Archive for the ‘Media issues’ Category
Hamish is out. Has had enough of Luxon role
Following on from my earlier post … ‘Hamish Rutherford always looks grim these days‘, well, it seems that enough is enough for Hamish Rutherford (and fair enough too). Stuff reports: [Rutherford’s] message said: “It has been an absolute honour to work for Christopher Luxon both in Opposition and for the year since the election, but […]
Slow train of accountability for Cameron Slater
It’s an adage, almost a cliche: ‘Justice delayed is Justice denied’, but genuinely, that has to be one’s response to news this last week: That dirty PR attack blogger Cameron Slater has (finally) been judged in the High Court to have defamed Auckland businessman Matt Blomfield. Further, that Slater’s false and damaging campaign of destruction […]
What if Generative AI isn’t the ‘benefit’ or ‘existential risk’ to humanity that it’s being painted as? Meredith Whittaker & Camille Francois will make you think
This is a fascinating conversation about the roots, the dangers and hype around AI. Both of these thinkers are so insightful about the issues, and raise issues in context with such clarity.I appreciate them so much. Watch the video from Al Jazeerah English at YouTube or below, and I have linked to a transcript (cough, […]
UNSOCIAL MEDIA – Following the Trolls
From TODAY FM archives — Wilhelmina Shrimpton and Simon Morrow take a deep dive into trolling and cyberbullying. From the high profile to the general public, Kiwis across all walks of life are being targeted, and some are paying the ultimate price. So what drives us to troll, who is behind the fake profiles, and […]
The Wright Family steps into the spotlight. They’re what you probably expected.
Duncan Greive* at The Spinoff has published a really worthwhile interview with the rich, white, social conservative businessman Wayne Wright whose wealth is funding that internet radio platform, ‘The Platform’, which I cited recently. (And which seems to me to be inching its way towards Alex Jones InfoWars/Qanon/antivax ‘conspiracy’ territory.) If you’re interested in media […]
Facebook is a scourge. Convince me otherwise.
Totally worth watching: Robbie Nicol (of White Man Behind A Desk) explains …”After the protests [at Parliament Buildings, Wellington] in February, I tried to write a monologue about Facebook and radicalisation — and it ended up being 17 minutes long lol.” Surely Facebook’s twisted, evil, money-at-all-costs approach – radicalising users by placing a higher value […]
So, I was right about paid character assassin Carrick Graham, eh?
Today the shabby little train of denial ran out of smoke. Payment, apology in Dirty Politics case — Newsroom Crushing defeat for Dirty Politics PR man with apology to defamed academics — The Spinoff Here’s the apology wording, below. It’s ruined only by the clearly bullshit implication that there was a time when Carrick somehow […]
Who funds Matthew Hooton?
I was asked a question about Matthew Hooton on Twitter recently, and it got me thinking: Who funds Matthew Hooton? Gee, that’s a good question. Hooton used to run a corporate lobbying/PR firm in Auckland. That’s the basis of the frankly risible NZ Herald disclosure statements on his ‘opinion’ columns (hit jobs, really) which variously describe him […]
Jordan Williams, Colin Craig podcast series announced
“Free at last, Free at last, Thank God almighty we are free at last.” ― Martin Luther King Jr. A long and bitter court feud between former Conservative Party leader Colin Craig and Jordan Williams has been settled, with an apology and compensation from Williams. On Tuesday, Craig sent out a press release saying he’d […]
Unlikely online bully, Liam Hehir
Check. Check. One, two, three, four. Is this thing ON? Hello readers, I logged in last night (yeah, it’s been a while) to mark THE END of the landmark legal case, Jordan Williams v Colin Craig, which (gulp) reached The Supreme Court, in which New Zealand’s most-defamed man was suing the politician he set out to destroy, for […]
Monica Lewinsky – a long echo of trauma leading to such wisdom
I heard a 45 minute interview with Monica Lewinsky talking to TED’s Chris Anderson on BBC Radio 4 over the weekend, and have listened to it another two times out walking. I recommend it. Highly. Man, I am so impressed with how this woman has integrated her life experiences and come to an understanding of […]
Cameron Slater is a liar. We already knew that, but it’s actually worse.
The just-released book Whale Oil, by Margie Thomson, tells the ghastly true story of a nasty, protracted online smear campaign. The dirty work was carried out by discredited dirty politics/dirty PR attack website owner Cameron Slater. But don’t misunderstand: Slater (long exposed as a recidivist liar) didn’t himself have any grievance against the target, Matthew […]
‘Manifest Observable Behaviour’ – Patreon CEO on Content Policy, Lauren Southern
Worth watching in light of the ‘free speech’ debate under way.
More on the motivations of leakers
A while ago, in relation to Murray McCully’s emails, we discussed the motivations of leakers, particularly poltical leakers, and I suggested that Every source leaks for a reason, Patrick in a post I illustrated with this ‘The best hackers are Russian’ T-shirt – which seems ironic at all sorts of levels now. Today, Axios writer Jonathan […]
