Well, it's the last day of the festival, and I got to make a trip to my favorite grocer, Central Market. It is a rainy day, and the melancholy sets in as SXSW 2006 slowly becomes a memory... It was a great experience, lots of interesting information, some good films, great music. I highly recommend it.
And, I'd like to give a shout out to all my former students that I ran into this week, Omar, Caroling, Lou, Jonathan, Lucy, Jenn, Rachel...I am exceedingly proud of all that you are doing.
Matthew Sweet (Girlfriend, I've Been Waiting) and Susanna Hoffs (of the Bangles) team up to sing 60s tunes, primarily Neil Young songs.
Lead singer of the Old 97s performs his solo material in this showcase, which was billed as Stewart Ransom Miller and the Believers. This was in a small venue, so the secret billing was a clue to real Old 97s fans (Barrier Reef lyrics). He was also on the bill at the Esquire party at Stubbs for Saturday night. Miller is a great songwriter and gives a high energy performance.
I never went in, but I thought I'd take this photo for my students that are Real World fans!
This band has a tap dancer instead of a drummer. Very peppy and lots of fun, they are associated with the new music scene out of Minneapolis (Bright Eyes, etc.).
Good friends, Neal and Bobby perform at Green Mesquite. It was a great way to spend an afternoon.
This show was announced just hours before it happened on Thursday at 7:15pm, although it had been rumored all week. There was a long line, even though it was open only to people with badges (for SXSW, you can buy a badge, which gives you all access, get a wristband, that gets you into shows, space available, or pay an over-priced cover). I was able to get in about halfway through the set, just in time for No Sleep 'Til Brooklyn and get all the way up front. It was a great way to see them perform. They treated the crowd to all the hits, including Brass Monkey and Ch-Check It Out.
The Beastie Boys talked about their documentary in which fans were given camcorders to shoot a show at Madison Square Garden. I attended the screening of the film, and if you are a Beastie fan, you will appreciate it. It definitely gives the feel of the live experience.
During the panel discussion, they fielded questions from the audience. They were adorable and funny, and even alluded to a SURPRISE show. See above.
Sorry that the photo is dark, but that's what it's like at the rock club. More music coverage to come...
The 2006 SXSW Interactive wrapped up with a spirited conversation with Bruce Sterling, author and Wired contributor. He discussed exciting new technologies, directions for the future, socio-political/global issues and some interesting directions. These talks have become the perfect capstone for each Interactive festival. The 2006 one was a great mix of skills, insight, concepts, and issues. It was a great way to interactive with others that share the passion of the industry and to learn about all the fascinating new things going on in new media. Definitely worth the trip, cramming more professional development than one could think possible in a mere four days. I got to see former students, who I am happy to say are working in the Web/new media environment, hang with old friends, and meet some new ones. All in all, a great week in Austin.
Panelists Brant Barton (Bazarvoice), Dave Ellett (Powered), Dave Evans (Digital Voodoo), Prescott Lee (FilmLoop), Dominique McAree (Wild Tangent).
Ellett - give consumers information they need when they want it. Sony - digital video tutorial that is product agnostic, but Sony merchandising is done through product placement and call outs at appropriate times; adjust based on users profile, reg information, etc. Get qualified consumers - are active in the buying process; interaction time is longer when engaging with the media. Win/win for advertiser and consumer. Higher ROI.
So far, my impression of this panel is that these are more traditional marketers trying to figure out how to integrate convergence to their offerings. They seemed to be focusing on quick fixes and fads, rather than embracing new apps. Very little enthusiasm coming from this panel. Lots of jargon like "growth opportunities" and "fast food mentality" and "real-time, two-way channel" and "turnkey solution" and "push commerce." The discussion was not as fresh nor cutting edge as the one from yesterday on Selling Ideas to Big Clients.
Good friend, Kris Pauls, who works at the Dana Press in Washington DC, enjoys the book displays at the trade show.
Had a chance to see a film screening of Bickford Schmeckler's Cool Ideas starring Patrick Fugit (Almost Famous, Saved) and directed by Steve Lew, his first time out. This movie is about a troubled college student who lives mostly in his head. He's trying to express himself in writing something he simply calls The Book. When a coed steals The Book, it takes on a life of its own, having some unexpected effects on readers. Schmeckler ultimately reacquires The Book, comes to grips with his life and obsessions and sets The Book free.
While The Book is a hand-printed effort, the movie is really a metaphor for many of the themes going on in the world of online publishing, the fact that information wants to be free, the greed of the publishing industry, and the ways that meaning is made within the reader, not just resident in the author. Appearances by Cheryl Hines (Curb Your Enthusiasm) and Matthew Lilliard (Scooby Doo) round out a strong cast. This is a funny movie that will make you think.
Interspersed with the SXSW Festival content, I thought I would share some Austin scenes. When I arrived on Saturday, it was 91 and humid and stayed that way through Sunday. But today, its a little cooler and sunny, a lovely day for a walk downtown.
This session is really the highlight of the festival. Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist (www.craigslist.org), is interviewed by Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia (www.wikipedia.org). Both are pioneers in the community-oriented usage of the Web. Craigslist has turned the classified ad industry upside down, and Wikipedia has changed the way we think about information and its authors.
The first area of questioning dealt with scams on the Web, particulary of interest to both these sites. Both said that these problems are happening, but are not necessarily prominent and have been part of their sites since the beginning, not a new concept due to their current popularity. Wales said that most people are inherently good, but often it is the bad things that are emphasized in media.
Wales asked Newmark about his recent comment that Wikipedia would be the savior of democracy. Newmark went into a divergence on West Wing episodes, but then came back to answering the question. Skipping through commercials (including political commercials), and that would be a good thing. The nature of news and political advertising would have to change. DVR manufacturers should create a 30-second skip feature. Newmark said he did not usually express publicly his own politics, but talked about the importance of community to circumvent traditional campaigns and positioning in media.
Wales said that on Wikipedia, it is not always an argument between left vs. right, but mostly an argument between the reasonable and the jerks. Newmark said he tries to reason with most, but sometimes has to block unreasonable users or solicit help from their ISPs. Although, he said that most were reasonable.
A major part of the discussion dealt with the changes in journalism to the role that Craigslist is playing with Journalism. Quite often, there are important issues addressed online, but are not emphasized in the mainstream media. He mentioned Oh My News and the work of Dan Gilmor (We the Media) in regard to citizen journalism. These are both topics that we discussed in MASC 151. He also mentioned the Center for Public Integrity, documenting unethical behavior in elections, but publishing it a year later doesn't help. It would be helpful it was blogged as it was happening and can have an impact on the election.
Newmark was a funny speaker, with many divergences and antecdotes. He said the most trusted news sources are Daily Show and Colbert Report (only slightly tongue in cheek), and making a reference to show on another channel (referring to O’Reilly) that’s not as good as Colbert.
Newmark responded to a question about old media. He said that paper and delivery are expensive, and electronic media is going to happen. It is just a matter of time before the devices allow us to have the same level of access and portability. He also said that investigative reporting would be revolutionized with the Web.
Challenges to investigative journalism:
Accuracy, fact-checking (newspapers do a good job of this), pressures of 24-hour cycle mean that sometimes misinformation gets out there. Has always been a problem, just more of a problem now. Factcheck.org – look at all sides of story, fact-checker training, referenced the Daily Show. Wales suggested a hybrid model of mainstream and citizen journalism. Newmark agreed that there is a spectrum of quality across both categories.
A question was asked about charging schemes and other changes on Craiglist. One is a debate over whether the homepage should lose the San Francisco focus. In regard to charging, Newmark discussed how certain areas, like real estate listings in large cities like NY, would have charges associated, but the large majority of postings would still be free.
Newmark, people who use the site are the people that run it. We just need to get out of the way.
A question was asked about Ebay’s ownership. Newmark said it was the result of a former employee selling their shares to Ebay. They have little influence, but he does sometimes use them for their power with ISPs.
In regard to censorship, Wales said that Wikipedia would not compromise by censoring content in China. He did say that he did understand Google’s position and that they were getting a hard time in the media. Newmark said that Google might do more good by being, slow gradual approach. Newmark said that we have our own issues of censorship and freedom of information in the US.
Musician and spoken word artist turned actor Henry Rollins was interviewed by local music writer Andy Langer. Rollins discussed his USO tours in light of his non-support of the war and his associated politics. It was a lively, interesting, and smart session.
This was an interesting session. Young women discussed their usage of online spaces. They talked about issues concerning their online presence, how open they are in their online spaces, things they don't share, the ramifications of their online usage... One interesting panelist, Casey Lewis writes a blog Teen Fashionista. She's from a small town in Missouri, and intimated that her computer has been her lifeline. Being from a small town, she would never have the exposure to things that she now has, and would not have had opportunities, such as attending this conference as a panelist and being invited to Fashion Week in New York. She also stated that her teachers were not as tech-savvy as they could be. They, like other older people, respond to images in media that are negative regarding online spaces and teen usage.
I can relate. I grew up in a small town, and would have welcomed the opportunity to connect with people who were doing different things, being able to be exposed to different ideas, culture. I used other media, primarily television to make those connections, but today's teens have more empowerment and agency in gaining access to information. Listen to the audio post to hear some of the panel.
This panel included moderator John Allsop from westciv.com, Matt May from blueflavor.com, Maxine Sherrin (Web Essentials), and Alex Williams (Courante). The topic was discussing the pros and cons of podcasting an event. Allsop explained that podcasting can make an event more asynchronous, allowing people to attend that cannot physically do so and can't do so at the live time of the event. Allsop has a blog at http://blogs.westciv.com/dog_or_higher/ that collected comments during this session.
Williams first comment was a very important one, "always have a backup." He also stated that you should know your podcast team (sound engineers and AV teams), and be very confident in their abilities. He said that many of these experts don't really understand podcasting.Allsop said that if you have any kind of an event where someone is speaking, it is worth podcasting, despite the technical problems/challenges. May talked about some of the technical solutions, particularly associated with audio levels and post production.
Sherrin organized the Web Essentials conference. They used GarageBand, and had a bad experience, lost 3 out of 15 sessions recorded. The result was disappointment for users and speakers. Her advice was to make sure that someone is responsible for watching the quality of the recording at every minute.
Williams said to seek the help of other podcasters, ask questions, find out about their lessons learned.
Allsop talked about bandwidth issues, both for users (download time) and for hosting (expense). He made a good point regarding the tradeoff between filesize and quality. Each of the panelist discussed what was "good enough" to satisfy their quality requirements and balance their cost to host. It's a good idea to record at a high level then post at lower quality levels. That way, you have a good quality original to work with for whatever needs you have in the future.
Eric Meyer was on the panel to talk about some of the downsides. He speaks at many events, and there are issues with intellectual property of the speakers words. There might be different ways that people prepare for an event, knowing that it will be podcast and kept for posterity. He still feels that the people at the event are the most important audience, but it might change speakers habits as podcasting becomes more prominent. I think this is interesting, because as an instructor, I have some of the same issues with students taping lectures or putting those tapes online. I wonder if that will change the nature of the lecture or the experience of the students in the course. Allsop also brought up the issue of copyright of material in a presentation, which might be fine when you are limited to presenting to a group of 300 in a room on a one-time basis, but change when it is put on the Web for perpetuity. May discussed some of the legal implications, particularly if the Web site to which the podcast is assigned begins to generate revenue or if you use copyrighted music on your Podcast.
He did say that certain events work well as podcasts, others don't. For example, the Malcolm Gladwell keynote from last year's SXSW or this year's interview with Henry Rollins would work well, but something like a demonstration that is very visual or if there are pauses to wait for audience input, these things might not be that interesting for a podcast listener. Williams mentioned that the future will be more people video podcasting, which will alleviate some issues and create new ones.
Williams also mentioned the importance of supplying links, shownotes, and resources to accompany podcasts.
One of the common feelings at this conference is the DIY (Do It Yourself) ethic. We are still in a period in which many are still figuring things out and are learning as they go. The Web provides good opportunities for a wide range of people to do so.
This Podcast Pickle was seen trolling the sidewalks outside the convention center. I'm not sure why he was here or what he was promoting, but I will attend a session on Podcasts in just a few moments...
Delicious mole enchiladas from Las Manitas! Well, I arrived in Austin around noon, so the first thing I had to do was get some authentic Mexican food. One of my favorite Austin restaurants is Las Manitas, conveniently located downtown on Congress, just a few blocks from the convention center. One of the specialties at Las Manitas is their Mole Enchiladas. Mole is a sauce made from things like chocolate and cinnamon and other spices, and it all comes out in a delicious smooth flaver. I know it sounds weird, but if should try some authentic mole when you have a chance. Of course, the meal came with yummy chips and salsa. Now, back to the conference.
