Ted Haggard Admits To Buying Meth From Mike Jones, A Male Esccort Accuser

Ted Haggard, the outspoken enemy of Gay Marriage, was just filmed live on CNN explaining that he did buy sex from Mike Jones, the male prostitute who's accusing Haggard of having sex with him.

Haggard says he went to visit the Mike Jones but didn't exactly explain who referred him to the man, or for that matter why he purchased Meth from him. He would only say that he didn't use the drug -- "I threw it away."

There's more to this story. Stay tuned.

Zennie Weighing In On New Media And "Audience Engagement"

As the number of websites and blogs and video blogs grows, and the rate of increase of readers away from traditional media and to new media continues -- apparently unabated given the fact that the currently young population that gets 70 percent of its news online is only getting older -- there are more and more debates over the "value" of new media.

These discussions are generated by advertisers and marketers, understandably upset and vexed over this rather sudden traffic shift away from the properties they use to present ads to people. A large part of the problem that generates their concerns and questions is simply a lack of participation in new media; at a recent American Marketing Association convention, only five percent of the attendees at a conference session actually knew what Web 2.0 was. In other words, the best way to understand blogs and vlogs is to run blogs and vlogs -- it seems many advertiser and marketers do not.

But they do control considerable sums of money. And faced with the ever-growing prospect of spending that money on an ad that goes into a blog, they're asking questions about value -- and who can blame them. Yes, the questions are based on a certain lack of knoweldge, but to be rather frank (not Ze) they're not being assisted by the very operators of blogs and vlogs.

Very recently there was a rather interesting dust-up between Ze Frank and Rocketboom over traffic. Ze Frank points to results from the Alexa system, which I personally do not recomend using because it incorrectly measures the number of links to Sports Business Simulations, and therefore miscalculates our traffic and by a frightening amount. Alexa, it seems, can't really distinguish between one URL used to direct a person to another URL.

In SBS case, we have URLs that send people to specific pages within our site. Alexa has a massive problem with this. Alexa also can't combine traffic from various blogs we own that are in SBS branding and design but at different URLs. Frustrated with this massive problem, I searched for the perfect traffic tool and after a period I didn't think one existed. But after a chance encounter with someone who worked for AdBrite, at The Grove, a San Francisco Internet Cafe, I was directed to an onlne device called "Hitslink."

Hitslink is perfect. It allows SBS to not only combine our sites, but see where our traffic is coming from, where it goes from page to page, and what pages it exits from. I can see what links were used to get to our sites, navigation paths in the site, how long people stick around, and what pages they use to get out of the site. I can see specific visitors and what city they came from and what pages they've went to. I've even scared the heck out of some people I know by asking them why they were looking up information on, say, CalPac, on my blogsite! I've also been able to contact potential new users of our simulations and ask them about their needs.

I find Hitslink particularly useful for those SBS vlogs which contain a specific video. Our vlog "Kate On Sports" is designed by me and such that each video is a separate page in the vlog site. Thus, we can easy track not just video popularity, but who links to that specific video because they link to the page -- even far more than any YouTube or Blip.tv direct link.

So if you're looking for the perfect engagement masuring device, look no further than Hitslink, and forget Alexa.

In closing, I find the combination of Hitlink and the video view reports from Blip.tv and YouTube to be very effective. I can see what percentage of blog viewers are actually looking at the videos posted, as well as being able to count traffic "horizontally" -- accross video distribution platfors -- and "vertically" -- from video to video. (OK, I developed those terms for SBS. I had to as there was no vernacular to describe the various traffic origination directions. Problem solved.)
Try Hitslink; dump Alexa.

Bob Barker - American Icon and Host Of "Price Is Right" Retires - Video

I now know I've been around a bit when this happens. I have grown up with Bob Barker, patted myself on the back for rightly guessing a price, dreaming that I was the winner of the showcase, and drolling over the Price Is Right girls. Well, the last part of that remains, but Barker, the real symbol of the show and an American icon, has retired. Here's an article by E! Online and selected YouTube Clips to celebrate Bob Barker.

Bob Barker Retiring
by Natalie Finn - E!Online

Tue, 31 Oct 2006 06:44:50 PM PST



The price isn't going to be quite as right come next June.

Bob Barker announced Tuesday he will retire in 2007 after 50 years in television, 35 of which he spent as the host of The Price Is Right.

"I will be 83 years old on Dec. 12, and I've decided to retire while I'm still young," the famed daytime personality told the Associated Press. "I've gone on and on to this ancient age because I've enjoyed it. I've thoroughly enjoyed it, and I'm going to miss it."

While Barker has considered hanging it up for the past 10 years, he said he's been having too much fun to walk away for good, but he figured reaching his golden anniversary was an "appropriate" time.

"I'm just reaching the age where the constant effort to be there and do the show physically is a lot for me," he said, sounding a bit like another TV icon who announced his intention to slow down after half a century on the air, 60 Minutes' Mike Wallace.
Barker had a mild stroke in May 2002 and had prostate surgery six weeks later—none of which caused him to miss a show, mind you.

Since The Price Is Right premiered Sept. 4, 1972, with Barker enticing people for the first time to "come on down," he has only missed three episodes (back in 1974). The longest running game show on the air is currently on in two half-hour installments every weekday, with the later one averaging 5.5 million viewers a day, per Nielsen Media Research.





"We knew this day would come, but that doesn't make it any easier," CBS Corp. president Leslie Moonves said in a statement. "Bob Barker is a daytime legend, an entertainment icon and one of the most beloved television personalities of our time."

The former Miss Universe and Miss USA Pageant host got his start in radio before being discovered by eventual This Is Your Life host Ralph Edwards, who said he liked the sound of Barker's voice. Barker went on to host the TV game show Truth or Consequences from 1956 until 1975, overlapping with Price for a few years.

A CBS spokesperson told Reuters that Price will go on after Barker's departure, but "it's premature to discuss any transition plans right now. Our focus now will be giving Bob a proper sendoff." A CBS prime-time special celebrating the man is also in the works, he said.

Barker's advice for whomever signs on to replace him is this: Memorize everything.

"The games have to be just like riding a bicycle," he said, referring to the show's numerous pricing games (80 at last count) in which contestants make bids to win larger prizes, like cars and trips.

"Then he will be relaxed enough to have fun with the audience—to get the laughs with his contestants and make the show more than just straight games—to make it a lot of fun."

Well, Barker should know.

While the silver-haired emcee has always had a smile for his studio audience and millions of at-home viewers, it wasn't too long ago that Barker was accused of enjoying his hosting duties a little too much.

Comedy Central Cips Still On YouTube - Deal In the Works

Whew! Seeing Comedy Central clips was one of the best aspects of a visit to YouTube. Give it to Chad and the gang over there at YouTube for being the consumate deal makers.

Viacom Sticks with YouTube - Red Herring

Despite copyright violations, clips from Comedy Central stay on video-sharing site.
October 31, 2006

Fake news fans can still get their fix on YouTube—for now. Shorter clips from The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report will remain on the video-sharing site, a spokesperson for Viacom said Tuesday. The move hints that Google and Viacom are searching for a way to make money from the site’s popularity.

A formal agreement between YouTube’s parent company, Google, and Viacom, has not been announced. But Viacom’s interest in profiting from the popularity of its content on YouTube is evident in a statement issued by the company on Monday.

“We want our audiences to be able to access our programming on every platform and we're interested in having it live on all forms of distribution in ways that protect our talented artists, our loyal customers and our passionate audiences,” Viacom said in a statement sent to Red Herring by spokesperson Jeremy Zweig.

As of Tuesday, a search on YouTube for “The Daily Show” yielded 2,705 videos. A search for “Colbert” produced 2,328 clips. YouTube said it would not comment on the matter.

On Friday, Viacom requested that YouTube remove Comedy Central content, as well as programming from VHI, MTV, BET and Nickelodeon, from its site due to copyright violations.

Comedy Central has its own website, Motherload, where viewers can watch clips of shows with pre-roll commercials. Comedy Central also sells episodes of many of its top shows, including The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, for $1.99 a pop via Apple's iTunes Store.

Many analysts have speculated that without illegally-uploaded content, like the clips from Comedy Central, YouTube may not be able to hang on to its audience. “There is a big risk there for YouTube in terms of its current status as the unchallenged number one site for sharing this kind of video,” said Joe Laszlo, an analyst with Jupiter Research.

YouTube struck a content-sharing deal with broadcast network NBC this summer (see Now Playing: YouTube, NBC). More recently, CBS, Showtime, and CSTV partnered with YouTube to provide short form video clips from shows including CSI, Survivor, and CBS Evening News. YouTube will share any revenue from ads placed next to CBS content uploaded by YouTube users with CBS, and CBS will have the right to remove such content from the site.

More content-licensing deals like those inked with NBC and CBS are likely to emerge, too. Negotiating and deal brokering stepped into high gear following Google’s $1.65 billion acquisition of YouTube in October (see GooTube Feeding Frenzy).

“I think we’ll see a lot of this kind of activity where companies may threaten to sue one day and end up happy partners the next,” said Mr. Laszlo. “All of the major media companies are still feeling their way.”

Will Yahoo Buy AOL?

I ran accross an article in Fortune Magazine, and linked to here at the title of this post, annoucing that Yahoo!'s been flirting with AOL over the possible action of aquisition of the web portal.

I know AOL has its enemies but I really don't think being eaten by Yahoo!'s the best answer for the company's woes. Indeed, I think it should fashion itself as an alternative to AOL. It's already doing that, but I think AOL should keep up the work. My feeling is that Yahoo!'s lost it's creative drive and has become a giant bureaucracy. AOL would just make it a bigger one.

Rolling Stones Classic Song "Miss You" Video and Lyrics

This amazing song is almost 30 years old, yet it is still as new as tommorrow's sunrise. It's a classic and yet one more example of why the Rolling Stones are the kings of rock. It's rythmic, soulful, and yet guitar-dominated.



Ive been holding out so long
Ive been sleeping all alone
Lord I miss you
Ive been hanging on the phone
Ive been sleeping all alone
I want to kiss you

Oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh
Oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh
Oooh oooh oooh

Oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh
Oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh
Oooh oooh oooh oooh

Well, Ive been haunted in my sleep
Youve been starring in my dreams
Lord I miss you
Ive been waiting in the hall
Been waiting on your call
When the phone rings
Its just some friends of mine that say,
Hey, whats the matter man?
Were gonna come around at twelve
With some puerto rican girls that are just dyin to meet you.
Were gonna bring a case of wine
Hey, lets go mess and fool around
You know, like we used to

Aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah
Aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah
Aaah aaah aaah aaah

Oh everybody waits so long
Oh baby why you wait so long
Wont you come on! come on!

Ive been walking in central park
Singing after dark
People think Im crazy
Ive been stumbling on my feet
Shuffling through the street
Asking people, whats the matter with you boy?

Sometimes I want to say to myself
Sometimes I say

Oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh
Oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh
Oooh oooh oooh

Oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh
Oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh
I wont miss you child

I guess Im lying to myself
Its just you and no one else
Lord I wont miss you child
Youve been blotting out my mind
Fooling on my time
No, I wont miss you, baby, yeah

Lord, I miss you child

Aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah
Aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah
Aaah aaah aaah aaah

Lord, I miss you child

Aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah
Aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah
Aaah aaah aaah aaah

Lord, I miss you child

Aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah
Aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah aaah
Aaah aaah aaah aaah

Senator John Kerry: Don't Do Homework, Get Stuck In Iraq

Senator John Kerry's being cooked by the PR goose for making a statement that at first glance seems hurtful. Kerry, a Massachusetts Democrat, told a college audience earlier this week that some young people might get "stuck in Iraq" if they don't make it through the educational system. While he's backpedaling on this, here's the video:



But is he wrong? When I was growing up the Military was where African American men went who really could not get it all together in the real world. So Kerry's remarks were familar to me; I grew up with them. "Get your education," was my Mom's mantra. She never wanted me to touch the military; never even suggested it. She never had to and I never considered it.