Dennis D. McDonald (ddmcd@ddmcd.com)consults from Alexandria Virginia. His services include writing & research, proposal development, and project management.
I’m investigating ways to give up cable television due to the expense and lack of selectivity. This morning I applied for two coupons for analog to digital converter boxes, figuring I should be ready.
Why do we use media?
What got me thinking about this was a recent post by Robert Scoble about the “real-time web.” Scoble’s focus was on the technical standards and processes that are evolving to support the use of the web for instantaneous two way communication.
Betsy Schiffman’s Americans Can’t Live Without Their Cable TV describes how unlikely it is that Americans, despite dire economic circumstances, won’t be giving up Cable TV subscriptions any time soon.
Caution: this blog post contains political content, which I normally avoid.
On March 12, 1998, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued an order that established requirements for installing “V-Chips” into televisions 13 inches or greater manufactured after Jan. 1, 2000.
I can hear it now. I’m walking my dog this Saturday morning along the creek near my house, listening to my iPod as I go. I’ve clicked up the latest On The Media from NPR. And so it starts:
On September 10 USA Today ran a story called Cable channels undergo TV make overs that reviewed the pressure the cable TV industry is under as subscription growth slows and programmers seek to attract new viewers through means such as sexing up individual programs, renaming old networks to appeal to broader audiences, and playing around with what individual "tiers" include.
A couple of nights ago we had dinner out on our deck overlooking the yard we have been landscaping over the past few years. It was a beautiful evening. We enjoyed the breeze, the bird songs, and the conversation. As darkness fell, I brought out some kerosene lamps to provide some gentle illumination. My son brought out his laptop and entertained us with selected YouTube videos streamed from the house's wireless system.