Category Archives: Media – general

Links o' the day, 4/10/08

Because science is awesome we can now clone formerly extinct animals.

Because science is dumb a HIV vaccine actually increased the risk of infection.

I think Dilbert has given us a way out of taking responsibility for the economic crisis.

Dilbert.com

Jeff Jarvis on a future for news media:

I proposed a problem to solve: What if a city, say Philadelphia, loses its paper tomorrow. What would you build in its place to serve the community? The [working] group went to town. Rather than trying to hack at the old, they build something new.

They calculated the likely revenue Philadelphia could support online and then figured out what they could afford in staffing. Instead of the 200-300-person newsroom that has existed in print, they decided they could afford 35 and they broke that down to include a new job description: “community managers who do outreach, mediation, social media evangelism.” They settled on three of those plus 20 content creators, two programmers, three designers, five producers (I think they were a bit heavy on those two), and — get this — only three editors.

I’m glad I don’t have money saved with Bank of Ireland.

Flickr’s three billionth photo.

No duh headline on a very important story: How HIV changed ex-addict’s life.

Links of the day

Seven tips for resolving conflicts quickly and peacefully. We all go up against at least one nutjob in our lives, here’s a remarkably common sense guide to dealing with them. (Pick The Brain)

US regrets if women and children killed in Baghdad raid. But they were going after some fellas using a mortar so it’s all right. Collateral damage and all that. (AFP)

Clever uses for dental floss: beyond teeth. I love finding new uses for ordinary things. (Gadling)

Backpacker turns Burma activist via Facebook. I’m a member of his group, to which people are flocking. (Reuters)

Yet more on CNN, Burma and Myanmar. The name you use reflects the stance you’re taking. (James Fallows)

Renovating the biblical psalms. They’re beautiful poems as well as having religious significance. (Slate)

Man, 24, weds 82-year-old bride. “I’ve always like mature ladies.” (BBC)

What I'm reading

Some of the articles that caught my eye on my day off:

Scholars and Rogues: No relief from heat on Iran in sight. Russ Wellen says that although there are hopeful signs for a diplomatic solution to conflict between the US and Iran, there is no excuse for relaxing one’s vigilance.

(London) Times: Why I put my money on the elephant over the dragon. Maria Misra says India may beat China in the economic stakes.

Project Syndicate: Better red than dead? Former IMF chief economist Kenneth Rogoff argues that support for capitalism will be severely tested in the near future as would-be egalitarian health systems face ever-rising costs.

Christian Science Monitor: How to make peace using the principles of war. P Surdas Mohit cites Sun Tzu while arguing the UN/AU force for Darfur can succeed if lessons are learned from peacekeeping failures in the past.

Alertnet: Africans warm to Sudan mission, but forget Somalia. Six countries have quickly promised troops for Darfur but Somalia is still waiting for the 8,000 AU peacekeepers who were supposed to arrive this year.

Newsweek: Facebook grows up. A look at how Mark Zuckerburg (provided he survives the lawsuit) is trying to build the business while keeping it cool.

BBC: Red Army virus to combat MRSA. A bacteria-eating virus used by the Soviet military could kick the superbug’s candy ass.

Craig Stoltz: Proposed: An end to bylines. Oh I know a lot of reporters who won’t be happy with that…

Mybloghasnoname: Beautiful people earn 12% more than Ugly Bettys. According to the Journal of Economic Psychology this is mainly because good-looking people are considered more helpful and co-operative. Hmm.

Darfur peace report

The International Crisis Group has published a report on a strategy for peace in Sudan. While essentially calling on the nation’s government to implement the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement, the group makes several worthwhile recommendations.

What caught my interest the most is that the first one is for the government to cease harassment of journalists. I know this is navel-gazing, but they list the removal of media restrictions ahead of releasing political prisoners. It’s all lumped in to one paragraph but the way it is structured perturbs me.

I support a free media and recognise the role it plays in exposing human rights abuses and corruption. However, I would rank freeing those jailed for their political beliefs ahead of us journos. Am I right or wrong? Are they matters of equal importance, reflecting aspects of the same crackdown?

Regardless, the report is worth a read and can be found here.