NY Times #NYTimesNews Paywall Slammed On Twitter: Social Media Idiocy

The New York Times obviously didn't think twice about purchasing the hastag #NYTimesNews on Twitter, and in the process showed a new, high level of Social Media idiocy. As of this writing the vast majority of Twitter tweets are in protest of the New York Times plan for an online digital subscription process, with many tweets explaining that once the free 20 articles offered is done, that's it.

No paywall money for the New York Times.

But what gets this blogger is why the NY Times would be stupid enough to use Twitter for such an announcement? Buying that hashtag, thus insuring top Twitter Trend placement, was a direct route to criticism and hammering on Twitter. It's like PR suicide: the Times of New York serving itself up for lunch, to be eaten over and over again.

Yuck.

Check out some of these Twitter tweets:

Phitter Japhet
Interesting how #NYTimesNews has triggered larger discussion about value of journalism instead of attracting new subscribers. #CartB4Horse
1 minute ago Favorite Retweet Reply

Paul_Conrad Paul Conrad
My suggestion to #NYTimesNews, don't punish your loyal readers with a subscription fee when you're giving your stuff to Facebook for free.
1 minute ago Favorite Retweet Reply

jbrianhouston J Brian Houston
NYTimes porous paywall: Won't generate much $, so maybe just a "we must be paid" statement? http://bit.ly/hOMpbd #NYTimesNews

hirshsandesara hirshsandesara
@brianschwab time to become intimately familiar with the @newsobserver. This blows. #NYTimesNews
3 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply

jerseyblueboy Karim Walker
#NYTimesNews will lose a lot of long time readers because of this new subscription plan.
4 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply

Esotericus J. Leif Johnson
$15 is too much for #NYTimesNews when you can get news for free elsewhere. Five dollars is reasonable, but not $15.
5 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply

Yes, $15 is a price per month that gives a number of people pause. That's a week's bus ride money for a lot of people. To charge that much is sheer arrogance, not to mention complete stupidity. (Of course, the two tend to go together.)

In "A Letter to Our Readers About Digital Subscriptions," issued on this St. Patrick's Day, and leading this blogger to wonder how much drink was already consumed at the New York Times, Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr., the NY Times Publisher (and hater of this blogger's constant jabs at his new media efforts and particularly his fear of Google - word travels) writes:

This change comes in two stages. Today, we are rolling out digital subscriptions to our readers in Canada, which will enable us to fine-tune the customer experience before our global launch. On March 28, we will begin offering digital subscriptions in the United States and the rest of the world.

HA! Dump it on Canada first! Nice. I'm sure the Canadians will appreciate being used in such a direct way. So, if the paywall doesn't work, look for Mr. Sulzberger to blame Canada!

Really, he should blame himself.  Whatever online good press the NY Times could have gotten was dashed by thousands of Twitterers, nastily tweeting about its paywall effort.

I'm reminded of my conversation with Salon's Scott Rosenberg, where he explains that journalists are just trying to pay the rent or mortgage.   I know, but this paywall isn't the way to go about it.

Follow Zennie62 on Twitter for re-tweets on this.

Happy St. Patrick's Day: Corned Beef and Cabbage In Oakland

Happy St. Patrick's Day, everyone, and it's a lovely one at that in Oakland and in San Francisco. Which should make it all the more easier to enjoy the festivities. And before I mention them, please remember that everyone's Irish on St. Patrick's Day, even us black guys, so have a heart!

Speaking of heart, get down to the Oakland's City Center in the heart of Downtown Oakland between 12 noon and 1 PM for a special performance by Driving with Fergus. And it's certain Max's City Center will have some special St. Patrick's Day menu (and if they don't, they've really fallen off the way!), so check them out.

Also visit Crogan's Montclair in the Oakland Hills for a great time. It's at the corner of Mountain and LaSalle in the Montclair District. Crogan's has a great kitchen and a good version of Corned Beef and Cabbage!

In the evening, The Alley, at 3325 Grand Avenue, is all done up for St. Patrick's Day. While they don't have a special menu, there are a lot of four leaf clovers around as decoration.

There's also the "St. Patrick’s Day Rockridge Walk n’ Drink Oakland," where you are asked to "Meet at McNally’s at 6pm. Walk up Manilla Ave to stairways around Margarido Dr. Return to McNally’s around 7pm. Drink."

They don't tell you where McNally's Irish Pub is, so I'll help: it's at 5352 College Avenue.

With that, Happy St. Patty's Day, follow Zennie62 on Twitter, and watch for tweets of photos!

Congress Says “99ers are NOT an Emergency” - But Defunding NPR is?

Congress says “99ers are NOT an Emergency” but apparently defunding NPR is?

House Republicans escalated their war against National Public Radio, calling an "emergency" meeting Wednesday to consider a bill that would strip the organization of federal funds.

NPR, which operates 797 radio stations across the country, gets less than 2% of its annual budget directly from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which receives more than $400 million a year from Congress. But the CPB also gives money directly to NPR member stations, which proponents of the organization fear could be shut down without public funding.

According to a spokeswoman for Lamborn, Catherine Mortensen, the new standalone bill would only target NPR. And unlike the CR amendment would have defunded public broadcasting through the 2011 fiscal year, HR 1076 would permanently prohibit all federal funding to NPR and affiliate stations.

The House already passed a similar bill to defund both NPR and the Public Broadcasting Service through September, but the Senate defeated it.
The latest bill, spearheaded by Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.), is not likely to pass in the Democrat-controlled Senate.

House GOPers scheduled their “Emergency Meeting” to cut the miniscule amount of federal funding to NPR - yet Congress has allowed jobless 99ers to languish without any source of income for over a year now.

UI benefits accounted for 100% of the necessary income to survive for millions of UI exhaustees called “99ers” but it would seem that 2% of NPR funding is far more important to the FAT CAT Republicans and obviously Democrats as well.

This is the sort of CRAP that Congress gives “EMERGENCY” status to? I cannot believe that every American with a brain is not hounding Speaker Boehner with calls and emails demanding he get off of his ugly orange, golf playing, lazy butt and get to the business of the American people - NOW.

EMAIL: speakerboehner@mail.house.gov
Tweet Him: @speakerboehner

CALL SPEAKER BOEHNER TODAY and let him know that survival of 99ers/UI exhaustees is an EMERGENCY - defunding NPR is NOT! His West Chester OH office number is

513-779-5400, and his DC office number is 202- 225-6205.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

[The donation button below is for Paladinette. If you like what I write please donate so I can keep on fighting for the 99ers! Thank You!]

No Leprechauns Need Apply

On St. Patrick's Day it's tempting to lecture about stereotypes, discrimination, and the scorn that greeted Irish immigrants to North America, including how the Ku Klux Klan, in particular, reacted with violent prejudice, since there are now more people of Irish ancestry living in the U.S.A. than on the Emerald Isle. But the legend of driving the snakes from Ireland is a metaphor for conquering our fears.

It isn't about green beer and shots of Jameson's; the celebration of Saint Patrick's Day is about embracing those we meet - finding and recognizing our similarities instead of dwelling upon the differences.

When my grandfather's grandfather made the epic journey from Ireland in the 1860s to settle in Adrian, Michigan and establish a cobbler's shop, he had no idea his descendants would be able to watch events unfolding some day in places as exotic and "remote" as Cairo, Haiti, Japan, or even New Orleans or Madison as though we were all right there let alone use cell phones to text financial support. But he'd have loved the idea of helping those in need, of standing with workers fighting for their rights, and walking like an Egyptian.

Because culturally the Irish are inclined to see us all as one family. Irish-Americans are glad to see the wearing of the Green, today, even among those who can't spell Leprechaun and never eat potatoes. We're clear on why some Scots and Brits select other colors, and that's just fine, too - we'll still be toasting and singing and embracing all who can, even for one day, see a bit of something different as part of themselves, and a bit of themselves in the goodwill of Irish blessings and humor.

Join me - we can always make room for one more at the table because it's easy to stretch the stew with potatoes to serve another new member of the family. Guinness optional.

Thomas Hayes is a Irish-American Entrepreneur-Journalist, and former Congressional Campaign Manager; he's a communications strategist-consultant, photo-videographer, computer-geek, hyphenated-scoundrel, and union-supporter who writes on topics ranging from economics and politics to culture and community.

You can follow Tom as @kabiu on twitter. Tweet

Being The Only Black Guy In The Room Sucks

I was at an event last night that was a lot of fun, save for one fact: for much of it, I was the only black guy in the room.

Now, I'm not going to name the event, only say that it was for a good cause. But after one conversation, with a sister (a black woman, for those of you who don't know what I mean), that went a little off, but that was quickly replaced by three cool women, one of them also a sister who was really just "normal," I happened to take stock of my surroundings.

No brothers - no black guys.

OK. Now, I have to explain what happened with that first conversation with the first sister (not to be confused with Michelle Obama, who I'm sure would be more pleasant to talk with.) I simply went over to introduce myself, but talking with her felt icky. Like wading through a classist mine field thrown up by someone who seemed bent on implying you didn't belong in her World.

You see, she sells a very expensive item that, if I mentioned it, would give away her. That's not my intent here at all. And my objective at that point was to introduce myself, as one does at parties, and because we knew the same people. But I realized, as we were talking that had I took my leave of her, she would have been standing there by herself. So, I tried to at least have a conversation with her so she would not feel left alone. Mistake? No. Regardless of the outcome, I'd do it again; it's just the right thing to do.

At any rate, her desire to issue her little put downs was so intense I had to finally break through it. I know she's having a hard time selling this thing because she implied as such, but I didn't say so at all. But after being peppered with comments about how many rich people are "out there" and that they "can afford it," and her constant looking around, and not in my eyes in response to my questions about the economy and with respect to the economic climate five years before, I'd had enough with the bullshit and peppering, and just said "Can we talk? I am a human being."

That did break through the ice, and there was a lot of it, but it revealed someone who has obvious issues with black guys that no conversation with me could ever cure. The bottom line is to assume a person's not in your social space because they are black and male is off-putting. To have it done to you by someone who's black is more hurtful.

Fortunately, I was saved when the more well-adjusted sister asked me if I would buy a raffle ticket. I saw an opening for a more pleasant conversation, and took it faster than you could say "Run!"

That was when I looked around.

Groups and groups of white people, mostly women. The female part was cool; I'm used to that. But after a while on this earth, you can't help but wonder (and I know this is something that goes through the head of every black guy in this situation), do they have any black friends?

Now, the people were nice and willing to talk, once the cocktails flowed. And being a video-blogger is a great way to start a conversation with anyone, especially if you want to get them on camcorder for an interview. But absent that, you have the man who comes up and is stupid enough to mistake you for the help.

There was a black guy holding a sign that pointed the way to the party. He was never in the room afterward. Later, as I was talking with a good friend I'd not seen in a while, this guy came up, didn't bother to say "excuse me," and just asked "Are you the person who helped me up here."

Now, that black guy and I not only don't look alike, he had on a white shirt and red tie; I'm dressed entirely in black, from neck to feet. Plus, I'm at the business of chatting and swigging a martini, so you'd think he'd at least act like a gentleman, let alone get a clue that I wasn't the help. All that went through my head in two seconds, and I answered "No," and returned to my conversation.

Eventually, he realized he really screwed up in the manners department, and we wound up having a brief conversation about camcorders. But for me, it was just to rid myself of the annoyance.

Whatever's going on in the Bay Area, the declining black population is part due to the passing of families, as it is lack of economic opportunities. But also, I think, it's social. We're too used to seeing clumps of white people together, so we think it's OK. Really, it's not OK.

It's not healthy for anyone to have friends and associations all of the same skin color. And I think what happens in The Bay Area, and for anyone who's a black guy and runs in circles where they wind up being the only black guy in the room, is the desire for a more welcoming society eventually pulls them away to another city.

I think that's why black population numbers have increased in the South. It's more than jobs. In the South, my view is that whites and blacks have gotten over a lot of crap and just move in the same circles. Interracial relationships are far more common in metro areas. In that way, the society, at least to this outsider, seems more advanced than in the Bay Area. If a person has a "race issue" in the South, at least you know that, and can avoid the nutcase. In the Bay Area, that's much harder to do.

Here, whites who have race issues don't act that way, they just shield themselves with other white people they call friends, and satisfy themselves with the idea that as long as someone black walks by them, they're in a diverse community. That's the biggest joke of all.

It's too much effort for black guys to have to battle someone's race issues by being friendly and absorbing a person's issues. In the Bay Area, it's all so subtle that it kind of builds and sneaks up on you. From people mistaking you for "the help," either accidentally, or - as it happened to me at The Balboa Cafe recently - intentionally. (And in that instance, I openly told the person, who I was already familiar with, to knock it off, as she was being a jerk-off and not in a pleasurable way.) To how some white people don't even bother to say "hello" to you first, because they expect you to make the first move all the time.

If you're black and male in The Bay Area, and reading this, try it sometime. Instead of being the guy who makes the first move in a greeting, try saying nothing and see if the same people approach you first. More often than not, they won't. I've seen this for years here. I call it the racial pecking order and I've seen it play out again and again: my experience is if you're white, someone else white isn't as likely to treat you that way. They will seek your company.

And that, for whatever weird reasons that boil down to racism, is why there were clumps and clumps of groups of white people. For all of those clumps, I'll bet there's a story of someone who knows a black guy, but just treats them as window dressing: someone they see but don't let in to their social circle.

For me, in large part because of my objective of calling out such behavior, I have a set of friends who are white, who just don't act like that. In fact, that's why I was at the party: they invited me.

Eventually, though, I wasn't the only black guy in the room. Our ranks increased by two - making it three black guys out of 200 people. One of the brothers I already knew; he puts himself out there socially, friendly to all, and to the point of grabbing someone away from a conversation in a fashion I'd never copy. He's done it again, and again. And with all that, he showed up alone, as the party was winding down.

The other man was the head of the organization. Smooth, cool, but apprehensive, too (and I think it was because he was concerned with the event itself, which went well, I think). In a way, he the best example of what I'm blogging about. So used to being in mostly white social circles, and mostly because of education (Hey, going to college at a big university and gaining great friends of different backgrounds can prep you for these situations), that he rose to become the boss of a large local Bay Area company.

For some of the whites in the room, his assent was perfect, but it's got to be lonely for him. I know it is. They get to maintain their social circle as devoid of black men, yet have one black guy just close enough for them to say "I'm OK and don't have race issues." But he's not really a friend at all; in an odd sort of way, he's still just the help.

Being the only black guy in the room sucks. But, if the people who aren't black take the effort to reach out and gain black friends, and blacks in that environment can just relax and enjoy themselves, we can make our society a little better for everyone. And maybe stem the tide of black folks leaving the Bay Area, just a little bit.

Follow Zennie62 on Twitter!

Blogging: The State Of - Salon's Scott Rosenberg, Author, "Say Everything"

This video is an interview with the author of "Say Everything," the best book on the history of blogs and blogging written to date, and someone who's start as an Internet-based journalist goes back to 1994. He is Scott Rosenberg of Salon.com.

(As a note, if you're seeing this and the video has a white space icon in front of it, it's because it's a new upload and you're among the first to view it. Give it a few minutes to finish compressing. It's a huge video file.)

Scott Rosenberg, who's one of the founding editors of Salon.com, and this blogger sat down for a talk that lasted 45 minutes, making this the longest video interview done for this channel to date.

Rosenberg and I talked about everything from how Salon.com got started, to the State of Blogging, journalists versus bloggers, The Huffington Post, The Daily for the iPad, the impact of Twitter, what happened to Salon, blogging for profit and reaching the market versus not doing so, James O'Keffe and his video ambush that led to the resignation of NPR's Executive Director, and a host of other topics.

And that was just the first 30 minutes of the video interview.

But mostly, we talked about The State Of Blogging. While some Old Media publications like The New York Times think blogging activity is decreasing, Scott disagrees, explaining that we have more blogs than ever and the number continues to grow. In fact, BlogPulse reports there are 157,828,245 blogs, with 79,327 established over the last 24 hours as of this writing.

No wonder the New York Times is threatened. That's a lot of media being created at a rapid pace. So sweet.

You can also check out Scott's blog at wordyard.com

99ers: Plan to attend the "We Are One" Rally near you - April 4, 2011

On April 4, 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in Memphis, where he had gone to stand with sanitation workers demanding their dream: The right to bargain collectively for a voice at work and a better life. The workers were trying to form a union with AFSCME.

Beginning with worship services over the April 1 weekend, and continuing through the week of April 4, unions, people of faith, civil and human rights activists, students and other progressive allies will host a range of community and workplace-focused actions.

Join us in solidarity with working people in Wisconsin, Ohio, Indiana and dozens of other states where well-funded, right-wing corporate politicians are trying to take away the rights Dr. King gave his life for. It’s a day to show movement. Teach-ins. Vigils. Faith events. A day to be creative, but clear: We are one.

Find your local event or create one by visiting: http://we-r-1.org/