Tag Archive for 'new-media'

Kevin Sites - In the Hot Zone! War in Our Time

Have you been to war? Ever get anywhere near a real war? I have not, and frankly, I don’t want to, but if called, I hope I would do my duty. Kevin Sites has been to war, several of them, and together with his new employer, Yahoo News, he brings us a world-wide view of conflict in our time. Conflict, but not all armed, at least not right now. Conflict that leaves its mark on a nation, a society, a culture, a world for generations. Conflicts like Vietnam whose memory is still with us, but whose lessons we apparently did not learn as a nation.

Kevin, a veteran war correspondent with stints at CNN, NBC and others, is now Yahoo News’ first correspondent. You may remember his coverage of the Marine shooting a civilian in a Fallujah Mosque in 2004. He was with NBC at the time and the network self-censored the graphic video and it still created controversy. The issue: Is it treason to show America the atrocities of war when it is American troops committing them?

His first assignment with Yahoo was to cover every armed conflict in the world during the course of a year, focusing not just on the fighting, but on the story that is always next door in war, the collateral damage to people, society, and cultures. On top of that Kevin was essentially a one man crew, camera (Sony HDR-HC1), sound, beast of burden and everything else.

The results: a book “In the Hot Zone: One Man, One Year, Twenty Wars” and a film documentary. You get a copy of the DVD with the book or you can see it chapter by chapter at the website.

It was Robert E. Lee who said: “It is well that war is so terrible, lest we grow too fond of it.” I do not think even Lee could have envisioned the atrocities that wars of genocide and culture have imposed on humanity. In Lee’s day, atrocities occurred, but were certainly undesired aberrations. However, in the Congo the rape of women has become an instrument of war.

It is hard to believe that 60 years after WWII there are more than 20 ongoing armed conficts in the world today. They are not world-wide in venue, but the ripple effects have the potential to affect us all.

What is even harder to believe is that after more than 4 years of a mismanaged debacle in Iraq, we have a president that speaks of taking up arms against Iran and of a coming WWIII as if the decision to turn to war was just another thing to decide. War is not a decision you choose from a list of alternatives. War is the choice of last resort!

Even a 24% approval rating is too high.

 
 Kevin Sites, Yahoo News, Author [31:21m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (252)

Interview with Amber Rhea and Rusty Tanton, Georgia Podcast Network and Web Developers

I know you have all been waiting for the interview of the season (which season I ain’t sure) but here it is. Naturally, trying to get a podcast posted becomes impossible when it is a podcast about podcasting. It became a real techno challenge because immediately following their interview I went out of town, got ill overnight, drove a thousand miles, misplaced the thingy (techno for “that over there”) that lets me get an interview from my old PC to my new MAC, failed to be able to do something simple like copy the MP3 to a CD, and so here it is 4 days later. My apologies to Ambrea and Ruton.

All kidding aside, I am so proud of the new website Amber and Rusty developed for What Is Goin On? that all I can add is that it is a pleasure to have a small, very small, part to play in this new media wave. It is still very much over my head, but discussing it with knowledgeable people like Amber and Rusty at least makes me feel like any of us can participate and make a difference.

The interview itself covers a lot of territory from Shelbinator at the CNN/YouTube Debates Monday night to the surprise in the 10th District Congressional race.

It is a great world of citizen activists out there. As soon as I figure out how to operate the MAC, I am going video. BTW, Rusty could you answer that last email I sent you, you know the one with the 123 addtional questions!

 
 Rusty Tanton and Amber Rhea [29:06m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (269)

Interview with Grayson Daughters, Blogger and New Media Mogul

Grayson Daughters, Blogger and New Media Mogul, this Southern Belle knows a little bit about everything, but a lot about what is going on in the blogosphere, podosphere and any other sphere there is or might ever be. Having trouble keeping up with it all, try Technorati!

 
 Standard Podcast [35:42m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (248)

Interview with James Williams a/k/a GriftDrift, a political blogger from Atlanta

James Williams a/k/a GriftDrift, a political blogger from Atlanta (Moultrie by birth) convinces me that I may never figure out What the Hell Is Goin’ On, but he does give Hope that the Times They Are a Changin’. He encourages the citizen blogger and predicts that the recent growth in Georgia political blogs will impact the politicos more and more.

 
 Standard Podcast [30:46m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (245)

Interview with Doug Monroe, Contributing Journalist, Atlanta Magazine and Professional Blogger at Peachtree Screed

Doug Monroe, Contributing Journalist, Atlanta Magazine and Professional Blogger at Peachtree Screed, discusses the journalistic woes of the AJC and the lack of leadership in State Government to solve the transportation crisis of Atlanta.

 
 Standard Podcast [31:10m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (270)

Interview with Grayson Daughters and Jen Gordon, founders of True Gritz

Grayson Daughters and Jen Gordon, founders of True Gritz, discuss their Southern Culture variety show on the internet.

 
 Standard Podcast [29:10m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (276)

Interview with Amber Rhea and Rusty Tanton, Webmasters and Creators of the Georgia Podcast Network

Amber Rhea and Rusty Tanton, Webmasters and Creators of the Georgia Podcast Network, tell us all about "podcasts" and their network to make them more easily accessible by Georgians.

 
 Standard Podcast [28:58m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (264)