Media Watch

Last month Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) told Iowa radio host Jan Mickelson that the fix for the US debt crisis is to default on its debts as a way to save $1.7 trillion in interest payments -- effectively filing for bankruptcy -- and advance bond investments. Of course he also mentioned that we, like Greece, could see rioting in the streets by people losing their federal entitlements. "We're not immune from that," the 2012 GOP Presidential Candidate told Mickelson.

By August of '07, Former Massachusetts Governor W. Mitt Romney had attended more than 200 campaign events in Iowa as he appeared to lead the pack in the '08 GOP run-up, according to a statement during an interview with a radio host in Des Moines . "As you know, I enjoy getting together with Iowans all across the state." the candidate said in response to Jan Mickelson's final on-air question.  But the answer didn't fit Mickelson's query at all, which was actually an invitation to join him on the radio again, but for more than the eight minute heated discussion that ensued over whether Romney could reconcile his stance on abortion with his religion. All about being a Mormon "I'm happy to talk about my faith," says Gov. Romney multiple times while on the campaign trail.  But that doesn't square with his repeated theme in this interview , which is, "I'm not here to talk about Mormonism."  "No, I'm not running as a

WTEM announced it would begin embargoing their Podcasts for 24-hours after the corresponding shows air -- essentially erecting a pay wall, according to the story on NTS. If you follow this thread, you begin to realize there's a huge under-appreciation for compelling local digital content amid fears of a declining traditional audience. And that seems to be the mentality.  Indy radio notable Jerry Lee ended WBEB's streaming because he sees it as a bad business model.  While I agree with the revenue challenges in digital, I think Lee misses the boat and is doing a disservice to his industry by rationalizing an inability to articulate a successful sales pitch to sell a valuable product.   My response: Jerry presumes it's not possible to sell enough advertising to support the platform, and I would have to ask, "why not?" There's a real and growing audience in streaming, so to feign failure in digital is to fail in sales. Radio is a culture that refuses to g

The city council of Cefar Falls, Iowa is on its second of three readings before it casts a final vote on a law that requires commercial properties to supply keys to the city government.  It's my understanding that the revised ordinance may also require owners of residential rental property to also provide access. Not having the ordinance in front of me and not being a constitutional scholar, it's hard for me to pass judgment, but I was stunned watching council meeting highlights.  It leaves me wondering from where they think they get the power to control the citizens, for whom it works. Handing over your keys seems like giving wholesale compulsory consent, implied forfeiture of liberty.  It's CF residents'  & business owners' job to call BS on this. One of the council members said, "The merits of an idea do not depend on the number of people who hold that idea".  I agree with this, which is why our founders decided against a democracy where we&#

I can appreciate MSNBC's Rachel Maddow when she articulates a subject and can call BS when it's due, but she loses me when she predicates an entire segment on a false premise. Here she is telling us that Sen. Rick Santorum said Rep. Anthony Weiner should resign. But that's not what the former PA Senator said -- if you can recognize the difference between saying what you would do and telling someone else what they should do. In fact, Mr. Santorum has been pretty explicit about the distinction -- and made it when he visited Des Moines Friday.

With so much video floating around, it's easy to be tempted to put some of your own out there. And a lot of business professionals have a pretty good reason to make video part of their marketing strategy. It can't be terribly complicated, right? Somehow, $10,000 later, your videos aren't quite what you had invisioned. They sound terrible, the lighting isn't right and there's some jerking while panning and zooming. Notice my first observation was bad sound. That seems to be the first thing we notice about bad video, which seems counter intuitive, but true. It's also the first thing the beginner shooter neglects. And unfortunately the fix often means a new camera or expensive audio recording gear (and an editing nightmare). The reason the audio isn't clear is because you're using the built-in microphone on the camcorder. So the camcorder becomes the mic, meaning for best results, you would have to hold the camera as if it were a mic. In that way, you c

Crime seems to love my neighborhood, especially police chases.  This is the second one that sped by my house in the past year, but the fourth that I know of to flee through my neighborhood.  There was also a wanted person being retrieved across the street and a murder six blocks away this month.