September 18, 2002

1:40 PM

Yes, the mainstream media is driven by MetaFilter. Remember the Sept. 13 thread about the original smiley? The same story shows up today on NPR's All Things Considered (scroll down!). And remember the AirlineMeals.net thread back on August 30? It, too, became an NPR/ATC story exactly 6 days later. These are by no means isolated instances--just the ones I most vividly remember. Should we be trying harder to use our power for evil good?
posted by Raya (12 comments total)

npr - all the metafilter that fits!
posted by quonsar at 1:42 PM on September 18, 2002

Unless theres direct evidence its probably just the Internet at work things spread quickly Metafilter is afterall just a filter the original content is in the comments.
posted by stbalbach at 1:47 PM on September 18, 2002

By the same token, MeFi has recently been driven by Memepool and Fark. Anything that shows up at either of those sites will show up here within an few hours...sometimes minutes.

The reverse is occasionally true, but more often than not in recent weeks, MeFi has become a recycling ground.
posted by dejah420 at 1:50 PM on September 18, 2002

...things spread quickly Metafilter is after all just a filter ...

It's true, and yet.....we know that NPR's Adam Felber (of Wait Wait.... fame) reads MeFi. Why not others? I bet they have an intern whose first job every day is to come here and see what's new, for their next "cyber" segment. It's the consistent timelag of 5-6 days that fascinates me....
posted by Raya at 1:52 PM on September 18, 2002

Metafilter is *behind* the curve, not ahead of it, and has been for more than a year. Very, very rarely is Metafilter first, except when it creates its own news (such as the Kaycee incident). I saw each of your examples elsewhere before they appeared on Metafilter. Hell, Fark is usually ahead of Metafilter.
posted by Mo Nickels at 1:52 PM on September 18, 2002

Do a search on airlinemeals.net -- you'll find stories about it in CNN, MSNBC (full disclosure: I wrote that one), USA Today and most other media outlets dated before the appearance here. Some several years ago. Everything comes around numerous times.
posted by GaelFC at 1:54 PM on September 18, 2002

Remember the Sept. 13 thread about the original smiley?

Remember the Sept. 12 thread on slashdot about the original smiley? Or the Sept. 13th Businessweek article that actually drove the meme?
posted by toothless joe at 1:55 PM on September 18, 2002

Metafilter is *behind* the curve, not ahead of it

Except, however slowpoky we may be, NPR is consistently 5-6 days behind MetaFilter, as noted above (meaning, that's probably about how long it takes them to put together a story after they read it here.). Plus, they like MeFi, having interviewed Matt and generally made a fuss of the site.

Not a conspiracy theory, just an ongoing frustration that I can't get any news on the radio that I haven't already heard before!
posted by Raya at 1:56 PM on September 18, 2002

So, to clarify, my point isn't that MetaFilter is ahead of the curve, but that I suspect NPR is using MeFi as a buzz detector, rather than Fark or the other sites/publications you mention.
posted by Raya at 1:58 PM on September 18, 2002

Wait, let me get this straight....You're saying MeFi is lagging behind NPR, right?
posted by Kafkaesque at 2:06 PM on September 18, 2002

pfffft ;-P
posted by Raya at 2:08 PM on September 18, 2002

Of course, "All Things Considered" is sort of a filter for news as well. I wouldn't be surprised if they were using MeFi (and Fark and Memepool) as a source for stories - they are convenient ways of seeing many different odd and unusual news stories at the same time.

Raya asks, Should we be trying harder to use our power for good?

I don't know about good or evil, but I will definitely try and use my power for weird... or for finding things that aren't on Fark or Memepool. :D
_{Congratulations on your first FPP, Raya!}
posted by Joey Michaels at 2:15 PM on September 18, 2002