myMediaList.com
Looks like a handy way to keep the reading and listening list up to date. I discovered the tool at ChristWeb and thought I'd give it a try. I'm all in favor of anything that will make this slothful blogger even lazier. But I still refuse to go gently into that good night of RSS feed.
:: Andrew 09:46 + ::
...
:: Friday, February 13, 2004 ::
Technophobic quote of the day...I'm less afraid of my growing dependence on technology than I am of technology's growing dependence on me.
Douglas Rushkoff
:: Andrew 08:19 + ::
...
:: Thursday, February 12, 2004 ::
In which the intrepid blogger once again navel-gazes in the hall of mirrors that is the blogosphere
I was perusing Gideon Strauss's weblog the other day when I ran across this link to Terry Teachout's 15 notes on blogging. He compares blogs -- correctly, I believe -- to the "little" (usually literary) magazines of the 20th century, publications whose "influence will be disproportionate to their circulation," and describes blogs as "what online magazines were supposed to be."
Teachout's ninth point -- "Within a decade, blogs will replace op-ed pages" -- reminded me of something I read about blogging nearly two years ago in an actual paper publication. The May20052002 issue of Wired (thanks, Paul, for setting me straight) carried this wager between Dave Winer and Martin Nisenholtz, the CEO of New York Times Digital.
The bet: Weblogs will outrank theNew York Times Web site by 2007 (based on a Google search of five keywords or phrases reflecting the top five news stories).
Winer (who bets yes): "We're returning to what I call amateur journalism: created for the love of writing, without expectation of financial compensation. This process is fed by the changing economics of the publishing industry, which is employing fewer writers and editors. The Web has taught us to expect more information, not less, and that's the sea change the Times faces: how to remain relevant to a population that can do for themselves what the big publications won't. The "dumb it down" philosophy forces all stories through too narrow a channel to serve the diverse world we live in. When the Times covers my industry, for instance, it seems to know three stories - Microsoft is evil, Java (or whatever the topic du jour) is the future, and Apple is dead. All other stories are cast as one of those three. Bored readers are looking for alternatives, but because the paper is limited in its number of writers, it can't branch out to cover other angles. My bet says the tide has turned: Informed people will look to amateurs they trust for information they want."
The NYTimes guy (who bets no): "Readers need a source of information that is unbiased, accurate, and coherent. News organizations like theTimes can provide that far more consistently than private parties can. Besides, the weblog phenomenon does not represent anything fundamentally new in the news media: The New York Times has been publishing individual points of view on the Op Ed page for 100 years. In any case, nytimes.com and weblogs are not mutually exclusive. We would like to extend our ability to act as a host for all sorts of opinions, and weblog technology might well be useful in doing so. After all, in countries whose citizens don't enjoy First Amendment protection, weblogs are run by people who'd be considered professional journalists in the US. In its six years online, nytimes.com has been a center of innovation, and it'll continue to be, incorporating weblogs and whatever else will enable our reporters and editors to present authoritative coverage of the most important events of the day, immediately and accurately."
This is a tough call. People have been betting against the newspaper biz for years now, without success. And the New York Times is the paper of record, after all. Winer's argument tends to be a bit idealistic; he talks about "informed people," which is a small minority in our culture, and "amateurs," which is a majority of us. Do smart people really want to get their news from amateurs who are only as informed as their ability to create minature networks via the Internet? This goes back to Teachout's eighth point: "For now, blogs presuppose the existence of the print media. That will probably always be the case -- but over time, the print media will become increasingly less important to the blogosphere."
Hmm. Quite a conundrum. Ooh, is that a bit of lint I see?
:: Andrew 06:48 + ::
...
Britney heeds the (altar) call
Britney Spears and her mom reportedly stopped off at a church on the way to a photo shoot, "got caught up in the highly charged ceremony," and when the preacher gave the altar call, went and knelt, wept and hugged. (Link via Rock Rebel.)
:: Andrew 21:09 + ::
...
Queen of Denial? Moi?
You're Cleopatra!
Which Historical Ruler Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla
Link via Mr. Wright.
:: Andrew 20:53 + ::
...
Three wise men? How about just one Reuters journalist halfway familiar with the New Testament?
From this Reuters report, "Church rethinks three wise 'men'":In the authorized 17th century King James bible used by up to 70 million worshippers in Anglican churches around the world, the gift-bearing visitors are referred to as "The Three Wise Men."
Um, and where might that reference be? In my version of the authorized version, there is no reference to "three" wise men, magi, or anything of the sort in Matthew's account of the magi's visit.
Such sloppy reporting really sticks in my craw. It really does.
Link via Gregorian Rant.
:: Andrew 16:53 + ::
...
It's a girl, Mr. Hopkins, it's a girl
(Sung to the tune of "It's a Boy," from The Who's Tommy.) Congratulations, David and Melissa.
:: Andrew 08:30 + ::
...
More music lists, you say?
From The Village Voice: The critics' poll's top albums and singles of 2003. OutKast won both categories. I was disheartened that Streetcore didn't make the cut for the list of 40 best albums, but was happy to see Lucinda Williams' World Without Tears at No. 16, Warren Zevon's The Wind at No. 21, and two Johnny Cash albums.
Link via blogdex.
:: Andrew 08:19 + ::
...
Oh, no! Another song list!
Just in time for Valentine's Day, Madonna's "Justify My Love" has been voted "the top tune for a night of passion," Ananova reports. The poll was conducted by VH1, but I can't find news of it on the VH1 website. No. 2 was Marvin Gaye's "Sexual Healing." Hmmm. I think Gaye's "Let's Get It On" would be a more appropriate tune.
I think I feel another list coming on...
:: Andrew 07:53 + ::
...
Robert Randolph: "Everybody wants to be like Jesus"
Good interview on the VH1 website with steel guitarist Robert Randolph, a rising star with a strong Christian background. Like Evanescence, P.O.D., U2 and countless other Christian-influenced rock and pop musicians, Randolph is forgoing the CCM route to find success in the mainstream. "Over the last few years," writes Jim Macnie for VH1.com, "Robert Randolph has exercised his spirituality in both churches and barrooms, bringing a near delirious musical intensity to each venue."
A snippet from the interview, "Robert Randolph: Roadhouses of the Holy":VH1: Obviously the songs are positive, but do you often have religious thoughts? Some press pieces paint you as being a real church-oriented dude.
RR: I was taught what to do and what not to do in a religious way. I keep that with me everyday. When I was a kid I went to church; but like everyone else, I was on the corner doing all the stupid stuff: fighting, selling, and those kinds of things. But as you get older, you realize that ain’t the right way. People die around you. So you use all that church teaching. In everyday life I do walk round with that in the back of my mind, because God is in control of all our lives - whether we accept it or not, he is. At any point in time he could take it away from us, so I keep that with me. I’m not the most holy guy or most religious guy, but I know my teachings. Everybody wants to be like Jesus. But they wait until the bad things happen to them and then they’re like, “Oh God, please help me, I don’t know what to do!” instead of saying a prayer one day and helping them get to the piece of mind that they need. I’m not going to get up there and sing a song about bitches and hos. First off, that’s disrespectful to women. But in general all that stuff is stupid to me. I don’t know why people even promote that stuff.
:: Andrew 07:48 + ::
...
:: Tuesday, February 10, 2004 ::
The greatest story ever told...
Nevermind The Passion The greatest spiritual movie ever made is ... drum roll ... Groundhog Day?
Yes, according to this Feb. 2 article from UK's Independent. "[W]hat is usually described as a romantic comedy has become a crucial teaching tool for various religions and spiritual groups, who see it as a fable of redemption and reincarnation..." The story line of the 1993 Bill Murray-Andie MacDowell romantic comedy apparently blends elements of Buddhism, Judaism and Christianity. More so, even, than The Matrix movies, apparently. Guess I'll have to rent this movie again and watch it. Over, and over, and over...
Link via YouthSpecialties' YS Update newsletter.
:: Andrew 07:28 + ::
...
Rock'n'roll prayers
I'm listening to Bruce Springsteen's The Rising right now, for the first time in months, and all because of a blogpost about prayer. (Thanks to Charlie Wear for the find.)
Bobbymac writes beautifully about how The Boss leads 20,000 in prayer during a concert in Barcelona captured on DVD.During the song "My City Of Ruins" (which is an awesome song of intercession), as Bruce sang the lines:"With these hands, I pray for Your strength, Lord
With these hands, I pray for Your love, Lord
With these hands, I pray for the faith, Lord
C'mon rise up! Rise up!"
...over 20,000 people raised their hands to the sky and sang these words at the top of their lungs. Imagine: Bruce Springsteen led literally thousands of people in prayer during this tour! Church cynics would disparage this with comments like "yes, but who were they praying to?" To me, this kind of comment represents the height (or depth) of evangelical arrogance. The same God who was so quick to respond to Cornelius' prayer in Acts 10 is the same God who heard the prayers in Barcelona, and the other 82 cities that "The Rising" tour came in contact with.
Think of it: thousands upon thousands of people, all over the world, calling out to God in prayer. I wonder how God will answer? I wonder how many of us Christians will get out from behind the safety of the four walls of the church, and actually witness how God is already moving among the nations?
You should read the entire post. While I sing another prayer along with Bruce:May your strength give us strength
May your faith give us faith
May your hope give us hope
May your love give us love
:: Andrew 08:58 + ::
...
:: Monday, February 09, 2004 ::
CD giveaways at MusicSpectrum
Benjamin over at MusicSpectrum has been giving away music CDs. The latest offering: a Christian heavy metal CD to the first to email a request. More offerings to come, so check back often.
:: Andrew 07:51 + ::
...
The Passion: good news (stories) beneath the surface
Despite all the coverage Mel Gibson's new movie The Passion has already received -- a lot of coverage, even with more than two weeks to go before its debute -- Kelly McBride, ethics writer at The Poynter Institute, thinks journalists might be missing a couple of important news pegs that demonstrate the mainstreaming of the U.S.'s evangelical brand of Christianity.
First, there's the relationship between Israel and evangelical Christians. "For Catholics and mainline Protestants, relations with Jews are rooted in the history of injustice for which Christians are directly and indirectly culpable," writes McBride. For evangelical Christians, however, the most important relationship with Israel is based on the future. "More specifically, Evangelical Christians believe the re-establishment of Israel as a nation is a key step toward the second coming of Christ and the End of Time. Where some Catholics might be more apt to talk about the Holocaust, some born-again Christians are more likely to discuss the political importance of the Gaza Strip."
The second news peg -- and more relevant than the first, to my way of thinking -- is evangelical Christianity as a marketing force. Mel Gibson is capitalizing on the brand loyalty that Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins (the Left Behind guys) and the makers of The Omega Code had recognized earlier: "Evangelical Protestants are well-networked and well-organized, and Gibson has approached them at a variety of conventions and gatherings. Gibson's use of that infrastructure may be yet another indication that this slice of American culture that often feels maligned and marginalized is becoming part of the establishment." (Veteran religion reporter Terry Mattingly comments about Gibson's grassroots PR campaign in a recent post on his new weblog, GetReligion.org. I found the blog via Brad Boydston and u2sermons.)
Neither story is being covered very well by the mainstream media, and when they do pick up on McBride's hint, the coverage will no doubt reinforce the prevailing caricature of evangelical Christianity. We're all obsessed by the "end times'; we all vote Republican; we love our guns; we hate homosexuals; etc.
:: Andrew 10:25 + ::
...
The president's interview
I missed all of President Bush's interview with Tim Russert yesterday morning, because I was on the way to church. (I miss a lot of Sunday morning TV programming because of church, but somehow I survive.) But here's Andrew Sullivan's roundup -- with a money quote from Peggy Noonan -- which I repeat here merely to give the illusion that I am an astute observer of the political scene:The president seemed tired, unsure and often bumbling. His answers were repetitive, and when he tried to clarify them he tended to make them worse. He did not seem prepared. He seemed in some way disconnected from the event. When he was thrown the semisoftball question on his National Guard experience--he's been thrown this question for 10 years now--he spoke in a way that seemed detached. "It's politics." Well yes, we know that. Tell us more.
Joshua Claybourn also comments on the interview.
One thing I really don't understand is why he went on "Meet the Press" in the first place. Sure, his numbers are falling. Sure, Iraq is a huge quagmire. Sure, the Democrats are beating up on him. But I think his timing was off on this one. He does not do well on television. He should wait until closer to the conventions. This manuever makes Bush look reactionary and more unpresidential than usual.
:: Andrew 08:32 + ::
...
The Grammys
I missed most of the Grammy Awards last night because I didn't get home from church in time. (I miss a lot of Sunday evening TV programming because of church, but somehow I survive.) I tuned in long enough to watch Evanescence win best new artist (hurray for them), the Samuel L. Jackson sermon on funk (and boy, does George Clinton look old or what?), and Warren Zevon's son pick up the Grammy for his deceased father. I missed the Beatles tribute, and went to bed before the grand finale. I'm glad OutKast won album of the year but disappointed their "Hey Ya" didn't win record of the year.
Here's the complete list of this year's winners.
:: Andrew 08:20 + ::
...
Simon Dawes, 
