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Edition
No Cable or Satellite? No Election for
You
By Denise Williams (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:10:00 AM
Filed under: 2008 President, Media
The days of seeing big election coverage
on the big 3 networks is over. If you had to
rely on rabbit ears and the big 4 networks
last night you would have seen some
screen crawls and the occasional
newscaster giving a hurried announcement
during a commercial break. No analysis.
No explanation.
13% of American households still do not
have access to cable or satellite TV
because they are unable to afford it, live in
a rural area, or by choice. For the poorest
and most rural, getting news and election
coverage at home on the internet is not an
option either. The broadcast networks have
abdicated to cable network news on
MSNBC, CNN and FOX. While that's fine
for FOX and MSNBC, what has happened
with CBS and ABC?
Here's a take from Buzzflash:
We keep hearing that Hillary Clinton and
Barack Obama have had 20 debates. But if
you are one of those who don't have cable
Dreamcom 10 series laptop is totally adjustable, ergonomic
By Darren Murph (Engadget)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:41:00 AM
Filed under: Laptops
CeBIT never fails to produce some fairly
zany kit, and just like last year, we've got
or satellite, there haven't been 20 debates.
There has been - one? The only one that
leaps to mind that was on broadcast TV
was the Saturday night contest in New
Hampshire on ABC.
For goodness sake, we had a writers' strike,
where networks were showing low-rated
reruns. And we had a scenario where CBS
and NBC both blew off Saturday night
programming to cover a regular-season
football game scheduled to air on the NFL
Network. (ironically, CBS blew off "Good
Night, and Good Luck" to show the game.
Did CBS eventually reschedule that
December broadcast?
Remember, the public airwaves are owned
by us. These networks have a
responsibility to bring news and
information to us. When it comes to
matters of national importance, their
ratings should not be the only
consideration. As the New York Times
notes this morning:
[...]All three networks stuck to their
scheduled shows, even though none of
them had anything remarkable to offer:
yet another incredibly weird laptop hitting
the scene that promises to be your neck's
best friend. The Dreamcom 10 series
machine features a vertically adjustable
LCD along with a docking station to avoid
using that totally cramped integrated
keyboard. If you can make it past the
04/03/08 - 05/03/08
NBC showed obese people climbing ropes
on "The Biggest Loser" then a rerun of
"Law & Order: SVU." CBS held on to
"Big Brother" and its low-rated drama
"Jericho," and on ABC even "Primetime,"
which is part of the news division, stayed
with a lurid hidden-camera show, "What
Would You Do?"
Network executives could hardly argue
that viewers don't care about politics. Last
week's Democratic debate on MSNBC
drew almost eight million viewers, and
won higher ratings than any of the three
network's shows - including NBC's ill-
fated debut of its made-for-the-Internet
series, "Quarterlife." That debate was the
highest-rated program in MSNBC's history
- before that, the cable news station's
highest rating was 3.7 million on March
19, 2002, the night the invasion of Iraq
began.[...]
It's disturbing to me to know that the most
underserved in this country are being cut
out of the process that could potentially
make changes in their lives.
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outside without gagging (okay, so it's not
LibertyNewsprint.com U.S.
The 'Dream Ticket' Lives
By David Knowles (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 1:37:00 AM
Filed under: Hillary Clinton, Democrats,
Barack Obama, Breaking NewsJust a few
days ago, the notion seemed far-fetched at
best. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton on
the same ticket (choose your name order)?
Impossible. The race had turned too ugly,
too personal. Hillary supporters vowed to
back McCain if Obama was chosen as the
nominee. Obama supporters did the same.
A convention fight was assured, playing
right into Republican hands.
Well, in an appearance on the CBS's "The
Early Show," Hillary Clinton once again
gave voice to the idea of sharing the ticket
with her Democratic rival:
Readers of this column know that I think
Barack Obama is the better of the two
candidates, yet I confess that the idea of a
shared ticket, whatever the order, is
starting to make a lot of sense. While
Hillary's win is not to be discounted in
terms of momentum, the fact is that
nothing really changed in the delegate
race. There's no happy ending to this
contest, I'm afraid. The future of this race
involves lawsuits, acrimony, and a
that bad... maybe), you'll find a 2.2GHz
T7500 processor, 2GB of DDR2 RAM, a
couple of USB 2.0 ports, ExpressCard slot,
256MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2600,
Bluetooth / WiFi and a 160GB hard drive
for good measure. Not a peep has been
uttered in regard to pricing, but c'mon,
hardening of bitterness between the two
camps. All that will damage the party,
whatever talking heads like Paul Begala
might say.
So who should be on top? Age before
beauty? Change before experience? Flip a
coin. As I've said time and time again, their
political priorities are strikingly similar.
They each have strengths. Together, they'd
unify the party, and crush McCain. Apart,
it's hard to say.
But it takes two to tango, and Clinton
seems pretty set on top-billing, while
Obama believes mega-merger talk is still a
long way off:
"We are just focussed on winning the
nomination. That is my focus. I respect
Sen. Clinton. She has been a tenacious
opponent. It is premature to talk about a
joint ticket."
So, today's question (and feel free to
elaborate in the comment section):
Would you like to see a joint Democratic
ticket?YesNoOnly if my candidate is on
topVote
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your health is worth whatever they charge,
right?
[Via MobileMag]
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2 Politics *
Bush Backs Colombia's Pursuit of FARC Estabrook Drops U.S.
By Mark Impomeni (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 11:00:00 PM
Senate Bid
Filed under: President Bush, Bush
AdministrationPresident Bush stepped
onto the South Lawn of the White House
yesterday to issue a statement of solidarity
with Colombia and to call on Congress to
pass a free trade pact with the South
American country. The president's
comments come amidst tension on
Colombia's southern and eastern borders
after Colombian military forces attacked a
rebel base one mile inside neighboring
Ecuador. In response, Ecuador and
Venezuela denounced Colombia and
massed troops on their respective borders.
The president did not mention details of
the incident in his remarks, but he did refer
in general terms to Colombia's years-long
struggle against a Marxist guerrilla rebel
group known as the FARC. Furthermore,
he took the opportunity to stress
Colombia's commitment to democracy,
and to praise its leader, President Alvaro
Uribe, perhaps the Bush Administration's
strongest ally in Latin America.
"This morning I spoke to President Uribe
of Colombia. He updated me on the
situation in his country, including the
continuing assault by narco-terrorists, as
well as the provocative maneuvers by the
regime in Venezuela.
I told the President that America fully
supports Colombia's democracy, and that
we firmly oppose any acts of aggression
that could destabilize the region. I told him
We Still Have Dennis to Kick Around
By Dave (Political Machine)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 1:18:00 AM
Filed under: Primaries, 2008 President,
2008 House
Dennis Kucinich saves his house seat.
Of all of the vulnerable incumbents in
primaries tonight, Kucinich appeared the
most in danger. Cimperman was well-
funded and ran a very good campaign.
Kucinich was frightened sufficiently
enough to dump his WH campaign, and
that America will continue to stand with
Colombia as it confronts violence and
terror and fights drug
traffickers."Colombia's actions came last
Saturday, and resulted in the death of
FARC guerrilla leader Raul Reyes at a
camp just over the border with Ecuador.
Colombia claims that its troops discovered
documents and took computer files from
the rebel camp that show the group was
intent on acquiring uranium for a planned
"dirty bomb" attack. Colombia also said
that the documents reveal that Venezuelan
President Hugo Chavez was supporting the
FARC's operations monetarily.
returned home to campaign full-time for
his re-election bid.
But Kucinich rebounded sufficiently by
raising $689K in the last few weeks of the
campaign. He used those funds to run
several "person-on-the-street" TV ads that
touted his hometown appeal.
After the Cleveland Plain Dealer
endorsement of Cimperman, and listening
to the Ohio lefty blogosphere kvetch about
Kucinich's Don Quixote presidential
crusade, I did think for a second there that
The raid sparked a war of words amongst
the three countries, with Ecuadorian
President Rafael Correa, a Chavez protege
and sympathizer, calling Uribe "a bald-
faced liar." Venezuela's Justice Minister
declared that "a war has already begun," as
a result of the raid. In response, Uribe said
that Chavez should stand trial by the
International Criminal Court for his
alleged financial support of the FARC.
The war of words seems more like bluster
than actual threats of an impending
military confrontation. Colombia has been
a close ally of the United States and a
partner in the war on drugs for more than a
decade. Venezuela, and to a lesser degree
Ecuador, oppose the United States' policies
in Latin America and has been going out of
its way to criticize the U.S. in order to win
favor for itself. Chavez in particular has
often used the threat of U.S. military action
against him to solidify himself in power
and legitimize his attempts to secure more
authority inside Venezuela. The dispute is
likely to blow over in time as all sides
maneuver to get what they want. Colombia
will win further assurances of cooperation
and favor from Washington, Ecuador will
prove itself a loyal tool of Chavez, and
Venezuela will get what Chavez wants
most, status as the biggest Western
Hemispheric thorn in the United States'
side.
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he might be in real trouble. But that district
of his might as well be renamed "Fort
Kucinich." He owns it as thoroughly as the
title to his house. He raised almost a
million in a few weeks for a congressional
run?
He's not going anywhere.
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Your Click and Print Newspaper
By Liza Porteus Viana (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:46:00 AM
Filed under: Democrats, Republicans, 2008
SenateFor those of you suffering from
presidential primary fatigue and who are
simply sick of Hillary v. Barack, I thought
I'd offer up a bit of news about a U.S.
Senate race.
There's a contest going on in New Jersey
to oust four-term incumbent Democratic
Sen. Frank Lautenberg. StateSen. Joe
Pennacchio (R-Morris County) and Murray
Sabrin - leader of Republican Rep. Ron
Paul's presidential campaign in the Garden
State - are vying for the Republican
nomination to run against Lautenberg, who
is 84 years old. Up until this week,
businesswoman Anna Estabrook was also
in the ring, but, after suffering a stroke
Monday, she decided to pull out of the
race. elected state senator representing the 26th
legislative district. He formerly served as a
"Ann Estabrook ran for all the right state assemblyman and a Morris County
reasons and is ending her campaign for the freeholder.
right reason ... This race is about who is
best up to the demands of the jobs," New Pennacchio told me last fall he thinks the
Jersey Republican State Committee Republicans have "lost our label" at all
Chairman Tom Wilson said, adding that, levels of government. That "label" he
"New Jerseyans have watched our taxes referred to was the Ronald Regan message
increase and our share of the federal pie of lower taxes, less government and
shrink." security. He's a known quantity in New
Jersey politics, which he thinks gives him
Republicans have been hammering away an edge.
on the theme that New Jersey has simply
outpriced many residents who can no Lautenberg's camp hasn't been too worried
longer afford to live or work here (I live in so far (New Jersey is a very strong blue
New Jersey and simply cannot believe how
much homes cost here, for one), and that
state, after all), but they're not taking
anything for granted. A Rasmussen poll of
they pay more in taxes than they get back New Jersey voters released this week
in return. Under Democrats' leadership, shows Lautenberg leading Estabrook (44%
they say, the situation has only worsened. -34%), Pennacchio (46%-38%), and Sabrin
(46%-31%). About 51% of New Jersey
The April 7 filing deadline means another voters surveyed have a favorable opinion
Republican could enter the race. of Lautenberg, while 39% say they don't
PolitickerNJ.com has details on possible care for him too much.
contenders. Pennacchio, who calls himself
"Jersey Joe," may be the favorite. He's Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs |
going around picking up support, like this Comments
week's endorsement of U.S. Rep. Rodney
Frelinghuysen. Pennacchio is a newly-
Your Click and Print Newspaper
McCain Embraces Invasion of Iraq
By David Knowles (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 1:24:00 AM
Filed under: Republicans, John McCain,
Featured StoriesIn his victory speech after
clinching the Republican nomination for
president, John McCain was steadfast. He
showed that he will not back down from
his belief that invading Iraq was the right
move. Indeed, it seems clear that Iraq, and
national security in general, will be the
centerpiece of his campaign moving
forward.
"I will defend the decision to destroy
Saddam Hussein's regime... ...as I
criticized the failed tactics that were
employed for too long to establish the
conditions that will allow us to leave that
country with our country's interests secure
and our honor intact."
In other words, while some mistakes were
made, it was all worth it in the end. Think
about that for a moment.
The Race Is Still On!
By Justin Paulette (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 7:50:00 PM
Filed under: Hillary Clinton, Featured
Stories, Primaries
Clinton has won vital electoral contests in
Ohio and Texas (as well as picking up
Rhode Island), thus keeping herself afloat
until the next primary contest in
Pennsylvania and, presumably, until the
Democratic convention in August.
However, Clinton's successes were by no
means landslide victories (she won Ohio
by about 10%, and skimmed by in Texas
with only 3% or so).
Thus, the distribution of delegates is the
key. Though the delegate count is ongoing
(AOL has an updated Delegate Tally),
Clinton does not seem likely to close the
gap between herself and Obama (coming
into yesterday's race, Obama had 1,477 to
The war is running up an estimated cost of
$3 trillion dollars.
As of this writing, 3,973 U.S. deaths have
been confirmed.
In 2006 alone, over 34,000 Iraqis were
killed. Overall totals are notoriously
Clinton's 1,391). In fact, Jonathan Alter
over at Newsweek posits that, even if she
wins all 16 remaining contests by generous
margins, Clinton will lose the delegate
count.
slippery, in part because the U.S.
Government does not attempt to calculate
them. But since Monday, 85 more deaths
have been reported.
Some 4 million Iraqis have been displaced
from their homes.Never mind that we
failed to turn up the weapons of mass
destruction that so threatened our (or
Thus, while Clinton is feeling the sunlight
upon her face today, the Democratic race
will continue as a tight and ferociously
contested battle. Clinton not only needs to
continue claiming victories, but to claim
them decisively - because, in August, the
Democratic nominee will likely be
determined by the super-delegate vote. If
they vote in accordance with their states,
Obama will be the victor. But if they
follow their current commitments to
Clinton, they will be rejecting their state
preferences and electing a candidate who
lost both the popular vote and the delegate
count.
Clinton's fortune today could be the woe of
the Democratic party tomorrow.
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Politics * Technology *
Israel's) existence, and were touted as the
key rationale to go to war in the first place.
The invasion has left us with more
palpable truths to grapple with. 1) Iran has
grown in stature, and 2) The region as a
whole has become more unstable. While
the "Surge" has indeed lowered death rates
to a level which, by comparison to the old
ones, can be viewed as a success, the
political progress that our new tactics were
supposed to embolden is hard to find.
Giving patriotic speeches is all well and
fine. That's what presidential hopefuls do.
But defending the invasion of Iraq, given
its consequences, is nothing short of
delusional. Whatever you thought of
Saddam Hussein, it boggles the mind that
anyone can look back on this mess and
declare it was worth it.
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New Hampshire All Over
Again
By Dave (Political Machine)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 4:16:00 PM
Filed under: Democrats, Primaries, 2008
President
We've been through this before haven't
we? We all remember back in the days of
yore (January). Immediately after Obama's
stunning win in Iowa, the media,
punditocracy and most Democrats fell all
over themselves to coronate Obama as the
new rising star and Hillary as yesterday's
news. Then she won New Hampshire and
the narratives all turned around on a dime.
And leading up to this Super Tuesday we
had rumors of Hillary dropping out, there
was disarray in the campaign (no reports of
lamps being thrown) and commentators
openly speculating about when, not if, she
should give it up.
3
CeBIT Highlight:
University of Bremen’s
Brain-Computer Interface
By John Biggs (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 5:36:49 AM
Here is some video of one of the coolest
and most useful technologies we found at
the show — a brain-computer interface for
the paralyzed. Imagine how much
Twittering you all could do with this!
For more info head over to the University
of Bremen.
More CeBIT 2008 coverage on
CrunchGear.
Crunch Network: CrunchGeardrool over
the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
Er. Not so fast. Just like New Hampshire,
Hillary has shown resilience in her core
demographics, white, rural, union workers,
females, and lower income folks. She's
won Ohio and she's looking good in TX.
This is after another win in Rhode Island
as well.
If she wins three out of four, this race is
not over, far from over, and might be a
tipping point in her favor, or a long slow
slog to a superdelegate driven convention.
What it is not, as of right now, is an
Obama coronation. He missed his
opportunity to close the door. Hillary's
back.
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4 Politics * Business * Social Net *
Democrats' Budget ... A $350 Billion Deficit
By Justin Paulette (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 1:30:00 AM
Filed under: Senate, Budget
Yesterday, Democrats in the Senate
unveiled their budget plan. As expected,
the Democrats' egregious spending would
plunge the deficit to more than $350
billion by 2009. Democrats claim,
however, that the plan would produce a
$160 billion surplus by 2013.
The trick to this mathematical feat of
magic? The Democrats anticipate a
complete revocation of President Bush's
tax cuts and an end of nearly all spending
for the war efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
I Told You Hillary Would Win
Texas
By Brandon Barker (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 12:27:00 AM
Filed under: Hillary Clinton, Viral Video,
LOLectionWhy it wasn't obvious to
everyone--pundits, prognosticators and
Jessica Alba alike--I will never know. But
last week, after seeing a slew of heartfelt
musical tributes to the former First Lady, I
became convinced that Sen. Hillary
Clinton would win the state of Texas in the
Democratic primary. Which she did.
Barely.
How was I so sure? Well, first of all, Jack
Nicholson got involved with a show of
support that I guess you could say grows
on you. Then there was Ricky. A man from
Garland, Texas. A man who is not afraid to
strap on a Fender acoustic and put his kids
in front of a microphone for a cause he
truly believes in.
Hillary Clinton was bound--destined, I
would say--to make a thrilling comeback
in this election season. And this is why:
Thus, the potential for a responsibly
balanced Democratic budget depends
entirely upon the most divisive political
issues facing America: the economy and
B. Brandon Barker is the author of the
novel Operation EMU.
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the war.
Democrats may be placing the cart before
the horse in their budgetary hopefulness.
Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad
(D-ND) admits that the potential to off-set
such huge expenditures over the next year
with future revenue "depends a lot on what
kind of administration you get next." If a
Democrat wins the White House, the
surplus is "much closer to being realistic."
However, if the Democrats were to win the
budgetary battle and spend their $350
billion, how would they (and the economy)
react to a GOP victory in November?
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Web 2.0 Invites for March
4th, 2008
By Pete Cashmore (Mashable!)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 7:44:05 PM
New Web 2.0 services await; all you need
to do is grab your free invites over at
Mashable Invites!
(more…)
ShareThis
Bank of America's Countrywide deal draws
scorn of investor
By Zac Bissonnette
(BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 2:40:00 AM
Filed under: Deals, Bank of America
(BAC), Countrywide Financial (CFC)SRM
Capital Management head Jonathan Wood
has been slamming Bank of America
(NYSE: BAC)'s deal to acquire
Countrywide Financial (NYSE: CFC) for
more than a month now, but with shares of
the target company still trading at nearly a
$2 discount to the buyout price, investors
appear too skeptical that Wood will make
any progress. Analysts at Friedman
Billings Ramsey and Stifel Nicolaus have
Why Boeing lost the $100
billion Air Force tanker
deal
By Peter Cohan (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:10:00 AM
Filed under: Boeing Co (BA), Northrop
Grumman (NOC)
BusinessWeek reports that Boeing Inc.'s
(NYSE: BA) loss to Northrop Grumman
(NYSE: NOC) and EADS for the $100
billion contract for Air Force tankers --
aircraft that refuel fighter craft while
they're in the air -- was a no-brainer from
the Air Force's perspective.
BusinessWeek quotes Loren Thompson, a
Lexington Institute defense analyst, who
concluded that "Northrop Grumman's
victory was not a close outcome." Here are
two reasons he cited:
• Northrop offered more bang for the
buck. While both Boeing and Northrop
Grumman satisfied requirements
established by the Air Force, Northrop was
clearly the better buy. With Northrop, the
military could have "49 superior tankers
operating by 2013," Thompson said, while
Boeing's proposal would give it "only 19
considerably less capable planes" by then.
• Boeing's Tankers did not perform as well
suggested [subscription required] that if
there is any revision in the deal's price, it
would likely be a downward move.
The crux of Mr. Wood's argument seems
to be that Bank of America "should pay a
price closer to Countrywide's book value,
currently $22 a share," according to the
Wall Street Journal.
The problem is that Countrywide's book
value is overstated and will have to
weather future writedowns. It isn't like
Countrywide is sitting on a huge cash pile.
In addition, the company has tons of future
liabilities: shareholder lawsuits,
Your Click and Print Newspaper
as Northrop's. "Boeing didn't manage to
beat Northrop in a single measure of merit"
-- not in flight range, fuel capacity, speed
of delivery, or cost. "Boeing would have to
find a lot of problems to overturn this
outcome," Thompson told BusinessWeek.
The Northrop tanker carriers 250,000
pounds of fuel, compared to 202,000 on
Boeing's, a crucial difference considering
that refueling tankers must often circle for
many hours when military operations
require.
I'm writing a book about Boeing and if
Thompson is right, the loss raises
questions about Boeing's competitive
vigor. Not winning this $100 billion deal is
obviously not a help for its stock either.
Peter Cohan is President ofPeter S. Cohan
& Associates. He also teaches management
at Babson College and edits The Cohan
Letter. He has no financial interest in the
securities mentioned.Permalink | Email this
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investigations, even exceptionally rare
lawsuits filed by bankruptcy trustees
accusing the company of "sustained bad
faith."
Countrywide's struggles have been front-
page news for over a year -- Bank of
America hardly snuck in and negotiated a
back-room with an unknown entity. Wood
can complain all he wants but I don't see
anyone stepping forward with a better
offer.
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Your Click and Print Newspaper
Cisco CEO Chambers
comments seen easing
technology sector
By Brian White (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 2:10:00 AM
Filed under: Management, Cisco Systems
(CSCO), Hewlett-Packard (HPQ),
International Business Machines (IBM),
TechnologyCisco Systems Inc.
(NASDAQ: CSCO) qualifies as one of the
largest tech bellwether stocks in the world.
When it does good quarter to quarter, the
entire market reacts. Sometimes, the
reaction seems more like confusion over
plain English spoken by company CEO
John Chambers. Not this time, though.
When Chambers told attendees of a
Morgan Stanley conference this week that
he was comfortable with Cisco's existing
guidance this year (and forward), many
tech stocks headed up on his words alone.
Not only did Cisco's shares regain losses
from earlier in the day yesterday, but the
the Morgan Stanley Technology Index
closed at 528.03, up from an earlier
517.30. IBM Corp. (NYSE: IBM) and
Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) also
saw advances as the trading day closed on
Tuesday. Cisco reiterated its long-term
Will Apple be a buy at $100?
By Peter Cohan (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 2:30:00 AM
Filed under: Apple Inc (AAPL), Stocks to
Buy
With its stock down 38.6% from its
December 2007 high of $202.96, I think
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) will be a
buy if it hits $100.
Since Fortune, which shares parent Time
Warner (NYSE: TWX) with
BloggingStocks, reports that Apple was
voted the most admired company of 2007,
I wonder whether it's suffering from the
growth prospects of 12% to 17%, plus
fiscal Q3 revenue growth of 10% (plus or
minus 1%) -- and those kind of figures
apparently just weren't good enough for
some traders who generally expect the
impossible in many cases.
Chambers said that Cisco will navigate
through "bumps" in the U.S. economy that
may last two or three more quarters, but
will also remain aggressive in acquisitions.
Additionally, the world's largest computer
networking company will continue to add
jobs, with Chambers adding "we plan to be
aggressive during the slowdown ... it's a
chance to gain market share." No
misinterpreting his words there.Read |
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curse of being on a magazine cover -- with
that appearance marking its peak. Or will
Steve Jobs pull another rabbit out of his hat
that revives the company and the stock?
With Apple's stock down 38.6% from its
December high, the question is whether the
stock is now a buy? Back then I suggested
that it might be overvalued. Now that it's
down, I think it's fairly valued on the same
basis -- its Price/Earnings to Growth (PEG)
ratio has declined from 1.8 to 1.1.
Specifically, Apple sports a much more
reasonable PEG of 1.1 -- with a P/E of
27.4 and earnings forecast to grow 24.6%
Sales rise at Staples, but do
you want to own the stock?
By Steven Mallas (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:22:00 AM
Filed under: Earnings reports, Staples Inc
(SPLS)
Staples Inc. (NASDAQ: SPLS), a supplier
of office products and a fierce competitor
of both OfficeMax (NYSE: OMX) and
Office Depot (NYSE: ODP), reported
earnings for the fourth quarter yesterday.
Excluding an extra calendar week, Staples
saw its net sales rise by 8% to $5.3 billion
and its diluted earnings per share rise by
15% to $0.47. For the full year, again
excluding the extra week, net sales
increased 9%; adjusted diluted earnings
per share rose by 15%, coming in at $1.42.
The full-year results included various
adjustments related to tax issues, litigation,
and stock compensation.
The numbers are okay, I suppose, but they
don't necessarily make me want to jump
into the stock. For one thing, same-store
in 2009 to $6.38.
If Apple stock hits $100 -- and those
earnings growth forecasts remain the same
or even rise with a new product
announcement -- it would become a
screaming buy.
Peter Cohan is President ofPeter S. Cohan
& Associates. He also teaches management
at Babson College and edits The Cohan
Letter. He has no financial interest in the
securities mentioned.
Permalink | Email this | Comments
Business * Social Net * 5
Web 2.0 Marketplace
Listings for March 4th,
sales for North America declined 3% for 2008
the year (they did rise a modest 2% in
Europe, however). For another, the stock is
only yielding about 1.5% right now -- I'd
By Pete Cashmore (Mashable!)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 7:44:05 PM
wait for a bigger yield before thinking
about Staples. Yes, it's true that the The Web 2.0 Marketplace is a place to list
company increased its annual dividend by Web 2.0 and “New Media” websites for
14%, but I'll tell you something about that sale, job offers, consulting services,
-- I am not a fan of annual dividends. I'd Facebook development services and more.
rather get my payout spread throughout the (more…)
year. ShareThis
Staples is a major brand in office supplies,
and I do shop there. But nothing about this
earnings report makes me want to check
the retailer out any further, at least at this
time. I'll have to see a few more quarters to
see how the company handles the current
economic malaise; for now, there are better
ideas out there for one's investment dollars.
Read | Read | Permalink | Email this |
Comments
Global expert: 'Great time' to
invest in Central Europe &
Russia (CEE)
By Steven Halpern (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 2:20:00 AM
elections.
"The fund's largest country allocation
(about 50% of assets) actually is to Russia,
Filed under: International markets, Russia, not Eastern Europe. I consider that a plus,
Newsletters, Commodities, Oil, Eastern because it gives investors exposure to
Europe, Stocks to Buy Eastern Europe's strengths, but with the
"Central Europe & Russia Fund (NYSE: valuable ballast of an accompanying
CEE) is a closed-end fund that invests in investment in Russia's natural resources
Central and Eastern Europe, Russia, and sector.
Turkey," says global investment expert "Prominent Russian natural resource firms
Nick Lanyi. Lukoil, Gazprom, and Norilsk Nickel
In his industry-leading High Yield account for about a quarter of the fund's
International, the advisors explains, "The total assets. With the prices of energy and
fund's diversification, high yield and top- mining commodities in a long-term
notch management team make it the best uptrend, a large natural resources stake
high-income play on the region today." could come in handy in a volatile market.
Plus, he adds, "Now is a particularly great Continue reading Global expert: 'Great
time to invest in these regions." Indeed, he time' to invest in Central Europe & Russia
remains strongly bullish on Russia, (CEE)Permalink | Email this | Comments
rgardless of any concerns expressed by
political pundits regarding Russia's
6 Business * Tech Gadgets *
Is the bull market over?
By Kevin Kersten (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:00:00 AM
Filed under: Magazines, Market matters,
Recession
I ran into an interesting article in Fortune
titled "Don't expect another bull market:
Stock returns may never be the same -- at
least for this generation of investors." The
article made a bold prediction:Barring a
miracle -- or the creation of a New Math of
the market variety -- there's no way we'll
ever see a bull market along the lines of
what so many of us grew up with.
This is very interesting from a sentiment
viewpoint. A few years ago, at the height
of the dot com boom, some claimed that
we were creating a new economy in which
the stock market could not go down. Then
it crashed.
Analyst upgrades: Legg Mason,
Panacos Pharma, PepsiAmericas
By Eric Buscemi (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:46:00 AM
Filed under: Analyst reports, Analyst
upgrades and downgrades, Citigroup Inc.
(C)MOST NOTEWORTHY: Legg Mason,
Panacos Pharma and PepsiAmericas were
today's noteworthy upgrades:
• Wachovia upgraded Legg Mason
(NYSE: LM) to Market Perform from
Underperform citing valuation, new CEO
change, and reduced Citigroup (NYSE: C)
ownership.
• Bear upgraded Panacos Pharma
(NASDAQ: PANC) to Outperform from
Peer Perform citing renewed confidence in
Bevirimat, an HIV inhibitor, following
analysis of Phase IIb data. The firm
expects a partnership for Bevirmat to be
Panasonic's Atom-based UMPC Toughbook is officially official
By Paul Miller (Engadget)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 2:26:00 AM
Filed under: Tablet PCs
I say, don't buy into these extremes. In the
long run, the market will have ups and
downs, but will continue a slow long-term
uptrend. We may have rough periods of
adjustment -- like we are currently seeing
in housing -- but that doesn't mean that the
fundamentals have changed.
Articles like this can be a good contrarian
sign. As writers predict the end of stock
market gains, it may be a sign that we have
reached the bottom.
Kevin Kersten is an Stock and Options
Analyst with InvestorsObserver.com.
Disclosure note: Mr. Kersten owns and/or
controls a diversified portfolio of long and
short positions that may include holdings
in companies he writes about. Permalink |
Email this | Comments
the next catalyst.
• Deutsche Bank raised PepsiAmericas
(NYSE: PAS) to Buy from Hold shares on
valuation, as they believe the recent
weakness is overdone.
OTHER UPGRADES:
• Fannie Mae (NYSE: FNM) was raised to
Equal Weight from Underweight at
Morgan Stanley.
• Friedman Billings added Great Atlantic
& Pacific Tea (NYSE: GAP) to its FBR
Top Picks List.
• Jabil Circuit (NYSE: JBL) was upgraded
to Neutral from Sell at Merrill Lynch.
Permalink | Email this | Comments
Panasonic just owned up to that
Toughbook UMPC we spotted yesterday at
CeBIT. No real surprises, the unit runs
Amazon (AMZN) enters wine
market
By Douglas McIntyre
(BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 2:50:00 AM
Filed under: Launches, Consumer
experience, Amazon.com (AMZN)
In vino veritas. Amazon (NASDAQ:
AMZN) is entering the wine business, but
it may find it a difficult market. According
to the FT, the company will "start selling
wine in the US, entering a business fraught
with regulatory complexities and littered
with the wreckage of previous failures."
Some states don't like wine shipped from
one place to another. It is alcohol and who
can tell if a 12-year-old is ordering a bottle
of the good stuff. There are also state tax
implications. Each state wants every penny
of its tax on liquor.
Perhaps just as difficult is the issue of
whether wine drinkers would like to have a
look at the bottle and the label. They can
do that at the local wine store. If they aren't
happy, they can take it back. They may not
Costco profit jumps 31% on strong
gasoline demand
By Eliza Popescu (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:34:00 AM
Filed under: Earnings reports, Consumer
experience, Costco Wholesale
(COST)Shares of warehouse club operator
Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ:
COST) are lower this morning, despite
posting an increase of 31% in its fiscal
second-quarter profit.
For the quarter, the largest U.S. wholesale
club reported that its profit surged to
$327.9 million, compared with $249.5
million in the same period a year ago. Last
-year earnings included $53.4 million
related to non-recurring charges. Higher
gasoline prices boosted the company's
profit in the quarter and Costco posted
Vista on an Atom CPU, sports a 5.6-inch
get a refund, but the store owner might
invite them for a drink.
Amazon now sells everything from books
to music downloads. Maybe it should draw
the line at booze. State authorities don't
watch for DVDs through the mail, but
bottles of chianti are a different matter.
Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at
247wallst.com. Read | Permalink | Email
this | Comments
earnings of 74 cents per share, which was
in line with analysts' forecasts.
Costco also announced a respectable 12%
increase in revenues, to $16.62 billion, up
from $14.80 billion a year earlier. Analysts
were expecting the company to show
$16.85 billion in revenue, according to
Thomson Financial.
Continue reading Costco profit jumps 31%
on strong gasoline demandPermalink |
Email this | Comments
LCD and is slated for a Fall release.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Dell's M209X portable
projector announced,
reviewed: "better bring your
sunglasses"
By Thomas Ricker (Engadget)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 1:28:00 AM
Filed under: Displays, Portable Video
Dell's got another portable projector
coming by way of its M209X. As
successor to their 3400MP portable, the
M209X weighs just 2.6-pounds yet pumps
a rated 2000 ANSI lumens from VGA, S-
Video, composite and HDMI connected
sources. Available in the "next few
weeks," according to Dell, although review
units have already hit the street. The cats at
GCN rendered a 1,220-lumen image
(1,100 at the corners) from 10 feet which
they claim makes it suitable for impromptu
presentations in almost any environment. It
also includes a laser pointer and
PowerPoint controls in the included remote
control. Bottom line: the M209X offers
"excellent performance" and portability for
$999. Or so they say.
[Via About Projectors]
Read -- Review
Read -- Announcement
Permalink | Email this | Comments
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Meizu CeBIT booth shut down by
German authorities
By Joshua Topolsky (Engadget)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 1:53:00 AM
Filed under: Cellphones
Remember how the folks at the Meizu
booth swore up and down that the M8 Mini
One wasn't that similar to the iPhone? Well
apparently the Hanover police think
otherwise. According to a report, the booth
(shown above in its vacated state) was shut
down by cops for piracy during CeBIT and
passersby were told that, "The venue is
closed until further notice." It appears that
Sierra Wireless intros Compass 597 EV-DO USB modem
By Darren Murph (Engadget)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 2:45:00 AM
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless
Truth be told, there's nothing extraordinary
about Sierra Wireless' latest EV-DO USB
modem. It plays nice with Rev. A
networks, includes a microSD slot, and
comes with TRU-Install to simplify the
setup procedure. Granted, it is "the only
product in its class to include a connector
after stopping down the M8 show, cops
proceeded to confiscate equipment and
literature associated with the painfully
obvious knock-off, and will be making a
more detailed statement on Thursday in
regards to the action. Meizu, it might be
time to get yourself a makeover... and a
good attorney.
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in;
Image courtesy Heise Online]
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
for an external antenna (saywha?)," and it
is remarkably small, so it's still worth a
look if you're currently doing without. As
"Dreambook" mod gives the
Cloudbook GPS, flash storage
By Paul Miller (Engadget)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 1:04:00 AM
Filed under: GPS, Laptops
While it seemed touch and go for a few
months there as to whether the the Everex
Cloudbook would ever hit store shelves,
what's never been in doubt is the fact that
hackers are going to have a field day with
the thing. The first major hack is courtesy
of Azazel from the Cloudbooker forums.
His "Dreambook" mod incorporates an
internal four-port USB hub to add all sorts
expected, you'll reach downlink speeds of
up to 3.1Mbps and upload speeds of up to
1.8Mbps, and the built-in GPS antenna is a
nice bonus, too. Unfortunately, we've no
idea how costly this one will be, but be on
the lookout for a Q2 launch.
[Via MobileBurn]
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Tech Gadgets * 7
Vodafone's Otello draws
a blank on Chancellor
of fun stuff like GPS, Bluetooth and 4GB
of flash storage. He removed the webcam
Angela Merkel query
for the time being, and is having some By Darren Murph (Engadget)
trouble getting his replacement WiFi card Submitted at 3/5/2008 12:24:00 AM
to work, but it's certainly a promising hack.
Next on the agenda is another small hub to Filed under: Cellphones
support 802.11n WiFi and some 3G
connectivity -- we like where this is If there's one person at CeBIT you don't
headed. want to not recognize, it's German
Chancellor Angela Merkel. Nevertheless,
[Thanks, David] we can only assume that Vodafone booth
workers were left with their tails stuck
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments between their legs after said figure gave its
recently announced picture-based search
engine a go. Upon Otella returning nothing
after a picture was presumably snapped of
Merkel, she quickly asserted: "I am not in
the database." Better still, she continued by
proclaiming: "That's a major gap." Heck,
maybe she should be happy -- after all,
Vodafone's set to trial the service with
Europe's "best selling tabloid," and not
being in there would most certainly be a
good thing.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Buffalo's LinkStation Mini
packs 1TB
Filed under: into entirely
Storage
BUFFALO'S page 8
By
ThisPaul Miller
has got (Engadget)
to stop, Submitted at
people. We just can't
3/5/2008 12:43:00 AM
stand to think of all these bits and bytes --
8 Tech Gadgets * Technology *
Another Xbox 360 price cut around the
corner?
By Ryan Block (Engadget)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:57:00 AM
Filed under: GamingFrom the sound of
things Microsoft is busy hunkering down
in anticipation of a strong PS3 resurgence,
what with the victory of Blu-ray,
introduction of DualShock3, and release of
MGS4 -- and not just to accommodate
Canada. Rumor has it that the Xbox will
see another healthy price cut in Europe
later this month (March 14th, to be
"exact"), lopping off some €50 (~$75),
which would put the Arcade in striking
distance of the all-selling Wii, possibly
making it cheaper in some regions.
Nothing solid to go by just yet though, but
if you were thinking of buying, be aware.
BUFFALO'S
continued from page 7
not to mention their offspring -- crammed
into something like this Buffalo
LinkStation Mini NAS. Dual 500GB 2.5-
inch hard drives were just never meant to
be in this close of proximity. Oh, it has
RAID 0 / RAID 1? We suppose those 1's
and 0's will just have to suffer. The
LinkStation Mini LS-WS includes an FTP
server, DLNA and iTunes capability, can
share a printer of USB and reads memory
Omniture Unifies Marketing Suite, Adds Video Analytics
By Mark Hendrickson (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 9:00:02 PM
Omniture, which provides tools for
marketers to track their online campaigns,
is announcing a set of product upgrades
today. New versions of its flagship product
SiteCatalyst and its search advertising
product SearchCenter will be released.
In addition to improved user interfaces
[Thanks, UnicomClay and Steve, via
Joystiq]
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
cards and other mass storage devices.
Buffalo plans to ship it in March for
85,000 yen (about $824 US).
[Via Engadget Japanese]
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
(apparently five years of usability testing
went into the products’ redesigns), the
products in Omniture’s suite of SaaS
applications are now connected tightly by a
unified wrapper. Basically this means that
marketers can move more easily between
the products to manage various aspects of
their campaigns. The unification is not
only on the front end; all the programs now
run off the same database as well.
HDD Stage Rack gets even better: now with
300% more FireWire
By Darren Murph (Engadget)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:19:00 AM
Filed under: Storage
Just like fine wine, the HDD Stage Rack
keeps getting better with age. On its third
iteration now, the latest version of the
external HDD cradle not only includes the
obligatory USB and eSATA ports, but it
also boasts a 6-pin FireWire 400 connector
As far as functionality is concerned, the
most important addition to SiteCatalyst is
support for the tracking of video usage
across the web. If you are a marketer who
uses videos to spread your message, you
can now use Omniture to track metrics like
how long people are watching your videos,
whether they tend to skip forward in them,
the rate at which they drop off, and which
and two FireWire 800 sockets. 'Course,
this thing isn't slated to be available for US
hands until the end of this month, but
that'll give you a few weeks to swallow the
lofty $165.33 price tag, at least.
[Via AkihabaraNews]
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
particular features in the video players they
use.
The same technology that can be used to
track video usage can also be applied to
Flash and Flex-based applications.
Omniture representatives say that only a 2
byte SWF file added to a Flash application
is needed to prepare that app for tracking.
As with video, marketers can see which
application features are being used
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Velocity Finances Generate,
A Professional Studio for
Online Video Content
By Mark Hendrickson (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 9:01:51 PM
Velocity Investments has continued its roll
of putting money into digital media by
leading a $6M Series A round for
Generate.
Generate is a studio with a focus on
developing professional video content for
the web that, if successful, could be
parlayed into shows broadcasted through
more traditional methods, most notably
TV. Its target demographic consists of so-
called “Millenials” or those belonging to
Generation Y.
The studio will produce the next
installment of a web-based show called
“Pink - The Series” (a clip of which we
have embedded below). The series has
already experienced four million views
since debuting in September. Generate also
plans on developing two comedies for the
web.
Ross Levinsohn, the co-founding partner
of Velocity, is quoted as saying that
“Generate represents the wave of the future
for production and management
companies.” What do you think? Do you
hope the clip below is representative of the
professional content that will increasingly
emerge online?
CrunchBase InformationVelocity
Interactive GroupGenerateInformation
provided by CrunchBase
Crunch Network: MobileCrunchMobile
Gadgets and Applications, Delivered
Daily.
m o s t . C r u n c h B a s e
InformationOmnitureInformation provided
by CrunchBase
Crunch Network: CrunchBoardbecause it’s
time for you to find a new Job2.0
Your Click and Print Newspaper Technology * 9

Monetize Your Search Box with Innovid Preparing Technology

PredictAd for Placing Interactive Virtual
By Roi Carthy (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 4:26:08 PM
Items into Videos
By Mark Hendrickson (TechCrunch)
Too often it is still easier to search the
entire Web than a single site. In-site search Submitted at 3/4/2008 11:25:32 PM

leaves much to be desired in its ability to
provide users with accurate search results,
let alone assistance in performing more
accurate searches. Israeli PredictAd is
attacking this challenge head-on by
offering auto-complete functionality for
search boxes with an added twist:
monetizable real-estate.
Already deployed across 6,000 websites
and generating millions of monthly
impressions, PredictAd is announcing the
launch of PredictAdPlus+. Targeted at
media networks and high-traffic
websites/blogs, the offering provides
greater control of the look and feel,
customization, dedicated databases, and
advanced display options. Most
importantly, it allows a number of sister
sites to be integrated into a single search
box. As an example, the TechCrunch
search box at the bottom of this post
incorporates CrunchGear, MobileCrunch
and CrunchBoard. The auto-complete
needs time to learn, but you’ll get the
general drift.
PredictAd is making 250 invites available
to TechCrunch readers. Sign-up here.
PredictAd’s twist on search monetization
begins by helping users refine their in-site
search queries by way of real-time search
suggestions—think Google Toolbar’s auto-
suggest feature. PredictAd continuously
optimizes its suggestions based on the
community search patterns for any given
site. Beyond collaborative filtering
PredictAd also takes into account historical
searches, geo-location, time of day,
common misspellings, connections
between words, and more.
Not only should users benefit from more
accurate searches, site-owners should
benefit from increased page views as a
result of user exposure to additional site
content. Site-owners can also benefit from
SEO insights drawn from the service’s
analytics backend.
This is where ad monetization comes into
play. PredictAd injects contextual
advertising into the search box. The
ads—text or image—change dynamically
as users type out their search queries. In
practice, PredictAd creates its own ad real-
estate and then monetizes it. An important
element in PredictAd’s offering is the fact
that the ads are displayed directly in the
user’s focal zone, unlike traditional ads
which are susceptible to “banner
blindness”. Rev-share is 50%/50% on run
of network ads, and 80%/20% (for the
publisher) when the advertiser selects
specific publisher sites. PredictAd is
claiming click-through rates in range of
0.5%-4%.
PredictAd might appeal particularly to
blog owners who would welcome any
spare cash they can get from their sites,
along with additional upsides such as
higher page counts and increased user
engagement. Blog integration is a piece of
cake, especially for bloggers using
WordPress, TypePad or Blogger, who can
hit the ground running with ready-to-go
plugins. A pure JavaScript version is also
available that just requires cutting and
pasting.
Crunch Network: CrunchBoardbecause it’s
time for you to find a new Job2.0
I had the chance today to chat with Zvika
Netter, the CEO and co-founder of a new
Israeli startup called Innovid that is
working on technology that will empower
video content producers to place
interactive virtual items into their videos.
Innovid has remained in stealth mode up to
this point and has only begun discussing its
work now that it has raised $3M from
Genesis Partners in a Series A round
(previous angel funding came from Jeff
Pulver).
The virtual items facilitated by Innovid are
basically 3D objects that producers insert
into videos post-production. They’re
intended to look as realistic as possible so
that they blend in with the real physical
environment recorded by the video. And
yet, they can’t go entirely unnoticed
because users are encouraged to click and
perform mouse gestures with them to
derive additional functionality (for
example, to view a popup description
about the particular item with links to
external resources).
The most obvious use of these items would
be to simply drop branded items into user
generated content. If you’re looking to
monetize your video, you could, for
example, sign a deal with a beverage
company and place their product on the
table during an indoors scene. The virtual
item representing the beverage could then
respond to camera movements; when the
camera moves around to the left, you also
see the left side of the beverage appear.
This is possible because the 3D object has
been mapped to its calculated
surroundings.
But with Innovid’s object placement, you
could also make it so that users who click
on the beverage see a description of it and
the stores in which it’s sold. Or you could
allow the user to even move the beverage
to another location within the video or
have it perform a special effect when
clicked on. Whatever the complexity, the
object becomes a more effective
advertisement through its interactivity.
Since these are virtual objects, they can
also be served up differently depending on
the intended audience. Certain countries or
languages could see their own types of
beverages. And of course, things could be
tailored to the individual as well depending
on their personal preferences.
Netter isn’t saying exactly when the
company plans to debut its product or even
show a demo to the public, but I had a
chance to watch a video of these virtual
objects and I must say it looks very
compelling even at this early stage. The 3D
items can be made to look realistic and
their integration into video is quite
seamless. This is a company that should be
watched as the online video industry
figures out how to monetize its content
most effectively.
Crunch Network: CrunchGeardrool over
the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.

Psylock: Biometric Security Without Sensors

By John Biggs (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:59:57 AM
Need an easy way to add biometrics to an
online project? Psylock has an answer. It’s
a Flash-based interface that compares your
typing style against a list of known styles
and logs you in based on your individual
typing fingerprint. To enroll you simply
type a sentence nine times and then the
system senses the pauses, mistakes, and
speed of your hunting and pecking.
Obviously, this doesn’t work if you have a
broken hand or, presumably, you’re under
duress so it’s fairly hard to crack a system
using physical coercion. A cool way to add
biometrics to web-based forms.
More CeBIT 2008 coverage at
CrunchGear.
Crunch Network: MobileCrunchMobile
Gadgets and Applications, Delivered
Daily.
10 Technology * Social Net *
Love Him or Hate Him, Fortune Cannot
Make Up Its Mind About Steve Jobs
By Erick Schonfeld (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 8:15:17 PM
Once again, Steve Jobs is on the cover of
Fortune magazine. He is there because
Apple is the most admired company in
America. No, wait. He is there because
investigative reporter Peter Elkind wrote a
12-page takedown of his Steveness. It
turns out both are true. Jobs is steering the
most admired company in America and he
is a “reckless” CEO whose “behavior put
the company and its shareholders at risk.”
I am all for balanced reporting, but which
one is it? Not to be completely cynical, but
Apple is a big advertiser for many Time
Inc. magazines. And I imagine that Jobs
would have no compunction about
threatening to pull all of Apple’s
advertising to kill a story he did not like. In
fact, he did just that at Business 2.0 after
we ran a positive, but unauthorized, cover
story in April, 2005 that showed an artist’s
rendition of the iPhone before it was
launched. Jobs did not like this story
either. (He refused to talk to the writer.
Pairing the story with another one on the
cover that says “Apple is No. 1 does soften
the blow. (Jobs had no problem talking to
another Fortune writer for that interview,
in which he reveals how great he is).
This isn’t the first business magazine to go
negative on Apple. Fast Company laid out
what could go wrong with Apple in its
December cover story, but at least it
Get Your Personal Social Network Card At Zazzle
By Stan Schroeder (Mashable!)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 12:49:13 AM
Schwag printing company Zazzle now
offers a range of profile cards with social
networking motifs for all you
Facebook/MySpace/LinkedIn fiends. Allen
focused on strategic and business pitfalls
that could take everybody’s favorite
company down. (It wasn’t very convincing
either). The Fortune story is more personal
about Jobs himself. It digs up a lot of dirt
we’ve heard before about Jobs’ personal
life, temper tantrums, and family history.
You learn for instance that Jobs’ 76-year-
old biological father, who put him up for
adoption, now “works as food and
beverage director at the Boomtown Hotel
& Casino near Reno.”
from CenterNetworks, who dug up the
news, didn’t link to the actual cards,
though, so it took me a while to actually
find the profile cards. Shame on you, Allen
(but thanks for finding the news, heh!)
If you’re wondering why anyone would
want to have a Facebook-themed profile
The article also spends a lot of time on the
options backdating scandals at both Apple
and Pixar that came to light a couple years
ago. Elkind paints a picture of the Apple
board (and Pixar’s before that) letting Jobs
get away with pretty much whatever he
wants. Of course, we already knew that.
(”Can I have a plane, guys?”). After
months of investigating, the only important
new revelation Elkind can come up with is
that Jobs and Apple’s board hid his cancer
from shareholders for nine months before
disclosing it. Jobs explored special diets
and alternative remedies before opting for
surgery.
That’s pretty bad, right? The not disclosing
part. Except that, if you read the article all
the way through, near the end you find out:
When the CEO of a publicly traded
corporation is diagnosed with a serious
illness, what is his obligation to inform
shareholders? There is no clear answer.
During the mid-1990s, for instance, Intel
CEO Andy Grove did not disclose his own
cancer for a year and nobody ever
complained about that. Oh well, perhaps
the trouble is not with Steve Jobs. It’s with
the story.
(Full disclosure: I once worked at
Fortune).
Crunch Network: CrunchGeardrool over
the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
cards, well, you just haven’t been
AOL Gets It Right With
Open AIM 2.0 - Embraces
Meebo and eBuddy
By Michael Arrington (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 12:15:29 AM
AOL is pushing their two year old
OpenAim initiative much further this
morning with OpenAIM 2.0.
There are three key changes of note. First
they are now embracing services that they
previously tried to stop - multiheaded
clients and websites that allow users to
access all of the major instant messaging
platforms in one place. These are desktop
services like Pidgin (open source), Adium
(Mac) and Trillian (Windows). And web
based services like Meebo and eBuddy.
Today those services have to hack in to
MSN, Yahoo and AOL services (Google
Gtalk is open). Now AOL is giving them
unfettered access, too.
What that means is that AOL goes from
being in a position of half ignoring
services like Meebo and half vaguely
threatening to sue them, to fully embracing
and supporting the services.
Second, AOL is also removing the usage
restrictions that were put in place two
years ago that restricted big services from
using them (again, forcing Meebo, eBuddy
and others to hack in).
Third, AOL is saying they’ll soon be
giving partners who build software on top
of AIM the option to run AOL-served
advertisements with a revenue share. AOL
says more details on advertising will be
coming next month, and will be powered
by their Userplane group, which AOL
acquired in 2006.
There are a number of additional changes
to OpenAIM as well, including more
facebooking hard enough! Back in the day,
I used to have WoW-themed personal
cards, which speaks volumes about my
love for the game (and mental health).
ShareThis
Your Click and Print Newspaper
robust tools for third party add-ons (see
gallery of existing add-ons here) and for
mobile applications. And they are
documenting their protocol for accessing
AIM, called OSCAR.
David Liu, AOL SVP of Social Media,
Messaging and Homepages, said in an
interview that they want to remove all the
friction and hurdles to third parties who
want to leverage the AIM service, and
welcome them with open arms. “To that
end, we’ve come together with third-party
chat services such as meebo and eBuddy to
enhance the experiences of our users who
access the AIM platform from these web-
based services. We’re also giving
developers the tools and flexibility they
desire to build innovative and meaningful
applications around instant messaging for
web users around the globe.”
AIM has 27.3 million monthly users (plus
another 30 million at ICQ, which is not
part of this announcement), according to
recent Comscore data. MSN has 235
million and Yahoo has 97.6 million. Gtalk
has 4.9 million.CrunchBase
InformationAOLInformation provided by
CrunchBase
Crunch Network: MobileCrunchMobile
Gadgets and Applications, Delivered
Daily.
Your Click and Print Newspaper Technology * Social Net * 11

Yahoo Is Still Looking For A White Mint Gets A Mint

By Michael Arrington (TechCrunch)
Knight—News Corp.’s Offer Does Not Submitted at 3/5/2008 1:35:14 AM

Silicon Valley based Mint, an “online

Pencil Out, Neither Does AOL’s
By Erick Schonfeld (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 6:39:14 AM
At this point, everybody and their mother
has looked at ways to scuttle Microsoft’s
hostile bid for Yahoo: News
Corp.,AOL,Google, hedge funds. Even
Barry Diller sniffed around (according to
two sources), as did British Telecom and
Asian investors. Some have put offers on
the table. but none of them pencil out.
Sources tell us that News Corp.put a
variety of offers on the table last Friday
after weeks of negotiations, including ones
involving Google, private equity funds,
and even one scenario involving Microsoft
as a search advertising partner. Now the
latest development is that Time Warner is
putting together yet another proposal to
combine Yahoo with AOL. The WSJ is
reporting:
Yahoo and Time Warner had an earlier
round of discussions, but talks intensified
recently after Yahoo went back to Time
Warner to ask for a proposal that it could
take to Yahoo directors. Time Warner is
putting the finishing touches on that
proposal now. The people familiar with the
matter say that the companies estimate
about $1 billion in cost savings annually.
We heard some rumblings on Tuesday as
well about renewed interest from AOL.
The idea is to spin off AOL, combine it
with Yahoo, and infuse some cash into the
merged entity. But chances are this is just
Yahoo scrambling to get some firm
counteroffers on the table. Time Warner’s
deal makers have been going through the
numbers for more than a month and, one
source says, could not make them work.
Google already powers all of the search
(and search ads) on AOL. Switching to
Yahoo’s Panama would result in hundreds
of millions of dollars less a year n
revenues. That would put a mighty dent in
that $1 billion in cost savings.
Time Warner desperately wants to salvage
AOL, but merging it with Yahoo does not
necessarily keep it relevant. Given its
disastrous history with AOL, Wall Street
may punish Time Warner if it tries to pull
another Jerry Levin. Time Warner will
come up with an offer, just as News Corp.
did. But it is difficult for anyone to quite
match Microsoft’s offer.
Yahoo can keep looking for that white
knight to save it from Microsoft’s clutches,
but its options are dwindling. Without
Microsoft’s offer on the table, where
would its stock be today? Google’s shares
have gone down 20 percent since
Microsoft made its bid. It is fair to assume
Yahoo’s would have been hit harder. If
Yahoo’s $28 stock turns into a $15 stock,
then there really will be hell to pay.
(Disclosure:I own Time Warner shares).
(Photo via destinelee).
Crunch Network: CrunchBoardbecause it’s
time for you to find a new Job2.0
Quicken” that also suggest to users
different ways to save money by searching
for deals on credit cards, bank accounts,
etc., will announce a third round of
funding today - $12.1 million from new
investor Benchmark Capital and all
previous investors, including Shasta
Patzer says, and 10% have opted in for
Ventures, Sherpalo, Felicis Ventures, Hite SMS alerts.
Capital and First Round Capital. The
The company makes money via lead
company has now raised a total of $17 generations, and Patzer says users are
million, most of it since October of 2007.
clicking on presented opportunities 12-
Benchmark’s Bob Kagle is joining the 15% of the time.
Mint board.
We heard through a number of sources that
Mint has grown to 160,000 users just six venture capitalists were clamoring to get a
months after launching and taking the
piece of this deal. Patzer wouldn’t
$50,000 top prize at the TechCrunch40 comment that, saying only that he was very
conference. CEO Aaron Patzer says the
happy to be working with
company is adding 10,000 new users per B e n c h m a r k . C r u n c h B a s e
week, has organized over $10 billion in
InformationMintAaron PatzerInformation
purchasing activity and has identified provided by CrunchBase
around $100 million in savings
Crunch Network: CrunchBoardbecause it’s
opportunities for users. time for you to find a new Job2.0
The average user logs in twice per week,

Girls Ask Guys. Anything is Game.

By Kristen Nicole (Mashable!)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 9:00:24 PM
There are times when we all scratch our
heads and wonder at the behavior of the
opposite sex. And there are times when
we’ll consult other members of the
opposite sex to figure out the answers to
our questions. Now that concept of “Men
are from Mars, Women are from Venus”
has been applied to a user-generated social
network where members of the sexes can
ask questions, give and receive answers,
and participate in ongoing discussions
regarding that head-scratching behavior.
The site is called Girls Ask Guys, and its
mantra is “two sides…all the answers.” I
have a few friends that have turned to the
web in order to find information on major
relationship deal-breakers, like moving in
with their significant other, or making a
large purchase together. Do a quick web
search on these topics and you’ll find some
sites out there, like Blabbermash, that
present the male or female view on things,
but a running commonality amongst many
of these sites is the focus on women.
I can’t say that I’m surprised, seeing as it’s
been proven that women tend to participate
in blogging more than men (boys like
videos). But in all honesty, it does appear
that, aside from the site’s domain name,
there is a dual-ended approach for gaining
useful advice from both men and women.
And no matter which way you slice it,
that’s the only way this site will be helpful.
Similar to Yahoo Answers, users can
present questions to the community, and
receive advice in return. Posts can be made
anonymously, which is a smart
consideration given the touchy nature of
some topics that could be discussed on
Girls Ask Guys. The site can also be used
for plain old venting. Just head over to the
blog section.
Even though some topics discussed on
Girls Ask Guys could be pretty serious, it’s
evident that the site has a youthful tone
with a sense of humor. There is one
feature, called Reality Check, that very
much reminds me of several Facebook
apps I’ve come across in my day. With this
particular feature, you select a question (or
create your own) to be presented to the
community, and get honest feedback in
return. For example, you could upload a
photo of yourself in your favorite outfit
and ask the community if you have style.
It’s kind of like that activity you did in
Family Sociology class back in high
school, where everyone had to write three
critical things about everyone else in the
class, and the notes were subsequently
distributed back to the corresponding
person. Truth hurts, people. But you can
take it, right?
ShareThis
12 Social Net * Your Click and Print Newspaper

Politics Online: Day 1 Panel Wrapups AOL Launches Open AIM

By Mark 'Rizzn' Hopkins
(Mashable!)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 5:28:33 PM
I had a great first day at the PoliticsOnline
conference. Although, due to a mixup at
Kinkos earlier in the morning, I didn’t
arrive in time to catch the breakfast
keynote, which I hear was particularly
interesting, and centered around privacy
issues and the sort of thing I talked about
later in the day during my panel.
The Panels I Attended
Before I talk about how fun that panel was
to run, I’d like to comment a bit on the
other panels I attended.
Those of you that followed the blog on
Tuesday were likely treated to my live
stream of the panels I attended, one of
which was accompanied by a liveblog.
This is something I aim to do more of
tomorrow, but it gave me a unique
opportunity to comment as it happened on
what some of the speakers were saying
while many of you joined me in listening
to what they had to say.
In both of the panels I attended today, I
found that while the terminology used by a
lot of these DC, politicals, and
campaigners were different than the
terminology you’re familiar with seeing
here in the pages of Mashable, they were
almost always on the right track in terms of
seeming to ‘get’ social media.
The one caveat I’d make to that holds true
for the ‘Developing Mobile Apps’ and
‘Social Network Outreach’ panels both
would be that social media, especially
when you’re dealing with high profile
political candidates is not about
customisation.
We’re not talking about something that
people want to bling up, as the kids say
these days. We’re talking about concepts
and people that folks not only want to
engage with, but arguably have a right to
engage with.
Clearly and especially at this stage in the
game, Obama, Clinton and McCain are not
going to be able to respond directly to
individual constituent requests and
questions. On the other hand, would it hurt
Barack to have an occasional conversation
on Twitter? If he wants us all to believe
he’s the next Tech President, perhaps he
should, you know, like maybe use some
technology? Just spit ballin’ here.
I am picking on Obama here, but the same
could easily have been said about 16 of the
20 candidates that ran this year (see the
embed below for one of the panels I
attended).
The Panel I Ran
I had a great time with Allen Stern, Jim
Harper and Sascha Meinrath discussing
Privacy in the Digital Age. We all had a
loose idea about what we wanted to cover,
but the audience drove a lot of the
conversation, including the audience out in
California.
The first anecdote I had that lead into a
discussion about DataPortability, APML,
and Social Network’s ability to see
everything about you was the example of
Robert Scoble, when his Facebook account
was cancelled.
I was midway into transitioning into the
next question when Robert, who to the best
of my knowlege caught us broadcasting the
panel live on the site, and called a friend of
his in the back of the room to see if he
could join in on the discussion.
That was a hoot, as was the questions
asked by the audience and the hyper-
intelligent responses from all the members
of the panel (see the embed below for more
privacy talk).
ShareThis
2.0 – The Most Important
Social Platform Yet?
By Adam Ostrow (Mashable!)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:32:11 AM
AOL has significantly expanded their
developer program for its AIM instant
messaging software, releasing version 2.0
of Open AIM, with web-based chat servies
eBuddy and Meebo signing on as initial much about new applications for IM, so it
partners.
will be interesting to see if these changes
With today’s announcements, the grey area lead to a flood of new applications, similar
that applications like Trillian on the client
to what we’ve seen with applications for
side and Meebo and eBuddy on the web Facebook and other social networks. In
side worked in has been removed, as AOL
reality, the opportunity for instant
is now touting the ability for developers to messaging applications is much larger –
build applications that allow users to sign-
IM is an application that millions of people
on to multiple IM networks with one have open all day on their desktop or in
application. True IM interoperability has
their browser, and there is a built-in “social
been something on many developer’s wish graph” – your buddy list, organized into
lists for the better part of a decade, and
various groups.
today, it has officially arrived with the Meebo already sees a huge opportunity
largest IM service opening up. Competitors
here, telling us “… with official access to
Microsoft and Yahoo had previously the API, we can do so many cool things we
announced a partnership in 2005 to allow
weren’t able to do before – richer user
users of their respective IM services to talk profile information, increased
to each other.
personalization, the list goes on.”
In addition to embracing openness, AOL is Additionally, unlike the social networks,
announcing a few other additions to drive
the lock-in for IM networks is enormous –
further developer adoption of their on par with that of email – because no one
platform. They are launching a revenue
wants to change their screenname. There is
share program called AIM Money that a huge opportunity for applications that
developers can use to monetize their
create a better experience than the default
applications, while also eliminating the IM programs, so Open AIM 2.0 is
usage limits that were previously in place. definitely something to keep an eye on.
Other than a few companies like Meebo ShareThis
and eBuddy, who are now using the new
Open AIM 2.0 APIs, we don’t hear too

Songza Adds Profiles to Music Search Engine

By Kristen Nicole (Mashable!)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 6:04:45 PM
Songza has added profiles to its music web
search site. Finally! After launching a few
months back, Songza has been releasing
new features at a more rapid pace, in part
thanks to its successful launch. One of its
more recently added features is Twitter
integration, which ties in nicely with the
new profiles on Songza.
So why should you care that profiles are
now an option on Songza? It means you
can save your playlists. You don’t have to
re-create a playlist every time yo visit the
site. Songza is moving from an instant
gratification search tool to a personal
search tool. There’s even a handy, easy-to-
remember URL with your username at the
end of it, for easy access on your part.
Similar to Seeqpod, you can search for
songs and add them to your playlist, log
out, log back in, and have your playlist
intact. Unlike Seeqpod, however, you
don’t have to keep re-saving your playlist.
However, you can only create one playlist,
and there are not yet any “player” options
like “skip,” “repeat” or “shuffle.” So you
may want to remember where you left off,
once you sign out. I’m sure there are lots
more features in the Songza pipeline,
including more directly involved personal
recommendations to complement the
OneLlama integration Songza already has.
ShareThis
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Study Confirms: Piracy Is Better Than
The Real Thing
By Stan Schroeder (Mashable!)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 1:13:56 AM
A UK study on piracy, conducted by
Entertainment Media Research, reveals
that one third of Brits have downloaded
pirated content from the Internet (nothing
strange here), and that most of them are
doing it simply because the legal methods
of purchasing content are lacking
compared to pirate sources.
I’ve said it in the past, and I’ll say it again:
so called “pirates” are actually doing a
very good job at categorizing, organizing
and presenting content; furthermore, their
content is always DRM-free, and even
though you sometimes have to bother with
cracks and serials, it’s still better (and not
only cheaper) than the “real” thing.
Now, open the study linked above and
switch to page 209. 70% of users claim
that “legal d/l sites don’t have the range of
illegal ones;” 68% claim that with piracy
they “can get what they want a lot faster
compared to legal sites;” but (very
important) they “would pay for legal d/ls if
they had what they wanted.”
So, as an example, when a popular, legal
site like Pandora goes down the drain
MessageDance Adds Video, Image and
Document Sharing. Another Pownce?
By Kristen Nicole (Mashable!)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 9:01:59 PM
We reviewed MessageDance a few months
back, when the site first launched its
message-aggregating tools. While the
service didn’t seem fully able to present
practical integration options for users at the
time, I liked the underlying concept of
MessageDance, as well as the potential for
its application methods across a variety of
web services.
Today, MessageDance is announcing a few
more new feature updates to its service that
go along nicely with its recently added
Twitter integration. For starters, there’s a
new portable YouTube Playlist. This lets
because they can’t get a legal license to
serve music for listeners outside of the US,
where do you think the users are going to
turn? Or, when you’re forced to use a
particular piece of software in order to
transfer music to your portable audio
device, where are you going to go if you
want to use something else? Choices,
choices.
If you have the time, I suggest you skim
through this very comprehensive study, as
it reveals a wealth of interesting data. For
you share videos with your friends across
various networks, like MySpace, Facebook
and Twitter. Updates can be displayed in
your MessageDance widget, and it can be
shared via email, or blasted to everyone,
using the ever-handy “friends @
messagedance.com.” Images have been
added too, along with documents, all for
sharing purposes, through MessageDance’s
expanding portal.
Will this approach work, or is this
example, it shows that social networks are
“an essential place to be for brands” and
that many users (over 50%) have searched
social networks for content such as music
and movies. It also shows that 62% of
users claim the Internet has changed how
often they buy printed magazines, while
18% of users claim they buy less printed
magazines than they used to. Internet is
where it’s at, baby!
ShareThis
incorporating too many life-streaming
tools into an existing third-party service? I
imagine that such integration doesn’t hurt.
It looks to compete, on varying levels, with
social browsing, micro-blogging tools,
ShareThis options present on blogs and
websites, Box.net, and even Yahoo’s latest
Life hub (which has yet to launch).
I think MessageDance is still finding the
best way in which it can fit into social
media as an accessible tool that makes
sharing easy across the web, so the new
features, many of which have been
requested by users, should further
MessageDance on its journey.
ShareThis
Social Net * 13
AOL and Yahoo
Considering Merging
(Again), But Will it Blend?
By Stan Schroeder (Mashable!)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 9:05:22 PM
According to WSJ, Time Warner and
Yahoo are seriously considering going
together against Microsoft’s (hostile or
unsolicited, whichever you prefer)
takeover bid. Reportedly, the deal would
include Yahoo acquiring Time Warner’s
property AOL with Time taking a large
minority stake in a new, combined
company.
This, as well as all possible implications of
any deal that could place in this love
rectangle (Google-Microsoft-Yahoo-AOL)
has been widelydiscussedin the past. So,
let’s step back for a second and look at
these two companies, Yahoo and AOL.
I don’t know about you, but I see two
behemoths with some good ideas buried
underneath a mountain corporate kipple,
and a whole lot of inefficiency and inertia
in both. Having had the unpleasant
experience of working in a big corporation,
I’ve acquired an enormous distaste for it,
as I’ve often felt that the best way to bring be another try to squeeze a dollar or two
it to the path of progress is burning it down per share from Microsoft, who, however,
and building it up from scratch. I seriously has been busy paying billions of dollars to
the EU and is probably not willing to raise
doubt that the result of a AOL-Yahoo
merger would do everything it takes to step
up to Google’s level; it’s probably a
their bid much. WSJ’s sources claim that
despite all this, Microsoft is likely to
acquire Yahoo after all; and although I
practical impossibility and would require
firing the half of the people that work
there. Thus, I think that an AOL-Yahoo
merger is just another step towards
don’t see this as a marriage made in
heaven, either, it’s probably the better
route for Yahoo.
ShareThis
impending doom.
On the other hand, this latest resurfacing of
AOL-Yahoo merger rumors could simply
14 TV *
Lost cast members have
questions of their own
By Erin Martell (TV Squad)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 1:02:00 AM
Filed under: OpEd, Lost, Watercooler
Talk, Celebrities
No one, not even the most hardcore Lost
fan, can have more questions about the
show's characters than the actors who
portray them. Recently, Several Lost cast
members got a chance to ask these
questions in a TV Guideinterview with
Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, the
show's executive producers. This was a
great idea on TV Guide's part, and the
answers didn't disappoint. What could be
more fun than letting actors like
Evangeline Lilly, Naveen Andrews, and
Josh Holloway grill their bosses about
issues that have been on fans' minds for
months?
Cuse and Lindelof's answers contain a lot
of spoilers about what we will learn during
Season Four (and when), so stop reading if
you want to be surprised. The juiciest
responses and some speculation about
what these new details could mean are
Big Brother 9: Live feeds report -
March 4
By Jackie Schnoop (TV Squad)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 1:32:00 PM
Filed under: OpEd, Big Brother (US)They
enjoy primping in the Big Brother 9 house,
don't they? Alas, they can only primp their
exteriors. If this group of hamsters could
primp their language (so the aired shows
wouldn't have so many bleeped out bits),
their behaviors (so they're not ranting at
each other for hours on end), their sexual
activities (so I don't think I'm watching bad
amateur porn and feel all creepy about it)
... could it still be good TV?
I think so. Language will always be an
issue. But I think back to one of my
favorite seasons, the second season. There
was some cuddling, but not like outright
porn. Ah, but this year they gave 'em a
bowl of condoms. Now that I've had no
spoiler information on the main page (yes,
there is a method to my madness), read
included after the jump. My remarks also
take rumors into account, so consider
yourself warned.
Continue reading Lost cast members have
questions of their own
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
past the jump for show spoilers and the
latest news from inside the house!
Continue reading Big Brother 9: Live feeds
report - March 4
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
Nielsen ratings for the week ending
March 2
By Bob Sassone (TV Squad)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:23:00 AM
Filed under: Industry, Programming,
Ratings
Here are the weekly ratings, by number of
viewers.
All of the usual suspects are here again this
week: American Idol, Deal Or No Deal,
Lost, and they're joined by Oprah's Big
Give. It seems Oprah can do no wrong, and
once she puts a TV show on the air we
MUST WATCH IT (case in point: she also
produced the number 9 show this week).
Interesting that both episodes of Back To
You on FOX made the top 15 in the first
week back after the strike, though coming
on the same night as Idol can't hurt.
Anyone know what Here Come The
Newlyweds is? I distinctly remember
typing that title in one of my "What's On
Tonight" posts, but after that I forgot all
about it.
1. American Idol - Tues (FOX)
2. American Idol - Weds (FOX)
Brace yourselves for a possible
actors strike
By Allison Waldman (TV Squad)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:05:00 AM
Filed under: Industry, WGA StrikeHave
you seen all those feel-good commercials
on CBS showing the actors returning to
work after the WGA strike, the message
promising us that good times -- and fresh
new episodes -- would soon be on the air?
Well, here comes the cold shower. The big
story this morning out of L.A. is that
Hollywood is shaking with fear that the
actors will strike this summer if a new
contract isn't hammered out before June
30.
Big names like George Clooney and Tom
Hanks have been quietly urging Screen
Actors Guild president Alan Rosenberg to
commence negotiations now in hopes of
averting another contentious battle. Even
AFTRA (SAG's sister organization, the
American Federation of Television and
3. American Idol - Thurs (FOX)
4. Oprah's Big Give (ABC)
Continue reading Nielsen ratings for the
week ending March 2
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
Radio Actors) reportedly wants to start
formal talks.
Continue reading Brace yourselves for a
possible actors strike
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Idol hopeful's stripper
past confirmed, won't
be booted
By Jason Hughes (TV Squad)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 2:26:00 AM
Filed under: American Idol, Contestants,
News and GossipDon't tell Frenchie, but
despite confirming that David Hernandez
was a stripper in a mostly male night club,
only quitting as recently as September 30,
2007, sources say he will not be removed
from the show. FOX declined comment,
but Idol executive producer Ken Warwick
did make a statement (that has since been
removed from most stories I've seen this
morning; his comments were there last
night and now those reports say that both
FOX and Idol declined comment).
He said, "We're never judgmental about
what people do to earn a living. They've
got to put food in people's mouths." Also
mentioned, and since removed, was the
never revealed stripping past of first season
contestant Nikki McKibbin, as well as an
expanded explanation for Frenchie Davis'
dismissal in 2003.
Continue reading Idol hopeful's stripper
past confirmed, won't be booted
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Big Brother 9: PoV Competition #3
By Jackie Schnoop (TV Squad)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 4:30:00 PM
Filed under: OpEd, Big Brother (US),
Episode Reviews
(S09E10) "I'm between a Josh and a hard
place." - Allison
When I was young, there was a show
called Peyton Place -- a soap opera which,
at the time, seemed to be the epitome of all
soap operas past, present, and future. It
worked its way into the daily vocabulary
for any sort of high drama situation.
The Daily Show: March 4, 2008 - VIDEOS
By Annie Wu (TV Squad)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 12:33:00 AM
Filed under: OpEd, The Daily Show,
Episode ReviewsJon started off by talking
about Monday night's interview with
Hillary Clinton. The satellite delay was an
obvious problem, and Jon pointed out one
Why am I talking about Peyton Place in an
episode review of Big Brother 9? I
mention it because it has dawned on me
that Big Brother 9 is Peyton Place zapped
to the present day while on meth filled
with exaggerated whacko characters and
all the drama you can stand (or not). Those
Peyton Place people had it easy!
Continue reading Big Brother 9: PoV
Competition #3
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
of the more awkward moments of the
night, that little "No, go ahead" part.
"Mortal Kombat '08": Senior Political
Correspondent Rob Riggle, wearing his
best sleeveless suit, took the "do-or-die"
aspect of the Tuesday showdown a little
too seriously. The "Cam-Pain Trail"
Super Skank Wednesday: A photo
essay
By Kristin Sample (TV Squad)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 2:02:00 AM
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, OpEd,
Episode ReviewsWelcome to Super Skank
Wednesday. This is where I celebrate the
awesomely skanky people on the following
shows: Rock of Love, Flavor of Love, I
Love New York (or whatever show
Tiffany Pollard is making next), The
Surreal Life, and Charm School. Basically,
I'll discuss the skankalicious shows that
make VH1 the network it is today.
After the jump check out my photo essay
on Destiney from Rock of Love 2, Random
thoughts on Flavor of Love 3 (it's really
just more photo essay), and some final
nuggets for you to puzzle over. Enjoy and
a very happy Super Skank Wednesday to
Jericho: Oversight
By Paul Goebel (TV Squad)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 12:02:00 AM
Filed under: Jericho, Episode Reviews
(S02E04) Well now things are just getting
ridiculous. There must be a way that the
residents of Jerichocan take a stand against
the occupation in their town. Are we to
believe that Jake, Eric, Dale and a few
others are the only people who have a
problem with the new government?
Considering how well they were doing on
their own, I find it hard to believe they
would stand around and be bullied by
Ravenwood.
As for Stanley, he talks like he won't come
around until the government literally
comes and takes everything he holds dear,
including Mimi. With that in mind, I have
commercial must have been so much fun
to make. Only on Daily Show would
you!
Continue reading Super Skank
Wednesday: A photo essay
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to say that this review was difficult for me
to write considering the way it ended.
Continue reading Jericho: Oversight
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
someone need to make a graphic of sh*t in
people's necks.
Continue reading The Daily Show: March
4, 2008 - VIDEOS
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
TV * 15
American Idol:
Top 8 Boys
Perform
By Jason Hughes (TV Squad)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 4:00:00 PM
Filed under: American Idol, Reviewcaps,
Contestants, Performances, Predictions and
Trends, Episode Reviews
(S07E17) This is it, folks! After these next
two weeks, we'll have our Top 12. Which
two of those smiling faces doesn't deserve
to be there? Well, I had a pretty good idea
going into tonight's episode and after it,
I'm even more certain. I hope you all get it
right. The boys were more comfortable this
week and it showed in their performances.
I think a lot of it had to do with the theme:
'80s songs. Finally, songs they may
actually be familiar with and possibly even
have a personal connection to.
Continue reading American Idol: Top 8
Boys Perform
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
16 Movies
Michael Cera and David Cross Warner Independent
Know Nothing of an 'Arrested Collects 'Beautiful
Development' Movie
By Erik Davis (Cinematical)
Children'
Submitted at 3/4/2008 5:02:00 PM
Filed under: Comedy, Casting,
RumorMonger, Fandom
So I've spent the past couple days holed up
in Shreveport, Louisiana (of all places)
visiting the set of The Year One, directed
by Harold Ramis, produced by Judd
Apatow and starring Jack Black, Michael
Cera, David Cross ... and a whole bunch of
nutty lunatics. Unfortunately, I cannot talk
about how insane that film is going to be
just yet (but I will, eventually, because
there's soooo much to talk about), however
I am allowed to dish on a few of the
interviews we conducted -- two of which
were with Michael Cera and David Cross.
We already know there's been talk of an
Arrested Development movie taking place
at some point in the near future, and Jason
Bateman recently chatted up the flick on
the Oscar's red carpet saying it was all but
a done deal and the script was being
written. But was he biting off a bit more
than he could chew?
Seems so, because both Cera and Cross
haven't heard a peep about the film. When
Cera was told they were supposedly
working on a script, he looked stunned --
spitting out an "Is this true? Really? Well
[Jason Bateman] would probably know
more about it than I would." Would he
want to do it? "Um, yeah, I think so. Yeah,
Who Wants to Get Married at the "Made of Honor" Premiere?
By Kim Voynar (Cinematical)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 1:01:00 PM
Filed under: Comedy, Romance, Movie
Marketing, ContestsIf you've recently
gotten engaged and are making plans for a
wedding, have I got news for you! The
upcoming film Made of Honor, together
with all-things-weddings website The
Knot, are joining forces to bring you a Get
I would love to do it ... it'd be fun." Says
Cross, "I've been hearing about this since
the day [the show] got canceled. Nobody's
talked to me. I know nothing. Zero. The
only thing I've seen is what's on the
Entertainment Weekly website ... which
I've never seen." On whether he'd be
interested in reprising his role as Tobias,
Cross said, "As long as I don't have to
paint myself blue or wear a fatsuit, I'd love
to. I would do that in a heartbeat. That was
a really fun character to do, and it'd be
great to work with all those guys again. I'd
do it in a second."
So the good news is the guys desperately
want to make an Arrested Development
film -- now all that's left is for someone to
actually call them and ask. Permalink |
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Married at the Premiere contest. Made of
Honor, in case you don't know, is about a
sexy, successful guy (Patrick Dempsey)
who realizes he's really in love with his
best friend (Michelle Monaghan) when she
leaves for six weeks to go on a business
trip to Scotland.
He misses her so much he decides to ask
her to marry him when she returns ... but
By Monika Bartyzel (Cinematical)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 1:02:00 AM
Filed under: Drama, Deals, ScriptsAfter
the drama of Little Children, Bona Fide
Picture producers Albert Berger and Ron
Yerxa are looking for more, and they've
found it. Variety reports that the duo will
produce another youth-titled project with
very adult themes -- an adaptation of
Charles Bock's Beautiful Children, which
will be made with Warner Independent
Pictures.
Eric Roth, the pen behind Forrest Gump,
The Insider, and Munich, is in talks to
adapt the novel, which follows the
disappearance of a 12-year-old boy in Las
Vegas. Think Lovely Bones, but instead of
an eerie account of a girl's death and its
aftermath, this is a seedy story set in Sin
City. According to the Washington Post
review up on Amazon, the kid is a spoiled
brat who runs away into a raunchy
environment where one girl even cuts her
nipples open for a floor show. However,
while it just sounds raunchy, the review
also says that even though it's not polished,
the novel "deserves to be read more than
once because of the extraordinary
importance of its subject matter and the
sensitivity with which he treats it."
Whether that sensitivity makes its way to
the big screen -- we'll have to wait and see.
But this isn't the only project in the works
she returns having fallen in love with a
wealthy Scot, and asks him to be her "maid
for Yerxa and Berger. They're finalizing
the money for The Undeniable Charm of
Sloppy Unruh, a comic fable starring
Patrick Wilson, Zooey Deschanel, Amy
Ryan, Seann William Scott, and John Doe,
and they are also reteaming with Jonathan
Dayton and Valerie Ferris for the Tom
Perrotta adaptation The Abstinence
Teacher.Read | Permalink | Email this |
Comments
of honor" at her wedding. He agrees, but
only to try to put a stop to things before it's
too late. Sounds pretty much exactly like
Julia Roberts' hit My Best Friend's
Wedding, but if you like Dr. McDreamy,
and you like rom-coms, it's probably right
up your romantic alley.
Anyhow, here's what you do to enter the
contest: just go to the website and submit a
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Paul Potts Gets
the Feature
Treatment
By Monika Bartyzel (Cinematical)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 12:02:00 AM
Filed under: Music & Musicals, Deals
Would you go see a biopic based on
Fantasia? Or Clay? Or Ruben? (Okay, you
get the hint, and I'm sorry, but I only
watched one season of Idol.) No? How
about Paul Potts? Variety reports that the
overnight success, who got his fame when
he won Britain's Got Talent in 2007, is
getting a feature film based on his story.
Paramount Pictures is developing the
project, and not surprisingly, Simon
Cowell (who created the show and judged
Mr. Potts) has signed on as one of the
film's producers. It will be the story of a
tenor who sold cell phones, had bad teeth,
and flipped a coin to go to a casting
audition -- one that made the acidic Cowell
state: "That particular day was one of the
worst... I'll never forget how much the
room changed when he began singing."
(You can check out the moment above.)
He's certainly not a pop sensation, so this
may not apply, but I can only hope that the
poor guy finds the fame he is looking for,
rather than end up anything like From
Justin to Kelly.Read | Permalink | Email
this | Comments
photo of you and your beloved, along with
the story of the moment you realized you
were meant to be together (pause here for a
collective "Awwwwwww ... ").
Continue reading Who Wants to Get
Married at the "Made of Honor"
Premiere?Permalink | Email this |
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Your Click and Print Newspaper
'Shorts' Gets a Script
Review
By Jessica Barnes (Cinematical)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 2:02:00 AM
Filed under: Comedy, Sci-Fi & Fantasy,
RumorMonger, Scripts, Family FilmsIt's
not easy reconciling the two sides of
Robert Rodriguez. One likes to make
pseudo-schlock flicks with machine-gun-
leg chicks, and the other likes to make kids
movies -- not exactly an expected
transition is it? Latino Review has posted a
script review for Rodriguez's latest kiddie
romp, Shorts. So let's get right to the point,
shall we? Review's scooper liked what he
saw. Sure there were some complaints, and
we'll get to those in a moment, but overall
it's a solid thumbs up.
Shorts is the story of Toe Jackson, a young
boy in a Texas subdivision who narrates
four stories set in the heart of the suburban
neighborhood. Now for the bad news.
According to the review, the script is a
little heavy on the "fart jokes" -- also, it
may be a little too focused on the boys.
This is a shame considering what a great
young female character Rodriguez created
in Spy Kids. Then again, he also managed
to make a list of the most misogynistic
flicks, but I digress. The reviewer also had
some complaints about character names,
because the script is loaded with cutesy
ones like Loogie and Nose.
Robert Redford Is a 'Visionary,' Says ShoWest
By Eric D. Snider (Cinematical)
Submitted at 3/4/2008 12:32:00 PM
Filed under: Independent, Awards,
Sundance, Cinematical IndieIf you ask my
mom about Robert Redford, she'll cite his
dreamy blue eyes and his charismatic
performances in Butch Cassidy and the
Sundance Kid and The Sting. If you ask
someone my age about him, though, I bet
the Sundance Film Festival is the first
thing that will come to mind. For a lot of
us, the Sundance Institute has been so
It's likely that most of Rodriguez's fans are
focused squarely on the long awaited
sequel to Sin City, not to mention those of
you out there hankering for a full-length
Machete feature, so Shorts probably won't
be high on your list of priorities. If,
however, you've got some rug rats at
home, then you might want to get used to
the idea of seeing this movie in theaters.
Shorts is tentatively scheduled for release
in 2009.Read | Permalink | Email this |
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influential and important that it
overshadows the earlier days, when
Redford was "only" a movie star.
Variety reports that the industry
convention ShoWest will honor Redford
with the Visionary Award when it
convenes next week in Las Vegas, a tribute
to the Sundance Kid's extraordinary
contributions to the world of independent
film. Sundance is the largest, most
influential film festival in the United
States, and it has launched the careers of
Wanna Bask in 'Avatar'
Spoilers?
By James Rocchi (Cinematical)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:09:00 AM
Filed under: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, New
Releases, RumorMonger, Fandom, 20th
Century Fox, Comic/Superhero/GeekOkay,
so this news story links to a news story that
links to another news story -- and, as I
explain what's going on, you'll understand
why this piece takes the same approach to
movie news that your grade school science
teacher advised when discussing looking at
a solar eclipse. See, the good folks at
Latino Review have a story today that goes
well beyond their usual rush and crush of
movie news. According to them,
MarketSaw has big, bad, burly spoilers
about James Cameron's Avatar. And, like
all Avatar news, you have to take this with
a grain of salt -- or, if you're like me, and
want to not have one iota of information
about Avatar prior to its 2009 release, you
want to look away.
For those of you with terminal curiosity,
you should know that the Latino Review
piece does recap the gist of the MarketSaw
material, discussing vehicle and spaceship
construction, the look of the buildings on-
dozens of filmmakers, including Quentin
Tarantino and Steven Soderbergh. What's
more, the Sundance Institute's workshops
set and the design and construction of one
of the film's pivotal sets -- the high-tech
chamber where the film's central plot
device takes place. And yes, I know I'm
being elliptical, but I already know more
about this movie than I want to. Those of
you who have unbridled excitement can
follow the links down the rabbit hole, but
if you see too much, we warned you. ...
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
for screenwriting, documentary
filmmaking, and other crafts have helped
countless individuals hone their skills.
This will be the first time ShoWest has
given out a "Visionary Award," and
Redford seems like a mighty fine choice to
me. Those dreamy blue eyes have seen a
lot of great things happen in the movie
world.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Movies 17
First 'Tropic
Thunder' Image
Hits!
By Monika Bartyzel (Cinematical)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 2:32:00 AM
Filed under: Comedy, Celebrities and
Controversy, Images
I may not be too thrilled with the thought
of male modeling sequels, but I'm itching
to see what Ben Stiller makes with his first
directing gig since Zoolander. The flick is
Tropic Thunder, and that image above is
part of the first look released by
Entertainment Weekly. This time, the
focus is actors, and the comedy follows a
group "of self-indulgent stars cast in the
modern equivalent of Apocalypse Now."
However, the director (Steve Coogan) and
writer (Nick Nolte) get fed up with them
and ship them off to the jungle to fend for
themselves.
Meanwhile, Stiller and those involved are
hoping this comedy doesn't start an uproar.
Continue reading First 'Tropic Thunder'
Image Hits!Read | Permalink | Email this |
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18 Movies
Tony Goldwyn and Monica
Potter Own the New 'Last
House'
By Scott Weinberg (Cinematical)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 3:32:00 AM
Filed under: Horror, Universal, Remakes
and SequelsTwo new cast members have
been found for Rogue's remake of The Last
House on the Left. Looks like it will be
Tony Goldwyn and Monica Potter. No
word on who they'll be playing, but Potter
will probably be playing "the mom," while
Goldwyn will be either "the dad" or "a
psycho." (And given that Goldwyn's best
performance came as a hateful villain in
Ghost, I'd vote for the latter -- but he's
probably the dad.) According to Bloody-
Dee, the remake will also star Garret
Dillahunt, Rhys Coiro, Martha Maclsaac
and Riki Lindholme. (And Dillahunt is fast
becoming one of my favorite "new"
character actors.)
Ms. Potter is also no stranger to the spooky
stuff: Most people forget she was in the
original Saw -- and she survived! (Sequel-
makers, take note!) As far as the remake of
the controversial 1972 horror flick is
concerned, the director is newcomer
Dennis Iliadis, and the screenplay adapters
are first-timers Adam Alleca and Mark
Haslett. According to Variety, Red Eye /
Disturbia screenwriter Carl Ellsworth also
had a hand in the script, most likely in a
"polishing" capacity. The creators of the
original flick -- Wes Craven and Sean S.
Cunningham -- are involved collecting a
paycheck as executive producers.
Production gets underway in South Africa
later this month.Read | Permalink | Email
this | Comments
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Conan the Barbarian -- Djimon
Hounsou's Dream Project?
By Elisabeth Rappe (Cinematical)
Submitted at 3/5/2008 4:02:00 AM
Filed under: Casting, RumorMonger,
Comic/Superhero/GeekAnd the Internet sat
up and went, "Seriously?"
CHUD's Devin Faraci is one dedicated
researcher. Like a man possessed, he's
been determined to unearth Djimon
Hounsou's comic book project. (We
reported on what it could be earlier this
week as well.) It would now seem that he
has, and the news is a bit disappointing.
One of CHUD's reporters was at the Never
Back Down junket and pressed Hounsou
further. The actor reluctantly revealed that
it was a comic "that used to be part of the
Conan comic book." It is all a long way from Peter Jackson and
Steven Spielberg's Tintinor the Black
Faraci spoke to NuImage, the people Panther. Faraci is still consumed with the
behind the new Conan movie, and they are story and trying to get a definite answer.
only in talks with Hounsou -- and do not Pop on over and read his article, which
even have a director, so the project is far includes audio of Hounsou's Conan quote.
from definite. There are some other Robert
E. Howard projects in development, Permalink | Email this | Comments
notably Solomon Kane, but it is already
filming, and Bran Mak Morn.