LAST week, we held our dry run in using Twitter for our Tales of the Nomad blog, with our multimedia reporter Izah Morales and online videographer Janie Christine Octia twittering their journey to Lucban, Quezon and the actual Pahiyas festival itself, and multimedia specialist Erika Tapalla giving updates on the AsiaPay event at Mag:net Cafe at Bonifacio High Street.
Check out the Tales of the Nomad Twitter page at twitter.com/talesofthenomad. The updates are also available via the Twitter badge at our Tales of the Nomad blog.
Oh, and yup, I’ve also decided to give in to Twitter, heh, I know, I know, better late than never So if you have time, check out twitter.com/joeyatplay
ANYONE know if someone has been caught taking a bath in this fountain?
Our online videographer Janie Christine Octia took this video — she noticed the “Bawal maligo” sign because a group of foreigners saw it and started laughing.
Given what this five-star hotel went through last year, maybe they should post at least two more additional signs: “Bawal ang standoff” and “No parking for APCs.”
Want more offbeat videos? Check out the Lighter Side channel of INQUIRER.net VDO.
IF you haven’t seen it yet, here’s a copy of “Don’t be too CNN,” the music video that’s criticizing Western media such as CNN for allegedly demonizing China and coming out with distorted reports on the unrest in Tibet.
And here’s a Reuters video report on the “Don’t be too CNN” video.
Now, I’m not the biggest fan of the Chinese government, though I find a lot to admire about China and its culture. Frankly, however, I can understand the frustration of some Chinese citizens over how Western media portrays their country. For all its claims of being objective, it’s hard not to think of media outlets such as CNN as being biased in presenting the Western viewpoint or version of events. Yup, I know there’s no such thing as complete objectivity, but Western media, intentionally or not, views everything through its own eyes and set of values, which it then tries to apply to the non-Western world.
This seeming bias has become even more pronounced in a post-9/11 world and the neverending “War on Terror,” almost as if it were unpatriotic for any mainstream media outlet in the US to criticize the American government or offer dissenting opinions on the war against terrorists. How many years did George W. Bush get a free ride from US media? Which prompted people to look for alternative news sources such as blogs and media outlets such as Al Jazeera. Whether you agree with what’s on Al Jazeera or not, it owes its success to the perception of people that they can find stories and viewpoints here that you probably weren’t going to see on CNN.
It’s almost taken for granted by Western media that the Chinese people are not free and are unhappy, and I suppose with the way the Internet is regulated in China, many foreigners just assume that the Chinese netizens who speak out against the Western media’s alleged distortions are brainwashed, coerced, or paid by the government. Because they just assume that’s the way it must be, yet who speaks for the Chinese, if not themselves? The reality is probably quite complicated — certainly more so than the West’s penchant for painting things in black and white and designating one Evil Empire after another.
“Quid est veritas?” Pilate once asked. “What is truth?” Now that question is being asked in cyberspace.
I HAVE our editor in chief JV Rufino to thank for introducing me to the Zinio.com digital newsstand, and while I haven’t subscribed to a digital magazine yet, I really love this technology and hope to see more magazines making their digital editions available in this manner.
If you’re skeptical about digital magazines, try out the free samples. As of this writing, the free samples include an issue each of BusinessWeek, Men’s Health, Motor Trend, PC Magazine, Reader’s Digest, Shutterbug, Viv Magazine, and Women’s Health. You can read them online, or download the magazines and read them offline using the Zinio Reader.
Another great thing I discovered is that they’re currently offering free digital editions of over 100 classics, including Beowulf, Little Women, Don Quixote, Ulysses, The Trial, Les Miserables, Dracula, and War and Peace.
Check them out. Honestly, I would love to digitize all the books and magazines I currently have; imagine how much space we would save if digital editions become the norm. Of course, another great thing about going digital is that we have to sacrifice fewer trees
So if you have time, check out twitter.com/joeyatplay
