Mea Vita: Carpe Diem

1. The Invention of Writing (Circa 3200 BCE)

• What Changed: Oral traditions gave way to written records, enabling information to be preserved and transmitted across generations and distances.

• Impact: Writing centralized knowledge within institutions like temples and royal courts but also democratized access to ideas over time. Societies had to learn to value written contracts, laws, and literature over oral storytelling.

2. The Printing Press (15th Century)

• What Changed: Johannes Gutenberg’s invention made mass production of books possible, transforming knowledge from an elite privilege into a public good.

• Impact: The spread of books, pamphlets, and newspapers fueled the Renaissance, Reformation, and Scientific Revolution. However, it also necessitated new skills, like literacy, and created challenges such as the dissemination of propaganda.

3. The Telegraph and Telephone (19th Century)

• What Changed: Communication became nearly instantaneous over long distances.

• Impact: The flow of information accelerated commerce, politics, and personal relationships. However, it also created a demand for new protocols and etiquette around remote communication.

4. Mass Media (20th Century)

• What Changed: The rise of radio, television, and film centralized information dissemination, placing control in the hands of a few corporations or governments.

• Impact: Mass media shaped public opinion and culture on an unprecedented scale. Societies grappled with issues like censorship, propaganda, and the influence of advertising.

5. The Internet (Late 20th Century)

• What Changed: The internet democratized access to information and gave individuals the tools to publish content globally.

• Impact: The transition required societies to navigate new risks, such as cybercrime, misinformation, and digital divides, while also embracing the possibilities for global collaboration and education.

6. The Rise of Algorithms and AI (21st Century)

• What Changed: Algorithms began curating information for individuals, creating “filter bubbles” and personalized content streams.

• Impact: This shift parallels earlier technological revolutions but adds complexity due to the opacity of algorithmic decision-making and its potential for bias or manipulation.

Societal Adjustments Across Transitions:

• Critical Thinking: Similar to learning literacy after the printing press, people now need “digital literacy” to evaluate the credibility of online information.

• Ethical Norms: Societies create new rules or guidelines for acceptable behavior in response to technological shifts, such as copyright laws or content moderation policies.

• Power Dynamics: Each transition alters who holds power over information and who can challenge authority, from the scribe to the independent journalist to the social media influencer.

These transitions often involve disruption, but they also open opportunities for progress, creativity, and greater inclusivity. The key challenge for each era is learning to wield new tools responsibly.

This past Tuesday, I was tickled when a local news TV station asked me to share my thoughts about a 200 sq ft furnished shed which was being offered for rent for more than $1,000/month.



Throughout this week, my interview was syndicated to about 100 news outlets. Friends and colleagues, some of whom I hadn't had contact with for many years, reached out to me to say that they saw it on CNN or San Jose Mercury News to name a few.

The Story Behind the Story

About six years ago, I learned that the story, behind the story, is sometimes as interesting as the story itself. Friends who contacted me wanted to know how I ended up on the news. Unlike last time, I did not contact the news. I was simply walking home from a local bakery, with some fresh bread, when I saw a guy recording himself on a video camera. Initially, since he was standing in front of a house with a "For Sale" post, I thought he was a real estate agent.

As I walked by, he asked me if I knew about the shed that was being offered for rent for more than $1,000/month. I told him that I heard about it, a day earlier, when the posting went viral on Reddit. He then introduced himself and asked if he could interview me for his story. Of course, I said yes. He placed a mic on my shirt, turned on the camera, and stood next to it while we had a casual conversation. And then, viola, I was on the Channel 10 Six O'Clock News.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

– First Amendment to the United States Constitution

Foreword

We're at the point where entertainment has become more real than reality and we now suffer from information obesity.

Exercise: Fill in the blank:
"Houston, we__________ a problem."

Summary

Freedom of the Press

Why is a free press so important? Like the rest of the Constitution, its primary purpose is to give rights to individual citizens while limiting the power of the federal government. Freedom of the press is a key part of this right to prevent the government from interfering with the distribution of information and opinions.

Reducing TV News Anxiety

It seemed highly likely, this past Thursday morning, that Apple's market capitalization was going to break through $1 trillion. When I saw that milestone quickly approaching, I sent an e-mail to a local news station which opened with the following:

Many of us continually watch terrible news like incidents of terrorist attacks or mass shootings. What we really should do, instead, is stop watching cable TV news and, perhaps, watch This is Your Brain on Terrorism.

On the surface, watching cable TV news (left or right) makes sense because we want to be informed and safe. But, this type of news ends up having the opposite effect, especially if we're not involved in the incident. We know that TV news is important, but we forget that, by definition, news is something that almost never happens. Because shocking news brings an audience, it ends up being broadcast nonstop which tricks us into thinking that it's a common problem.

Just to be clear, no one wants mass shootings – even the NRA doesn't want mass shootings. But, the reaction of people who immerse themselves in this news, and feel helpless at the senseless violence, end up doing nothing effective to make things better. Their typical reaction is anger, talk, and posts to social media where they express their fury without doing anything to fix the problem or its side-effects that spread the fear.

My point of this post is to show you that continually watching cable TV news coverage does very little to help the situation and actually causes more unnecessary anxiety.

If you're scared and you continue to watch scary news then your fear will increase. Ask yourself what would happen if you didn't watch cable TV news. Instead of watching, read a couple news articles, ideally from different sources, and then go about your day while being thankful for how fortunate you are.

Do Something

Feeling helpless? Then find a cause where you can make a difference. Want to right a wrong in the world? Do a YouTube search for "puppy torture" or "puppy abuse," etc., and then foster a pet or do volunteer work. Want to join a big team to right the wrongs on a global scale? Then run for office, enlist in the military or join an NGO. Make the world a better place. At what point does emotional protesting become useless complaining? It seems that the people who complain the most tend to do the least. Stop complaining and start doing. 

Nowadays, I visit my local newspaper's website and I'm playing whack-a-mole as I x-out pop-up ads. Then, after reading about a dozen stories, I end up needing to either go into private browser mode or use Safari's Reader Mode (shift-command-R) to get around their paywall (the latter only works on unsophisticated news sites).

I understand why newspapers need to do this and it's a tough business they're in because nearly all the news on their website can be found elsewhere. Plus, consumers aren't used to paying for news, making it even harder to charge for online subscriptions. Paying for a newspaper subscription was a different story in the "old days" since the customer was buying atoms (a product, the physical newspaper), not electrons (a service, the online news).

The thing about newspapers is they, in particular, had an atypical revenue model before ten years ago.  Back then, their revenue came primarily from business display ads and consumer classifieds. Interestingly enough, while home subscriptions contributed to their revenue, it did so in an odd way. Specifically, newspaper companies realized that each time they raised the price of their newspaper, subscriptions would drop off. But, even though the newspaper was generating less revenue from subscriptions, in the short term, they kept their display ads and classified ads prices the same. Therefore, they'd generate the same revenue from their primary source (ads) while printing fewer newspapers. Then, their sales people would start calling up former subscribers and new customers to get them to subscribe.

What About 24 Hour TV News?

I get virtually all of my news online, almost all in print, because I don't have a TV. The nice thing about getting my news all in print is that, until an article is updated, there no new news to report. Whereas, on TV, the news stations will rebroadcast the same video footage, repeatedly, while having experts speculate on matters. Additionally, TV news programs frequently add video and sound effects (moving backgrounds, swooshing graphics, music, slow-motion video, etc); none of which is vital to the facts of the news story. Watching the same harrowing video, on TV, over and over again, does nothing to ease the public's angst. As a matter of fact, it makes it worse; to the point of addiction, especially in cases of terrorism.

Q: So, what's the best thing to do to deal with news, especially on terrorism?

A: Watch this Vox video...

San Diego video artist Cy Kuckenbaker.

I heard this piece on KPBS while driving a couple days ago. It's about a San Diego video artist who spends up to two hours editing for each second of video he produces. You've probably seen his work.

What's interesting is his art is displayed on his website, cysfilm.com, yet the KPBS reporter makes no mention of this fact. Instead, the reporter directs you to kpbs.org.
Obviously, the goal of KPBS is to direct listeners from the audio program, since that's their primary medium, to their website to generate revenue via ads. So, I somehow feel that a key portion of the reporting is missing, specifically where Kuckenbaker's art is on display.

Imagine an article about the Mono Lisa on exhibit in San Diego without any mention of where it will be displayed other than, "You can see it for yourself at kpbs.org."

Author: Joe Moreno

I have seen the future of digital publications and it looks like Flipboard and Livestand.

Today, I had a first hand experience with citizen journalism. I think of it as pro-am journalism where both a professional and amateur report the news.

This morning, when driving from Carlsbad to San Clemente, I was stuck in gridlock on I-5 ("the Five"), northbound, which was backed up for more than a dozen miles at the Las Pulgas exit of the Marine Corp base at Camp Pendleton. Since this 17 mile section of the Five passes through a military base, there are no public detours between the two towns that border on Camp Pendleton's north and south sides. But, fortunately for me, I still have a military sticker on my car which let me cut through Camp Pendleton to avoid the traffic.

After cutting through Camp Pendleton I was headed back onto the Five at Las Pulgas, via a service road, when I passed the wreck which caused the accident. I made a U-turn and parked next to the truck to snap these photos in the parking lot where the flatbed truck was parked.




After taking these photos, I stopped at a tea shop in San Clemente, a few minutes later, and posted one photo to Twitter. Immediately, a reporter from the North County Times saw my photo and tweeted me to ask if she could use it to accompany an article about the accident.


I told her that I has several photos which I sent to her.


She ended up using two of my photos in the article about the accident.


I was telling the tea shop owner about the accident and gridlock as I was tweeting with the reporter and sending her my photos. The shop owner casually mentioned that, earlier this morning, as he headed from his home in Carlsbad to his shop in San Clemente, he was passed by a white pickup truck driving the wrong way on the Five which kicked up rocks into his windshield. I was stunned! The tea shop owner drove right past the pickup truck just before it caused the four-vehicle pileup.