Search results matching tag 'America'

The buzz

273167 — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 10:07:00 GMT

We came bouncing into the new year 2009, exhausted, exhilarated, amazed we were still here and had done so well, considering all the devastation and terror unfolding around us, rather like the crew of the Millennium Falcon after they survived the asteroid storm (apologies to non-Star Wars fans). Our rule was, keep the faith, stay calm and focused, and keep working – after all, come depression, war, plague and pestilence, there will always be a Christmas, and there’s nothing like a new game to distract everyone from family arguments and impending financial disaster. It worked for us. I remember reading the advice of self-made publisher Felix Dennis on how to make a business work - put in the ours, and gather the talent around you. Without being overly modest, we think our team works by combining complementary skills that together are essential for a creative business,...and we definitely put the hours in.

January and February were something of a dead zone last year (as were March, April, etc) but this year something had changed. The drip, drip effect of having a product on the market, of getting it into shops, online and into living rooms, had, it seemed, created that all important buzz. Okay, the phone was not ringing off the hook, but when it did ring the call was long distance, and the caller had some very good news for us. America was waiting.

In our trade there are two crucial markets, and the UK is not one of them, even if the UK is crucial to us also. The US and Germany are where most of the action is. In the UK as elsewhere board game consumption was long ago dwarfed by the arrival of Playstation, X-Box and the likes of the Wii, extending the reach of the computer game from the spotty teenagers to the all important family market. These days board games are generally only launched off the backs of a TV or film brand. Genuinely new and successful independent board game brands can be counted on one hand in the last decade or so.

When Trivial Pursuit launched in the early 80s, the computer game platforms of today were mere twinkles in the eye of the future geek game designers – arcade favourites Space Invaders, Galaxian and Defender were the best on offer, and not available in your bedroom. Launching a board game at the end of the Naughties was something akin to the charge of the Light Brigade, or the Zulus armed with spears launching themselves against the British armed with Enfields led by Michael Caine and Stanley Baxter – noble perhaps, but pretty much doomed. Never mind, About Time would reverse time itself, tip the logic of the digital age on its head by feeding the hidden but never extinguished desire of folks everywhere for something they can touch and feel and shout and laugh about in the comfort of their living rooms without a console in sight. In a word, retro classic. Admittedly, should an opportunity to bring About Time into the digital era arise, we would jump at it. But for now the brand represented something, dare I say it, timeless and comforting, yet held in high regard through the decades, like the Sweeney and the Clangers given a makeover by the producers of the Sopranos or Life on Mars. I'll stop now as I'm getting carried away.

Happy Obama Day!

2292853 — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 15:21:00 GMT

Whoop whoop whoopie! Joy, joy, joy. I'm among the millions of Americans who are expressing enthusiasm today for the inauguartion of Barack Obama as President.

I'm in the overly optimistic camp toward Obama and I'm counting on him to fix everything! The economy, the war, healthcare and the list goes on of wrongs that need to be made right.

Yes he has a daunting huge job ahead of him, but yes he can do it.

Happy Obama Day to all,

-Lisa

Party Politics

2292853 — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 12:07:00 GMT

Normal 0 American election celebrations are in works in London for next week’s historic day on Tuesday, November 4^th, with those who love Obama gathering to cheer on their favourite presidential candidate in Kensington.The party is one of two large gatherings happening in the capital, but the only one of its size dedicated entirely to Barack Obama. Apparently Democrats Abroad UK is supporting another party that is open to all, including Republicans.

Want to join in on the Obama fun, without any Republicans?

Americans Away From Home Election Night Party

*Hosted by the largest Obama group outside the United States, the UK Obama Meetup

Want to go to the other election night party that is open to all political parties?

U.S. Election Night Party in London

My vote is already cast,

-Lisa

How can newspapers make money on the web?

255762 — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 15:35:00 GMT

Ex-Washington post digital chief, Caroline Little, has been talking in Amsterdam having a stab at answering the question about how newspapers can make money online. It is a tough question with no easy answers, but her advice is quite right when she says the winners are going to be those people trying new stuff.

Speaking at the World Digital Publishing Conference in Amsterdam, Little, who advises The Guardian in the US, started by saying that despite impressive gains in audience and advertisers, newspaper websites do not produce revenue comparable to that of print newspapers despite their enviable reach.

Sad truth all those quite excellent websites, with video, and community do not pull in the cash. It makes an unhappy coupling as in this climate print circulations are shrinking and investment rising in digital – but without the rewards.

Little, who spoke at the AOP 2007 conference, cited the New York Times and The Washington Post, which are at the top of the heap in terms of their percentage of online revenue as part of overall revenue but it is still not enough and there is no ready-made solution.

That said Little has tips that are worth remembering and apply not only to newspapers, but to any online publishing business and chief among those is that while news websites share the same journalistic values as the newspapers the web is a different medium with different rules and that means trying new things. Here she adds a great piece of advice – not everything will work so do not be afraid to fail because as she puts it "fear of failure can be debilitating".

Little's four areas digital growth:

Multimedia storytelling

For a newspaper, storytelling options have long been limited to text, photography and graphics. The rise of the Web has added a number of new tools to this equation: video, audio, photo galleries, panoramic photos, blogs, etc. Now, we can approach a story with a different mindset, one that says, "what's the best way to tell this story?"

Database journalism

One often hears about the web's endless news hole. The endless news hole, of course, is largely a myth. You can only publish as much good journalism as you can produce, and that takes skilled reporters and editors. And most papers have fewer reporters and editors than it did a few years ago. But what that endless storage space is perfect for is databases that can useful to your readers. Washingtonpost.com has been very active in this area. For example, congressional voting database going back to 1991 and a searchable list of U.S. war dead in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Reader engagement.

Here are a few things you need to know about your readers: some of them act like jerks, many of them won¹t like the journalism you produce, and the angrier ones tend to be more active. But the upside is huge. When given a chance to participate in the conversation, readers come back. A lot.

Distribution (as key as content)

In this new world of media fragmentation, media companies cannot control the format in which readers consume our journalism. That's scary, but also a huge opportunity. We now have the chance to get our journalism in front of readers while they're driving via audio podcast or radio, while they¹re watching their televisions via set-top boxes or video podcasts, or while they¹re standing on a street corner looking for a restaurant via cell phone or iPod. And we can push journalism to them via RSS, email newsletters and widgets.

Inside America

2292853 — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 13:24:00 GMT

Normal 0

Having just recently returned from travelling in America, I had the chance to quick peek into the minds of my own friends and family, who are anticipating a change in leadership come November 4^th. I heard people saying:

oOOo Obama Rocks – the majority of my circle support Barack Obama’s race for the White House and will be voting for him to win.

oOOo She Should Have Been Nominated – a few women I know believe firmly that Hillary Clinton received a bum rap in the primaries and was treated with a sexist attitude by the media. One may actually cast her vote for McCain, claiming she wants to show the choice of a female running mate support. She’s a fan of women and therefore will support Sarah Palin in the race.

oOOo Health, War & Money – The three most prevalent topics I heard people discuss were addressing the American health care system, ending the war and doing something about the threatened economy.

oOOo God’s Choice – I know some voters who make their decision based on their religious views. They will vote Republican and at the heart of their decision to support McCain is being anti-abortion and opposed to gay marriage.

My views don’t necessarily support what my friends and family are saying, and sometimes keeping off-topic in the company of those I don’t agree with was challenging around the dinner table. The election, no matter what side people support, is top-of-mind among the Americans I know. Maybe this will bring out record voting turnout on November 4^th.

Famous American Michael Moore has also been vocal about the election and what the current financial disaster news is all about behind the scenes. Here’s some of what he has to say:

“Let me cut to the chase. The biggest robbery in the history of this country is taking place as you read this. Though no guns are being used, 300 million hostages are being taken. Make no mistake about it: After stealing a half trillion dollars to line the pockets of their war-profiteering backers for the past five years, after lining the pockets of their fellow oilmen to the tune of over a hundred billion dollars in just the last two years, Bush and his cronies -- who must soon vacate the White House -- are looting the U.S. Treasury of every dollar they can grab. They are swiping as much of the silverware as they can on their way out the door.

No matter what they say, no matter how many scare words they use, they are up to their old tricks of creating fear and confusion in order to make and keep themselves and the upper one percent filthy rich,” he wrote in a recent email.

Moore’s also promoting his new movie that is available for free download prior to the November 4^th election. The film Slacker Uprising is an account of his 62-city tour where he got up close and personal with the revolutionary mood of youth who he thinks will uprise against Republican leadership in this election.

Here’s how you can get a copy of Slacker Uprising, being distributed by Brave New Films:

1) Blip.tv will provide standard resolution streaming, free of commercials and advertising.

2) Amazon Video on Demand will provide a high quality version of the above stream.

3) iTunes will make it easy for you to download "Slacker Uprising" on your iTunes, iPod, or Apple TV, and view it there or transmit it to your television. This way, the film can be portable as well as for home viewing.

4) Hypernia is providing bandwidth, servers and management to host "Slacker Uprising" online, so you can download the film and view it at any time or burn it onto a DVD.

If you have any questions or want to share your own views with Moore, email him at MMFlint@aol.com

Considering the pre-election mood in America,

-Lisa

I voted for Barack Obama today

2154489 — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 09:52:00 GMT

When in the course of human events it becomes obvious how painfully far a brand's reputation is from its own image, it opens itself up to criticism, scorn and heaps of interest and advice from well meaning observers.

As an American abroad, I have learned a lot about my own country from new friends and workmates here, so it seemed right to share a personal post. (And I know Gordon at least is following the drama.)

Being blessed with absentee voting status in beautiful and enlightened Sonoma County, I just got my mail-in ballot for our Nov. 4 presidential election. I mailed it right back with an equal measure of pride and prayers.

Never was there a brand more in need of a makeover than my own country tis of thee. A wise man once said that voting only gets you a C grade, so there are a bunch of other things people like me are doing. Of course this is just the part where the organization gets a new CEO. The hard work on reputation restoration comes next. Wish us luck

The White House race is just a re-run

255762 — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 13:59:00 GMT

I know who wins the race for the White House. It's the Democrat, that Matt Santos, you know, the first Hispanic to run for president of the United States who beats this old white guy with health issues?

Okay so that's the plot to the final series of one of the most brilliant television shows of the last decade, also known as 'The West Wing', which is revisited in part by BBC Four tonight.

The programme picks up on the similarities between that dramatised White House presidential race in which the long-shot candidate played by Jimmy Smits came from nowhere to win the Democratic Party nomination.

He takes on the sitting Vice President Bob Russell (or Bingo Bob as we remember him) and the former Vice President John Hoynes to face off against late sixty something Republican Senator Arnold Vinick who is a dead ringer for John McCain.

The similarities are there for all to be seen. Okay Santos was Hispanic and Barack Obama is black, but there are of a similar age and both were/are making break throughs in political life.

In 'The West Wing' race the ending was a fairytale one that saw Santos enter Camelot accompanied by his campaign manager and chief of staff Josh Lyman.

In the show tonight Hollywood historian Dr Ian Scott from the University of Manchester, who was a consultant for BBC Four on 'President Hollywood', describes how former Al Gore speechwriter Elie Attie became a writer and producer on 'The West Wing' and approached Obama aide David Axelrod in 2004, asking about the background and life of his boss.

That apparently set in train a sequence of events which predicted the real-life events as they unfolded two years after the final season of the series had been screened.

"After Attie heard Obama's speech at the 2004 Democratic convention in Boston, he was convinced the prospective Senator's tone, style and rhetoric should be the basis of the Matt Santos character. There have always been strong links between Hollywood and Washington conceived through film.

"But at the moment this is even more unusual and pertinent as Senator Obama's campaign is so similar to the campaign of the fictional Matt Santos in the final season of The West Wing. While it is true that Hollywood has often been accused of simplifying debate, they have nevertheless been crucial in opening up wider social and cultural awareness."

The real life script looked to have been running just as the script of 'The West Wing' had with Obama on course for a historic win, but then something else historic happened with the naming of Sarah Palin to the McCain ticket. That has shaken up the race like no one could have guessed.

My guess is that it would not have done so quite as powerfully if Hillary Clinton had been the candidate vice presidential name on the Obama ticket rather than Joe (where have you been for two weeks) Biden. But that boat has definitely sailed.

Talking of which have you seen Tina Fey's sketch as Palin standing alongside fellow comedienne Amy Poehler as Clinton? Brilliant.

Sadly they foolishly cancelled 'The West Wing' so we never got to see what a Smits led TV presidency would have held in store for us. Shame, but then Martin Sheen's Josiah "Jed" Bartlet was always going to be a hard act to follow.

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"It's like a really bad Disney movie"

255762 — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 14:45:00 GMT

An interview with Matt Damon on Sarah Palin to watch here, it's very funny. He's worried what she thinks about dinosaurs and there's the actuarial tables to think about (boy do they make for worrying reading - don't worry, I think John McCain will be just fine).

Damon is also struck how much the vice presidential republican candidate reminds him of something from a really bad Disney movie (probably called 'Slapshot Mom') where the hockey mom from Alaska becomes president and takes on the Russian president in a show of nerves and like wins...oh wait a second.

If he could get together with Sarah Silverman in a kind of reprise of their first internet hit ('I'm fucking Matt Damon') they would have a sure fire hit on their hands. Maybe something along the lines of 'OMG she's fuckin' president.

The $400m dollar radio man

255762 — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 09:30:00 GMT

Forget Jonathan Ross, US radio shock jock (and celebrated junkie) Rush Limbaugh (Guantanamo Bay: "a tropical retreat from the Jihad") has signed a $400m deal to continue broadcasting his right-wing bile until 2016.

Clear Channel signed the deal this week with its celebrated radio host, who pulls in an audience of between 14m and 20m who catch the show at least once a week on one of the 600-plus radio stations that host it. He is more popular than John McCain.

More than that, no other radio host comes close in America to this man and, in a tough climate, it means that when you put his syndicated show on your station you can guarantee the ad dollars. This has also led stations to model their broadcast around him, hoping that if they come for one they will stay for all. Forget Fraiser Crane and his refined liberal mutterings.

Limbaugh is known for his liberal-bating, tough-justice, Republican take on the world that has seen him come out with such gems as "Feminism was established to allow unattractive women easier access to the mainstream"; "The difference between Los Angeles and yoghurt is that yoghurt comes with less fruit"; and "I must be honest. I can only read so many paragraphs of a New York Times story before I puke".

The last is ironic, because he is to be profiled in The New York Times magazine this weekend.

He is also famous for saying such things as "If you commit a crime, you're guilty"...except when it's him.

Limbaugh famously got away with it, when he could have been sent to prison for a few years after being arrested in 2003 for illegally buying thousands of prescription painkillers, including OxyContin.

No surprise, like a lot of rightwing bigots he's full of ***. Can deal it out, but can't suck it up. The Drug Policy Alliance made a nice little flash video at the time asking viewers whether they would "Lock Rush Up Or Leave Him Alone For His Illegal Drug Buys?"

In The New York Times profile, which has gone up early on its website, it reveals that Limbaugh is planning to buying a new G550 jet and is making an estimated $38m.

It sounds very corporate, doesn't it? That's because it is, which has helped make him so successful.

In the NY Times piece, he describes himself as a "business man" and "a defender of corporate America".

It is a kind of message that seems to play well not only to his listeners but to advertisers as well. He won't rant about pollution or slate SUVs ("Global warming is bogus") or lay into corporations.

Did you ever wonder why there were no liberal equivalents of guys like Limbaugh? It's because advertisers don't want to be associated with shows where their very existence comes under attack.

You would think his elevation would be good news all around for the Republicans as they face a tough election against Obama not so. While he might not like the Democratic candidate ("He's saying nothing better than anybody in my lifetime ever has"), and was under recently for repeated playing a derogatory and racially charged song called 'Barack the Magic Negro (to the tune Puff the Magic Dragon), he hates McCain as well and thinks he will be the death of the GOP, which adds more spice to what is already shaping up to be a riveting US election.

Scrap the news bring on the advertising

255762 — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 08:33:00 GMT

If things were not already bad enough in the US newspaper business Tribune, which owns the Los Angeles Times, wants to slash 500 pages of news each week from the newspapers and up the advertising editorial ratio. Thanks, now you mention it I will take some news with my advertising.

There have already been hundreds of job cuts and Tribune boss, property billionaire Sam Zell, has announced more.

It's the same old same old, but oh wait it's much worse. It seems the only way to save the patient already ravaged by terrible diseases such as Craigslist (wouldn't want to catch that one) is to lop off a limb. Of course, that will work.

The 500 pages of news each week will be cut from a dozen papers that also include The Chicago Tribune, The Baltimore Sun, The Orlando Sentinel and The Hartford Courant. The aim is to hit a 50-50 editorial advertising split. This does not include classified advertising and special ad sections. At The Los Angeles Times alone it will see news cut by 82 pages a week with smaller reductions at other papers, which will save cash and see more newsroom jobs go.

It will apparently deliver - according to the New York Times, which has suffered its own cuts - a "thinner, flashier, more local newspaper, with a smaller newsroom staff". It is yet another approach to a problem of shrinking newspaper circulations. It sounds like a desperate one though.

It is one of those issues where it is impossible to find any middle ground. Editors will be up in arms, but will advertisers be happy with a weakened editorial product and damaged brand? And for that matter what about the readers? How will they take it?

Well apparently they will hardly notice claims Mike Simonton, senior director at Fitch Ratings in Chicago. He says most readers would hardly notice a modest decline in the volume of news, or if staff-written articles were replaced by those from wire services like The Associated Press or Reuters.

I'm sure there's a little truth to that, but a paper filled with material (quality though it might be) from the wires is not actually a newspaper (I can go to Google News and get that) and people will notice. In an industry facing a meltdown hard choices need to be made, it's just if you take it too far going back is hard.