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The Number One Killer of Children: Traffic
Daily Download Team | May 4th, 2012
Via Flickr user watchsmart
Every year, 1.3 million people around the world are killed by traffic – 3,500 people a day. Two a minute.
But the impact on children is the most profound. Traffic is the number one cause of death for children aged 5 to 14 around the world, skewed far out of proportion by deaths in developing countries. India alone accounts for 12% of the children killed.
Hackers in Combat Zones Put Media – and Sources – at Risk
Daily Download Team | May 4th, 2012
Via Flickr user Freedom House
The Columbia Journalism Review has an interesting recap of recent incidents in Syria and Libya that echo beyond the walls of media institutions.
Government agents in both countries compromised the computers and surveilled internet usage in an apparent effort to not only track the reporters, but to learn the identity of the reporters’ sources.
Why Die, When You Can Download?
Daily Download Team | May 4th, 2012
Via Flickr user rubber bullets
It’s not quite the same as being able to walk the surface of the Earth, but digital technology could be the closest thing we have for a cure for death.
Downloadable consciousness – the idea that one could copy his memories, feelings, and thought processes as you would a computer file – could provide a breakthrough, with computers large enough to store human memories are also expected to be completed in 2017.
The Art of Insulting Without Offending in Politics
Daily Download Team | May 4th, 2012
With President Obama’s recent use of “knuckleheads” to describe the Secret Service members who partied with Colombian prostitutes, and with political rhetoric growing heated in an election year, mastering the art of the political put-down is a useful skill.
Seau’s Suicide: Another Warning for the NFL
Daily Download Team | May 3rd, 2012
Via Flickr user Dave Sizer
The suicide of San Diego Chargers star Junior Seau is another in a long line of tragedies befalling former NFL players. The similar suicide of Dave Duerson last year, the prevalence of early-onset dementia, and rampant substance abuse are are symptoms of a core problem that the league is just starting to address: long-term physical and emotional damage wrought by the game.
For the Blind, the iPhone is a Life-Changer
Daily Download Team | May 3rd, 2012
Via Flickr user superstrikertwo
The announcement of a new phone that only had one button caused a great deal of concern in the blind community. Touching a piece of glass, after all, makes it hard to know what command you’re giving.
Since then, an entire community has been built, leveraging the iPhone’s flexible platform as a mechanism to greatly enrich the lives of blind people.
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Twitter’s International Intrigue
May 6th, 2012Sometimes Twitter seems unstoppable.
No matter what the news event, tweeting now plays a key role. Once dismissed as a pedestrian toy for the bored to record what they had for lunch, the social network is now part of the media and political bloodstream.
On Sunday, Twitter users managed to circumvent a French embargo on election results to tell the world that Nicolas Sarkozy had been booted from the presidency. The tweeters used code names to avoid running afoul of the law. Sarkozy was either Rolex (his opulent lifestyle with Carla Bruni) or the wine Hungarian Tokaji (his pere is Hungarian). Francois Hollande, France’s incoming president, was called Gouda cheese, among other things. The hashtag: #radiolondres, for a BBC World War II service.
The reason for the subterfuge: France imposes fines up to $99,000 for releasing election results before 8 p.m.
Days earlier, Twitter users also outsmarted the Chinese regime as the case of dissident Chen Guangcheng played out during Hillary Clinton’s visit to Beijing.
Video Debate: Are Gadgets Driving Us Away From Real Conversation?
April 23rd, 2012The Daily Download team discusses Sherry Turkle’s New York Times article, “The Flight From Conversation.”
Ethical Shopping and the Guilt Trip: A Love Story
April 27th, 2012Fashioning Change is already beta-testing a great site called Wear This, Not That, which invades any big-brand shopping sites you may be browsing and offers ethical alternatives to clothing items you may be interested in. You can also use it from the Fashioning Change site, where you can select a number of fashion retail brands and search for better alternatives.
The tool will also tell you what good you’ll be doing by buying from Fashioning Change instead of the mainstream option. For example, if I buy a United By Blue messenger bag, instead of one from J Crew, I not only save $19, but I also give my money to a company that “removes 1 pound of trash from oceans for each product sold” and get a product that is 100 percent organic cotton. On the other hand, the site tells me, J Crew has a lack of transparency in its supply chain and no commitment to eco-friendly manufacturing.
Kurtz and The Wrap’s Sharon Waxman on Excessive Media Mogul Pay
April 27th, 2012Compensation for media executives is skyrocketing – and occasionally bears no relationship to the success of the company. Our Howard Kurtz discusses with The Wrap’s Sharon Waxman.
Fast Chat: Romney’s Gay Spokesman Quits; Dan Rather Still at War; New BlackBerry
May 2nd, 2012Lauren and Howard discuss the controversial resignation of Romney spokesperson Richard Grenell and Dan Rather’s return to the news.
Video: Grover Norquist Juggles the Issues
May 2nd, 2012Grover Norquist is a serious guy. A really serious guy. He’s never held elective office, and most people don’t know his name. Yet more than any other human being on the planet, Norquist drives the bus when it comes to pressuring Congress into keeping taxes low.
Turns out, he has a silly side.
Howard Kurtz and I sat down with the billionaires’ best friend and founder of Americans for Tax Reform in his downtown Washington office to get his reaction on a piece novelist Stephen King wrote for The Daily Beast titled “Tax Me, for F@%&’s Sake!”
The serious stuff is here:
And then, well, there’s this video I took with my iPad as we were packing up to leave.
KeepHerHappy Remembers to Buy Her Flowers When You Probably Won’t
May 4th, 2012You plug in the important dates for your relationship, pay a subscription fee, and it’ll take all that pesky remembering nonsense out of remembering to order flowers.
Each KeepHerHappy subscription is good for three pre-set flower deliveries: one for Valentine’s Day, her Birthday, and for your anniversary. Subscriptions are starting at an introductory price of $99 per year — which, considering how expensive last minute arrangements can be, is surprisingly cheap. Oh! And it includes delivery costs and a free vase with each order.
And don’t worry, guys: Unless you slip up and mention it, there’s no way for your gal to know that the deliveries are part of a pre-scheduled subscription service. KeepHerHappy keeps their branding as far away from the actual deliveries as possible, thereby ensuring you score the maximum number of thoughtful-boyfriend/husband points.
Dumbest Post – A Long Rant About Juice
May 4th, 2012Last weekend, media critic Michael Wolff was asked to leave a New York City movie theater when he refused to give up a bottle of juice he had with him. The concept of sneaking food into a theater is not unusual. Wolff’s reaction was.
The Number One Killer of Children: Traffic
May 4th, 2012Every year, 1.3 million people around the world are killed by traffic – 3,500 people a day. Two a minute.
But the impact on children is the most profound. Traffic is the number one cause of death for children aged 5 to 14 around the world, skewed far out of proportion by deaths in developing countries. India alone accounts for 12% of the children killed.
Hackers in Combat Zones Put Media – and Sources – at Risk
May 4th, 2012The Columbia Journalism Review has an interesting recap of recent incidents in Syria and Libya that echo beyond the walls of media institutions.
Government agents in both countries compromised the computers and surveilled internet usage in an apparent effort to not only track the reporters, but to learn the identity of the reporters’ sources.
