Monthly Archives: January 2002

On the way home last night, I attended a lecture in Vanderbilt’s new Martha Rivers Ingram Center for the Performing Arts by author and UCLA professor Jared Diamond, winner of a history Pulitzer for Guns, Germs & Steel. Diamond also … Continue reading →

I’ve attended only one Super Bowl. The Wall Street Journal today has an article about that very same Super Bowl. It’s a “where are they now” story about all the dot.com companies who ran advertisements during the game. Since I … Continue reading →

While working on a writing project regarding the State of the Union Address, I ran across this piece in today’s Wall Street Journal by Peggy Noonan, who wrote the book on what makes a good speech. Not surprisingly, the former … Continue reading →

While I still use Google as my primary search engine, I’m beginning to suggest Altavista.com (a blast from the past, huh?) for searching news headlines. It uses technology and data from moreover.com. Writing a story for NFIB right now and … Continue reading →

Ever wonder who gets to sit with the First Lady during the State of the Union speech? Me, neither. Except last night, there was an NFIB member invited along with war heroes, flight attendant heroines, Olympic organizers, a union boss, … Continue reading →

Ever-annoying reviewer of TV, movies and style Tom Shales poses punditry on the important aspects of the State of the Union Speech: tie colors, camera angles, and how on TV, some people look like other TV people. Quote: Kennedy looked … Continue reading →

The Washington Post’s Howard Kurtz points out the irony of pundits taking money from corporations and then criticizing politicians for taking money from those same corporations. Says it may be time for “journalistic finance reform.” Another reason I point to … Continue reading →

Well, one’s not coming my way, yet.

What would happen if you translated this page from english to spanish and then back to english? A lesson in miscommunicaton. (Use your “back” key to return here.) Addendum: This reminds me of the way companies often communicate with their … Continue reading →

Perhaps because I was in PR myself at the time, I used to marvel at Reagan image-meister Michael Deaver’s amazing gift of knowing the precise spot to position his boss in public appearances for just that right photo. I don’t … Continue reading →

Universally panned by marketing pundits at the time, the change of name from Anderson Consulting to Accenture a year ago seems brilliant today. Rance Crain (who in real life is not nearly as cranky as his writing suggests), explains why. … Continue reading →

With state legislatures convening across the country, we’re going to be hearing lots about budget blues in the coming days. As many states have constitutions that require balanced budgets, the pressure to raise taxes, especially on small businesses, will be … Continue reading →

Bill Hudgins and his Road King readers are always quick to notify marketers when their advertising casts truckers in a negative, cliched light. Latest blunder is by Radio Shack, a marketer who otherwise courts truckers for all sorts of merchandise. … Continue reading →