And no more for the rest of story

Paul Harvey died today.

His "And now for the rest of the story" tag line is (along with Garrison Keillor's 'Guy Noir, Private Eye' from "A Prairie Home Companion") my earliest and most enduring memory of listening to the radio.

Toolkit of the roving reporter

From the Feb./Mar. 2009 issue of Ready Made, suggestions for a complete roving multimedia reporter's kit. In case the print's too small to read, it contains, starting from bottom left and going clockwise:
-video (Flip MinoHD camcorder)
-digital audio recorder
-data storage (flash drive)
-a power source (Chargepod Charging Hub)
-camera
-tripod (Gorillapod)
-USB hub expander
-rechargeable batteries



I have nearly all these things, though I hardly carry them all around all at once. My digital camera substitutes as my video I guess. I have a knock-off Gorillapod which works fine but is a bit cumbersome to carry around. My rechargeable batteries aren't as nifty as the ones shown in the magazine which are really cool - they recharge via USB plug in.

They really needed to include a notebook and pen though.

What's in your multimedia kit?

Everyone's a Farmer

On Conan O'Brien's last show he showed his favorite clip: He went to Long Island where they play old time baseball with 1864 rules and costumes. Watch the clip till the end to see Conan participate, replete with Civil War-era mustache and slang.

I've just found my new favorite sentence

"'Pride and Prejudice and Zombies' features the original text of Jane Austen's beloved novel with all-new scenes of bone crunching zombie action."

Nothing like a little zombie killing to spice up stuffy Regency romance. I will be ordering my copy immediately. Because the only thing more dashing than Mr. Darcy is Mr. Darcy kicking zombie ass.

Fair use and all that

From Media Nation: Shepard Fairey, the artist of that ubiquitous Obama/hope poster, is suing another artist for the exact same thing that the Associated Press is suing him for.

I don't have anything to add to this beyond what Media Nation poster Dan Kennedy says in his post; I agree Fairey changed the AP's picture of Obama enough that it was a substantially new work. Way to be hypocritical, Fairey.

Ob-ello?

This article from last year about Obama as an Othello for our times and this certainly make for some interesting talking points.

Turning away from the water cooler

I did not watch the Superbowl. Mostly because I do not care one mite about football. I am interested in television, but I didn't even partake for the commercials. This is because last year all the commercials worth seeing were on the internet is some form or another by the end of the week, if not sooner. (Edit: now here)

I love television. TV on DVD is clearly genius and has allowed me to relive Arrested Development and Dead Like Me over and over again long after their demise. I usually watch 4 or more shows regularly during their season. Networks' online episodes only have one 30-second commercial per break, which means by watching a show online I've effectively freed up between five and 15 minutes (the first for half hour slots, the second for an hour-long-slated show); I've watched my favorite shows and gotten the gift of time. Besides, if ABC's Web site broadcasts in HD, and Pushing Daisies' fairytale color palette looks far better on my computer screen in high-def than on my cheap, dusty TV, it's a matter of viewing quality as much as quantity.

The currency of culture is widening because of the internet. Which, like all things, has merits and disadvantages. Water cooler ubiquity is less common. Not every single household is watching the Beatles on Ed Sullivan when there's thousands of movie channels or DVDs or last week's Leno on TiVo or real-time soccer from Europe being broadcast.

The Superbowl is one of the last bastions of "Last-night-did-ya-watch-when...?" discussion starters. I'm just grateful I can avoid football to participate in the discussion.