Annalog

The new iPhone came out Friday, and everyone, even to Steve Wozniak, managed to get in line to get their own. The buzz about the newest Apple product has been a little insane—trending next to #iranelection on Twitter and dominating Tech sections in newspapers. But it is the newest communication devise, so it would stand to reason that people are talking a lot about the sleek new “phone.” (more…)

Oh, how I enjoy summer. I took a long time waking up and getting ready this morning before heading to San Francisco on the BART. I’m still new to Muni, but I managed to get onto N Judah heading toward Golden Gate Park without too many hiccups. My initial mission was to get a photo near the UCSF campus, but that ended up falling through, and so I walked all the back to the Civic Center BART, stopping to look into small shops along the way.

The World Cup comes to South Africa in just under a year. The media buzz has started. Tourists are getting ready to flood into the country still hurting from apartheid. How will visitors react to the still blatant disparities in this developing country? Concerns about xenophobic violence in townships around the country threatened the country’s prospects of hosting the games last year, but fears were quelled after the brief outbreak cooled.  (more…)

It’s not just a late-night, after-work indulgence anymore. TV night as it once was is no more. Those shrink-wrapped, frozen TV dinners made famous in the 50s no longer have a place once a week on specially-made trays. It’s not just a treat anymore, TV has become our connection to each other. (more…)

Politico published an article today accusing the Obama administration of giving unfair access to The New York Times. The article goes so far as to accuse Obama of *gasp* reading the Times magazine. This type of accusation isn’t new. Just a few months ago during the Presidential election media outlets, like the Times, were again accused of sucking up to the Democratic candidates. (more…)

There’s something about the charm of San Francisco. Walk down the streets at night, pass foodie restaurants, wine bars and beautiful neon lights. The city has a calm, restful way. There’s an ease and a certain “joie de vivre” in the air. (more…)

It’s time to head back to class. And that means ungodly high textbook costs. My textbook (less than one inch) for this summer’s German class is $200. The cost of tuition is already unreasonable. How can students possibly be asked to pay these ridiculous costs in addition to already steep tuition? (more…)

I flew back to Berkeley on Friday and celebrated my 21st birthday with a few friends. Woke up the next morning and went to San Francisco to the dress rehearsal of “Porgy and Bess” at the San Francisco Opera. Every member of the cast was spectacular, but Sportin’ Life, played by Chauncey Packer, was a standout star.  And best of all, I got to see the opera from the forth row of the orchestra section. In those seats, the sound surrounds and engulfs you. I think I know what I want to do every Saturday morning! (more…)

It’s coming up on a year now since I flew to South Africa to work for Independent Newspapers. Last night, I lay in my dorm bed and tuned into my iPod: Coldplay’s 2008 album, “Viva La Vida.” Chris Martin’s crooning voice filled my head and transported me back to a night, last summer (winter, in Africa), when I stood at the balcony in my apartment and looked out over the city of Cape Town, toward Table Mountain and Lion’s Head. 

As the group of students at this week’s workshop in Reno walked back to the dorms from the journalism school last night, we stopped for a moment to get a glimpse through the trees of a dense fog rolling down over the mountains and towards town. Reminds me so vividly of this night in Cape Town, as fog rolled down between Table Mountain and Lion’s Head and into the basin of the city. Coldplay felt like an appropriate musical epilogue to the day. 

I’m participating in a weeklong workshop hosted by the Newspaper Association of America this week at the University of Nevada, Reno. Industry professionals are coming to talk with our group of 15 students about ways of reinventing the news industry and “gaming the news.” We got an early start today. The students and professionals met in the journalism school on campus for breakfast.

The tone of the conversation about the impending transformation of the new industry has changed from one of despair and fear, to one of hope, in just one year. I attended conferences just last year during which professionals talked about the “demise of print journalism” and the possible end of news. But in just a few months, the conversation has changed to one of hope. Professionals are looking for a new way to conceive of “news.” What a relief! Though I knew it wasn’t true, I couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed. (more…)