Derek Webb posted a blog today about the music industry and giving music away for free.  He maintains that the relationships build over the long term by giving music away for free is actually much more profitable than music services such as Spotify (or even iTunes).  His blog was very thoughtful and caused me to think through the way the music industry has functioned.

Webb tells a story of a young Johnny Cash nearly being disallowed entry into a studio to record.  He made it in only by playing something "worth the legacy of the historical room."  Webb goes on to define the ways in which the music industry has changed from focusing on the huge money making artists to being undermined in the last few years.  He claims that the gatekeepers are no longer standing at the door, but new communication technologies brought about by the internet can connect artist with fan, as well as produce music relatively cheaply and easily.

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So much of the media centers around gloom and doom and economic woes, corruption, war, and scores of problems that plague our world. I fear that our 24/7 news outlets resemble more the voyeurism we find on the freeway, where traffic gets backed up due to people not being in a car wreck, rather lines of cars queue up to simply get a look at someone else’s misfortune.

We’re in danger of becoming a cynical culture that peddles more pessimism than hope and now with the latest and greatest technology, this fascination that pockets of humanity has with the fall of other people, can now go viral. My hope is that with all of the current protests going on, whether it’s Wall Street or Greece, whether it’s in the West or the Majority World, people don’t forget to hope, to point to something better, to say at least a few things that remind us of something beautiful.

I saw an interesting article in Wired this morning from Clive Thompson, called "on Establishing Rules in the Videocam Age".

In this article, he talks about the new always on "sousveillance" culture.  He talks about the way in which this always on video culture can be reversed from a culture of surveillance to one where people are instead turning their cameras back around to look at those in power.

This particular development seems to mirror one of McLuhan's famous sayings in the Tetrad.  McLuhan once laid claim that all new forms of media must be asked four questions.  These four questions make up what he called the four laws of media.  They are:

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Phil Cooke has produced media programming in more than forty countries around the world, and in the process was shot at, survived two military coups, fell out of a helicopter, and in Africa was threatened with prison. Meanwhile, he's helped some of the largest nonprofit organizations in the world navigate periods of dramatic disruption and change. His newest book, Jolt! (Thomas Nelson), will show you how it is possible to change your life while still maintaining your integrity and creativity. ConversantLife.com asked Phil 5 Questions about Jolt! and the messsage he wants to convey.

You use the concept of “jolt” in two different contexts—passive and active. Talk about these and why it’s crucial to be a person who is pro-actively changing.

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So . . . some big news.

I flew to New York today to do a taping for The View.  It will air this Friday.  It is for a segment about adoption.

 
(Mark and I on the plane from LAX to JFK)

Oh my word.  I am not usually the nervous type.  I AM NERVOUS.

I started thinking today about everything I want to say about adoption.  I started planning the points I wanted to make, and the myths I wanted to dispel, and the realities that need to be heard.  And then I remembered the handfull of interviews I did after the earthquake, and how fast it goes.  And how you think you know what you want to say, but the questions may not give way to the points you've planned, and before you know it they are wrapping up.  And suddenly you and Don Lemon are having a bumbling moment of confusion on live tv because he doesn't realize that my Haitian son isn't a baby, so when he refers to the baby you think he's talking about Karis, so then you explain that the baby came home from Haiti, and then he's confused because he thought your child was still in Haiti, and OH MY GOSH WHO'S ON FIRST?

And The View.  I mean, those ladies.  Who can keep up with them?  My only hope is that I'm just talking to one of them, not ALL FIVE.  Yeesh.

Only I hope it's not Joy.  Because all I will be able to think of is Fred Armisen saying, ""So what? Who cares?"and talking about his brasierre.

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Shaun White--snowboarder extraordinaire, Olympic gold medalist, global superstar--is as cool and hip as they come. Some would say he's the face of the Winter Games. I would say he's the poster boy for integrity. Here's why.

I have a friend who uses what he calls the "Three-Way Integrity Test" as a way to measure whether or not he is doing something with integrity. When presented with an opportunity or an invitation to join in some kind of activity, he asks himself three questions:

1. Is it legal?

2. Is it fair to all parties involved?

3. Would I be okay if a photo of my activity showed up in the newspaper or on the Internet the next morning?

After winning his gold medal in spectacular fashion in the half-pipe, Shaun White, who is already incredibly rich and famous, appeared at a press conference with Scott Lago, another American snowboarder who took the bronze in the same event. According to Los Angeles Times sportswriter Bill Plaschke, who was at the press conference, Shaun was asked what he was going to do next, whereupon he turned to Lago and said, "What do you want to do next, man?"

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***UPDATE*** Tiger releases statement: "I have let my family down & I regret those transgressions w/ all of my heart ... I will strive to be a better person and the husband and father that my family deserves. For all of those who have supported me over the years, I offer my profound apology."  

There is a Thanksgiving hangover and it involves the media’s indulgence over Tiger Woods. I’ve never seen so much speculation and infatuation over a driveway accident. Sadly, the media frenzy has only just begun.

Every gossip site is milking this story for every ounce of traffic it can attain, and although most respectable news sites are holding off from making it A-1 material, one can’t imagine a cage made of human interest holding off a Tiger-sized story.

Several sites have claimed that Tiger has had a long affair with a former waitress, who allegedly has a voicemail and some texts to prove it. A Chinese news report even featured an animated re-enactment of the Tiger Woods incident (which is laughable not only in its poor quality, but in that they have Tiger attempting to drive off in a van).

If any of the speculations prove to be true, most people will wonder how in the world a man who has it all—money, fame, beautiful wife, healthy kids, adoration from fans, respect of many—risk it all for a tryst? Most of us would like to believe that with a billion dollars handy and the world as our stage we wouldn’t screw it up, but we’ll never have the opportunity to fail (or succeed) in those extremes. So, naturally, we project how we would have handled things on someone we don’t even know.

Sure, Tiger’s richer than all the readers of this site combined, but that doesn’t make this circumstance any less painful and any less difficult to navigate. He has a marriage to fight for, kids to protect, a job to maintain and partnerships to uphold. Whether he fabricated a story, cheated, lied or all of the above, no one knows the extent of the story better than Tiger himself.

Known as one of the most stoic and secretive sports figures, Tiger is suddenly facing his worst nightmare. It is a lonely jungle he’s traversing through, and I want to hope for something great to come out of this. I want Tiger to fight for his family, his legacy and his reputation as a role model for the next generation of golfers. I want Tiger to shock the media world and turn their indulgence for negative press into intervention for positive change. If I’m being honest, 12 hours ago I wasn’t even thinking about Tiger the person. I was just another set of eyeballs on the Internet scouring for the latest news on the collapse of a modern icon. Then it hit me, Tiger is just a man. A sentiment I discussed in my most recent post.

Life, like golf, is not just about how you begin on the front nine, it is all about how you finish on the back nine. Tiger has hit some major roughs and if there’s one thing we can all agree about real life is that mulligans are rarely offered. And as if I haven’t already used every golf metaphor in the book, excuse me as I continue. People describe the game of golf as more mental than it is physical. One’s ability to keep the outside distractions at bay determines the success on the golf course, and no one performed better under intense pressure than Tiger Woods. This is easily the toughest course he’s ever faced.

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I have more questions than answers. My mission for the past few years has been to bring Christians across a bridge between church and culture, to recognize the holy in unexpected places. Lately, however, I feel all our efforts to rescue people over the bridge weren’t fast enough.

I recently called a publicist for a popular band coming out with a new album in September. Two of the band’s members used to be in a group under a Christian label. However, their current band is signed to a mainstream company with a mainstream following though many of their songs weave deep biblical themes throughout them. When asking for an interview on behalf of a Christian publication the publicist answered, “Look, I like you guys, but the boys in the band have decided not to take any press from Christian media outlets. Once Christians are under the impression that you’re a Christian band, they sink themselves into it, they start having these certain expectations for you, and it’s literally impossible to get out.”

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I bought a hula hoop today.  Inspired by my massage therapist, who just bought one, I drove to Toys-R-Us and found the sparkly hoops.  They now come with water inside instead of the little beads that used to help it go round and round.  I kept shaking it in the store expecting a rattle, but a woman finally pointed out to me that there was water, which makes it go much smoother now.  After I had made a new friend and we talked about what a great workout we were going to get, I found myself wandering around the giant toy store.  I usually dash in and out to quickly snag a Christmas or birthday present for my nieces and nephews, so I haven’t had time to peruse as I was hunting for the Death Star Galatica Lego Extravaganza whose-it-whats-it.  

I wandered back to the bikes and through the doll aisle.  The Barbie bride has come a long way switching out her Princess Di veil and layers of lace to a strapless glittering number with an ultra modern hairdo.  I couldn’t help but also notice that Toys-R-Us used to seem so much bigger as a kid, and it always held such wonder.  It was torture to go in there with no allowance money or to shop for someone else with my mom!  But now the dusty stock shelves and the vinyl floors have lost a little magic – toys don’t hold the key to happiness anymore.  I clutched my hula hoop and drove home. (After paying of course.)

I thought about sexuality on the way home and how toy stores for adults promise similar magic, but their products are quite a bit different.  It’s confusing all of this talk of “toys” so in turn sexuality loses its lackluster too.  Should we go in there?  Am I evil if I actually like it?  Who cares?  Are all questions thrown around when discussing this particular toy store.  So where do we go for play?  For some it is the bedroom, for others the toy store revolves around clothing or electronics or kitchen stuff.  There are still places we go to play, but in a lot of ways the passion of play was lost in our youth.  I think that is why so many people don’t want to lose it.

When you get older, passion for others, non-profits, or even churches is supposed to grow.  Passion for yourself means, well what does it mean?  If it’s talked about in the media it means botox, surgery, and the latest workout, diet, or piece of clothing – you deserve it.  Like the CRV CRaVe campaign – shopping, nails, chocolate dipped strawberries… you’re passionate about all of that right?  So why not buy a car that lives up to that standard too?  For some it is the simpler things, as my friend recently discovered, it can mean going to the grocery store without your 7-month-old in tow.  But to find passion if the romance and drama section is taken out? What does that mean?  Passion for our “self”?  It’s interesting too that the dramas showing the life and death of Jesus are called Passion plays.  Passion here, passion there – what is passion when it’s everywhere? 

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