Shall We Go Eat Worms?

It's an interesting question: which institution has lower approval ratings, Congress or the media? Apparently, Thomas Jefferson's pillar of democracy hurt democracy itself in 2007, according to 36 percent of respondents. Think how many simply don't like us all that much.

Today, being online (in the technical and figurative sense) means being able to process small nuggets of information quickly and having even smaller, relatively unfiltered reactions in an even quicker response time. We are also forced to disperse our reactions, rather than hash them out in one big 750-word, 20-inch column, and adjust them to microwaved reactions from others.

Most reporters know, or at least believe, that this isn't what their jobs are supposed to be about. We used to be focused on reporting a story in toto. Now we're distracted, dispirited, and somehow aware that a large part of knowledge dissemination is impersonal but subjective, while newspapers in the Elysian format are personal (someone actually wrote the thing, instead of using Wikipedia/Youtube/Buzzfeed as "sources") and objective (what's the format for Facebook? Comment, link, react to comments on link.)

In public houses in American colonial times, the owner would secure several newspapers to a rack with iron bars running down their spines, so people could read the papers without stealing them. That bar is long gone, and the fate of newspapers is undecided.

Chicken Fried Snobbery

Why am I carrying the load for Naoum up in this piece? I guess he slept through "Writing Chops" class in law school.

This is one of those "Defending the Deep South" posts I'll probably feel obligated to post now and again, as a former resident.

Living in Mississippi turns your off-site friends into reporters. I don't think I even need to give sample questions. One of the things I would tell them is that I lived near the biggest inland body of water in the state (the Miss. River does not count), the Ross Barnett Reservoir just north of Jackson. Barnett, if you'll reach back to Civil Rights History Class, tried to bar James Meredith from being the first black man to attend Ole Miss. The ugliest kind of civic demonstrations and violence blackened (there, I said it) the state under Barnett's approving gaze. "Oh wow!" my friends would say, and I could hear the Gears of Disapproving Thought hitting 6,000 RPM: 'Not a surprise that honor that old cracker son of a bitch.'

But hold up, Yankee boy! If you drive into very liberal Washington, D.C., from Chevy "Che!" Chase, MD, on Connecticut Avenue (a liberal state, for what that's worth), you will pass a Newlands Street, named after former Nevada senator Francis Newlands. Newlands, when founding the Chevy Chase community, explicitly barred blacks from owning homes in the area. I believe a search of local tax records in Montgomery County may show that some homes' ownership deeds may still contain these provisions.

If we had to strike the names of racists, pedophiles, homophobes, religious bigots and other assorted and classifiable jerkwads from the sight of young children who go out in public, President Obama would have to appoint a Secretary of Nomenclature. Let's keep it away from the guy who ginned up TARP.

Reading is Un-comfortable?

Why is it that, as a reporter, I feel perfectly within my rights and completely at ease looking at random web sites on my lunch break (which is always taken at my desk when it's taken at all), but begin to get all ferrety and uncomfortable if I pull out a book instead and read at my desk? Why do I feel self-conscious when that happens? Perhaps it isn't just reporters, or this reporter, who feel this way. And would I feel less twitchy if I pulled out an Amazon Kindle instead of a paperback?

Running Item: The Butt of Jokes (And Cars)

"D.C. Metro: Mind the ($29 Million Budget) Gap."

"This Tag Was Once Eaten By Potomac River Sharks."

"Len Bias Did Cocaine. What's the Excuse for Press Bias?"

"DWB: Driving While...Blogging."

"Cops on Segways: Please Do Not Laugh Audibly."

"And Throw Your Integrity in There Too..."

A small but instructive example of how journalistic ethics are getting dinged. From a good friend...

Last year, a very large state-wide newspaper in a Southern state planned to do a typical treacly holiday story about a fire department collecting toys for underprivileged kids. After a few weeks of collecting the toys, come Christmas-time, the paper's photographer goes to snap pics of all the toys the good firemen have gotten, only to see that the boxes at the fire station are empty. Not one toy has been donated. The photographer goes and tells an editor, "The Grinch took them all!" or something to that effect.

So the editor responds: "Well, Ms. Photog, you've got kids, right?"

Photog: "Yes..."

Editorialista: "And they've got toys, don't they?"

Photog: "Yes, but-"

Editorialista: "Well, go grab some of your tykes' toys, chuck them in the boxes, and take some pictures."

I was also told at least one story about newspapers becoming much less embarrassed about horsetrading copy for ads. Unfortunately, the spluttering bladder that is the economy can show how flimsy journalistic pretensions are. Pen > sword, except when we're stabbing ourselves in the eyes with it like circus freaks for dollars.

I would prefer these guys over Rush.

(Caption: Rush)

Since when have Thugs and Gang members been tech geeks? I would not know where to even start to set up my own Naoumsense Pirate radio station. Although anything having to do with Pirates is great!

(This store in San Fran uses a pirate disguised store front to mask its non commercial function of a tutoring center...Brilliant!)

I think the Feds should give these guys a break for atleast being original. The pimps and dealers should also give them a cut for all the extra business they probably brought them. HA!

NTIA, FCC, RUS, USDA, WTF, OMG, BBQ!!!

Sorry that the posting has been slim on my end...I guess you can say that I have actually been working the past week and have not let my newly found hobby get the best of me.

This morning I attended the ARRA Broadband Initiative Kick Off. To make this quick and painless, what I am talking about is a meeting between three agencies, the Federal Communication Commission (FCC), the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the Rural Utilities Service (RUS). This meeting was held so that a bunch of suits can gather in a large hall (harumph harumph harumph) and hear the heads of each of these agencies talk about absolutely NOTHING. (Technically the real purpose was to kickoff the conversation on how the Federal Stimulus monies that were provided for nationwide broadband deployment are going to be doled out and allocated inorder to promote the quickest build out of the fastest and most economically efficient broadband technologies to the UNserved and UNDERserved areas of our country.)

The head of each organization basically spouted off the same rehearsed generic uninformative script...(we need to make this happen fast, blah blah blah, we need to hear comments from the public, blah blah blah...we as a country have fallen way behind in broadband...). They also targeted the plight of the "downtrodden yet tech savvy, willing to track the market, farmer in Arkansas" and the "the sick child, in a hospital shack somewhere in the Illinois wilderness whose parents will loose their farm if their doctors cannot create telemedicinal joint efficiencies with their Champaign counterparts"(This sounds very dirty)??? I am not making this up, these exact examples were brought up three times this morning and seem to be the poster children of the Rural/ Nationwide Broadband penetration discussion.

Ok...where was I? Ohh yah! The Meeting/Hearing. I do not understand the point of these hearings. Aside from reciting the same scripts, when asked what they intend to do on certain issues, the heads of the organizations, throw the ball back to the audience..."Well good question, but that is why we are hear, to get more comments from you and hear what you have to say." I think if these officially came out with an initial stance on questions like...What is the definition of unserved area/ underserved areas, and what should the floor be for minimum broadband speeds, this comment process would be much more effective.

They are looking for a Rural Broadband Strategy...or so they say. The FCC has a giant building full of economists and engineers. What are these guys getting paid for? I understand the Administrative law process, it is slow and tedious...and we do not want to rush something that is so important to the future development of our country, but if all these agencies expect to move fast on these issues, the same old politician's answers will not cut it. We need action and decisions.

Set a very high broadband speed as a floor. (Or at least impose a scalable approach.) Start off by reaching out to the unserved areas first. Set guidelines for a standardized methodical broadband mapping plan. And, latch on to other shovel ready utility projects that are already creating new infrastructures and make sure broadband wire is bundled in with these other projects.

So why should you care? Well because as a country we have dropped from first to around 20 in terms of nationwide broadband penetration and broadband speeds. This is embarrassing. AND for all you pseudo fascist finance types on Wall St, by kick starting nationwide broadband deployment we would be kick starting the economy at the same time, (oh yah and saving your jobs.) I kiiid I kiiid...kinda.

Peace Out...for Now.

Running Item: The Butt of Jokes (and Cars)

"Mayor Adrian Fenty: Not an Italian Fashion Designer."

"The Reflecting Pool: It Defends Us Against Alien Laser Beams."

"DC: Northern Charm, Southern Efficiency. Join Us in Pickett's Charge."

"Honk if You Support Marion Barry's Kidneys."

"Our City Flag Has Three Stars. More Than Any of Our Restaurants."

Congressmen Courageous!

When you fly out of Reagan National airport in D.C., you might get the perverse sensation that you could be escaping, by mere seconds and a few hundred feet, a terrorist-initiated destruction of the nation's capital. But also, you could share the ride with congressmen going home to their districts, where angry mobs with flaming Tiki torches now await them.

On my way back to Mississippi for a visit, U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Home of the Delta Blues and Undergraduate Music Class Trips) was seated a few rows behind me. It's refreshing to see powerful government people surrounded not by aides but just by their spouses. Anyway, Thompson was seated in the eighth row, which means you have to open and otherwise deal with the emergency doors, located next to your seat. Asked by the stewardess if he was comfortable with this responsibility, Thompson answered in the affirmative, all cool and collected. Very appropriate for the chairman of the U.S. House Homeland Security Committee.

On my way back from Mississippi, U.S. Rep. Gregg Harper (R-No "D" Will Ever Be Placed After a Representative from this District) was seated a few rows in front of me. He also was seated in the eighth row, and took the same cool and affirmative approach to emergency responsibility. Mississippi congressmen are generally recognizable to Mississipians, right down to drooling babies, and are generally chatted up at every opportunity. In a slow-moving place like Mississippi, that's a lot of opportunities. But the woman seated next to Harper did the one thing the normally affable Harper probably wanted the most, namely, leave him alone. Perhaps he was steeling himself for dealing with a terrorist.

Of course, sitting in the eighth row gives you more leg room. But Thompson has a cheerful, gregarious shape, and Harper probably can't dunk. So I'll give them the benefit of the doubt and say they took no thought for their ability to stretch out, only for the safety of their fellow constituents. Fellow passengers, too.

On Naoum's "Cross Ownership"

I think Naoum's evolution on cross ownership is a fair one, although the amount of hedging makes me think the FCC knew it was sort of doing a bad thing.

Here's the problem from a practical and somewhat emotional perspective. The media-lawyer types wil probably talk about "shared resources" and "increased efficiency" that results from TV and newspapers having a single Dan Snyder or George Steinbrenner looming over the marionette strings. But take an average news story. Given the choice between W-WTF TV reporter Sandee Starheartboobs (who studied communications and cheerleading in college and knows how to make the hombres sit up straight) and Tom Scruff, grumbling scribbler at the Town Sentinel, which medium do you think the average person will pick?

I know, I know, my fishwrap brothers will scream: "In-depth coverage!" So will I. But nowadays, it seems as though a newspaper only stands out when it covers the heck out of a story NO ONE ELSE HAS COVERED. If the newspaper is merely following in the TV's more sensational tracks, it doesn't matter if the paper makes those tracks any deeper in the mud. And don't tell me TV and the papers won't fight over who does what story.

RE: Read All About Me...

Although I hate to admit it, maybe this is the reason to lift the FCC newspaper/ broadcast cross ownership ban, or at least loosen the rules even further. In the last Quadrennial Review and Order, adopted at the end of 2007, the FCC partially lifted the cross ownership ban which had been in place since the mid 70's. The rule simply prevented the same company from owning a local daily paper and a local broadcaster in the same media market.

On Dec 18, 2007 the FCC changed their cross ownership rules and allowed for partial cross ownership in top 20 markets. They allowed radio and newspaper cross-ownership, and TV and newspaper cross-ownership as long as the TV station was not one of the top four stations and after the two combined there would still be at least eight "major media voices in the market."

Originally I thought that allowing for cross-ownership and consolidation of voices would be a horrible and would go againt the "Public Interest" of diversity and localism. However, due to the failure of so many newspapers and small broadcasters across the country I think it is time to re think these rules. Most people would probably agree that having one company control the newspaper and the television station in a small town is better for the public interest than having no media outlet at all.

Takuan is right when he says the industry is resilient. Look at radio. It was supposed to disappear with the invention of television. The question is, can all the new forms of media and technology create a business model to support newspapers into the future. I like reading a physical newspaper rather than using the funny scroll button on my mouse, but if I cannot somehow finagle a free NYTimes from a coffee shop table, there is a fat chance that I will pay for a paper that I can get for free online.

What is the public interest? That is the question. And what can we do from here on out to save these papers and broadcasters that have been serving the public interest for decades?

Read All About Me Writing All About It

One of the problems with the newspaper industry is that, as it changes or dies, people have to read a lot about it. The reason, of course, is that the industry consists of writers! But also there is an increasing social trend to introspection or self-conscious irony, which naturally enough tends to be strongest in people of literary (ha) or artistic (HA!) temperment. So you get a lot of conspicuous thrashing around by nominally print journalists.

Let's say I compared the printed page of news to the horse and buggy. The latter went out of date, I could say, why not the former? The response from my fellow newspaper people would likely be, but news and information is timeless! So is travel. But people found a better way to get around without staring at a horse's ass all day. Similarly, it seems likely that people will find a way to read about what interest them without dealing with a horse's ass, i.e. newspapers and reporters.

But who knows what will happen. Reports of newspaper's death are greatly exaggerated and perhaps delivered with too much joy.

It's Everybody's Money Fair and Square!

Looks like Missouri will have to moonwalk away from its cry of "King of the Mountain!" about the stimulus after today, since Maryland has in fact kicked off the new Obama era of government spending.

Political junkies will note that Montgomery County, the site of that first stimulus-funded asphalt-whacker, is one of the most liberal counties in the United States. I used to live in one of the most conservative counties in the United States, in Mississippi. Not long after I left that county in the Magnolia State, they closed a Starbucks in a town where I had worked. Imagine if they closed the Starbucks franchises in Bethesda, Rockville and Silver Spring! Even with that new construction project on New Hampshire Avenue, there would be a huge stimulus deficit in Montgomery County, probably resulting in mild protests where everyone would fall asleep quickly because of the lack of espresso. So goes the cycle of politics.

Doh!

This image seems to float in my mind every time the news comes on or I read the front page of any newspaper.

No Good. Pls Fix.

Ok Thx Bai!

Running Item: The Butt of Jokes (and Cars)

Cars have not yet been outlawed in the District, although driving will probably be officially re-classified soon as one of the new bad behaviors, like consuming transfats or buying non-conflict-free diamonds. So the folks at the D.C. DMV had better pick a new license plate motto fast, perhaps from the selection below, before they all lose their jobs. (Not even the stimulus will save them!)

"I've Tried Driving This Car on Metro Rails But It Doesn't Work."

"Repeat After Me: All Taxes are Fungible, All Taxes are Fungible..."

"Because Thefts from Autos are the District's Crime of Choice."

"Powered By Ethanol. And After That Doesn't Work, Wood Alcohol."

"Not a Vanity Tag. No More Self-Expression on Cars, Please."