European Commission there is also a strong presence of corporate experts working in the area of policy and regulation.

Just as I mentioned at the beginning of this post, for all the reasons we might admire Europe, there are plenty of reasons to worry about a continent whose governments are allowed to repeat the kind of dysfunctional corporatist capitulation that we saw in the United States over the last 30 years or more.

bm257 Filesharing Philosophy with Peter of the Pirate Bay.

In some parts of the world people still use the term “steal” to describe getting music through bittorent or other systems. At the same time, many people use the term filesharing or downloading to describe that same process. Laws might get passed and moral judgements might be imposed, but how logical are such views when it comes to the sharing or copying of digital material.

My guest today is Peter of the Pirate Bay, one of the most popular sites on the internet, period. Moreover, someone who has a strong commitment to struggle and educate people when it comes to the nature of filesharing. Looking beyond scare tactics and the manipulation of governments by large corporate interests, Peter has alot to say when it comes to how we think or could think about the world reknowned practice of downloading things from the internet.

I also recommend the most recent Yeast Radio, which features Peter in a debate on intellectual property. And a previous edition of Chaos Radio International which provides alot of essential information about pirate bay, why and how it does what it does.

 

The Audience That Wasn’t There

My presentation about the problems facing citizen journalists and citizen journalism today. PArt of my talk given at Re:publica’08 here in Berlin. Lots of podcasts being prepared as part of this event, and later I might have video. For now as I continue visiting with my favorite citizens of Berlin, I give you my brief presentation (minus the Wire clip about doing more with less.)

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Re:publica Day 1

Arrived in Berlin on 2 hours sleep.  Happily spending time with good friends, as well as making a few new ones here at the Re:publica conference.  Talk and other things coming up. Regular content will return shortly.  Here’s a photo of Baghdad Brian from Alive in Baghdad.

Media, Blogging, and Rosen

I started reading blogs back in 2002 I think. At least thats the year I remember I started reading what seemed to be blogs at the time, people like Camworld and Rebecca Blood.  Haven’t said those names in years.  Around that same time, I believe I started reading Press Think… Jay Rosen.

Rosen focused his writing on the media, and how the media was or was not adjusting to the world of not only the internet, but the world of personal publishing and what today gets that annoying cliché label web2.0.  As a young fledgling journalist and internet publisher, I liked what he had to say sometimes, and disagreed with him vehemently other times.  At some point, after 2 good years or more, I think I stopped reading him altogether.  But sure enough his name would once again come up in my masters thesis research on the sociology of alternative journalists… why they do what they do and what do they think of their own work; Jay Rosen’s What are Journalists For  was at the top of my reading list.

Perhaps one of my big problems with Rosen, that would often cause me to stop reading him for a period of time (I needed a break apparently) was that he was so focused on the mainstream. I can appreciate the unique and important contribution of mainstream media at times, as well as a few mainstream type bloggers.. often referred to as the A list for their dominance in terms of audience and the nature of their fairly conventional issue selection.  I felt, as I still feel, that the world of alternative reporting, alternative in style, values, topic, and operational norms, was where the real change making, system challenging journalism was going to come from. As it so often did in the hayday of the Village Voice, The Nation and others. (very American centric today, hang with me)

So when I heard that Jay Rosen was a guest on Radio Open Source, I knew there would be alot of talk of those same old blog names, the ones that cover the same topics as the major media; I can easily count those tired old names on one hand.  And I admit, I didn’t want to like the interview. But the truth is, now more than ever, Rosen has seen the evolution of all this and been in the blog trenches since early on.  He may not say everything that I like or talk about all the issues I want him to, but this interview that Chris did with him, is excellent. From what is happening and will happen to newspapers, to why certain big blogs had success and what makes them so great… Jay is great to listen to.

As I board my train to Berlin in a few hours, preparing my talk for the Re:publica conference, I strongly recommend you give this interview a listen if you’re at all concerned about how we get our information online, and just what is happening to blogs and our relationships with them.