We hear a lot about community and free expression when it comes to the Web. From tech bloggers to legal scholars, the boosters spare little praise for the social benefits of technologically connected groups. Some cyber gurus even go so far as to predict that these new communities are already spawning a new, populist dialogue that will ultimately change the ...
The overarching goal of this site is to question the often giddy, utopianism that accompanies our journey into this new, digital-age reality. I have proposed on a few occasions that battles over issues like copyright are really just proxy wars in a larger, ideological (even semi-religious) cold war between humanistic and techno-centric values. Behind the overt defenses of online piracy ...
It isn’t just perception. Partisan politics in the U.S. really is worse than ever, if we’re to take the word of those who’ve been on the inside for the last 40 or so years. I was listening to an audio version of Tom Brokaw’s book The Time of Our Lives recently, and hearing him describe today’s dysfunctional intransigence in Washington, ...
There are a lot theories and a lot of experimentation with regard to independent filmmaking, the digital age, and the prospects for redefining the ways in which filmed entertainment can be funded by sponsors and distributed over the web. I thought it would be interesting to talk to Amy French, an old friend who is a writer, filmmaker, and actress ...
Yesterday, on Capitol Hill, the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing to discuss the Internet Radio Fairness Act, a bill largely backed by Pandora Media, Inc. and opposed by a growing number of musicians and songwriters. In fact, I recommend Chris Castle’s excellent synopsis of the message taken to The Hill by a handful of songwriters. If you want legal ...
