Because of Sean Hannity, Republicans May Never Win Again

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In 2010, when the Tea Party won quite a few House seats and a couple of Senate seats , many people were wrongly tricked into believing that a serious political movement had begun and a rise of the Far Right was imminent.

(Frankly, I believe these were ‘protest candidate’ candidates that were elected mostly because the country was at the height of the Great Recession and there was a lot of misery and demand for change out there.)

Well, the call for change is coming to an end, the country is on the mend and the Republicans that want to keep their jobs are drifting back to the center.

And if they don’t drift to the center they will, most likely, be voted out of office because the wacko Right is no longer a viable alternative.

And, I believe, much of this rejection of change is because of a Sean Hannity EPIC FAIL.

It turns out, the majority of Americans do not want to live in Sean Hannity’s world.

His is a world of constant conflict for the sake of ratings.  A world of hammering a message over and over and over again turning his audience into something similar to school children in North Korea.

And it’s a message that never wavers:  “Anyone but Obama…” (The Republican pundit establishment has apparently changed that slightly – “Anyone but Obama or Romney…”)

Well, because of this message – and the millions who follow Mr. Hannity – the Republicans may well be stuck with Rick ‘The Stick’ Santorum (just as they nearly got stuck with Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry).

I can now confirm, with 0% of the vote counted, Rick Santorum has LOST the 2012 general election to President Obama.  

There is no question Santorum has already lost without one vote being counted.  Bob Dole’s loss to Bill Clinton in 1996 will be considered a close race compared to an Obama vs. Santorum election.

Santorum will, most likely, get the lowest number of female votes in the history of Presidential elections (unless you count the Presidential races in which women did not have the right to vote).

However, Santorum will, most likely, win the Fascist vote as he is the candidate with the most images on the internet with a Hitler mustache Photoshopped onto his face.

Now, what’s crazy about all this is I firmly believe Sean Hannity, deep down, doesn’t care how people live their lives.   I firmly believe that if the ratings dictated a different point of view, Mr. Hannity would shift on a dime to the Left and still claim that his moral compass has never wavered.

He would refute this claim vehemently.  And, to be fair, he has never had to face that problem because there are millions of Americans that he has focused on that love the bomb throwing, the red meat and any other political metaphor you can think of.

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It is obvious we are living in a crazy time when Ann Coulter is the voice of reason at CPAC.  Say what you want about her, she is not a stupid person.  She knows there is only one candidate that has a slight chance against President Obama and that is Mitt Romney.

Why the Republican establishment hasn’t thrown everything behind Mitt is beyond me.  Perhaps it’s because there is also a feeling Mitt Romney cannot win either.  (I am one of those people.)

But he’s really the only choice there is to even get close to the lofty John McCain numbers of 2008.

Of course, Sean Hannity (and Rush and all the others) could swing things by full on endorsing Mr. Romney.  But if he did, he would lose half his audience and his street cred as a bomb throwing ‘lover of freedom’ (though most people would consider ‘love’ and ‘freedom’ two things that are lacking in his political philosophy).

Mr. Hannity really doesn’t care who is President.  It is probably more fun for him to criticize President Obama than it was to defend President Bush.  And it certainly won’t be fun for him to have to defend President Santorum (who, remember, has 0% chance to win).

Like I said – it’s completely fine with me.  The implosion of the Grand Old Party is actually quite amusing.

God speed, Sean Hannity – you are President Obama’s best friend these days.

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American Idol – Dead Show Walking

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Helton, Amanda Overmyer, Lacey Brown, Paige Miles, Naima Adedapo, Melissa McGhee, Matthew Rogers, Amy Adams, Camile Velasco, Stephanie Edwards, Tatiana Nicole Del Toro, Jasmine Murray, Thia Megia, Joshua Gracin, Will makar, Brandon Rogers, David Hernandez, A.J. 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Helton, Amanda Overmyer, Lacey Brown, Paige Miles, Naima Adedapo, Melissa McGhee, Matthew Rogers, Amy Adams, Camile Velasco, Stephanie Edwards, Tatiana Nicole Del Toro, Jasmine Murray, Thia Megia, Joshua Gracin, Will makar, Brandon Rogers, David Hernandez, A.J. Gil, Ayla Brown, Gedeon McKinney, Alexis Grace, Jorge Nunez, Todrick Hall, Ryan Starr, Bo Bice, Trenyce, Amanda Avila, Kinnik Sky, Jared Cotter, Sundance Head, Katelyn Epperly, Leah LaBelle, Heather Cox, David Radford, Alaina Alexander, Antonella Barba, Kady Malloy, Luke Menard, Nick Mitchell, Alex Lambert, Lilly Scott, Haeley Vaughn, Karen Rodrigguez, Jim Verraros, EJay Day, Matthew Metzger, Constantine Maroulis, Brenna Gethers, Jose Penala, Leslie Hunt, Sabrina Sloan, AJ Tabaldo, Asia'h Epperson, Danny Noriega, Ann Marie Boskovich, John Park, Jermaine Sellers, Ashthon Jones, Elizabeth Letendre, Lisa Leuschner, Marque Lynch, Tiara Purifoy, Susie Vulaca, Katie Webber, Eric Yoder, Edward Boddington, Janay Castine, Travis Tucker, Mario Vazquez, Patrick Hall, Becky O'Donohue, Rickey Minor, Nicholas Pedro, Matt Breitzke, Jesse Langseth, Nathaniel Marshall, Jackie Tohn, Michelle Delamor, Jannell Wheeler, Mark Thompson, Kimberly Caldwell, Clive Davis, Carmen Rasmusen, Rickey Smith, Anthony Fedorov, Scott Savol, Alexis Lopez, Ryan Nikole Parker, Bobby Bennett, Stevie Scott, Stacy Ferguson, Miley Cyrus, Junot Joyner, Robbie Carrico, Alexandrea Lushington, Alaina Whitaker, Jason Yeager, Casey Carlson, Stephen Fowler, Kai Kalama, Kristen McNamara, Joanna Pacitti, Jamar Rogers, Von Smith, Alexander Wagner-Trugman, Tyler Grady, Ashley Rodriguez, Jessica Cunningham, Gwen Stefani, Katy Perry, Julia DeMato, Olivia Newton-John, Barry Manilow, Corey Clark, Alexandra Bachelier, Adriel Herrera, Jamar, Tenia Taylor, Smokey Robinson, Marisa Joy, Charly Lowry, Kara Master, Jonah Moananu, Heather Piccinini, John Preator, Briana Ramirez-Rial, Jesus Roman, Noel Roman, Ashley Thomas, Erskine Walcott, Lisa Wilson, Antonio Wheeler, David Brown, Aloha Mischeaux, Joseph Murena, Celena Rae, Annie Lennox, Ben Stiller, Teri Hatcher, Rudy Cardenas, Amanda Coluccio, Paul Kim, Amy Krebs, Nicole Tranquillo, Amy Jean Davis, Arianna Afsar, Felicia Barton, Kendall Beard, Ricky Braddy, Katrina Darrell, Misha Henson, Brent Keith, Taylor Vaifanua, Stevie Wright, Victoria Beckham, Barry Gibb, Tony Bennett, Neil Patrick Harris, Joe Jones, Shania Twain, Mary J Blige, Will Young, Jules Sanchez, Christopher Aaron, Kelli Glover, Angela Peel, Quentin Tarantino, Gladys Knight, Ashley Hartman, William Hung, Donna Summer, Nigel Lythgoe, Guy Sebastian, Nicole Tieri, Ben Hausbach, Rachel Zevita, Joely Fisher, Bono, Maroon 5, Camryn Manheim, Jennette McCurdy, Daughtry, Renaldo Lapuz, Alexis Cohen, Colton David Berry, Joanne Borgella, Mariah Carey, Garrett Haley, Natashia Williams, Jamie Foxx, Jessica Furney, Alicia Keys, Slash, Will i Am, Rose Flack, David Osmond, Jeanine Vailes, Joe Munoz, Kimberly Kerbow, Jovany Barreto, Jordan Dorsey, Clint Jun Gamboa, Erika Schiff, Kristin Chenoweth, Jon Bon Jovi, Martina McBride, Peter Noone, Lulu, Avril Lavigne, Jewel Kilcher, Gene Simmons, Rod Stewart, Stevie Wonder, Carole Bayer Sager, Michael Buble, Shakira, David Foster, Ray Romano, Chris Bandano, Natalie Burge, Khaleef Chiles, Rodesia Eaves, Brad Estrin, Kristin Holt, Jazmin Lowery, Emmy Robbin, Tanesha Ross, Melanie Sanders, Mark Scott, Gil Sinuet, Justinn Waddell, Robin Gibb, Lionel Richie, Diane Warren, Paul Anka, Neil Sedaka, J.D. Adams, Rebecca Bond, Samantha Cohen, Equoia Coleman, Frenchie Davis, Meosha Denton, Patrick Forton, Jennifer Fuentes, Louis Gazzara, Charles Grigsby, Hadas, Kimberly Kelsey, Vanessa Olivarez, Bettis Richardson, Jack John Smalley, George Trice, Elton John, Gloria Estefan, Jae Tracie, Judd Harris, Melinda LIra, Sarah Mather, Jared Yates, Antonio Banderas, Jeff Beck, Anthony Fitzgerald, jack Black, Michael Chiklis, Celine Dion, Eric McCormack, Phil Bredesen, Dan Castellaneta, Jarrod Fowler, Denise Jackson, Rachel Jenkins, Sarah Krueger, Perla Meneses, Matt Sato, Jim Carrey, Dane Cook, Rascal Flatts, Sons of Sylvia, Janice Dickinson, Paul Stanley, Kobe Bryant, James Denton, Neil Diamond, Snoop Dogg, Fawn, Jimmy Kimmel, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Dolly Parton, Brad Pitt, Ashley Tisdale, Forest Whitaker, Robin Williams, Apl de ap, Lady Gaga, Queen Latifah, Taboo, Frankie Jordan, March Raducci, Randy Travis, Julissa Veloz, Leneshe Young, Rihanna, Josh Sussman, Justin Bieber, Harry Connick Jr, Amanda DeSimone, Bernadette DeSimone, Amedea DiRocco, Cornelius Edwards, Justin Gaston, Orianthi, Larry Platt, Mary Powers, Erica Rhodes, Charity Vance, Vanessa Wolfe, Marc Anthony, kendra Chantelle, Tim Halperin, Brett Loewenstern, Robbie Rosen, Lauren Turner, Stephen Werner, Tatynisa Wilson, Julie Zorrilla, Cecile Frot-Coutaz, Ken Warwick, Patrick Lynn, Megan Michaels, Nigel Lythgoe, Katie Fennelly, Ron De Shay, Charles Boyd, Norm Betts, Brian Robinson, Simon Jones, Theo Dimitrious, Simon Lythgoe, Melanie Oberman, David Goffin, Jessica Kelly Toby Gorman, Sam Brenzel, Beth McNamara, Camilla Rahaman, Steven Schillaci, James Breen, Mike Yurchuk, Sarah Kane, Rebecca Dobkowitz, Kathleen Sheets, Clay Wolflick, Tom Brunell, Esther Frank, Jill Schwartz, Robert Gustafson, Charles Boyd, Cambrietta Frierson, Beth Van Dyke, Jerry D'Alessandro, Priya Balachandran, Matthew Watkins, Nikki Boella, Jennifer Bresnan, Billy Cooper, Brian Gadinsky, Mona Grenier, Tarvenia Jones, Andy Meyer, Tim Roddy, Hope Wilson, Jessica Jones, John Eritz, Aaron Weiner, James Wright, Chris Wagner, Tisha Fein, Nisa Ahmad, Suzie Weis, Dan Sacks, Nicola Gaha, Brent Wilson, Mark Gamsey, Jensen Oliver Moon, Ben Dolenc, Matt Cavanagh, Adam Cooper, Jonathan Hay, Ben Idorn, Pam Niedzwiadek, Nicole Slamer, Stephanie Lydecker, Marc Ambrose, John Bard Manulis, Colby Cote, Cam Frierson, Dean landon, Shawn Clement, Jack Elliot, Matt Vowles, Wes Hambright, Jeremy Sweet, Sean Peden, Jack Messitt, David Rutherford, Narumi Inatsugu, Andy Walmsley, James Yarnell, Steve Bass, Craig Gooder, Wylleen May, Alessandro Fadin, Christine Klages Staley, Chris Wagner, Michelle Baker, Mike Hofferth, Tyson Janisch, Reilly Oliver, Paul Cozzi, Barry Ward, Justin Healy, susana Santiago, Michelle LeTarte, Paula Frank, Melissa Wong, Michael Briggs, Brian Farguharson, Timothy Hamilton, Jenny Stanley, Tina Cannizzaro DeBone, Vicki Ariamal-Preto, Gregg Galfand, Tree Girl, Amy Brumfield, Phillip PhillipsI actually watched last night’s “American Idol” Season 11 premiere.

Yes, I’m the one.

Just kidding.  There were actually quite a few people who watched last night.  But 23% fewer than watched last year.  

This show is dead.

It may limp along and have an occasional really good ratings night – but it’s all over.  We all know it.

A couple of years ago, I said the show was dead as soon as Simon Cowell announced he was leaving.

I suppose I was wrong only because the show did continue – and actually had some nice moments last year – but creatively it was dead.

Last night, it was painful to watch Randy Jackson try to be the “tough” Simon-type judge.  He just doesn’t have the verbal chops to pull it off.

“It was awful.”  “That was really bad, dude.”  “Just terrible.”

And you could see him trying to be the one with authority because Jennifer Lopez is too nice (but seems to be the only one trying to be constructive) and Steven Tyler too clueless to take on that role (though I actually like Steven Tyler and think he would have been a great addition instead of Kara DioGuardi in the year they thought they needed four judges).

Simon is desperately needed for this show to work.  And, what’s really crazy is he DOESN’T work on his own show.  I think “The X Factor” is terrible – just awful, dude (to quote Randy).

So Simon leaving “American Idol” basically made two shows suck.

Manka Bros., Khan Manka, Teleblog With Vidar, Vidar, Norse God of Silence, American Idol, Bruce Gowers, Ken Warwick, Gregg Gelfand, John Pritchett, Nigel Lythgoe, Shane Drake, Simon Fuller, Ryan Seacrest, Randy Jackson, Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, Kara DioGuardi, Jennifer Lopez, Steven Tyler, Ellen DeGeneres, Taylor Hicks, Elliott Yamin, Jordin Sparks, David Cook, Fantasia Barrino, Crystal Bowersox, Katharine McPhee, Blake Lewis, Lee DeWyze, Chris Daughtry, David Archuleta, Adam Lambert, Casey James, Kellie Pickler, Michael Lynche, Vonzell Solomon, Melinda Doolittle, Kimberly Locke, Syesha Mercado, Danny Gokey, Aaron Kelly, Kris Allen, Ruben Studdard, Paris Bennett, Diana DeGarmo, Lakisha Jones, Brooke White, jason Castro, Matt Giraud, Jimmy Iovine, Jasmine Trias, Chris Richardson, Phil Stacey, Carly Smithson, Siobhan Magnus, Haley Reinhart, Kelly Clarkson, Lauren Alaina, Scotty McCreery, Justin Guarini, Ace Young, La Toya London, George Huff, Allison Iraheta, Anoop Desai, Katie Stevens, Brian Dunkleman, John Stevens, Sanjaya Malakar, Tim Urban, James Durbin, Anwar Robinson, Kristy Lee Cook, Lil Rounds, Andrew Garcia, Bucky Covington, Clay Aiken, Jennifer Hudson, Nadia Turner, Casey Abrams, Tamyra Gray, Mandisa Hundley, Haley Scarnato, Michael Johns, Jacob Lusk, Nikki McKibbin, Lisa Tucker, Nikko Smith, Ramiele Malubay, Scott MacIntyre, Gina Glocksen, Didi Benami, Stefano Langone, Paul McDonald, Carrie Underwood, Jon Peter Lewis, Mikalah Gordon, Jessica Sierra, Kevin Covais, Chris Sligh, Chikezie Eze, Megan Joy, Christina Christian, Lindsey Cardinale, Michael Sarver, Pia Toscano, R.J. Helton, Amanda Overmyer, Lacey Brown, Paige Miles, Naima Adedapo, Melissa McGhee, Matthew Rogers, Amy Adams, Camile Velasco, Stephanie Edwards, Tatiana Nicole Del Toro, Jasmine Murray, Thia Megia, Joshua Gracin, Will makar, Brandon Rogers, David Hernandez, A.J. Gil, Ayla Brown, Gedeon McKinney, Alexis Grace, Jorge Nunez, Todrick Hall, Ryan Starr, Bo Bice, Trenyce, Amanda Avila, Kinnik Sky, Jared Cotter, Sundance Head, Katelyn Epperly, Leah LaBelle, Heather Cox, David Radford, Alaina Alexander, Antonella Barba, Kady Malloy, Luke Menard, Nick Mitchell, Alex Lambert, Lilly Scott, Haeley Vaughn, Karen Rodrigguez, Jim Verraros, EJay Day, Matthew Metzger, Constantine Maroulis, Brenna Gethers, Jose Penala, Leslie Hunt, Sabrina Sloan, AJ Tabaldo, Asia'h Epperson, Danny Noriega, Ann Marie Boskovich, John Park, Jermaine Sellers, Ashthon Jones, Elizabeth Letendre, Lisa Leuschner, Marque Lynch, Tiara Purifoy, Susie Vulaca, Katie Webber, Eric Yoder, Edward Boddington, Janay Castine, Travis Tucker, Mario Vazquez, Patrick Hall, Becky O'Donohue, Rickey Minor, Nicholas Pedro, Matt Breitzke, Jesse Langseth, Nathaniel Marshall, Jackie Tohn, Michelle Delamor, Jannell Wheeler, Mark Thompson, Kimberly Caldwell, Clive Davis, Carmen Rasmusen, Rickey Smith, Anthony Fedorov, Scott Savol, Alexis Lopez, Ryan Nikole Parker, Bobby Bennett, Stevie Scott, Stacy Ferguson, Miley Cyrus, Junot Joyner, Robbie Carrico, Alexandrea Lushington, Alaina Whitaker, Jason Yeager, Casey Carlson, Stephen Fowler, Kai Kalama, Kristen McNamara, Joanna Pacitti, Jamar Rogers, Von Smith, Alexander Wagner-Trugman, Tyler Grady, Ashley Rodriguez, Jessica Cunningham, Gwen Stefani, Katy Perry, Julia DeMato, Olivia Newton-John, Barry Manilow, Corey Clark, Alexandra Bachelier, Adriel Herrera, Jamar, Tenia Taylor, Smokey Robinson, Marisa Joy, Charly Lowry, Kara Master, Jonah Moananu, Heather Piccinini, John Preator, Briana Ramirez-Rial, Jesus Roman, Noel Roman, Ashley Thomas, Erskine Walcott, Lisa Wilson, Antonio Wheeler, David Brown, Aloha Mischeaux, Joseph Murena, Celena Rae, Annie Lennox, Ben Stiller, Teri Hatcher, Rudy Cardenas, Amanda Coluccio, Paul Kim, Amy Krebs, Nicole Tranquillo, Amy Jean Davis, Arianna Afsar, Felicia Barton, Kendall Beard, Ricky Braddy, Katrina Darrell, Misha Henson, Brent Keith, Taylor Vaifanua, Stevie Wright, Victoria Beckham, Barry Gibb, Tony Bennett, Neil Patrick Harris, Joe Jones, Shania Twain, Mary J Blige, Will Young, Jules Sanchez, Christopher Aaron, Kelli Glover, Angela Peel, Quentin Tarantino, Gladys Knight, Ashley Hartman, William Hung, Donna Summer, Nigel Lythgoe, Guy Sebastian, Nicole Tieri, Ben Hausbach, Rachel Zevita, Joely Fisher, Bono, Maroon 5, Camryn Manheim, Jennette McCurdy, Daughtry, Renaldo Lapuz, Alexis Cohen, Colton David Berry, Joanne Borgella, Mariah Carey, Garrett Haley, Natashia Williams, Jamie Foxx, Jessica Furney, Alicia Keys, Slash, Will i Am, Rose Flack, David Osmond, Jeanine Vailes, Joe Munoz, Kimberly Kerbow, Jovany Barreto, Jordan Dorsey, Clint Jun Gamboa, Erika Schiff, Kristin Chenoweth, Jon Bon Jovi, Martina McBride, Peter Noone, Lulu, Avril Lavigne, Jewel Kilcher, Gene Simmons, Rod Stewart, Stevie Wonder, Carole Bayer Sager, Michael Buble, Shakira, David Foster, Ray Romano, Chris Bandano, Natalie Burge, Khaleef Chiles, Rodesia Eaves, Brad Estrin, Kristin Holt, Jazmin Lowery, Emmy Robbin, Tanesha Ross, Melanie Sanders, Mark Scott, Gil Sinuet, Justinn Waddell, Robin Gibb, Lionel Richie, Diane Warren, Paul Anka, Neil Sedaka, J.D. Adams, Rebecca Bond, Samantha Cohen, Equoia Coleman, Frenchie Davis, Meosha Denton, Patrick Forton, Jennifer Fuentes, Louis Gazzara, Charles Grigsby, Hadas, Kimberly Kelsey, Vanessa Olivarez, Bettis Richardson, Jack John Smalley, George Trice, Elton John, Gloria Estefan, Jae Tracie, Judd Harris, Melinda LIra, Sarah Mather, Jared Yates, Antonio Banderas, Jeff Beck, Anthony Fitzgerald, jack Black, Michael Chiklis, Celine Dion, Eric McCormack, Phil Bredesen, Dan Castellaneta, Jarrod Fowler, Denise Jackson, Rachel Jenkins, Sarah Krueger, Perla Meneses, Matt Sato, Jim Carrey, Dane Cook, Rascal Flatts, Sons of Sylvia, Janice Dickinson, Paul Stanley, Kobe Bryant, James Denton, Neil Diamond, Snoop Dogg, Fawn, Jimmy Kimmel, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Dolly Parton, Brad Pitt, Ashley Tisdale, Forest Whitaker, Robin Williams, Apl de ap, Lady Gaga, Queen Latifah, Taboo, Frankie Jordan, March Raducci, Randy Travis, Julissa Veloz, Leneshe Young, Rihanna, Josh Sussman, Justin Bieber, Harry Connick Jr, Amanda DeSimone, Bernadette DeSimone, Amedea DiRocco, Cornelius Edwards, Justin Gaston, Orianthi, Larry Platt, Mary Powers, Erica Rhodes, Charity Vance, Vanessa Wolfe, Marc Anthony, kendra Chantelle, Tim Halperin, Brett Loewenstern, Robbie Rosen, Lauren Turner, Stephen Werner, Tatynisa Wilson, Julie Zorrilla, Cecile Frot-Coutaz, Ken Warwick, Patrick Lynn, Megan Michaels, Nigel Lythgoe, Katie Fennelly, Ron De Shay, Charles Boyd, Norm Betts, Brian Robinson, Simon Jones, Theo Dimitrious, Simon Lythgoe, Melanie Oberman, David Goffin, Jessica Kelly Toby Gorman, Sam Brenzel, Beth McNamara, Camilla Rahaman, Steven Schillaci, James Breen, Mike Yurchuk, Sarah Kane, Rebecca Dobkowitz, Kathleen Sheets, Clay Wolflick, Tom Brunell, Esther Frank, Jill Schwartz, Robert Gustafson, Charles Boyd, Cambrietta Frierson, Beth Van Dyke, Jerry D'Alessandro, Priya Balachandran, Matthew Watkins, Nikki Boella, Jennifer Bresnan, Billy Cooper, Brian Gadinsky, Mona Grenier, Tarvenia Jones, Andy Meyer, Tim Roddy, Hope Wilson, Jessica Jones, John Eritz, Aaron Weiner, James Wright, Chris Wagner, Tisha Fein, Nisa Ahmad, Suzie Weis, Dan Sacks, Nicola Gaha, Brent Wilson, Mark Gamsey, Jensen Oliver Moon, Ben Dolenc, Matt Cavanagh, Adam Cooper, Jonathan Hay, Ben Idorn, Pam Niedzwiadek, Nicole Slamer, Stephanie Lydecker, Marc Ambrose, John Bard Manulis, Colby Cote, Cam Frierson, Dean landon, Shawn Clement, Jack Elliot, Matt Vowles, Wes Hambright, Jeremy Sweet, Sean Peden, Jack Messitt, David Rutherford, Narumi Inatsugu, Andy Walmsley, James Yarnell, Steve Bass, Craig Gooder, Wylleen May, Alessandro Fadin, Christine Klages Staley, Chris Wagner, Michelle Baker, Mike Hofferth, Tyson Janisch, Reilly Oliver, Paul Cozzi, Barry Ward, Justin Healy, susana Santiago, Michelle LeTarte, Paula Frank, Melissa Wong, Michael Briggs, Brian Farguharson, Timothy Hamilton, Jenny Stanley, Tina Cannizzaro DeBone, Vicki Ariamal-Preto, Gregg Galfand, Tent Girl, Amy Brumfield, David Leathers, Phillip PhillipsAnother problem, last night I realized the talent in this country is all the same (either that or the “AI” producers want the same talent).

  • We had Tent Girl (Amy Brumfield) – who was basically Crystal Bowersox – (hopefully she can stay out of jail)
  • We had Phillip Phillips – who is David Cook (among many others)
  • We had a teenage Michael Jackson (who annoyingly fancies himself a lady’s man)
  • We had some awkward Lee DeWyzes (more awkward than Lee DeWyze)
  • We had a few Daughtrys
  • We had some hot chicks who could barely carry a tune but made it through to Hollywood (because it’s a singing competition – you HAVE to have good looking people on the show)
  • We had numerous Jennifer Hudsons
  • We had a lot of country music types (can country music absorb another failed pop star?)

It’s just enough with these singing talent shows.  The ratings drop-off year-over-year should be proving that America is getting tired of it and Hollywood is refusing to offer us something new.

But I understand how hard it is for Fox to give it up.  It’s produced at a minimum cost (relative) and still gets double the ratings of any new scripted show they launch – so why not keep it going no matter how lame?

But that doesn’t mean I have to like it… or watch it.

Accel Partners, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Chris Hughes, David Kirkpatrick, Dustin Moskovitz, Eduardo Saverin, Gerald Levin, Greylock Partners, HBO, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Zucker, Jill Kennedy, Joanna Shields, Jon Miller, Khan Manka, Li Ka-shing, Manka Bros., Mark Cuban, Mark Zuckerberg, Matt Cohler, MySpace, Nicolas Carlson, OnMedea, Owen Van Natta, Paul Buchheit, Peter Thiel, Rupert Murdoch, Sheryl Sandberg, Sumner Redstone, Toy Story 3Jill Kennedy – OnMedea

The Hollywood Foreign Press Has Done It Again!

Ahmed Lateef, Aida Takla-O'Reilly, Alena Prime, Alessandra Venezia, Alexander Nevsky, Ali Sar, Ana Maria Bahiana, Andre Guimond, Aniko Navai, Anita Baum, Anke Hofmann, Ari Emanuel, Armando Gallo, Aud Berggren Morisse, Avik Gilboa, Ben Silverman, Cameron Diaz, Cher, Dagmar Dunlevy, Dierk Sindermann, Edmund Brettschneider, Elisa Leonelli, Elisabeth Sereda, Elmar Biebl, Emanuel Levy, Erkki "Erik" Kanto, Ersi Danou, Frances Schoenberger, Frank Rousseau, Gabriel Lerman, Gabrielle Donnelly, George Doss, Gilda Baum-Lappe, Golden Globes, H.J. Park, Hans J. Spurkel, Harvey Weinstein, Helen Hoehne, Helena Mar-Elia, Helmut Voss, Herve Tropea, Hollywood Foreign Press members, Howard Lucraft, Isabelle Caron, Jack Tewksbury, Janet R. Nepales, Jean E. Cummings, Jean-Paul Chaillet, Jenny Cooney Carrillo, Jerry Watson, Jill Kennedy, John Hiscock, Jorge Camara, Judy Solomon, Juliette Michaud, Karen Martin, Khan Manka, Kleo Lee, Lawrie Masterson, Lilly Lui, Lisa Lu, Lorenzo Soria, Luca Celada, Lynn M. Tso, Magnus Sundholm, Mahfouz Doss, Manka Bros., Margaret Gardiner, Maria Snoeys-Lagler, Mario Amaya, Marlene von Arx, Maureen Dragone, Max B. Miller, Meher Tatna, Mike Goodridge, Mira Panajotovic, Mohammed Rouda, Munawar Hosain, Nellee A. Holmes, Noel de Souza, Noemia Young, OnMedea, Paolua Abou-Jaoude, Patrica Danaher, Patrick Roth, Paz Mata, Philip Berk, Ramzi Malouki, Ray Arco, Ricky Gervais, Ricky van Veen, Rocio Ayuso, Ruben V. Nepales, Rui Henriques Coimbra, Scarlett Johansson, Scott Orlin, Serge Rakhlin, Silvia Bizio, The Tourist, Theo Kingma, Vera Anderson, Yenny Nun-Katz, Yoko Narita, Yola Czaderska-Hayek, Yoram Kahana, Yukiko Nakajima

Ahmed Lateef, Aida Takla-O'Reilly, Alena Prime, Alessandra Venezia, Alexander Nevsky, Ali Sar, Ana Maria Bahiana, Andre Guimond, Aniko Navai, Anita Baum, Anke Hofmann, Ari Emanuel, Armando Gallo, Aud Berggren Morisse, Avik Gilboa, Ben Silverman, Cameron Diaz, Cher, Dagmar Dunlevy, Dierk Sindermann, Edmund Brettschneider, Elisa Leonelli, Elisabeth Sereda, Elmar Biebl, Emanuel Levy, Erkki "Erik" Kanto, Ersi Danou, Frances Schoenberger, Frank Rousseau, Gabriel Lerman, Gabrielle Donnelly, George Doss, Gilda Baum-Lappe, Golden Globes, H.J. Park, Hans J. Spurkel, Harvey Weinstein, Helen Hoehne, Helena Mar-Elia, Helmut Voss, Herve Tropea, Hollywood Foreign Press members, Howard Lucraft, Isabelle Caron, Jack Tewksbury, Janet R. Nepales, Jean E. Cummings, Jean-Paul Chaillet, Jenny Cooney Carrillo, Jerry Watson, Jill Kennedy, John Hiscock, Jorge Camara, Judy Solomon, Juliette Michaud, Karen Martin, Khan Manka, Kleo Lee, Lawrie Masterson, Lilly Lui, Lisa Lu, Lorenzo Soria, Luca Celada, Lynn M. Tso, Magnus Sundholm, Mahfouz Doss, Manka Bros., Margaret Gardiner, Maria Snoeys-Lagler, Mario Amaya, Marlene von Arx, Maureen Dragone, Max B. Miller, Meher Tatna, Mike Goodridge, Mira Panajotovic, Mohammed Rouda, Munawar Hosain, Nellee A. Holmes, Noel de Souza, Noemia Young, OnMedea, Paolua Abou-Jaoude, Patrica Danaher, Patrick Roth, Paz Mata, Philip Berk, Ramzi Malouki, Ray Arco, Ricky Gervais, Ricky van Veen, Rocio Ayuso, Ruben V. Nepales, Rui Henriques Coimbra, Scarlett Johansson, Scott Orlin, Serge Rakhlin, Silvia Bizio, The Tourist, Theo Kingma, Vera Anderson, Yenny Nun-Katz, Yoko Narita, Yola Czaderska-Hayek, Yoram Kahana, Yukiko NakajimaOK, just admit it guys, you love movie stars and only nominate hot people you would like to ‘go to disco’ with.

I mean, I sort of know where you’re coming from – “The Ides Of March” sucked but, of course, I would rather sit at “The Ides Of March” table with George Clooney than the “Like Crazy” table with the ‘no names’ who would have sat at that table – but come on!

The Hollywood Foreign Press has become more and more of a joke every year (OK, maybe not the Pia Zadora year).

You must LIKE to be hated otherwise you wouldn’t have invited Ricky Gervais back to (hopefully) rip you to shreds again.

Please Ricky – go for a lifetime ban!

You must realize you have zero credibility in the industry.  Stars, agents and executives laugh at you.  Stars only go to the ceremony because stars like to go out and have free drinks and stars like to win awards.  That’s just the nature of the beast – those people need to feel loved.  And you’re always more than happy to oblige.

The problem is, it’s just way too obvious that you don’t want any ugly people to be invited to The Golden Globes.

You just have a mental block – like the inability to quit smoking.  You just can’t do it.

Ahmed Lateef, Aida Takla-O'Reilly, Alena Prime, Alessandra Venezia, Alexander Nevsky, Ali Sar, Ana Maria Bahiana, Andre Guimond, Aniko Navai, Anita Baum, Anke Hofmann, Ari Emanuel, Armando Gallo, Aud Berggren Morisse, Avik Gilboa, Ben Silverman, Cameron Diaz, Cher, Dagmar Dunlevy, Dierk Sindermann, Edmund Brettschneider, Elisa Leonelli, Elisabeth Sereda, Elmar Biebl, Emanuel Levy, Erkki "Erik" Kanto, Ersi Danou, Frances Schoenberger, Frank Rousseau, Gabriel Lerman, Gabrielle Donnelly, George Doss, Gilda Baum-Lappe, Golden Globes, H.J. Park, Hans J. Spurkel, Harvey Weinstein, Helen Hoehne, Helena Mar-Elia, Helmut Voss, Herve Tropea, Hollywood Foreign Press members, Howard Lucraft, Isabelle Caron, Jack Tewksbury, Janet R. Nepales, Jean E. Cummings, Jean-Paul Chaillet, Jenny Cooney Carrillo, Jerry Watson, Jill Kennedy, John Hiscock, Jorge Camara, Judy Solomon, Juliette Michaud, Karen Martin, Khan Manka, Kleo Lee, Lawrie Masterson, Lilly Lui, Lisa Lu, Lorenzo Soria, Luca Celada, Lynn M. Tso, Magnus Sundholm, Mahfouz Doss, Manka Bros., Margaret Gardiner, Maria Snoeys-Lagler, Mario Amaya, Marlene von Arx, Maureen Dragone, Max B. Miller, Meher Tatna, Mike Goodridge, Mira Panajotovic, Mohammed Rouda, Munawar Hosain, Nellee A. Holmes, Noel de Souza, Noemia Young, OnMedea, Paolua Abou-Jaoude, Patrica Danaher, Patrick Roth, Paz Mata, Philip Berk, Ramzi Malouki, Ray Arco, Ricky Gervais, Ricky van Veen, Rocio Ayuso, Ruben V. Nepales, Rui Henriques Coimbra, Scarlett Johansson, Scott Orlin, Serge Rakhlin, Silvia Bizio, The Tourist, Theo Kingma, Vera Anderson, Yenny Nun-Katz, Yoko Narita, Yola Czaderska-Hayek, Yoram Kahana, Yukiko NakajimaIf a hot chick or guy can sort of speak (and even that may not be a prerequisite – look at “The Artist”), they have a chance to get nominated for a Golden Globe.

And, once again, not one film or television show from Manka Bros. Studios gets a nod.  Ever since Khan Manka, Jr. vowed to destroy your little group (and refused to pay your shake-down bribes – sorry, ten cartons of cigarettes and a case of Diddy’s vodka was just too much to pay), you have had it in for the world’s largest media company – and have never been able to see past that and judge the work on its own merit.

It’s truly disgraceful.

But there is a slight positive here – both Cameron Diaz and Scarlett Johansson were in movies this year, but you made the very difficult (I’m sure) decision not to nominate them (especially now that Scarlett is single and you all probably think you have a chance).

I’m sure there were fights and discussions to expand the categories when you couldn’t squeeze them in (but that’s why we have presenters, right?).

Deep down, I love you guys.  I mean, who can resist all that hair and horrible perfume?  I just wish you made more of an effort to try and fool us into believing your were a legitimate organization.

But that takes away some of the fun, doesn’t it?

Hopefully, the Academy doesn’t pay too much attention.

Accel Partners, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Chris Hughes, David Kirkpatrick, Dustin Moskovitz, Eduardo Saverin, Gerald Levin, Greylock Partners, HBO, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Zucker, Jill Kennedy, Joanna Shields, Jon Miller, Khan Manka, Li Ka-shing, Manka Bros., Mark Cuban, Mark Zuckerberg, Matt Cohler, MySpace, Nicolas Carlson, OnMedea, Owen Van Natta, Paul Buchheit, Peter Thiel, Rupert Murdoch, Sheryl Sandberg, Sumner Redstone, Toy Story 3Jill Kennedy – OnMedea

 

The X Factor Is Terrible

Allen & Company retreat, Anne Mulcahy, Ari Emanuel, Barry Diller, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Bobby Kotick, Carol Bartz, Charlie Rose, Cory Booker, DumbDumb, Electus, Eric Schmidt, Erin Burnett, Gina Bianchini, Harvey Weinstein, Herb Allen, Herb Allen Sun Valley Conference, Herbert Allen, Jean-Bernard Levy, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Weiner, Jeff Zucker, Jeffrey Immelt, Jerry Yang, John Donahue, Ken Auletta, Khan Manka, Lachlan Murdoch, Lady Gaga, Leslie Moonves, Lionel Barber, Lloyd Grohl, Manka Bros., Marc Andreessen, Marissa Mayer, Mark Pincus, Mark Zuckerberg, Martin Sorrell, Mathias Dopfner, Mike Bloomberg, Niall FitzGerald, Peter Chernin, Phillippe Dauman, Reid Hoffman, Richard Parsons, Ricky Van Veen, Rob Wiesenthal, Robert L. Johnson, Ron Meyer, Rupert Murdoch, Sergey Brin, Sheryl Sandberg, Steve Jobs, Sun Valley Retreat, Sun Valley Retreat 2010, Terry Semel, Tom Freston, Tom Friedman, Ursula Burns, Vivi Nevo, Warren Buffett, World's Largest Media Company, Rupert Murdoch, Jose Maria Aznar, natalie Bancroft, Peter Barnes, Chase Carey, Kenneth Cowley, David DeVoe, Viet Dinh, Rod Eddington, Joel Klein, Andrew S.B. Knight, James Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch, Thomas Perkins, Arthur Siskind, John Thornton, Stanley Shuman, Rebekah Brooks, Les Hinton, Teri Everett, jack Horner, Julie Henderson, Reed Nolte, Roger Ailes, Janet Nova, John Nallen, Beryl Cook, Michael Regan, Genie Gavenchak, Brian Lewis, Irena Briganti, Dan Berger, Rosabel Tao, Steven Rubenstein, Suzanne Halpin, Elisabeth Murdoch, Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, L.A. Reid, Nicole Scherzinger, Steve Jones, Drew, Melanie Amaro, Rachel Crow, Lakoda Rayne, The Stereo Hogzz, inTENsity, Josh Krajcik, LeRoy Bell, Stacy Francis, Astro, Brian Bradley, Chris Rene, Marcus Canty, Ben Thursby, Jason Sands, Andrew Kimmel, Cecile Frot-Coutaz, Siobhan Greene, Richard Holloway, Andrew Llinares, Jason Sands, Rob Wade, Autumn DeVitry, Heath Luman, Steve Bae, Kari Killion, Robin Koethcke, Karla LeCroix, Shelby Wagner, Caroline Abaecheta, Maggie Brockmann, Tim Byrne, Vira Chhay, Jessica Devlin, Paul Fishman, Ryan Goble, Mike Hofferth, Dan Keats, Pete Ogden, Yasmin Rawii, Marla Roberts, David Silberman, Jacqui Denker, Elaina Fish, Drew Fontes, Brian Friedman Henri Hebert, Ben Idom, Michelle Kirschner, Ian Mallahan, Tyree McLyn, Sara Sanders, Greg Matthews, Florian Wieder, Louis Borreli, Chad Cohen, Tiffany Hoss, Vanessa Rose Ioppolo, Reilly Oliver, Zach Jarosz, Jen Muccia, Stephanie Cieplinski, Abigail Doyle, Katie Franzeo, Maxwell Harris, William Lacey, Michael Boeder, Tammy Raab, Donald Hudson, Tom Riles, Natalie Threlkel

Allen & Company retreat, Anne Mulcahy, Ari Emanuel, Barry Diller, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Bobby Kotick, Carol Bartz, Charlie Rose, Cory Booker, DumbDumb, Electus, Eric Schmidt, Erin Burnett, Gina Bianchini, Harvey Weinstein, Herb Allen, Herb Allen Sun Valley Conference, Herbert Allen, Jean-Bernard Levy, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Weiner, Jeff Zucker, Jeffrey Immelt, Jerry Yang, John Donahue, Ken Auletta, Khan Manka, Lachlan Murdoch, Lady Gaga, Leslie Moonves, Lionel Barber, Lloyd Grohl, Manka Bros., Marc Andreessen, Marissa Mayer, Mark Pincus, Mark Zuckerberg, Martin Sorrell, Mathias Dopfner, Mike Bloomberg, Niall FitzGerald, Peter Chernin, Phillippe Dauman, Reid Hoffman, Richard Parsons, Ricky Van Veen, Rob Wiesenthal, Robert L. Johnson, Ron Meyer, Rupert Murdoch, Sergey Brin, Sheryl Sandberg, Steve Jobs, Sun Valley Retreat, Sun Valley Retreat 2010, Terry Semel, Tom Freston, Tom Friedman, Ursula Burns, Vivi Nevo, Warren Buffett, World's Largest Media Company, Rupert Murdoch, Jose Maria Aznar, natalie Bancroft, Peter Barnes, Chase Carey, Kenneth Cowley, David DeVoe, Viet Dinh, Rod Eddington, Joel Klein, Andrew S.B. Knight, James Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch, Thomas Perkins, Arthur Siskind, John Thornton, Stanley Shuman, Rebekah Brooks, Les Hinton, Teri Everett, jack Horner, Julie Henderson, Reed Nolte, Roger Ailes, Janet Nova, John Nallen, Beryl Cook, Michael Regan, Genie Gavenchak, Brian Lewis, Irena Briganti, Dan Berger, Rosabel Tao, Steven Rubenstein, Suzanne Halpin, Elisabeth Murdoch, Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, L.A. Reid, Nicole Scherzinger, Steve Jones, Drew, Melanie Amaro, Rachel Crow, Lakoda Rayne, The Stereo Hogzz, inTENsity, Josh Krajcik, LeRoy Bell, Stacy Francis, Astro, Brian Bradley, Chris Rene, Marcus Canty, Ben Thursby, Jason Sands, Andrew Kimmel, Cecile Frot-Coutaz, Siobhan Greene, Richard Holloway, Andrew Llinares, Jason Sands, Rob Wade, Autumn DeVitry, Heath Luman, Steve Bae, Kari Killion, Robin Koethcke, Karla LeCroix, Shelby Wagner, Caroline Abaecheta, Maggie Brockmann, Tim Byrne, Vira Chhay, Jessica Devlin, Paul Fishman, Ryan Goble, Mike Hofferth, Dan Keats, Pete Ogden, Yasmin Rawii, Marla Roberts, David Silberman, Jacqui Denker, Elaina Fish, Drew Fontes, Brian Friedman Henri Hebert, Ben Idom, Michelle Kirschner, Ian Mallahan, Tyree McLyn, Sara Sanders, Greg Matthews, Florian Wieder, Louis Borreli, Chad Cohen, Tiffany Hoss, Vanessa Rose Ioppolo, Reilly Oliver, Zach Jarosz, Jen Muccia, Stephanie Cieplinski, Abigail Doyle, Katie Franzeo, Maxwell Harris, William Lacey, Michael Boeder, Tammy Raab, Donald Hudson, Tom Riles, Natalie ThrelkelFirst of all, I am not a television critic.  I am a critic of the television industry – but not really on the content itself.

That said, last week, while at a Manka Bros. corporate retreat, I actually sat and watched a full episode of “The X Factor” – and it was terrible.

Seriously, this is a really bad, over-produced mess.

A massive train wreck.

I can see now why the ratings have been just “okay” (considering the enormous pre-season expectations).

I thought this was going to be a huge show and even killed “American Idol” last year after it was announced that Simon Cowell was leaving (to ultimately start “The X Factor”).

I will admit now, my killing of “American Idol” was wrong.  That show is alive and surprisingly well after more than a decade.

That’s more than I can say for “The X Factor”.

From what I saw (to be fair – on my one viewing), this show is complete disaster and won’t be alive two years from now (much less a decade).  I know it was renewed for next year but I have a feeling that was part of the original deal (though they made a press announcement like it was a big surprise).  Maybe there’s a chance this show could improve and grow into something – but I doubt it.  There are too many problems.

The main advice I have for this show:  Calm the fuck down.

Allen & Company retreat, Anne Mulcahy, Ari Emanuel, Barry Diller, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Bobby Kotick, Carol Bartz, Charlie Rose, Cory Booker, DumbDumb, Electus, Eric Schmidt, Erin Burnett, Gina Bianchini, Harvey Weinstein, Herb Allen, Herb Allen Sun Valley Conference, Herbert Allen, Jean-Bernard Levy, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Weiner, Jeff Zucker, Jeffrey Immelt, Jerry Yang, John Donahue, Ken Auletta, Khan Manka, Lachlan Murdoch, Lady Gaga, Leslie Moonves, Lionel Barber, Lloyd Grohl, Manka Bros., Marc Andreessen, Marissa Mayer, Mark Pincus, Mark Zuckerberg, Martin Sorrell, Mathias Dopfner, Mike Bloomberg, Niall FitzGerald, Peter Chernin, Phillippe Dauman, Reid Hoffman, Richard Parsons, Ricky Van Veen, Rob Wiesenthal, Robert L. Johnson, Ron Meyer, Rupert Murdoch, Sergey Brin, Sheryl Sandberg, Steve Jobs, Sun Valley Retreat, Sun Valley Retreat 2010, Terry Semel, Tom Freston, Tom Friedman, Ursula Burns, Vivi Nevo, Warren Buffett, World's Largest Media Company, Rupert Murdoch, Jose Maria Aznar, natalie Bancroft, Peter Barnes, Chase Carey, Kenneth Cowley, David DeVoe, Viet Dinh, Rod Eddington, Joel Klein, Andrew S.B. Knight, James Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch, Thomas Perkins, Arthur Siskind, John Thornton, Stanley Shuman, Rebekah Brooks, Les Hinton, Teri Everett, jack Horner, Julie Henderson, Reed Nolte, Roger Ailes, Janet Nova, John Nallen, Beryl Cook, Michael Regan, Genie Gavenchak, Brian Lewis, Irena Briganti, Dan Berger, Rosabel Tao, Steven Rubenstein, Suzanne Halpin, Elisabeth Murdoch, Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, L.A. Reid, Nicole Scherzinger, Steve Jones, Drew, Melanie Amaro, Rachel Crow, Lakoda Rayne, The Stereo Hogzz, inTENsity, Josh Krajcik, LeRoy Bell, Stacy Francis, Astro, Brian Bradley, Chris Rene, Marcus Canty, Ben Thursby, Jason Sands, Andrew Kimmel, Cecile Frot-Coutaz, Siobhan Greene, Richard Holloway, Andrew Llinares, Jason Sands, Rob Wade, Autumn DeVitry, Heath Luman, Steve Bae, Kari Killion, Robin Koethcke, Karla LeCroix, Shelby Wagner, Caroline Abaecheta, Maggie Brockmann, Tim Byrne, Vira Chhay, Jessica Devlin, Paul Fishman, Ryan Goble, Mike Hofferth, Dan Keats, Pete Ogden, Yasmin Rawii, Marla Roberts, David Silberman, Jacqui Denker, Elaina Fish, Drew Fontes, Brian Friedman Henri Hebert, Ben Idom, Michelle Kirschner, Ian Mallahan, Tyree McLyn, Sara Sanders, Greg Matthews, Florian Wieder, Louis Borreli, Chad Cohen, Tiffany Hoss, Vanessa Rose Ioppolo, Reilly Oliver, Zach Jarosz, Jen Muccia, Stephanie Cieplinski, Abigail Doyle, Katie Franzeo, Maxwell Harris, William Lacey, Michael Boeder, Tammy Raab, Donald Hudson, Tom Riles, Natalie ThrelkelHere are the key problems as I see it:

1)  SIMON COWELL. The man who single-handedly turned “American Idol” into a must see phenomenon, is the biggest hindrance of his own show.

Why?

Because he has to DO stuff on this one. Not just sit in the chair, look disinterested, and throw out barbs that make America scream at the television.  That was the biggest strength of “American Idol” – his laziness.

Now, he’s pitching products, reading off cue cards – it’s a disaster.  He is so far out of his comfort zone that he has destroyed the one thing “The X Factor” has going for it – himself.

He needs to fire himself – simple as that.

Allen & Company retreat, Anne Mulcahy, Ari Emanuel, Barry Diller, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Bobby Kotick, Carol Bartz, Charlie Rose, Cory Booker, DumbDumb, Electus, Eric Schmidt, Erin Burnett, Gina Bianchini, Harvey Weinstein, Herb Allen, Herb Allen Sun Valley Conference, Herbert Allen, Jean-Bernard Levy, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Weiner, Jeff Zucker, Jeffrey Immelt, Jerry Yang, John Donahue, Ken Auletta, Khan Manka, Lachlan Murdoch, Lady Gaga, Leslie Moonves, Lionel Barber, Lloyd Grohl, Manka Bros., Marc Andreessen, Marissa Mayer, Mark Pincus, Mark Zuckerberg, Martin Sorrell, Mathias Dopfner, Mike Bloomberg, Niall FitzGerald, Peter Chernin, Phillippe Dauman, Reid Hoffman, Richard Parsons, Ricky Van Veen, Rob Wiesenthal, Robert L. Johnson, Ron Meyer, Rupert Murdoch, Sergey Brin, Sheryl Sandberg, Steve Jobs, Sun Valley Retreat, Sun Valley Retreat 2010, Terry Semel, Tom Freston, Tom Friedman, Ursula Burns, Vivi Nevo, Warren Buffett, World's Largest Media Company, Rupert Murdoch, Jose Maria Aznar, natalie Bancroft, Peter Barnes, Chase Carey, Kenneth Cowley, David DeVoe, Viet Dinh, Rod Eddington, Joel Klein, Andrew S.B. Knight, James Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch, Thomas Perkins, Arthur Siskind, John Thornton, Stanley Shuman, Rebekah Brooks, Les Hinton, Teri Everett, jack Horner, Julie Henderson, Reed Nolte, Roger Ailes, Janet Nova, John Nallen, Beryl Cook, Michael Regan, Genie Gavenchak, Brian Lewis, Irena Briganti, Dan Berger, Rosabel Tao, Steven Rubenstein, Suzanne Halpin, Elisabeth Murdoch, Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, L.A. Reid, Nicole Scherzinger, Steve Jones, Drew, Melanie Amaro, Rachel Crow, Lakoda Rayne, The Stereo Hogzz, inTENsity, Josh Krajcik, LeRoy Bell, Stacy Francis, Astro, Brian Bradley, Chris Rene, Marcus Canty, Ben Thursby, Jason Sands, Andrew Kimmel, Cecile Frot-Coutaz, Siobhan Greene, Richard Holloway, Andrew Llinares, Jason Sands, Rob Wade, Autumn DeVitry, Heath Luman, Steve Bae, Kari Killion, Robin Koethcke, Karla LeCroix, Shelby Wagner, Caroline Abaecheta, Maggie Brockmann, Tim Byrne, Vira Chhay, Jessica Devlin, Paul Fishman, Ryan Goble, Mike Hofferth, Dan Keats, Pete Ogden, Yasmin Rawii, Marla Roberts, David Silberman, Jacqui Denker, Elaina Fish, Drew Fontes, Brian Friedman Henri Hebert, Ben Idom, Michelle Kirschner, Ian Mallahan, Tyree McLyn, Sara Sanders, Greg Matthews, Florian Wieder, Louis Borreli, Chad Cohen, Tiffany Hoss, Vanessa Rose Ioppolo, Reilly Oliver, Zach Jarosz, Jen Muccia, Stephanie Cieplinski, Abigail Doyle, Katie Franzeo, Maxwell Harris, William Lacey, Michael Boeder, Tammy Raab, Donald Hudson, Tom Riles, Natalie Threlkel2) THE OTHER JUDGES. No chemistry and embarrassing to watch – especially when they try to stir up some sort of controversy or generate angry banter.

The carefully choreographed verbal jabs between the judges is as convincing as a 6th Grade production of “Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?”.

Why is that?

Because we all know Simon hired all the judges (in almost a reality show of its own) and we know that Paula was sort desperate for this gig – so any little “fights” she has with Simon ring false.

On “American Idol” it worked a little better because they were all hired guns that negotiated separate deals.  Simon negotiated all of “The X Factor” judges deals.  He owns them which is why it doesn’t work.

Allen & Company retreat, Anne Mulcahy, Ari Emanuel, Barry Diller, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Bobby Kotick, Carol Bartz, Charlie Rose, Cory Booker, DumbDumb, Electus, Eric Schmidt, Erin Burnett, Gina Bianchini, Harvey Weinstein, Herb Allen, Herb Allen Sun Valley Conference, Herbert Allen, Jean-Bernard Levy, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Weiner, Jeff Zucker, Jeffrey Immelt, Jerry Yang, John Donahue, Ken Auletta, Khan Manka, Lachlan Murdoch, Lady Gaga, Leslie Moonves, Lionel Barber, Lloyd Grohl, Manka Bros., Marc Andreessen, Marissa Mayer, Mark Pincus, Mark Zuckerberg, Martin Sorrell, Mathias Dopfner, Mike Bloomberg, Niall FitzGerald, Peter Chernin, Phillippe Dauman, Reid Hoffman, Richard Parsons, Ricky Van Veen, Rob Wiesenthal, Robert L. Johnson, Ron Meyer, Rupert Murdoch, Sergey Brin, Sheryl Sandberg, Steve Jobs, Sun Valley Retreat, Sun Valley Retreat 2010, Terry Semel, Tom Freston, Tom Friedman, Ursula Burns, Vivi Nevo, Warren Buffett, World's Largest Media Company, Rupert Murdoch, Jose Maria Aznar, natalie Bancroft, Peter Barnes, Chase Carey, Kenneth Cowley, David DeVoe, Viet Dinh, Rod Eddington, Joel Klein, Andrew S.B. Knight, James Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch, Thomas Perkins, Arthur Siskind, John Thornton, Stanley Shuman, Rebekah Brooks, Les Hinton, Teri Everett, jack Horner, Julie Henderson, Reed Nolte, Roger Ailes, Janet Nova, John Nallen, Beryl Cook, Michael Regan, Genie Gavenchak, Brian Lewis, Irena Briganti, Dan Berger, Rosabel Tao, Steven Rubenstein, Suzanne Halpin, Elisabeth Murdoch, Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, L.A. Reid, Nicole Scherzinger, Steve Jones, Drew, Melanie Amaro, Rachel Crow, Lakoda Rayne, The Stereo Hogzz, inTENsity, Josh Krajcik, LeRoy Bell, Stacy Francis, Astro, Brian Bradley, Chris Rene, Marcus Canty, Ben Thursby, Jason Sands, Andrew Kimmel, Cecile Frot-Coutaz, Siobhan Greene, Richard Holloway, Andrew Llinares, Jason Sands, Rob Wade, Autumn DeVitry, Heath Luman, Steve Bae, Kari Killion, Robin Koethcke, Karla LeCroix, Shelby Wagner, Caroline Abaecheta, Maggie Brockmann, Tim Byrne, Vira Chhay, Jessica Devlin, Paul Fishman, Ryan Goble, Mike Hofferth, Dan Keats, Pete Ogden, Yasmin Rawii, Marla Roberts, David Silberman, Jacqui Denker, Elaina Fish, Drew Fontes, Brian Friedman Henri Hebert, Ben Idom, Michelle Kirschner, Ian Mallahan, Tyree McLyn, Sara Sanders, Greg Matthews, Florian Wieder, Louis Borreli, Chad Cohen, Tiffany Hoss, Vanessa Rose Ioppolo, Reilly Oliver, Zach Jarosz, Jen Muccia, Stephanie Cieplinski, Abigail Doyle, Katie Franzeo, Maxwell Harris, William Lacey, Michael Boeder, Tammy Raab, Donald Hudson, Tom Riles, Natalie Threlkel3) THE TALENT. Is it just me, or does nearly every act in the Final 12 suck?

As I was watching them all perform, there were so many moments that took me out of the music – bad notes, awkward stage presence – so many moments that I yelled at the television: “These people are singing for $5 million bucks?!”

Maybe because there are so many singing competitions on TV these days the talent pool is getting shallow – but, to me, this is a pretty pathetic crop of finalists.  Especially the children!

4) THE PRODUCT PLACEMENT. Good God, the product placement is completely out of control.  Seriously.  The Verizon X Factor App (or whatever)?  And Simon introduces the Verizon App while drinking a Pepsi.  It’s comical.

They are probably looking for ways to sponsor the sponsorships:   “The Verizon App brought to you by Pepsi and Depends disposable adult diapers (so you don’t have to miss one second of “The X Factor” – just go in your pants!).”

Allen & Company retreat, Anne Mulcahy, Ari Emanuel, Barry Diller, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Bobby Kotick, Carol Bartz, Charlie Rose, Cory Booker, DumbDumb, Electus, Eric Schmidt, Erin Burnett, Gina Bianchini, Harvey Weinstein, Herb Allen, Herb Allen Sun Valley Conference, Herbert Allen, Jean-Bernard Levy, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Weiner, Jeff Zucker, Jeffrey Immelt, Jerry Yang, John Donahue, Ken Auletta, Khan Manka, Lachlan Murdoch, Lady Gaga, Leslie Moonves, Lionel Barber, Lloyd Grohl, Manka Bros., Marc Andreessen, Marissa Mayer, Mark Pincus, Mark Zuckerberg, Martin Sorrell, Mathias Dopfner, Mike Bloomberg, Niall FitzGerald, Peter Chernin, Phillippe Dauman, Reid Hoffman, Richard Parsons, Ricky Van Veen, Rob Wiesenthal, Robert L. Johnson, Ron Meyer, Rupert Murdoch, Sergey Brin, Sheryl Sandberg, Steve Jobs, Sun Valley Retreat, Sun Valley Retreat 2010, Terry Semel, Tom Freston, Tom Friedman, Ursula Burns, Vivi Nevo, Warren Buffett, World's Largest Media Company, Rupert Murdoch, Jose Maria Aznar, natalie Bancroft, Peter Barnes, Chase Carey, Kenneth Cowley, David DeVoe, Viet Dinh, Rod Eddington, Joel Klein, Andrew S.B. Knight, James Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch, Thomas Perkins, Arthur Siskind, John Thornton, Stanley Shuman, Rebekah Brooks, Les Hinton, Teri Everett, jack Horner, Julie Henderson, Reed Nolte, Roger Ailes, Janet Nova, John Nallen, Beryl Cook, Michael Regan, Genie Gavenchak, Brian Lewis, Irena Briganti, Dan Berger, Rosabel Tao, Steven Rubenstein, Suzanne Halpin, Elisabeth Murdoch, Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, L.A. Reid, Nicole Scherzinger, Steve Jones, Drew, Melanie Amaro, Rachel Crow, Lakoda Rayne, The Stereo Hogzz, inTENsity, Josh Krajcik, LeRoy Bell, Stacy Francis, Astro, Brian Bradley, Chris Rene, Marcus Canty, Ben Thursby, Jason Sands, Andrew Kimmel, Cecile Frot-Coutaz, Siobhan Greene, Richard Holloway, Andrew Llinares, Jason Sands, Rob Wade, Autumn DeVitry, Heath Luman, Steve Bae, Kari Killion, Robin Koethcke, Karla LeCroix, Shelby Wagner, Caroline Abaecheta, Maggie Brockmann, Tim Byrne, Vira Chhay, Jessica Devlin, Paul Fishman, Ryan Goble, Mike Hofferth, Dan Keats, Pete Ogden, Yasmin Rawii, Marla Roberts, David Silberman, Jacqui Denker, Elaina Fish, Drew Fontes, Brian Friedman Henri Hebert, Ben Idom, Michelle Kirschner, Ian Mallahan, Tyree McLyn, Sara Sanders, Greg Matthews, Florian Wieder, Louis Borreli, Chad Cohen, Tiffany Hoss, Vanessa Rose Ioppolo, Reilly Oliver, Zach Jarosz, Jen Muccia, Stephanie Cieplinski, Abigail Doyle, Katie Franzeo, Maxwell Harris, William Lacey, Michael Boeder, Tammy Raab, Donald Hudson, Tom Riles, Natalie Threlkel5) THE PRODUCTION VALUES. What in the Hell is up with that set design?  These crappy singers are singing in a pinball machine from 1986.  The lights and the moving panels and the smoke and mirrors and lasers.

What the fuck?

We all know whoever wins is going to be singing at County Fairs with Kellie Pickler this summer.  The sets there will be bales of hay and deep-fried bacon machines.  Just calm the fuck down.

Plus, there are those power “X Factor” dancers that gyrate around these poor contestants as they try to make it through “Moon River” without their voice cracking.

On “American Idol”, Simon always used to emphasize that it was a “singing competition”.

He could obviously care less about that now.

Other than that, it’s a pretty awesome show.  Fox has done it again!

Accel Partners, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Chris Hughes, David Kirkpatrick, Dustin Moskovitz, Eduardo Saverin, Gerald Levin, Greylock Partners, HBO, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Zucker, Jill Kennedy, Joanna Shields, Jon Miller, Khan Manka, Li Ka-shing, Manka Bros., Mark Cuban, Mark Zuckerberg, Matt Cohler, MySpace, Nicolas Carlson, OnMedea, Owen Van Natta, Paul Buchheit, Peter Thiel, Rupert Murdoch, Sheryl Sandberg, Sumner Redstone, Toy Story 3Jill Kennedy – OnMedea

Facebook Must Be Stopped

1000Memories, Accel Partners, Amish Jani, Andrew Hyde, Andrew Mason, Andy Sack, Ashton Kutcher, Aydin Senkut, Ben Silverman, Bin 38, Bob Davis, Bob Iger, Brad Feld, Brian Kempner, Chris Hughes, Christopher Steiner, Dan Nova, Daniel Gaisin, Danielle Hootnick, Dave McClure, David Brown, David Cohen, David Kirkpatrick, Demi Moore, Demo Day, Diego Gutierrez, Dustin Moskovitz, Edmond Yue, Eduardo Saverin, Emmett Shear, Eric Lefkofsky, Fergal Mullen, FirstMark Capital, Founders At Work, Francis Duong, Gaurav Tewari, Gerald Levin, Gerald Poch, Greg McAdoo, Greylock Partners, Harjeet Taggar, HBO, Highland Capital Partners, Irena Goldenberg, Jared Polis, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Weiner, Jeff Zucker, Jessica Livingston, Jessica Mah, Jill Kennedy, Joanna Shields, John Hsin, John Palfrey, Jon Miller, Jr., Justin Kan, Justin.tv, Khan Manka, Larry Wilson, Laurence Albukerk, Lawrence Lenihan, Li Ka-shing, Loopt, Manish Patel, Manka Bros., Mark Cuban, Mark Zuckerberg, Matt Cohler, Matt Nichols, Michael Arrington, Michael Gaiss, MySpace, Nick Marsh, Nicolas Carlson, OnMedea, Owen Van Natta, Paul Buchheit, Paul Cianciolo, Paul Graham, Peter Bell, Peter Thiel, Reddit, Richard de Silva, Richard Heitzman, Rick Heitzmann, Robert Morris, Ron Conway, Rudy Adler, Rupert Murdoch, Sand Hill Road, Scott Shane, Scott Switzer, Sequoia Capital, Sergey Nazarov, Shabbir Dahod, Shawn Broderick, Sheryl Sandberg, Sterling Phillips, Sumner Redstone, Tapzilla, TechCrunch, TechStars, TextPayMe, Toy Story 3, Trevor Blackwell, Y Combinator, google, Eric Schmidt, Tina Brown, The Daily Beast, Barry Diller, Dan Lyons, Google Smear campaign, Burson-Marsteller, Chris Soghoian, Jim Goldman, John Mercurio, Mark Pincus, Zynga, Spotify

1000Memories, Accel Partners, Amish Jani, Andrew Hyde, Andrew Mason, Andy Sack, Ashton Kutcher, Aydin Senkut, Ben Silverman, Bin 38, Bob Davis, Bob Iger, Brad Feld, Brian Kempner, Chris Hughes, Christopher Steiner, Dan Nova, Daniel Gaisin, Danielle Hootnick, Dave McClure, David Brown, David Cohen, David Kirkpatrick, Demi Moore, Demo Day, Diego Gutierrez, Dustin Moskovitz, Edmond Yue, Eduardo Saverin, Emmett Shear, Eric Lefkofsky, Fergal Mullen, FirstMark Capital, Founders At Work, Francis Duong, Gaurav Tewari, Gerald Levin, Gerald Poch, Greg McAdoo, Greylock Partners, Harjeet Taggar, HBO, Highland Capital Partners, Irena Goldenberg, Jared Polis, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Weiner, Jeff Zucker, Jessica Livingston, Jessica Mah, Jill Kennedy, Joanna Shields, John Hsin, John Palfrey, Jon Miller, Jr., Justin Kan, Justin.tv, Khan Manka, Larry Wilson, Laurence Albukerk, Lawrence Lenihan, Li Ka-shing, Loopt, Manish Patel, Manka Bros., Mark Cuban, Mark Zuckerberg, Matt Cohler, Matt Nichols, Michael Arrington, Michael Gaiss, MySpace, Nick Marsh, Nicolas Carlson, OnMedea, Owen Van Natta, Paul Buchheit, Paul Cianciolo, Paul Graham, Peter Bell, Peter Thiel, Reddit, Richard de Silva, Richard Heitzman, Rick Heitzmann, Robert Morris, Ron Conway, Rudy Adler, Rupert Murdoch, Sand Hill Road, Scott Shane, Scott Switzer, Sequoia Capital, Sergey Nazarov, Shabbir Dahod, Shawn Broderick, Sheryl Sandberg, Sterling Phillips, Sumner Redstone, Tapzilla, TechCrunch, TechStars, TextPayMe, Toy Story 3, Trevor Blackwell, Y Combinator, google, Eric Schmidt, Tina Brown, The Daily Beast, Barry Diller, Dan Lyons, Google Smear campaign, Burson-Marsteller, Chris Soghoian, Jim Goldman, John Mercurio, Mark Pincus, Zynga, SpotifyThere is an evil  temptation that far too many companies are having trouble resisting – the temptation to launch a new product or service on Facebook.

Every month, when the number of Facebook users seem to go up by 100 million or so – to a current tally of 750 million (let’s be serious, about half are most likely fictional or animals), the CEOs of most entertainment and technology companies get the crazy urge to somehow “tap into that customer base.”

This crazy urge must be resisted.  Why?  So Facebook is destroyed and the people of the world can go on to a much more interesting existence.

In my opinion, doing business with Facebook is the equivalent of doing business with China.  Companies feel they need break into the Chinese market because there is FREAKING 1.3 BILLION PEOPLE THERE! “If we just get 0.0001% we’ll be successful.  It’s a no brainer!”

And nearly every company goes there with their hat in their hand – giving every insane concession imaginable just to get in the door – and, eventually, come home with a giant footprint on their ass.

1000Memories, Accel Partners, Amish Jani, Andrew Hyde, Andrew Mason, Andy Sack, Ashton Kutcher, Aydin Senkut, Ben Silverman, Bin 38, Bob Davis, Bob Iger, Brad Feld, Brian Kempner, Chris Hughes, Christopher Steiner, Dan Nova, Daniel Gaisin, Danielle Hootnick, Dave McClure, David Brown, David Cohen, David Kirkpatrick, Demi Moore, Demo Day, Diego Gutierrez, Dustin Moskovitz, Edmond Yue, Eduardo Saverin, Emmett Shear, Eric Lefkofsky, Fergal Mullen, FirstMark Capital, Founders At Work, Francis Duong, Gaurav Tewari, Gerald Levin, Gerald Poch, Greg McAdoo, Greylock Partners, Harjeet Taggar, HBO, Highland Capital Partners, Irena Goldenberg, Jared Polis, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Weiner, Jeff Zucker, Jessica Livingston, Jessica Mah, Jill Kennedy, Joanna Shields, John Hsin, John Palfrey, Jon Miller, Jr., Justin Kan, Justin.tv, Khan Manka, Larry Wilson, Laurence Albukerk, Lawrence Lenihan, Li Ka-shing, Loopt, Manish Patel, Manka Bros., Mark Cuban, Mark Zuckerberg, Matt Cohler, Matt Nichols, Michael Arrington, Michael Gaiss, MySpace, Nick Marsh, Nicolas Carlson, OnMedea, Owen Van Natta, Paul Buchheit, Paul Cianciolo, Paul Graham, Peter Bell, Peter Thiel, Reddit, Richard de Silva, Richard Heitzman, Rick Heitzmann, Robert Morris, Ron Conway, Rudy Adler, Rupert Murdoch, Sand Hill Road, Scott Shane, Scott Switzer, Sequoia Capital, Sergey Nazarov, Shabbir Dahod, Shawn Broderick, Sheryl Sandberg, Sterling Phillips, Sumner Redstone, Tapzilla, TechCrunch, TechStars, TextPayMe, Toy Story 3, Trevor Blackwell, Y Combinator, google, Eric Schmidt, Tina Brown, The Daily Beast, Barry Diller, Dan Lyons, Google Smear campaign, Burson-Marsteller, Chris Soghoian, Jim Goldman, John Mercurio, Mark Pincus, Zynga, SpotifyReminder:  The Chinese government can do whatever they want. The deal signed means nothing.  If they don’t like your attitude or your product or just feel you’re getting a little “too friendly”, they’ll cut you off and send you home a miserable failure.  And it doesn’t matter how many cartons of cigarettes or bottles of Slivovitz you give local officials.  When it’s over, it’s over.

This is also true of Facebook.

I firmly believe Facebook could absolutely destroy Zynga (and numerous other companies) overnight.  They have that power.

Granted, there is too much money at stake with Zynga’s upcoming IPO, so they probably won’t exert that power.  But do you think the Zynga executives are going to do anything to antagonize Facebook… ever?  Mark Zuckerberg knows the power he has over Mark Pincus.

That is another reason why Facebook must be stopped.  Too many people are believing the hype and are afraid of being left behind.

Every day, Facebook dominates technology news.  Press release after press release announces Facebook’s new initiatives and services.  Their PR department sends out a press release, websites rewrite them slightly and, pow, you have technology news with a narrative controlled by… Facebook.

This week came a “leak” that they will be going into the Music business by blending streaming services such as Spotify, rdio and MOG into the Facebook user experience.

After all, why should anyone have to leave Facebook to listen to music?  Why should anyone have to leave Facebook ever?

(I am working on a product that integrates Facebook into my morning shower.  There must be a way to combine my Facebook news feed with the water from the shower head so my friend’s status updates directly enter my pores and absorb into my brain.  But I digress….)

Spotify is a great service.  They don’t need Facebook.  People on Facebook don’t complain about having to toggle away from Facebook in order to go onto Spotify.  It ain’t broke, don’t fix it!

1000Memories, Accel Partners, Amish Jani, Andrew Hyde, Andrew Mason, Andy Sack, Ashton Kutcher, Aydin Senkut, Ben Silverman, Bin 38, Bob Davis, Bob Iger, Brad Feld, Brian Kempner, Chris Hughes, Christopher Steiner, Dan Nova, Daniel Gaisin, Danielle Hootnick, Dave McClure, David Brown, David Cohen, David Kirkpatrick, Demi Moore, Demo Day, Diego Gutierrez, Dustin Moskovitz, Edmond Yue, Eduardo Saverin, Emmett Shear, Eric Lefkofsky, Fergal Mullen, FirstMark Capital, Founders At Work, Francis Duong, Gaurav Tewari, Gerald Levin, Gerald Poch, Greg McAdoo, Greylock Partners, Harjeet Taggar, HBO, Highland Capital Partners, Irena Goldenberg, Jared Polis, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Weiner, Jeff Zucker, Jessica Livingston, Jessica Mah, Jill Kennedy, Joanna Shields, John Hsin, John Palfrey, Jon Miller, Jr., Justin Kan, Justin.tv, Khan Manka, Larry Wilson, Laurence Albukerk, Lawrence Lenihan, Li Ka-shing, Loopt, Manish Patel, Manka Bros., Mark Cuban, Mark Zuckerberg, Matt Cohler, Matt Nichols, Michael Arrington, Michael Gaiss, MySpace, Nick Marsh, Nicolas Carlson, OnMedea, Owen Van Natta, Paul Buchheit, Paul Cianciolo, Paul Graham, Peter Bell, Peter Thiel, Reddit, Richard de Silva, Richard Heitzman, Rick Heitzmann, Robert Morris, Ron Conway, Rudy Adler, Rupert Murdoch, Sand Hill Road, Scott Shane, Scott Switzer, Sequoia Capital, Sergey Nazarov, Shabbir Dahod, Shawn Broderick, Sheryl Sandberg, Sterling Phillips, Sumner Redstone, Tapzilla, TechCrunch, TechStars, TextPayMe, Toy Story 3, Trevor Blackwell, Y Combinator, google, Eric Schmidt, Tina Brown, The Daily Beast, Barry Diller, Dan Lyons, Google Smear campaign, Burson-Marsteller, Chris Soghoian, Jim Goldman, John Mercurio, Mark Pincus, Zynga, SpotifySpotify and other media companies need to resist the temptation of the 750 million non-paying users  (which includes millions of dogs and cats who don’t really care what songs they listen to).

And look at this growth chart (left).  7.3 billion users in 2015 vs. only 7.2 billion people alive on the planet!

Major media companies (including my parent company Manka Bros. Studios) need to realize that Facebook needs them more than they need Facebook.  (Manka Bros. is actually working on a ‘Facebook Killer’ – Caligula – to launch later this year but I fear it will be more of the same.)

Content is the driver of everything in media.  Put a great movie on a crappy 13 inch black & white TV and it’s still a great movie and people will watch it.  Put a shitty movie on a 110″ inch HD television screen with Dolby SurroundSound, movie lighting and a cocktail, and it’s still a shitty movie that no one will watch.

Facebook needs to realize that the only reason they are popular is because we all have this urge to see what our friends from high school and college look like now.  That’s it really.  It’s not to watch “The Dark Knight” for 30 Facebook Credits or buy pigs on “Farmville” (millions do it, I know, and why not? – it’s right there in front of us and we’re freakin’ bored with our lives).

But I think it’s time to break away and see what else is out there in the world.

Accel Partners, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Chris Hughes, David Kirkpatrick, Dustin Moskovitz, Eduardo Saverin, Gerald Levin, Greylock Partners, HBO, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Zucker, Jill Kennedy, Joanna Shields, Jon Miller, Khan Manka, Li Ka-shing, Manka Bros., Mark Cuban, Mark Zuckerberg, Matt Cohler, MySpace, Nicolas Carlson, OnMedea, Owen Van Natta, Paul Buchheit, Peter Thiel, Rupert Murdoch, Sheryl Sandberg, Sumner Redstone, Toy Story 3Jill Kennedy – OnMedea

 

The Woman Who Saved News Corp.

Allen & Company retreat, Anne Mulcahy, Ari Emanuel, Barry Diller, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Bobby Kotick, Carol Bartz, Charlie Rose, Cory Booker, DumbDumb, Electus, Eric Schmidt, Erin Burnett, Gina Bianchini, Harvey Weinstein, Herb Allen, Herb Allen Sun Valley Conference, Herbert Allen, Jean-Bernard Levy, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Weiner, Jeff Zucker, Jeffrey Immelt, Jerry Yang, John Donahue, Ken Auletta, Khan Manka, Lachlan Murdoch, Lady Gaga, Leslie Moonves, Lionel Barber, Lloyd Grohl, Manka Bros., Marc Andreessen, Marissa Mayer, Mark Pincus, Mark Zuckerberg, Martin Sorrell, Mathias Dopfner, Mike Bloomberg, Niall FitzGerald, Peter Chernin, Phillippe Dauman, Reid Hoffman, Richard Parsons, Ricky Van Veen, Rob Wiesenthal, Robert L. Johnson, Ron Meyer, Rupert Murdoch, Sergey Brin, Sheryl Sandberg, Steve Jobs, Sun Valley Retreat, Sun Valley Retreat 2010, Terry Semel, Tom Freston, Tom Friedman, Ursula Burns, Vivi Nevo, Warren Buffett, World's Largest Media Company, Rupert Murdoch, Jose Maria Aznar, natalie Bancroft, Peter Barnes, Chase Carey, Kenneth Cowley, David DeVoe, Viet Dinh, Rod Eddington, Joel Klein, Andrew S.B. Knight, James Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch, Thomas Perkins, Arthur Siskind, John Thornton, Stanley Shuman, Rebekah Brooks, Les Hinton, Teri Everett, jack Horner, Julie Henderson, Reed Nolte, Roger Ailes, Janet Nova, John Nallen, Beryl Cook, Michael Regan, Genie Gavenchak, Brian Lewis, Irena Briganti, Dan Berger, Rosabel Tao, Steven Rubenstein, Suzanne Halpin, Elisabeth Murdoch, Wendi Deng Murdoch

Allen & Company retreat, Anne Mulcahy, Ari Emanuel, Barry Diller, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Bobby Kotick, Carol Bartz, Charlie Rose, Cory Booker, DumbDumb, Electus, Eric Schmidt, Erin Burnett, Gina Bianchini, Harvey Weinstein, Herb Allen, Herb Allen Sun Valley Conference, Herbert Allen, Jean-Bernard Levy, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Weiner, Jeff Zucker, Jeffrey Immelt, Jerry Yang, John Donahue, Ken Auletta, Khan Manka, Lachlan Murdoch, Lady Gaga, Leslie Moonves, Lionel Barber, Lloyd Grohl, Manka Bros., Marc Andreessen, Marissa Mayer, Mark Pincus, Mark Zuckerberg, Martin Sorrell, Mathias Dopfner, Mike Bloomberg, Niall FitzGerald, Peter Chernin, Phillippe Dauman, Reid Hoffman, Richard Parsons, Ricky Van Veen, Rob Wiesenthal, Robert L. Johnson, Ron Meyer, Rupert Murdoch, Sergey Brin, Sheryl Sandberg, Steve Jobs, Sun Valley Retreat, Sun Valley Retreat 2010, Terry Semel, Tom Freston, Tom Friedman, Ursula Burns, Vivi Nevo, Warren Buffett, World's Largest Media Company, Rupert Murdoch, Jose Maria Aznar, natalie Bancroft, Peter Barnes, Chase Carey, Kenneth Cowley, David DeVoe, Viet Dinh, Rod Eddington, Joel Klein, Andrew S.B. Knight, James Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch, Thomas Perkins, Arthur Siskind, John Thornton, Stanley Shuman, Rebekah Brooks, Les Hinton, Teri Everett, jack Horner, Julie Henderson, Reed Nolte, Roger Ailes, Janet Nova, John Nallen, Beryl Cook, Michael Regan, Genie Gavenchak, Brian Lewis, Irena Briganti, Dan Berger, Rosabel Tao, Steven Rubenstein, Suzanne Halpin, Elisabeth Murdoch, Wendi Deng MurdochWith one mighty slap, Wendi Deng Murdoch may have saved her husband’s company.

No longer was the story about hacking or impropriety or ethics, it was about a wife coming to her 80-year-old husband’s defense when he was attacked.

Rupert Murdoch is a hated man, obviously.  He runs a company without ethics or moral compass with a history of crushing anyone who got in his way.

At the Phone Hacking Scandal Hearing, as question after question came from the Members of Parliament, he denied denied denied.

Allen & Company retreat, Anne Mulcahy, Ari Emanuel, Barry Diller, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Bobby Kotick, Carol Bartz, Charlie Rose, Cory Booker, DumbDumb, Electus, Eric Schmidt, Erin Burnett, Gina Bianchini, Harvey Weinstein, Herb Allen, Herb Allen Sun Valley Conference, Herbert Allen, Jean-Bernard Levy, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Weiner, Jeff Zucker, Jeffrey Immelt, Jerry Yang, John Donahue, Ken Auletta, Khan Manka, Lachlan Murdoch, Lady Gaga, Leslie Moonves, Lionel Barber, Lloyd Grohl, Manka Bros., Marc Andreessen, Marissa Mayer, Mark Pincus, Mark Zuckerberg, Martin Sorrell, Mathias Dopfner, Mike Bloomberg, Niall FitzGerald, Peter Chernin, Phillippe Dauman, Reid Hoffman, Richard Parsons, Ricky Van Veen, Rob Wiesenthal, Robert L. Johnson, Ron Meyer, Rupert Murdoch, Sergey Brin, Sheryl Sandberg, Steve Jobs, Sun Valley Retreat, Sun Valley Retreat 2010, Terry Semel, Tom Freston, Tom Friedman, Ursula Burns, Vivi Nevo, Warren Buffett, World's Largest Media Company, Rupert Murdoch, Jose Maria Aznar, natalie Bancroft, Peter Barnes, Chase Carey, Kenneth Cowley, David DeVoe, Viet Dinh, Rod Eddington, Joel Klein, Andrew S.B. Knight, James Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch, Thomas Perkins, Arthur Siskind, John Thornton, Stanley Shuman, Rebekah Brooks, Les Hinton, Teri Everett, jack Horner, Julie Henderson, Reed Nolte, Roger Ailes, Janet Nova, John Nallen, Beryl Cook, Michael Regan, Genie Gavenchak, Brian Lewis, Irena Briganti, Dan Berger, Rosabel Tao, Steven Rubenstein, Suzanne Halpin, Elisabeth Murdoch, Wendi Deng MurdochRupert sat there stone-faced, acted like he couldn’t hear questions (maybe he actually has bad hearing) and then calmly placed blame on junior executives.

James Murdoch sat there red-faced, embarrassed – a completely worthless deer-in-headlights.

All of their answers were the answers of cowards.

Social networks were salivating at the possibility that Rupert’s empire would fall.  The press were poised to rake them over the coals without mercy…

… and then he was attacked by an idiot comedian with a pie tin full of shaving cream (or whipped cream) – and Wendi Deng Murdoch went into action without thought or fear.  She smacked that guy with a mighty right hand and he went down.

With one slap, the narrative of the story had changed, the old man got a little boost of sympathy and the entire hearing became a circus.

Any public judgments against News Corp. or Rupert or James had been pushed to the back – almost forcing news outlets to refocus the story on “Who is Wendi Murdoch and Where Did She Learn To Punch?”

Splitting the media attention was what was needed to get Rupert off the hot seat and this dumb ass activist being punched to the ground by Wendi Deng Murdoch accomplished that to perfection.

It makes you wonder if it was planned that way by News Corp.

Accel Partners, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Chris Hughes, David Kirkpatrick, Dustin Moskovitz, Eduardo Saverin, Gerald Levin, Greylock Partners, HBO, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Zucker, Jill Kennedy, Joanna Shields, Jon Miller, Khan Manka, Li Ka-shing, Manka Bros., Mark Cuban, Mark Zuckerberg, Matt Cohler, MySpace, Nicolas Carlson, OnMedea, Owen Van Natta, Paul Buchheit, Peter Thiel, Rupert Murdoch, Sheryl Sandberg, Sumner Redstone, Toy Story 3Jill Kennedy – OnMedea

AMC Networks Had An IPO Today…

Manka Bros., Khan Manka, OnMedea, Jill Kennedy, AMC Networks, Zynga, LinkedIn, Jeff Weiner, Reid Hoffman, Mark Zuckerberg, Sheryl Sandberg, Charles Dolon, Joshua Sapan, Edward Carroll, Sean Sullivan, James Gallagher, John Giraldo, Neil Ashe, Alan Schwartz, Dr. Leonard Tow, Robert Wright, William J. Bell, Charles F. Dolan, James L. Dolan, Kristin A. Dolan, Patrick F. Dolan, Thomas C. Dolan, Brian G. Sweeney, Marianne Dolan Weber, Rob Battles, Bob Broussard, Mike DiPasquale, David Evans, John Huffman, Ellen Kroner, Steven Pontillo, Thomas Ziangas, Charlie Collier, Evan Shapiro, Jennifer Caserta, Sarah Barnett, Kim Martin, Jonathan Sehring, Arlene Manos, John Barbieri, Harold Gronenthal, Ed Palluth, Mark Pincus, Cadir Lee, Dave Wehner, Reggie Davis, John Schappert, Owen Van Natta, Dave Ko, Colleen McCreary, Mike Verdu, Steven Chiang, Bing Gordon, Brad Feld, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Reid Hoffman, Mad Men, Don Draper, Jon Hamm, internet IPO, internet bubble 2.0

Manka Bros., Khan Manka, OnMedea, Jill Kennedy, AMC Networks, Zynga, LinkedIn, Jeff Weiner, Reid Hoffman, Mark Zuckerberg, Sheryl Sandberg, Charles Dolon, Joshua Sapan, Edward Carroll, Sean Sullivan, James Gallagher, John Giraldo, Neil Ashe, Alan Schwartz, Dr. Leonard Tow, Robert Wright, William J. Bell, Charles F. Dolan, James L. Dolan, Kristin A. Dolan, Patrick F. Dolan, Thomas C. Dolan, Brian G. Sweeney, Marianne Dolan Weber, Rob Battles, Bob Broussard, Mike DiPasquale, David Evans, John Huffman, Ellen Kroner, Steven Pontillo, Thomas Ziangas, Charlie Collier, Evan Shapiro, Jennifer Caserta, Sarah Barnett, Kim Martin, Jonathan Sehring, Arlene Manos, John Barbieri, Harold Gronenthal, Ed Palluth, Mark Pincus, Cadir Lee, Dave Wehner, Reggie Davis, John Schappert, Owen Van Natta, Dave Ko, Colleen McCreary, Mike Verdu, Steven Chiang, Bing Gordon, Brad Feld, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Reid Hoffman, Mad Men, Don Draper, Jon Hamm, internet IPO, internet bubble 2.0… and Wall Street shrugged.

Zynga announces a $1 billion IPO and every freakin’ investment bank in New York is clambering to get in on it.

These are the very same banks that were recently slobbering all over LinkedIn and would most likely kill anyone who tries to stop them from getting in on the Facebook IPO.

What am I missing here?

AMC Networks (AMC, IFC, WE, Sundance) represents highly-regarded premium television content (Mad Men, Breaking Bad, The Killing, Walking Dead, etc.) – the kind of content Hollywood needs people to watch.  The kind of content only Hollywood can make.  And the kind of content people really love.

Sounds likes a win win win.  And a buy buy buy.

Manka Bros., Khan Manka, OnMedea, Jill Kennedy, AMC Networks, Zynga, LinkedIn, Jeff Weiner, Reid Hoffman, Mark Zuckerberg, Sheryl Sandberg, Charles Dolon, Joshua Sapan, Edward Carroll, Sean Sullivan, James Gallagher, John Giraldo, Neil Ashe, Alan Schwartz, Dr. Leonard Tow, Robert Wright, William J. Bell, Charles F. Dolan, James L. Dolan, Kristin A. Dolan, Patrick F. Dolan, Thomas C. Dolan, Brian G. Sweeney, Marianne Dolan Weber, Rob Battles, Bob Broussard, Mike DiPasquale, David Evans, John Huffman, Ellen Kroner, Steven Pontillo, Thomas Ziangas, Charlie Collier, Evan Shapiro, Jennifer Caserta, Sarah Barnett, Kim Martin, Jonathan Sehring, Arlene Manos, John Barbieri, Harold Gronenthal, Ed Palluth, Mark Pincus, Cadir Lee, Dave Wehner, Reggie Davis, John Schappert, Owen Van Natta, Dave Ko, Colleen McCreary, Mike Verdu, Steven Chiang, Bing Gordon, Brad Feld, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Reid Hoffman, Mad Men, Don Draper, Jon Hamm, internet IPO, internet bubble 2.0Zynga represents little $1 digital pigs for sale in Farmville.  Not what you would call premium content.

Sounds like a lose lose lose.

“Mad Men” or “Digital Pig”AMC Networks or Zynga?  Which would you imagine to be the Wall Street darling?

Manka Bros., Khan Manka, OnMedea, Jill Kennedy, AMC Networks, Zynga, LinkedIn, Jeff Weiner, Reid Hoffman, Mark Zuckerberg, Sheryl Sandberg, Charles Dolon, Joshua Sapan, Edward Carroll, Sean Sullivan, James Gallagher, John Giraldo, Neil Ashe, Alan Schwartz, Dr. Leonard Tow, Robert Wright, William J. Bell, Charles F. Dolan, James L. Dolan, Kristin A. Dolan, Patrick F. Dolan, Thomas C. Dolan, Brian G. Sweeney, Marianne Dolan Weber, Rob Battles, Bob Broussard, Mike DiPasquale, David Evans, John Huffman, Ellen Kroner, Steven Pontillo, Thomas Ziangas, Charlie Collier, Evan Shapiro, Jennifer Caserta, Sarah Barnett, Kim Martin, Jonathan Sehring, Arlene Manos, John Barbieri, Harold Gronenthal, Ed Palluth, Mark Pincus, Cadir Lee, Dave Wehner, Reggie Davis, John Schappert, Owen Van Natta, Dave Ko, Colleen McCreary, Mike Verdu, Steven Chiang, Bing Gordon, Brad Feld, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Reid Hoffman, Mad Men, Don Draper, Jon Hamm, internet IPO, internet bubble 2.0Manka Bros., Khan Manka, OnMedea, Jill Kennedy, AMC Networks, Zynga, LinkedIn, Jeff Weiner, Reid Hoffman, Mark Zuckerberg, Sheryl Sandberg, Charles Dolon, Joshua Sapan, Edward Carroll, Sean Sullivan, James Gallagher, John Giraldo, Neil Ashe, Alan Schwartz, Dr. Leonard Tow, Robert Wright, William J. Bell, Charles F. Dolan, James L. Dolan, Kristin A. Dolan, Patrick F. Dolan, Thomas C. Dolan, Brian G. Sweeney, Marianne Dolan Weber, Rob Battles, Bob Broussard, Mike DiPasquale, David Evans, John Huffman, Ellen Kroner, Steven Pontillo, Thomas Ziangas, Charlie Collier, Evan Shapiro, Jennifer Caserta, Sarah Barnett, Kim Martin, Jonathan Sehring, Arlene Manos, John Barbieri, Harold Gronenthal, Ed Palluth, Mark Pincus, Cadir Lee, Dave Wehner, Reggie Davis, John Schappert, Owen Van Natta, Dave Ko, Colleen McCreary, Mike Verdu, Steven Chiang, Bing Gordon, Brad Feld, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Reid Hoffman, Mad Men, Don Draper, Jon Hamm, internet IPO, internet bubble 2.0Cable Networks (and their two strong revenue streams) are the bread and butter of giant media corporations.

If Wall Street shrugs at a pure-play cable network spin-off like AMC Networks, what does that say about the future of old-school big media?  Being an employee of old-school big media, I’m not sure I like what that says.

Should they adapt to the changing (but unproven) business models and stop distributing quality content – focusing instead on selling little digital versions of Don Draper for $1?  Or should they continue to do what they best until they simply disappear because their audiences die of old age?

Personally, I blame the whole VC/Y Combinator mentally for creating this unearned enthusiasm for certain companies that are, when you really look at them and see what they produce, pretty boring, uninspired and a waste of time.

But more billionaires will be minted – and I suppose that’s ‘End Game’.

Accel Partners, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Chris Hughes, David Kirkpatrick, Dustin Moskovitz, Eduardo Saverin, Gerald Levin, Greylock Partners, HBO, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Zucker, Jill Kennedy, Joanna Shields, Jon Miller, Khan Manka, Li Ka-shing, Manka Bros., Mark Cuban, Mark Zuckerberg, Matt Cohler, MySpace, Nicolas Carlson, OnMedea, Owen Van Natta, Paul Buchheit, Peter Thiel, Rupert Murdoch, Sheryl Sandberg, Sumner Redstone, Toy Story 3Jill Kennedy – OnMedea

 

Haley Reinhart? WHY????

American Idol, Ari Emanuel, Ben Silverman, Bruce Gowers, Cecile Frot-Coutaz, Freemantle Enterprises, Gaude Lydia Paez, Jeff Weiner, Jeff Zucker, John Pritchett, Kara DioGuardi, Ken Warwick, Kevin Reilly, Khan Manka, Manka Bros., Nigel Lythgoe, Nikki Finke, Paula Abdul, Peter Rice, Randy Jackson, Rupert Murdoch, Ryan Seacrest, Scott Grogin, Sharon Waxman, Simon Cowell leaving American Idol, Simon Fuller, Terry Semel, Haley Reinhart, James Durbin, Scott McCreery, Lauren Alaina, Jennifer Lopez, Ben Silverman, Jimmy Iovine

American Idol, Ari Emanuel, Ben Silverman, Bruce Gowers, Cecile Frot-Coutaz, Freemantle Enterprises, Gaude Lydia Paez, Jeff Weiner, Jeff Zucker, John Pritchett, Kara DioGuardi, Ken Warwick, Kevin Reilly, Khan Manka, Manka Bros., Nigel Lythgoe, Nikki Finke, Paula Abdul, Peter Rice, Randy Jackson, Rupert Murdoch, Ryan Seacrest, Scott Grogin, Sharon Waxman, Simon Cowell leaving American Idol, Simon Fuller, Terry Semel, Haley Reinhart, James Durbin, Scott McCreery, Lauren Alaina, Jennifer Lopez, Ben Silverman, Jimmy IovineAm I the only one in America who thinks she is undeserving of all these accolades?

TOP 3 on American Idol?  Seriously?

Whenever she sings it’s like fingernails on a chalkboard to me.  About a 1/4 tone under the note with no life to her voice at all.  That blank stare without emotion, the inability to move in a natural way.

Is she related to a producer on the show or something?

Is she the Goddaughter of Jimmy Iovine?

I think we need Dan Lyons (the guy who exposed the Facebook smear campaign against Google) to do a full investigation into the popularity of Haley.  Because something is not right here.

Based on Jennifer Lopez’s reaction last night, she also knows that something is rotten in state of Hollywood.

What am I missing?

People, please help me understand why America is brainwashed to think Haley is talented enough to win this competition. 

James Durbin has probably the best and most natural voice this show has seen in years.  He has a four octave range.  Scotty has a four note range.  James could scream all day and never lose his voice – Haley has been hoarse all year.

Please, help me understand?

Accel Partners, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Chris Hughes, David Kirkpatrick, Dustin Moskovitz, Eduardo Saverin, Gerald Levin, Greylock Partners, HBO, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Zucker, Jill Kennedy, Joanna Shields, Jon Miller, Khan Manka, Li Ka-shing, Manka Bros., Mark Cuban, Mark Zuckerberg, Matt Cohler, MySpace, Nicolas Carlson, OnMedea, Owen Van Natta, Paul Buchheit, Peter Thiel, Rupert Murdoch, Sheryl Sandberg, Sumner Redstone, Toy Story 3Jill Kennedy – OnMedea

The Game of Images

Feeling like an iPhone-ographer is not merely a brand addiction. Apple does make a distinctly great phone, which has been met by the enthusiasm of many image-making or image-manipulation apps.

 

Rise of the Image

 

Culture people will talk about the dominance of pictures in modern societies, whereas many people’s grandparents had been living in an oral culture. TV and film has had a big influence, of course.

And now, in the Future, the high-tech world in which we live, we are in a visual culture that is different and new because we’re the makers. Also, our efforts with images somehow re-join oral culture, the culture of spoken words, because of the Internet.

 

Image + Internet

 

Let’s not overlook the obvious possible symbology (if what we said above isn’t off the mark) of having an excellent mobile camera mated with an excellent phone.

Even if we’re not jabbering with it, the phone actually allows our images to talk, by going out into social networks or online galleries like Flickr. On our own end, of course, the many apps we can use turn this slick hand-held device into a kind of mobile virtual darkroom.

Just like the written word has undergone an amazing change by getting lifted, in a way, on the breezes of the Web, social networks, sms’ing or even the captions on photos.

The fun of writing on one’s photos with a living graffiti has also emerged as very popular. So the same process of mobilization of the Word has happened to the Image.!

 

The Game of the Image

 

Since we now do not think of an image that we take as something static anymore (picture a Polaroid print), or chained to bulky equipment, an image becomes more like a moment that unlocks a whole stream of events.

Each photo we take as an iPhone-ographer is a living moment. As we do this for ourselves, some of our images strike a chord or look poignant somehow.

 Those images are the start of a kind of light-hearted game that can evolve around each of them. The game includes:

 

·       Posted online

·       Comments made on the photo

·       Captions

·       Photo graffiti

·       Tagging

·       Submissions

Let’s not forget that last one, because we are offered plenty of opportunities by today’s big media outlets (hungry for great crowd-sourced content) to submit our photo-studies. Sometimes there is a contest, or a prize or recognition in a respected scene.

So you see that all of this, in some combination with each photo, turns out to be a game we’re playing with the world around us — and our friends are also iPhone-ographers, or maybe even Android-ographers, too (bless their hearts).

And, funnily enough, that same camera-phone can also take us into a world of moving images, if you ever fancy a little excitement, post-iPhoneography. Have you seen the newest animated gag slot machines like South Park? Check out http://www.classycasinos.co.uk for the most reliable places to have a little unexpected fun.