The New York Times reports on good news for all who operate message boards and/or blogs that allow discussion. The California Supreme Court said yesterday that Internet publishers could not be held liable if they posted defamatory comments written by others. The court, in a unanimous decision, said those claiming defamation could sue only the original source of the comments, not publishers or distributors, even if …
Turning Cars Into Amps And Other Rabbit Tricks
When product design is a priority and a growth engine for a company, an advertiser's job becomes a cakewalk, for the designs sell themselves. iPod is one such creation, so is the VW Bug. I get the feeling VW designers like to ask themselves, "What is a car?" Their answer is clearly, "More than a transportation device." In VW's latest turn, the vehicle is now a license to perform. It's the driver's very own stage, …
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Less Pulp? More Nutrients!
Amy Gahran writing on Poynter's E-Media Tidbits provides some analysis of a recent Technorati report on bloggers influence or perceived authority. Technorati measures influence by counting inbound links to blogs. Technorati's ranking mostly reflects popularity and the effects of posting frequency. In some cases these may correlate with influence or authority -- but not always. First of all, people link to blogs for …
For Whom The Bridge Tolls
Ad Age is reporting that San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge is looking for corporate sponsors to help subsidize the landmark's $87 million deficit. Local ad luminaries don't like the idea. Paul Venables says having the name of an out-of-town company on the bridge "would be horrible" and "make a mockery of our city." Hal Riney called the sponsorship concept "appalling." Rich Silverstein, who bicycles over the bridge …
I’m Makku
Information Architects explains the cultural nuances native to Japan and how they influence the making of Apple's "I'm a Mac" campaign. The ads are not as obvious as the western originals. In Japan you need to be more subtle. In Japan you’re considered particularly dumb and obnoxious if you’re caught bragging with your qualities, and smart and nice if you play it down. The western Mac ads would backfire in Japan (the …
Bingaman’s Blues
Mississippi State professor Kate Bingaman takes a close look at her own consumption, placing herself in the middle of her criticism and her art. According to The New York Times Magazine, she does not see her work so much as a negative reaction to consumer culture as an attempt to cope with it on its own terms. As an active participant in her own cycle of obsessive consumption, it seems to me, Bingaman is the …
OutEverything But OutStanding
I saw a Mitsubishi Outlander TV spot last night. It was a page torn directly from Nissan's playbook. Sadly, I don't see a version on YouTube yet. But the "Out Everything" camapign is clearly a derivative of Nissan's type-driven "Shift" campaign. The Auto Channel describes it this way: The Out Everything campaign kicks off with a 30-second television commercial taking the viewer from starting the car through its many …
Jason Moves To Greener Pastures
TechCrunch and The New York Times are both reporting on Jason Calacanis' resignation from AOL, the company that paid 25 mil. for his firm, Weblogs, Inc. Jason Calacanis, the outspoken blogger and entrepreneur who ran AOL’s Netscape division, resigned on Thursday in the wake of the firing of AOL’s chief executive, Jonathan Miller. Mr. Calacanis sold his company, Weblogs Inc., a network of blogs, to AOL last year and …
