In case of emergency, who controls the Internet?

Posted on August 31, 2009 by Howard R. Debs

S. 773, The Cybersecurity Act of 2009, presently being redacted by the Senate Commerce Committee, is a piece of pending legislation that bears watching. On April 1, 2009, Senators John D. Rockefeller (D-WV) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) introduced legislation designed to promote cybersecurity, a reasonable cause per se.  President Obama, in a public statement delivered [...]

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Internet addiction, seriously

Posted on August 8, 2009 by Howard R. Debs

Recently I came across a Time magazine article about patients at a Chinese Internet Addiction Center that started me doing some serious research on the existence of this condition, debated as to whether it is to be considered a bona fide psychological disorder, and also the implications of a totalitarian society like China declaring it [...]

Filed under: internet culture, society | Tagged: , , , | Leave a Comment »

Iran’s eyewitnesses not “citizen” journalists

Posted on July 15, 2009 by Howard R. Debs

I have been considering the issue of elevating eyewitness reports – on Twitter – or elsewhere, to the level of citizen journalism. In fact, I have been doing extensive evaluation of this matter as the “phenomenon” occurring during the recent protests of the election in Iran has been generally hailed as technology advancing democracy. Thanks to [...]

Filed under: information technology, new media, writing and journalism | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Viral “marketing” – word of mouth in a YouTube world

Posted on June 2, 2009 by Howard R. Debs

We are presently experiencing a virtual pandemic. I am not referring to the current Swine Flu, more properly named the H1N1 Flu . I am speaking of viral marketing,  the term itself is relatively recent and started to be used in the mid 1990′s. The term’s imagery is particularly engaging. While it certainly can carry a negative connotation [...]

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Boy do we need a Chief Technology Officer!

Posted on April 23, 2009 by Howard R. Debs

I have been absorbing the news for the past few days. It’s really true. President Obama, in his weekly radio and internet address on Saturday, April 18, announced that Aneesh Chopra will be the nation’s first Chief Technology Officer. Chopra currently holds the CTO position in the state of Virginia. Why is this appointment meaningful? First, [...]

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Quick Takes: social network fatigue

Posted on April 10, 2009 by Howard R. Debs

(Introducing the new feature “Quick Takes” on this blog; very brief posts on very timely topics with more detailed discussion to follow as warranted.) A recent survey from the Pew Internet & American Life Project finds that while 45% of the U.S. population across all age categories are positive regarding using computer and mobile devices [...]

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Jurors, a new hope for the new Information Age

Posted on March 18, 2009 by Howard R. Debs

Today’s New York Times article by John Schwartz http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/18/us/18juries.html?_r=1  raises a number of important questions regarding for example the seeming dichotomy between traditional jurisprudence and contemporary information technology which is really the thrust of the story. But then there is, as Paul Harvey always said (may he rest in peace, see my previous post on [...]

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Girl Scouts ban use of internet to sell cookies

Posted on March 15, 2009 by Howard R. Debs

A seemingly innocuous AP piece is being picked up by a number of newspapers around the country. It hit me like a ton of bricks. So I did a little further checking online, and sure enough it is true. Newsweek is my source and I have no reason to doubt the authenticity of its report. [...]

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Vatican gets prodded into New Media age

Posted on March 13, 2009 by Howard R. Debs

An interesting piece in the traditional media – namely the New York Times – appeared today: Rachel Donadio’s aptly titled article, “Pope Admits Online News Can Provide Infallible Aid”. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/13/world/europe/13pope.html?_r=1  The report contains quotes from the Vatican’s letter regarding the very controversial matter of the decision to revoke the excommunication of four bishops, including this excerpt: [...]

Filed under: new media | Tagged: , , , , | Leave a Comment »

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