Category: Aaron Brazell

  • Fact Checking in the Internet World

    Fact Checking in the Internet World

    Like many other industries, journalism has undergone a vast paradigm shift in the last decade. Like advertising, the music and film industries, marketing, public relations and virtually all other professional fields, journalism has had to adjust to a new “immediacy” brought about by the Internet. Now, by all reports, most people get their news from…

  • Convergence of technology, journalism and sports

    Sheer erudition — and erudition of a very specific type — throws up large barriers to entry. Too often, newer, younger, and more casual sports fans “can sort of get to a certain point of enthusiasm before they hit the ‘stat wall’ where discussion of sports becomes pedantic and quantitative for no discernible reason other…

  • Making Decisions Inebriated

    “But the ancient Macedonians used to make important decisions only when inebriated, the idea being that only when mentally lubricated are you free of the societal filters and self-doubt. Therefore you think and act as your true self. Therefore you are thinking and acting truthfully, and hence correctly.” [via Jason Cohen]

  • You Can Never Take My Freedom

    You Can Never Take My Freedom

    The idea of increasing protections on the Internet to ensure that piracy plagiarism and other forms of intellectual property theft is sexy to content producers who attempt to eschew the freedoms provided by the Internet in the 21st century. Photographers don’t like to have their photos used without permission, often times. Legitimately so. But that…

  • Osama, Closure

    Osama, Closure

    Photo taken by theqspeaks This post is therapy for me. Twitter and the media have already done a fine job of reporting and I am intentionally 12 hours late. There’s no new information I can provide, nor do I wish to. Last night was important. It was important for the world, the United States and…

  • Product is King. Content is Not.

    Product is King. Content is Not.

    Remember the bad old days of blog networks. Like when I was at b5media championing the idea of content as the great savior of the Internet, the bellwether of future journalism, the dawn of an era of online advertising as the dominant (and only) truly valuable means of creating revenue online? Yeah… so about that.…

  • The WordPress Bible

    A few months ago, I let you know that WordPress Bible: Second Edition was available for pre-order. That has changed. It is now out and available to be ordered. Amazon, as usual, is the best way to order it. This edition of my book has 60 new pages in it and covers up to WordPress…

  • Venture Capital Irony, Bubbles and Booms

    Venture Capital Irony, Bubbles and Booms

    Late in 2008, after the rest of the economy crashed and burned due to the housing crisis, the tech sector seemed to be fairly resiliant. Maybe it’s the nature of the industry… less money at stake, generally, in tech VC deals than other industries. For instance, Biotech. That all went out the window when Valley-based…

  • SXSW Protips

    SXSW Protips

    This will be my fifth SXSW interactive. It’s also, notably, the first SXSW that I am an Austinite. Since SXSW starts next week, the usual flood of tweets asking for advice or emails asking me to provide tips or asking me to be their guide began. It started earlier this year (back in January) than…

  • AOL, 2006 Called and Wants Its Content Commoditization Strategy Back…

    AOL, 2006 Called and Wants Its Content Commoditization Strategy Back…

    It was a Monday like any other Monday. After a weekend of too much drinking, low-key football-centric Sunday celebrations (Go Packers!) and an early night to bed, I woke up this morning in the way I normally do on a Monday: Cursing ye gods of Mondays past, and hoping the day would not turn into…