I'm Tanja Barnes, the creator of the Writers’ Strike Chronicles podcast that was recorded and uploaded from November 2007 to February 2008.
Will you guys (or a reasonable facsimile and representative thereof) appear on my podcast and have a chat? I'm not a WGA member, but in an effort of full disclosure, as a member of SAG I am WGA sympathetic. I'd really, really love it if you came on my show and answered a few questions. I want to help you tell your story. And just so's you know, you would be considered a guest on my show and afforded all the respect due as someone invited into my own home.
Think about it.
This is an open invitation.
2007 showed us that video isn’t just for aggregators—it’s fundamental to the Web. The last 12 months saw an explosion in video publishing across a wide array of websites. Video is becoming so pervasive that if you have a web property without video something is wrong with it.Read the entire article here.
11.30pm GMT / 6.30pm ET
FCC opens door for US media consolidation
Elana Schor in Washington Tuesday December 18, 2007
Guardian Unlimited
The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) lifted limits on media ownership today, clearing the way for Rupert Murdoch and other magnates to buy newspapers and TV stations in the same city.
The FCC's vote fires the first shot in a high-stakes battle with members of Congress from both parties who have accused the agency of aiding the consolidation of US media, to the detriment of minority businesses and the public interest.
FCC chairman Kevin Martin pushed through the relaxed ownership rules with the backing of fellow Republicans, while the two Democratic commissioners pleaded with Congress to "save the FCC from itself".
"In the future, the Web will seem like it's everywhere, not just on our desktop or mobile device. As LCD technology becomes cheaper, walls of rooms, and even walls of buildings, will become display surfaces for information from the Web. Much of the information that we receive today through a specialized application such as a database or a spreadsheet will come directly from the Web. Pervasive and ubiquitous web applications hold much opportunity for innovation and social enrichment. They also pose significant public policy challenges. Nearly all of the information displayed is speech but is being done in public, possibly in a manner accessible to children. Some of this information is bound to be personal, raising privacy questions. Finally, inasmuch as this new ubiquitous face of the Web is public, it will shape the nature of the public spaces we work, shop, do politics, and socialize in."
"At least seven groups of striking WGA members are shopping internet-based ventures along the lines of Will Farrell’s FunnyOrDie.com, reports Los Angeles Times. The business models, however, have yet to be worked out. Some see these ventures as a breeding ground for content that could then be licensed to TV, a la Quarterlife. Others see them as self-sustaining online-only plays, possibly tying into social networking sites for distribution."
"Once the strike is resolved, some writers undoubtedly will opt for the relative security of the studio system, but as the article makes clear, a growing number are now committed to going into business for themselves."
1) “Mobile broadband is becoming the medium to bridge the digital divide worldwide,” said James Wade, managing general partner, M/C Venture Partners. “Many people in the world, even developed economies, don’t have regular, affordable access to the Internet for a variety of reasons, but mobile phones and the business models around them are profitably penetrating even the low income sectors of the economy. Now more than ever, people of many means can use mobile phones to enable their lives. Quite simply, mobile broadband will democratize communications.”
Available at
The Writers' Strike Chronicles by Tanja Barnes • Banner photo by Eric Appel
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