b-merry This Holiday Season

Everyone at b-fresh wishes you a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year!

Old Grey Lady Launches "Instant Op-Ed" Blog & Is Finally Not So Old Or So Grey, Sorta.

Via Editor & Publisher:

The New York Times is planning to launch a new "Instant Op-Ed" next month that will allow the paper's Web site to post immediate expert viewpoints on breaking news, according to Editorial Page Editor Andrew Rosenthal.

"Our Op-Ed now is very rapid response, but it is at the most the next day," said Rosenthal. "We are looking at a way to take advantage of the expandability of the Internet, the back and forth of it and the instantaneous nature of the Internet. Taking ideas that have existed in Op-Ed form and giving them a robust position online."

Rosenthal said three editors, among them former editorial writers, are teaming up with a Web producer to oversee the initiative. He said the team is gathering a list of numerous experts on a variety of issues to be ready to provide quick comments, essays and columns on issues or stories that come up in the news. He said the idea is to have a group that provides opinions soon after news occurs, with a solid Web space dedicated to them.

Actor Kirk Douglas, 92 Years Young, Is A Blogger On MySpace

Via Reuters:

For more than 60 years, Kirk Douglas portrayed death-defying tough guys and conquering heroes in the movies, and at age 92 he's not giving up.

But his latest challenge is taking place on the Internet instead of movie screens, as Douglas has become the oldest celebrity blogger on social networking Web site MySpace.

Even though he's not a teenager or 20-something and may not know the difference between a good book and Facebook, Douglas understands one key thing about the Internet -- it's a place for stimulating discussion, in this case between him and those who comment on his blog.

"I express my opinion, and I tell them that they don't have to agree with me because it's a free country," he said. "And their answers are very, very interesting."

In an online universe where blogs are often grammatically incorrect or stream-of-consciousness screeds, Douglas' distinguishes himself with reasoned entries that cover everything from acting (he calls it "a disease") to his memories of once spending Thanksgiving in Pakistan.

Read the whole thing.

When The Email Humor Mill Fires Up, You Have A Real World Communications Problem

I received three separate emails yesterday that contained the above picture.

The humor is crude, but I think it's rather funny. And when people laugh, they remember.

Meanwhile, today brings news that U.S. Senate support for the auto industry bailout is fading.

Food for thought.

Arguably One Of The The Most Effective Republican Presidential Ads Of 2008...

was not produced or promoted by the official McCain campaign.

Which is not to say that the creators of "Dear Mr. Obama" did not know what they were doing:



NYU professor Clay Shirky has his thoughts on the ad, which has received over 13 million views on YouTube, here.

h/t Andrew Sullivan

Memeorandum, The King Of News Aggregators

The Guardian has a piece up on Memeorandum.com, a little company that is eating Google News's lunch.