MetaFilter posts tagged with media

The Fallacy of Examples

homunculus — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 20:25:09 -0800

The Fallacy of Examples, and the problems of extrapolating from media. [Via RConversation]

Forgetting Equatorial Guinea

dead_ — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 15:38:35 -0800

Equatorial Guinea is more than your average headline-making, human rights-eschewing African nation. Likening the country’s uneasy street-silence to that of Pyongyang, deported journalist Peter Maass reveals an unparalleled culture of fear blanketed by an international media blackout. But for the Whitehouse, ExxonMobil and Teodoro Obiang—Equatorial Guinea’s torturous leader—the poverty, abuse and dead-quiet are business as usual.

More than a lucky shot

Kronos_to_Earth — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 19:45:41 -0800

"In the early 1970s, the artist Chris Burden pioneered a kind of sculpture that explored boundaries few people would care even to approach." The artist has had himself (in two of many examples...) nearly electrocuted and shot; some of his later and lighter work includes building complex model bridges and reconstructing a "Speed of Light Machine". He created a ghost ship, uninhabited and self navigated, and continues to surprise with his latest work.... The recording of "Shoot" is about a third of the way in the video in the first link. Click on "images" on the site linked to by built in the post for a scrolling photo set; "catalogue" provides an interview with the artist. Here is a recent review of his work. I'd like to thank crazylegs of MetaFilter for reminding me of this artist's name.

Tough Luck

noway — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 13:15:20 -0800

The public shaming of Orange County billionaire Henry Nicholas continues apace. While his financial crimes may not have drawn more than a passing reference, his drug use and other, more unsavory acts, have gotten widespread coverage -- as early as last year. Perhaps, it's because Nicholas was famously involved in supporting tough sentencing laws (his sister was murdered by her boyfriend in 1983.) However, some of the "tough on crime" policies he has backed as recently as a few months ago are said to unfairly worsen the punishment for those who commit crimes much less serious than those for which he was just indicted.

A moment in history; Obama Wins Presidential Nomination.

Effigy2000 — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 20:18:49 -0800

It's official. Obama has won the Democratic Party nomination for the US Presidency. In response, McCain has launched a "verbal sortie" against him and the media has already begun disecting Hillary's campaign.

Meta-Media

lunit — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 10:05:07 -0800

"Lost is a far more ambitious piece of media, which uses the entire web as its canvas and its entire audience as its creators. I'd suggest this piece of work - Lost, when viewed in its entirety - is truly new."

In Soviet Russia billboard...no, wait....

Kronos_to_Earth — Sat, 31 May 2008 22:37:00 -0800

Billboards that display a personal message for you...that was sort of cute, and voluntary. Billboards with speakers that focused sound on a spot...voices in your head are not so cute, and not voluntary. Billboards that photograph you, and him, and her, process the imagery, perform a statistical analysis, and return a targeted ad based on your demographic profile...maybe plan a different route home....

The Dangling Conversation

nasreddin — Fri, 30 May 2008 00:56:13 -0800

"People are talking, but no one is really listening. For all the fun and fantasy that can be had following this election on the internet, the overriding impression it gives after a while is of tuning into thousands of people as they sit in their cars and complain about the traffic." David Runciman on "The Cattle-Prod Election."

This are the world.

parmanparman — Sun, 25 May 2008 11:32:54 -0800

The Japanese master intercultural stereotyping. Is it racist when non-whites do blackface?

This complete breakfast: Feedback Loops

huckhound — Tue, 20 May 2008 23:02:35 -0800

You Tube on You Tube . . .