September 18, 2007

TimesSelect is Dead

I was intrigued by the blurb on WSJ main page about the death of TimesSelect, so I flipped to the Marketplace section and learned that 227,000 subscribers generated $10 million in revenue for the NYT during the two years its been active. I've had a free TS acct b/c I'm a Sunday home delivery subscriber.

$10 million just aint what it used to be. They say there's more growth potential in online ads than subscription sites. Interestingly, the WSJ didn't bother to compare the NYT's to the WSJ's own pay-only website. And you can only access a preview of the WSJ on its public site.

Apparently, I should be grateful that so much of the NYT will now be open to the public. Frankly, I'm disgusted by how much money I shill out for a single day's paper (almost $29/month) and am wondering why I continue to bother with the paid subscription.

Here's the NYT note on the death of TimesSelect.

Jeff Jarvis on Times deslected

Posted by cj at 10:10 PM | Comments (0)

August 12, 2007

Lyrical Reading in the Sunday LA Times

This might be because I've been sick all weekend, but I had a bit of an epiphany today: the LA Times is written in a voice that is much more conducive to the LA life style than the NY Times. I grant you, the NY Times is still a much better source for international news and national economic news, but LAT writers don't try as hard to sound as smart, and therefore make reading more pleasurable than their East Coast counterparts.

Yesterday, I spent most of the day staring at the teevee. Today, I spent the day sleeping and in my bits of wakefulness, reading the paper. Every Sunday, I try to finish the Week in Review section of the NYT, but it is often a slog. Today, I read the Opinion section of the LAT cover to cover. (Which required flipping it over, because alas, the LAT merged its Opinion and Books section into one flimsy pullout; nevertheless, both sections were delightful reads.)

This reminds me of watching Meet the Press last weekend. Carl Bernstein made the following observation:

but especially after the mendacity and subterfuge of this current presidency
Not a single roundtable participant batted an eye when he said this. The majority of Americans could not understand the ramification of this quote because the man chose to use a word beyond common vernacular. He called Bush a lying liar who knows how to cover his tracks and no one stopped to ponder the seriousness of the charge.

This is what baffles me by the progressive elite. They've been wrapped so long by the tendrils of the ivory tower that they forget how to speak to the masses. The LA Times appeals to me because it does not necessitate the use of Every Big Word You Know to participate in civic dialogue. Plus, it's easier to read when you're sick.

Is it time for me to give up my $28 a month NYT habit? Well, probably not. It's one of my few indulgences in life and since you only live once, I'm stickin to the habit (for now).

Posted by cj at 04:55 PM | Comments (0)

February 08, 2007

JCPenney Does High Fashion and other notes from the Thursday Papers

Instead of sleeping (I did that for twelve hours last night) or reading a book or watching t.v. (the damn thing is on the fritz), I've been reading the Wall Street Journal and the LA Times.

According to the WSJ, JCPenney is hiring tons of designers to help them compete in the world of "fast fashion" (aka throw away clothes that tear apart within a season). The head of JCP design has determined that "turtlenecks are the IT item for Fall 07." TURTLENECKS! TURTLENECKS! Look - the hipsters in Tokyo are wearing them, it must be so! Maybe I'm a bit biased - hell the rest of you don't have a painful scar on your neck - but I've always had problems with the claustrophobic nashing of turtleneck material against my neck. I love scarves - you can adjust how tight they are around your neck - but a turtleneck imposes itself without variance and (in my opinion) increases the sweat factor.

In other perspiration news, the style gurus at WSJ have determined that it is ok for men to wear polos without undershirts. "Wifebeaters" are the least popular style for those who choose to wear them. Crew necks (circular neck lines) are the most popular.

The WSJ book reviewer didn't really like Monkey Girl. She also didn't like the political persuasion of the book's author - he conflated it with all the evils of the religious right and the reviewer cried foul.

The LA Times reports that Murdoch's media conglomerate is making a killing with its MySpace acquisition, films, and Fox TV station. On the other hand, the English-language telenovela-filled MyNetwork TV channel is sucking major wind.

Some old geezer real estate mogul in Chi-town is making a bid for the Trib company.

This Just In: Anna Nicole Smith dropped dead today.

Posted by cj at 03:24 PM | Comments (1)

February 02, 2007

Geek Critique of Social Networking

I read this entire article about social networks before realizing that its an ad for a new social network.

Apparently, Shuzak is tryin to be the social networks for geeks - leveraging peer to group activity rather than peer to peer. It got its name from its founder, Jawad Shuaib, the writer of the aforementioned article.

At least he gets marketing - I clicked onto his social networking site because I liked his graphic ad at the bottom of his article - thought it was amusing.

Posted by cj at 02:01 AM | Comments (0)

February 01, 2007

Don't Copy That Floppy!

tip o the hat to aardvark and his link to the deplorable word. This video is a classic from 1992.

Posted by cj at 08:40 PM | Comments (0)

January 21, 2007

Media Ownership: Trib & LA Times

A lot of ink has been spent in the LA Times on the impending sale of the Tribune Company. It's rather odd to read about this situation in the LAT, since it is one of the Trib's assets.

Even stranger is listening to Angelenos pontificate on the future of "dead tree media." They seem to buy the hype that there's something seriously wrong with newspapers. The only thing wrong with the newspaper industry is that it is controlled by public companies that care only about profit margins.

As Katharine Graham taught us in her memoir, good journalism has nothing to do with being popular. If shareholders had controlled WaPo during Watergate, do you think they would've stuck with the story? In the face of declining readership and daily attacks from the White House Press Office? I doubt it.

Plus, let's review the recent history of the LAT: it had a 20% profit margin last year. And the bean counters still forced newsroom cuts on the place. They're not alone - Time Inc. cut a huge portion of their workforce last week, stating that they're transitioning to a focus on the web. Funny thing about the web - it requires writers just as much as paper magazines.

So, do I think it's a good thing that local billionaires have put in competing bids for the LAT? I suppose so. But I don't trust any of them - not a one of them has ever worked in the news industry. They're more likely to make the LAT into their personal papers than to really transform it into a bigger powerhouse. The thing that the Chicago Trib does right and the LAT doesn't do well at all is have internet properties that are really useful - Metromix is a major online hub for hipsters in Chi-town. It provides easy to access listings for food, nightlife, and other entertainment. Plus, the Red Eye (the free weekday tabloid available at public trans stations) increases the number of young people reading Trib material and pushed to the web for further info. There is no part of the LAT sprawling web presence that compares to the utility of Metromix.

But then, for being the entertainment capital of the world, LA is sorely lacking in a lot of things available in Chicago. We don't have a local restaurant review show like Check, Please! (then again, we probably don't have enough independent restaurants to warrant a review show), we don't have a public t.v. weeknight news show to offer real local news like Chicago Tonight. And, instead of critiquing our own big industry like Chicagoans Roger Ebert & Richard Roeper do, we create a million fawning celebrity-obsessed craptastic t.v. shows like Extra and Entertainment Tonight.

So to review - I don't understand this town:
1. The only thing really wrong with the newspaper industry is that its owned by public companies rather than local media families.
2. I don't understand people who think billionaires from other industries are the best future for the LAT.
3. I don't understand how people seriously think the blogosphere or other online sites can kill newspapers. Even when young people look for news coverage, they need a source for the news - and newspapapers' online sites are still 100x better for the straight news than the ramblings of the blogosphere.
4. As long as news companies continue to expand their online presence (think WaPo buying Slate), they will continue to be at the top of the news media heap.

Further reading:
"2 Southland billionaires make case to buy Tribune: Eli Broad, Ron Burkle meet with panel also reviewing offer by The Times' founding family." by James Rainey in today's LAT

Posted by cj at 04:32 PM | Comments (0)

January 14, 2007

Welcome, Those Who Hate Debate

This site is now included in a post that lists me among "7000+ Self-Hating Israel Threatening Jews." More details available on my political blog, Social Upheaval.

Posted by cj at 12:25 PM | Comments (1)

December 11, 2006

Larry King Redux...and Impt info on Women in LA

As a weekly contributor to the Courage Campaign's blog, I just posted on the United Way LA's report on women in the county. The extended post includes a summary of my question on the Larry King Live show. Their "answers" to my question bugged the hell out of me, so I'm glad I can vent about it in a larger forum than my solipsistic blogs. Now it's time for me to collapse.

Posted by cj at 11:43 PM | Comments (0)

December 06, 2006

Sad News....and Useless Gossip

Alas, James Kim died. It was sorta inevitable. I know that sounds terrible, but this great father & geek wander off into the freezing cold in sneakers to get help for his family after living for days on wild berries and burning his tires for warmth. How could it have gone well? Sigh. Thank goodness his wife and children survived. It's just such a terrible tale.

And now for the PSA: if you find yourself out of gas or otherwise stranded in cold weather, just stay put. Wait for someone to rescue you - don't go looking for help. Keeping an emergency kit in your car is a good idea.

Now for something completely different....the Washingtonienne's book came out last year. That'd be Jessica Cutler. I lived in DC when the blog broke. It made it to Media Bistro's homepage b/c she cancelled an appearance at a MB panel. Women who make money on their sexuality are still put down in the media, shockingly. Men - like McDreamy or McSteamy - are simply venerated. This of course is what is meant by gender equality.

I agree with All Things Considered's music critic - our societal discourse is going downhill. Popular music is slightly to blame. But only slightly. The MPAA film ratings - which allow a ton more violence than sex in movies; the advertising industry; Hollywood; and every other industry dominated by males are also to blame. Our paradigm is male-centric. That's why US society venerates individualism. We're too separated from our maternal instincts.

Posted by cj at 10:53 PM | Comments (0)

November 20, 2006

TVNewser's Front Page NYT Profile

The guy behind TVNewser got a profile on the front page of the NYT today. It's on my blogroll because at one point I was a cable news junkie and found it fascinating. Now it's just dull. What is fascinating is how much of a celebrity Brian Stelter is among the media elite. The publicists of every major news organization knows the 21-year senior from a Podunk college's class schedule. And the guy even wants to continue blogging about tv news while on vacation next year in China! Dude, seriously. I know blogging is an addiction, but really. You can step away from your "earnest" scribbling for one week. The 24 hour news cycle will continue without you reporting on its reporters.

"The Kid With All The News About the TV News," by Julie Bosman

Posted by cj at 06:43 PM | Comments (0)

October 19, 2006

LA Times: Too Lazy to Take New Pictures of Long Beach

On September 28, the LA Times had a story in the California section about the growing pains of Long Beach. It featured a picture of young people chillin in line for a club.

On October 19, the LA Times cover story for the Calendar Weekend section was on the great night life in Long Beach. It featured the exact same photo in its montage centerfold spread. The exact same photo. If I, a casual reader of the LA Times (along with two other daily newspapers) saw the discrepancy, what exactly was happening in the editing room?

Of course, this weirdness does not pan out in the online edition. For some reason, the paper is incapable of reproducing its own graphics, let alone accompanying photos for all articles. It's a shame really. The duplicated photo is highlighted on the right side in the online edition from Sept 28 and no photos accompany the online edition of the Calendar section cover story from Oct 19.

Posted by cj at 11:51 PM | Comments (0)

July 25, 2006

Mosing Thru Online Adverts & Marketing Posts

HP started a viral blog, FingerSkilz.tv, that didn't bother telling you it was a shill for a corporation for the first several months of existence. Today, Eric Pfanner wrote about it in the Advert section of the NYT. The site seems slightly amusing, but I have so many problems with corporate hacks pretending to be regular cube guys that I can't bring myself to actually watch any of the video feeds.

This, by the way, is part of HP's larger campaign to reposition its personal computers as just as cool, hip, and edgy as Apple. Many people are blogging about their 30 sec spots (also mentioned by the NYT). Ann Handley uses it as an example of 4 elements of a compelling campaign. (I don't watch much teevee these days besides the Sunday Morning Talks shows, so it's good to know Mark Cuban and I share an obsession for storing email. Too bad I'm not a millionaire and I've actually lost the majority of my ramblings...)

In other media news, there is something called The Mother Of All Links, that we all must rush out and find for our blogs / websites. Eric Ward doesn't really, fully explain what the hell he means by this; but since he's been doing web promotion since the dark ages of 1994, we're supposed to trust his experience on this one.

I breathed a sigh of relief when I read on Media Bistro that you don't have to blog everyday to be relevant. (Which actually led me down the rabbit hole to most of the links in this post.) Here's where Eric Kintz explains the 10 reasons why posting frequency doesn't matter anymore. (Btw, despite the frequency of my internet use, I'm afraid I'm still surfing Web 1.0 since I've stayed away from RSS feeds and am actually spending more time on email these days than anywhere else. But that's also a function of my volunteer gig.) I read a bunch of links from the Kintz article, but they weren't interesting enough to warrant a link from here.

...and that's the news from the blog beat...

Posted by cj at 07:21 PM | Comments (0)

July 01, 2006

The Forgotten Land of Metro Blogging

Before I moved to Chi-town, I searched out the city-focused blogs. I learned in DC that a love of place naturally leads to a love of place-based blogs. It's been awhile since I've read those blogs. Heck, it's been awhile since I've regularly read any blog. I know, I'm the worst kind of blogger - not contributing to the blogosphere readership myself. In my defense, I've been a tad busy running the free world (hah! just kidding...just trying to bring some organization to WILPF's program, an obsession which has taken over all of my free time).

In any event, I was recently alerted to the presence of an even better Chicago-focused blog, City in a Garden. It's tag line is "Chicago miscellany in bite-sized pieces." Having read all the entries (it just started this June), I can't wait for more.

And then of course, there's the Chicago Metroblog and Chicagoist. I have to say, these blogs kind of bore me. (Don't hate me for being honest!) I prefer reading The Reader or even Red Eye, for snippets about what's happenin here. And the aforementioned blogs really don't live up to the snarky standard of Gawker Media, but then again, they aint part of that empire & perhaps are trying to go for Midwest Nice over my preference of Coastal Snark.

This post is fast degenerating into drivel. I'd edit it to make it look nice and happy about the state of Chicago-focused blogging; but instead I'll just reiterate:

Go Read City in a Garden.

Posted by cj at 04:44 PM | Comments (0)

January 20, 2006

Random News About Blogs

The NYT wrote an article about WaPo supposedly closing a blog.

Headline: "Paper Decides to Close Blog, Citing Vitriol,"
Byline: Katharine Seelye
First Sentence: "The Washington Post shut one of its blogs yesterday, saying it had drawn too many personal attacks, profanity and hate mail directed at the paper's ombudsman."

I was intrigued by the article, since it seems strange to shutter a blog because of comments. Turns out, WaPo didn't shutter the blog, it simply turned off the comment section. I think the blog originally allowed candid volleys between editors and readers. But no matter active the comment section is, simply turning it off is not shutting down a blog. Perhaps the NYT chose its terminology from the WaPo blog entry announcing the end of comments: "As of 4:15 p.m. ET today, we have shut off comments on this blog indefinitely." Still, the NYT article was bad form and showed a lack of understanding of the media it is covering.

In other blog news, Seed Media is publishing a set of science blogs and tryin to get high end advertisers at scienceblogs.com The ad angle of this is discussed by Stuart Elliot in the NYT. Gotta say, the beta version is uninteresting. Perhaps the actual blogs are interesting but you'd think their main site would pull you in instead of repelling you.

Posted by cj at 07:09 AM | Comments (0)

January 17, 2006

doh!

Much more interesting Golden Globe blogging by Carpetbagger at the NYT. Oh well. Randomly responding to the teevee can be cathartic. Heck, am I really writing this for someone else or just to keep myself entertained? Clearly just myself.

Found that blog today, by the way...

Posted by cj at 10:50 PM | Comments (0)

January 16, 2006

Hunker Down and Carry On (pt 6)

Alright, I'll stop pushing post until 10 pm, when this lil show is over.

I'm so grateful that Walk the Line won. It's just a purely beautiful movie. John and June Carter Cash had a cinematic love story and it is almost unbelievable, which is why it's such a great film. Plus, you don't have to be a country music fan to appreciate their singing ability. And if you haven't seen the film, you truly can't appreciate the range achieved by Joaquin and Reese. Oh, and who knew the country man, James Keach, was introduced to the country gentry by his wife, Jane Seymour? (They named their twin boys after Johnny Cash and Christopher Reeves, family friends, fyi.)

Drama series...I've watched all of the series nominated. I have to say I enjoyed Lost more last year before they started opening up ten million cans of worms that really have nothing behind them other than to pull out the story line. But it is intriguing.

Cynthia Nixon looks like the Bride of Frankenstein. That hair color is atrocious. And her makeup is just scary. So sad for such a beautiful woman with such a gorgeous name. ;)

I really want to see Transamerica...I'm really glad Felicity Huffman won. Not that I've seen any of the movies in the category, but Felicity Huffman is just such an angelic soul; don't you get that feeling when she does acceptance speeches? If she has another acceptance speech, I hope she mentions transgender people by terminology and not just descriptions..

I really should see Capote. I've been wanting to see it for awhile. And I want to read some of his work, especially In Cold Blood. And who knew he wrote Breakfast at Tiffany's?

I'm so glad Brokeback Mountain won! It's such an epic. Such beautiful cinematography. But Anne Hathaway should not be seated next to Ang Lee again. She clearly got drunk early and was rather out of place with her extravagant enthusiasm. I just wonder how she managed to keep her lips so red with all the drinkin she must've done...

This awards show reminded me yet again of the dearth of meaty roles written for women. I don't believe we will topple the patriarchy in my lifetime, so I can only pray that better screenwriters are allowed to create films with real female roles. I also look forward to more television roles for women that do not revolve around motherhood, sluttiness, or another incarnation of the role of sex organs in a woman's life. Even Commander in Chief gets its "dramatic twist" from the obnoxious whining of POTUS' daughters.

Posted by cj at 09:30 PM | Comments (0)

GG, part 5

The Lion in Winter is such a gorgeous movie. Pure art. I wish I owned it...who knew his name is pronounced with a hard T? Anthony Hopkins made an interesting speech, but it made him seem older b/c he didn't have it prepared (was it just me, or did he sound a bit like a bumbling old man?)

Ang Lee seems like such a sweet man.

Johnny Depp is still such a gorgeous man. Joaquin Phoenix looks like a terribly troubled soul right now. Like he hasn't slept recently. WOOHOO! So glad he won! I really loved that movie. The combo of great acting and incredible singing was pure movie magic.

Posted by cj at 08:57 PM | Comments (0)

GG, part 4

[break for dessert]...

Jonathan Rhys Meyers is HOT.

Why are so many young actors wearing skinny ties? This isn't the 80s...

I think Entourage should've won for Best Comedy. Desperate Housewives is still interesting, but it isn't as good as it was...

I had never heard of most of the foreign films nominated, but I'm glad Paradise Now won...now to see the film. Unfortunately, it wont be available on DVD till the end of March and it aint playin in Chicago...

I think everyone's getting a lil more trashed b/c the presenters are sloppier and the thank you's are getting boring. Or maybe that is just what happens 2 hrs into a show...

They really keep some uninteresting awards for the middle bit. Sorta smart, except I think it would be better to have built up to some of those earlier awards. Oh well. Interesting that absolutely no one took this award seriously until they started televising it live.

So sad that the Elvis miniseries is not available on dvd yet...why, oh why did I not see it when it originally came on?!?!

Posted by cj at 08:25 PM | Comments (0)

GG, part 3

Should I just be adding to the bottom of the first entry? Prolly, but it's too late for that.

I think the US version of The Office is terrible; but Steve Carell is damn funny.

Miami Vice is being made into a movie?!?! huh?

Yay! The Constant Gardener is on dvd. At least there's one movie I don't need to shell out more money for...

Okay, I take it back. Reese looks good and the dress is a good size for her petite body. I just don't like the fringes at the bottom of the bodice. YAY!!! I'm so happy she won! That movie is beautiful and it's such a shame it didn't make more critics' top ten lists.

I wish I got Showtime, because I love Mary Louise-Parker and I'm sure I'd enjoy Weeds...but what happened? Why is she so thin? aww...she gave a shout out to John Spencer (she had a fab role on West Wing a few moons ago)...

Posted by cj at 07:53 PM | Comments (0)

Golden Globes, part 2

Can you be upset when someone wins whom you don't watch? I think so, since it shows that his show ain't interesting enough for me to even watch a single ep all the way through.

Commercial break. So, the pre-show. Reading the onscreen guide didn't tell me that NBC would have a red carpet show, so I flipped between E! and the TV Guide channel. E! won most of my time, since Isaac Mizrahi is a hoot. Unbelievable that he grabbed ScoJo's breast, looked down someone else's dress (was it Terri Hatcher?) and asked countless actors about their skivvies. He put most people at ease, and got them to genuinely laugh. Which was much better than his co-host, some sycophant who kept mentioning her Clooney compact (give it up!), and of course better than Joan and Melissa Rivers.

Why, oh why, is the beautiful Reese Witherspoon wearing such an ugly dress? Oh yes, it's vintage, darling. It's also seriously ugly. I'm glad her hubby was able to fly in for the day to escort her (he's in the middle of a shoot in Toronto).

I should read Empire Falls and watch the mini-series...
12 hour mini-series?!? Never heard of it...
Why did I never see Lackawanna Blues? I need to check that out..
Sleeper Cell, so the least interesting of this set...
Viva Blackpool...only seems interesting b/c it's British..
I should see Warm Springs...

I'm sick and I still want some of that Moet champagne they keep getting close-ups on.

Posted by cj at 07:36 PM | Comments (0)

Golden Globes Extravaganza!

Media News? Film? TeeVee? What Primary Category should this be in?*

How bout Bad Fashion, Worse Actresses, and Wondering Where the Real Actors are?

I'm thrilled that Sandra Oh won, as she is truly fabulous both in Grey's Anatomy and throughout her body of work. I only wish white America allowed more opportunities for women of color, especially Asian women, to shine. Plus, she was dressed to kill.

But wtf is up with Drew Barrymore?!?! She needed a bra!

And Geena Davis is fabulous and all; but I think her dress is a bit too tight. Her show is popcorn entertainment, just like Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy, but I'm a little over-dosed on destination teevee, so I've given up on Commander in Chief. It's just too obvious and without any of the political intrigue of West Wing.

*(Next day, decided to place them all in the same category; Media News.)

Posted by cj at 07:28 PM | Comments (0)

November 16, 2005

New Media: More on Blogs

Professor Daniel Drezner wrote a post on blogging, alerting me to the fact that Andrew Sullivan's blog will soon be moving to Time's website. I'm not clear where the blog will be. I usually don't look at Time's website, but I must say that the frontpage is way too cluttered for my taste.

Drezner also pointed me to this column by David Carr in the NYT. The crass nature of Gawker and its sister publications is why I rarely read them. I love snarky commentary and really should find the time to read more of it, but their filtering leaves a helluva lot to be desired.

I've been trying to determine if my lack of posting is because I'm reading less articles related to the topics of this blog or because my time is focused elsewhere. I think its a combination. I'm trying to do a lot of volunteer work, building a national campaign for WILPF, "Women Challenge US Policy: Building Peace on Justice in the Middle East," representing the campaign on the national board, dealing with the wackiness of my personal life, and applying for jobs in any major coastal city. (NYC is the focal point of my search, but I'd happily take a good job in LA, DC, Philly, Boston, or San Francisco.) Yet, I really enjoy writing these fluffier entries (fluffier than my other blog), so I'll try go back to daily posts.

Posted by cj at 08:15 AM | Comments (0)

November 15, 2005

Something to read...

after I sleep -
a LAT article about newsroom blogging, found via Media Bistro.

Posted by cj at 10:01 PM | Comments (0)

November 01, 2005

Success! The NYT Responds

An update on my status with the NYT - I got a call from Customer Service. Granted, there's no way for me to know for sure that the call was from Customer Service or Tech Support, but I decided to believe the guy. He's creating a new account for me, transferring my home delivery account, and also transferring the discount I received for paying my balance. Yay! I'll be getting another call in ten minutes to confirm the switch.

Posted by cj at 01:10 PM | Comments (0)

October 31, 2005

Cruel and Unusual Punishment from NYT

I'm labelling this Media News even though it is Personal. Here's the deal: if you create online access to your home delivery account with the NY Times, you can absolutely never delink your account. That means that your Member ID must remain the same. You can change your email address and you can change your password, but you can really never change your Member ID.

Why should this matter? Well, suppose your home delivery is a gift. And then suppose you stop talking to the person who gave you the gift. See my emails with NYT Customer Care for more on this conundrum...

I think this is a ridiculous system. My problems began because my home delivery service was a holiday present last year from my boyfriend, who managed my account through his Subscriber ID. We broke up and I wanted to continue my subscription - and pay for the months he didn't pay. So first I was told there was no way to transfer the home delivery account to a new email address. Then I was told if I had access to the account, to change the email address and password. Now you're telling me that for the rest of my life I have to look at my ex-boyfriend's Member ID because I want to continue uninterrupted home delivery of the Sunday NY Times.

This is cruel and unusual punishment and honestly, your system cannot be that archaic that you truly have no way to change my Member ID. Doesn't the money I pay every month count for something when it comes to Customer Service?

Your extremely frustrated loyal reader,
Cynthia J. Minster
Chicago, IL
-----------
On 10/31/05, NYTimes.com Customer Service wrote:
Thank you for contacting The New York Times on the Web.

Unfortunately, we are not able to change Member ID's.

There are two options: in order to change the Member ID that you registered with, you will need to cancel your existing subscription and re-register with the same e-mail address.
Alternatively, you could register again with a new e-mail address and request that we cancel your old ID.

Please note that if you have a home delivery account and access NYTimes.com with the same information, you can not cancel your ID at this time. Additionally, if you have purchased products or services on our site, those services are valid based on your current ID.

If you wish to cancel your current Member ID, please e-mail:
cancelcs@nytimes.com

and write:

Cancel Member ID
in the Subject line AND in the body of the message.

Once your original ID is cancelled (usually this is processed over night), you can then re-register with the same e-mail address.

We regret the inconvenience and hope you enjoy using our site. Do let us know if you have any additional questions or concerns.

Regards,

Leo Jones
NYTimes.com
Customer Service
www.nytimes.com/help

-----Original Message-----
Date: Monday, October 31, 2005 07:11 PM
To: help@nytimes.com (help@nytimes.com)
Subject: Registration

How can I change my Member ID? I would like it to be cjminster instead of carsp98. Thank you.

Posted by cj at 08:57 PM | Comments (0)

September 28, 2005

More Blog Navel Gazing

Nick Denton and Gawker Media are still going strong. He even threw a party for Arianna Huffington.

I'm not sure why his company fascinates me so much, other than the obvious jealousy factor. Clearly I no longer have the time to post many times in a day, but still. I've always wondered what causes people to flock to certain sites. I'm not really interested in rivalling gossip columnists, but why are my cultural and political thoughts less noticed than the rest of the blogosphere?

In less personal navel gazing, here's a link to the NY Observer article on Denton by Tom Scocca.

In related news, the Wall Street Journal is now printing lies. Well, not their own lies. Just lies of bloggers. According to Jessica Morgan and Heather Cocks, fugly stands for "frightfully ugly." We all know that is not the true f-word in that neologism.

So these chicks write about celebrity fashion blog using the same software I do. Except they're one of the most read blogs on the planet. www.gofugyourself.com.

I gotta admit - I'd get bored writing only snarky celebrity copy. So I do not want to diminish their success (including a show deal on E! and being the official MTV bloggers for the Academy Awards). Please, just admit what fugly stands for.

Posted by cj at 07:36 AM | Comments (1)

September 16, 2005

Online and T.V. Media News

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that MSN is talking to AOL about merging some of their internet biz, specifically putting MSN's new search enging onto AOL webpages and sharing the ad revenue. MSN would replace Google, which has supplied the search engine and ads for AOL since 2002.

Yahoo! is launching a solo journalist multimedia site reporting from active conflict zones. Why are the vast majority of war reporters white males? What can another white male tell us about the world? Why the hell are women not more involved in conflict resolution? We need more women involved in decision-making around the world and here in the U.S., not another Great White Hope For The World's Conflicts.

On Wednesday, Bush wrote a note to Condi asking permission to use the bathroom while at the UN. A Reuters photographer caught him writing the note on film. It's been around the world in newspapers and was on The Daily Show last night (which I missed because I was sick of their week-long Evolution theme).

NBC is desperately seeking viewers in Christian-heavy red states. "Three Wishes" and "My Name is Earl," represents their current pandering efforts. One thing is true - hicks aren't the only people who have stopped watching NBC religiously. Only things I make time for from their schedule is "West Wing" and "ER." And really, I should just give up on the ridiculous plot line of ER.

Posted by cj at 08:18 AM | Comments (0)