Net neutrality upside down

Today the Republican-dominated House voted to keep the government's hands off of the Internet or, at least, that is the story that is being widely promulgated. For example see here: House Republicans adamant that the government keep its hands off the Internet passed a bill Friday to repeal federal rules…

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Good Ads for Bad Stuff

I was watching a marvelous recent fundamentalist ad and my childhood training touched my consciousness. I was five when my parents first brought a TV into our house. They watched with me, and explained that any product that was worth getting didn't need to be advertised. Basically, they implanted the idea that commercials were plugs for stuff you don't need, or were too inadequate to sell on their own merits. I easily absorbed this meme. Anytime I see a product on the tube, it feels like a negative review. As I grew older this gave me some trouble, because I noticed some products that I already liked being advertised. But I got over it. Commercials these days do have some of the highest production values out there. And this one linked above is visually stunning and emotionally persuasive. But for a dark and dangerous version of the product they are selling: Prayer. I would have embedded it, but embedding was disabled. I suspect because the ad was being panned by rationalists around the web; not their intended audience. But for visual interest, here is an ad from a few years ago that appeals to the same people, The Gathering Storm: Really, go see the new one. Much more powerful. They are learning.

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Blogging the 2011 National Conference for Media Reform

I'm in Boston, attending the 2011 National Conference for Media reform sponsored by Free Press. The events will occur at the Seaport World Trade Center. I hope to post at least several blog posts based on the conference events. At this point, I'll merely post an image of the conference banner:

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