Category Archives: Media

Hey, the Winston-Salem Journal made bookofjoe!

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I think this might be a sign of the times:  to me it’s a pretty big deal that a Winston-Salem Journal article about a K-9 mold investigating company in Winston-Salem was picked up by Charlottesville, VA blogger bookofjoe.  Why?  Because I can almost guarantee you that bookofjoe has a wider global audience than the Journal, if not more daily readers.

Who’d have thunk just two years ago that a guy working out of his house, by himself, could have a broader reach than a mainstream newspaper that’s part of a larger media company and has the requisite staff of reporters, editors, ad reps, etc.?  Kind of cool.

I’m Pretty Sure This Ad Wouldn’t Appear in the Printed Washington Post

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MateSee this ad on the left?  It appeared on the web page of a Washington Post article I was reading.  I’ve noticed this ad on the Post the last few times I’ve been there and it’s caused me to have the following thoughts:

First, I can’t see this ad, or one similar to it, running in the print version of the Post except maybe in the Sports section.  The article I was reading was about politics.

Second, every time I see this ad it claims these women all live in Clemmons and every ad has three different women who look like either a soft-core porn actress or a Sports Illustrated-Swimsuit-Edition-wannabe.  If all these pictured women do indeed live in Clemmons then I’d have to believe there would be more bars than nursing homes in the village, which is not the case today.

Now I’m not an idiot, and I know those are stock photos on supposedly real listings that were served to me based on my IP address, so that leads to my next question: why does this work?  Even if I were enough of a sucker to believe these women actually lived in Clemmons and actually needed to use an online dating service (as if) why would a schlub who actually does need a dating service have the temerity to believe he could score a date with one of these lovelies?

Next, what is the alternative to "intimate dating?"  Perhaps "arms-length" or "disinterested" or "slightly chilled" or my favorite, "how the hell did I get myself into this mess?"  Of course this is from a guy who hasn’t been on a date in almost 20 years so what do I know?

Finally, who wants to lay odds that we’ll be seeing male enhancement ads on the Post site some time soon?

I Wish I Had 10% of This Woman’s Guts

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The Christian Science Monitor is publishing a series about the abduction, and eventual release, of freelance journalist Jill Carroll in Iraq earlier this year.  Mostly it’s a first-person account and it’s riveting.  After reading this first installment all I can say is that she has more guts than I could ever dream of having.

I can’t imagine having enough passion for a career that I would put my life on the line for it.  Of course this will give me a better perspective the next time I get a butt-chewing from a customer.  It could definitely be much worse.

Bloggin’ in Winston-Salem; Blogger Needs Some of That “Carolina Neighbor Code”

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The Winston-Salem Journal ran a front page story on people blogging in Winston-Salem.  I was interviewed as was a woman named Lucy Cash who writes a great blog called Life in Forsyth.  It’s kind of cool to make the paper in any form, but the front page is really cool!

On a sad note, I emailed Lucy to introduce myself and she replied this morning saying that she’d reply in length later but that her father had died this morning.  So what should be an exciting day for her has unfortunately turned very somber.  Anyone who has read her blog knows that her dad has been sick, so I’m guessing she’ll get a lot of what she calls the "Carolina Neighbor Code" which will include home cooked meals and a bunch of hugs and offers of support.  That’s one of the great things about living here.

Breaking News: You Too Can Be a Reporter

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CNN has launched a service called CNN Exchange that solicits video, photos and eyewitness accounts for stories from all of us Average Joe (Joanne?) citizens and then they will filter it and use what they feel is appropriate for their coverage.  Isn’t it kind of surprising that this has already been done by one of the major networks?  I mean it costs them next to nothing and it promises to give them exponentially more raw material to work with.

I say it costs them next to nothing because they will have to dedicate staff time to this, and building out the system had to cost them something, but compared to what it would cost them to hire enough people to try and replicate the amount of raw material they’ll be getting from camera-phone toting Anderson Cooper or Christiane Amanpour wannabes it is a negligible amount.  And in their defense the evolution of inexpensive camera phones and the realization that the public doesn’t demand perfect video (i.e. that crappy MPEG footage from Mary Sue’s camera phone is better than nothing) are all fairly recent developments.  So kudos to CNN for getting this going.

Audio Obituaries?

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I’m not really sure I know what to make of this.  The Greensboro News & Record is adding a service that allows people who place paid obituaries to add 60-second audio tributes to the dearly departed in their online guest books.  My first reaction is, well, that’s weird.  My second reaction is that it reminds me of those RIP t-shirts with the dearly departed’s picture on them, which I’ve always thought to be kind of tacky.  But that’s just me and I’m as capable of being a snob as the next guy.

If anyone wants to make an audio tribute to me when I’m gone I only ask that they not use any Journey songs as a background.  Other than that, have at it.

Winston-Salem Journal Expanding Blogs

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It looks like the Winston-Salem Journal is getting ready to launch more blogs and they’re looking for ideas about what they should be blogging about.  Here are some suggestions, although I doubt they’ll be welcome:

  • Where in the World is Vernon? – A blog that covers the escapades of our local gadfly Vernon Robinson.  I think this fits under the category "if it bleeds it leads."
  • What’s Your Church? – A blog that disects the peculiar local custom of asking people what their church is rather than the more ubiquitous US custom of asking what someone does.
  • Where in the World are the Democrats? – A blog that identifies the three or four democrats that live within an hours drive of Winston-Salem and don’t work at the newspaper or within a school system (this includes universities).  Dixiecrats don’t count either.
  • The Nuts on Peanuts – A blog for the thriving "Peanuts" fan club that obviously exists in the area based on the number of people who sent in irate letters about the venerable comic strip being replaced.  This despite the fact that it’s been in re-runs longer than President Bush has been saying "nucular."
  • Chicken Pie – For newcomers and carpetbaggers there’s not enough information on where to find the best chicken pie.  From what I can tell you have to know someone who knows someone who’s great-aunt fixes a hundred a week in her vintage 1956 gas stove.  And she’ll sell them to you for $4 each but you have to pick them up.  We need a guide on how to find these culinary saints.

That oughtta do it for today.

Family Member and Winston-Salem Native Makes the Front Page of the Washington Post

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My cousin Adam Good was the subject of a story that was on the front page of the Saturday (July 22, 2006) Washington Post in an article titled "Secure in His Mannyhood: Evolved or an Anomaly, a Male Nanny Enjoys His Job in VA".  There’s even a video with an interview in the online version. (Photo to the left is from the Washington Post article, by Kevin Clark of the Washington Post).

Adam’s a great guy (I’m still tempted to call him a kid) who grew up here in Winston-Salem.  To say he’s smart would be the world’s greatest understatement.  Before we moved here we stayed at my Aunt Debbie’s (Adam’s mom) house during one visit and we had Adam’s old room.  His bookshelves were crammed with books on philosophy, politics, and literature that scared the crap out of me in college and he was reading them in middle school and high school.  He graduated with honors from American University and will be pursuing his masters degree in the near future.

It’s wild to think that a family member is being profiled in one of the nation’s most prominent newspapers and is considered representative of a new "trend" called "mannyhood."  It cracks me up to no end that he’s being compared to Britney Spears’ "manny."  Adam being mentioned along with Britney Spears is extremely funny. Suffice it to say that I seriously doubt that Adam’s music collection contains anything from artists with names like Britney, Avril or Jessica.

And of course it’s entertaining that Adam has to answer the requisite "are you gay?" question (he’s not) as if men aren’t capable of being good child care providers, and I’m sure he gets his fair share of grief from his male friends, but as Adam points out in the article it is no small deal that he’s getting paid good money and he’s living rent free, which is a big deal in DC.  Like I said Adam’s one smart dude.

A side note to a prominent blogger here in North Carolina, Billy the Blogging Poet: Adam is also an accomplished poet and a very good musician.

Coopetition Defined

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The Winston-Salem Journal lost power at their production facility the other night so the Greensboro News & Record stepped in to print about 17,000 copies for them.  The two papers have a standing agreement to help each other out in circumstances such as these, which is good business for all concerned and the true definition of "coopetition."

Update: The Journal’s editor writes about it here.

Video of News & Record Citizen Journalism (Blogging) Meeting

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Sean Coon took some video of the citizen journalism/blogging meeting at the News & Record on Tuesday night (June 6, 06). His post is here and you can see the video either on his page or here at Youtube.

Vanity moment: Celeste and I are the two across the room (I’m in the blue shirt and Celeste is on the end to my right or your left).