I’m clearly not alone in my new guilty addiction, AMC’s The Walking Dead. (I gotta do something while waiting for the next season of True Blood.)
But I must admit, my first thought was – ugh, more zombies. Despite the apparent fascination of the entertainment press, this is a very well-worn genre.… Read the rest
In his November 18th essay “Weakness and Endurance,” New York Times columnist David Brooks uses the example of Newsweek’s shaky revival as an opportunity to praise the intellectual value of old general-interest magazines. He also bemoans that “general” has since devolved into banal.… Read the rest
The latest installment of rules I don’t follow…
1) Don’t have a drink if you think you need one.
2) Don’t have a cigarette, ever.
3) Don’t eat food because it tastes good. Eat food because it tastes good and you have room in your stomach for it.… Read the rest
I’ve made enough communication mistakes in my first forty years (especially in the past year) to identify a few rules that I generally don’t follow, but really should:
1) Never use profanity in anger (dirty jokes are up to you). Even if you have a valid gripe or point to make, you vaporize your credibility as soon as you drop an F-bomb.… Read the rest
The new TV season has started, so I’m checking out all that I can. ABC is appealing, because they offer their piliots as free iTunes downlaods. Great to stave off boredom on the eliptical machine. Today, I sweated to My Generation, but it felt closer to vomiting.… Read the rest
Excerpts from a draft essay I’m writing for my bosses at Iconoculture. What do you think? Am I full of it?
The crash in media value isn’t based on the simple math of supply and demand alone. The founding principles of Web business – give it away in exchange for eyeballs – has taught us to assign little or no value to anything on our computers.… Read the rest
Excerpts from a recent piece I pubished for my clients at Iconoculture. *
Modern technology may make consumers’ lives more hectic. But Web services — and especially mobile apps — also allow them to gain more control by monitoring finances, tracking diet and fitness, providing timely reminders, and even guarding against crime and injury.… Read the rest
Coke or Pepsi? Rolling Stones or Beatles? Apple or Google? The latest personality-defining choice is between two companies that, a decade ago, were virtually irrelevant.
But today these companies – as different as bacon and ice cream – define the polar-opposite philosophies of tech-savvy consumers (i.e.:… Read the rest
Chris Nolan used to make great movies – when he had no money. Memento — shot with a couple of cameras, no special sets, costumes, or visual effects — was captivating because Nolan’s only tool was his script, so it had to be damn good.… Read the rest
In my life, I’ve been asked to explain why I left many things: relationships, popular cities, the Catholic Church (and soon after, the very notion that supernatural creatures exist).
But I think I’m struggling most with understanding, and then explaining, my inclination to leave the iPhone religion.… Read the rest
