"Newsweek" attacked Oprah.<\/p>\n
Is there a need for newsweeklies anymore?<\/p>\n
The staff at "Newsweek" didn’t think so, so they decided to remake the magazine in the mold of the "Economist".\u00c2\u00a0 They took a week off and then introduced a book full of analysis of deep issues by experts.\u00c2\u00a0 And a little bit of fluff at the end…\u00c2\u00a0 It’s almost impossible to completely deny your roots, just like a child carrying along his teddy bear on vacation, "Newsweek" still includes some pop culture pap at the end, kind of a good night kiss, or at least a glass of warm milk, for readers\u00c2\u00a0 But the magazine flatly denied they would do any more celebrity journalism, they were no longer going to be part of the problem, but part of the solution!<\/p>\n
So why the fuck was Oprah on the cover?<\/p>\n
I pulled my issue from the mailbox and winced.\u00c2\u00a0 This soon into the new paradigm and "Newsweek" has already blinked?\u00c2\u00a0 Wimped out and caved, believing there are immutable laws of newsstand sales, of magazine viability?<\/p>\n
"Crazy Talk: Oprah, Wacky Cures & You".<\/p>\n
Oh, this’ll be interesting.\u00c2\u00a0 Like I need more b.s. on bullshit cures.\u00c2\u00a0 That’s how you feel powerful in today’s society.\u00c2\u00a0 You question science, you defy the experts, who’ve gone to school for umpteen years to achieve enough background to run experiments and come to conclusions. Corporations are not to be trusted.\u00c2\u00a0 There is no truth.\u00c2\u00a0 Oh really?<\/p>\n
Is the Earth round?<\/p>\n
I’d say we can state that definitively, ever since satellites took pictures from up in space.\u00c2\u00a0 So many questions have been answered by modern science\/technology.\u00c2\u00a0 But not enough for the downtrodden.\u00c2\u00a0 Those afflicted with disease, those newly broke, suddenly they have the answers to the universe, we must pay attention to them!<\/p>\n
If one more New Age asshole tells me how to beat the common cold with zinc or some other formulation sold at the health food store, I’m gonna explode.\u00c2\u00a0 DOESN’T WORK!\u00c2\u00a0 Studies have proven this again and again.\u00c2\u00a0 Just like Glucosamine won’t return your knees to teenage health.\u00c2\u00a0 But people keep drinking the stuff, they want to believe!<\/p>\n
And belief is everything these days.<\/p>\n
Believe you’re going to become rich.<\/p>\n
Believe you can find Mr. Right by making yourself look good on a dating site, instead of remaking your personality that’s turned off men for decades.<\/p>\n
Believe you can cure your own CANCER!\u00c2\u00a0 The power of positive thinking, there’s nothing like it.\u00c2\u00a0 HUH?<\/p>\n
So I’m turning the pages of "Newsweek", trying to navigate the tiny type now employed that works if you’re ten, even though the magazine appeals to older folk, and I eventually stumble upon this Oprah article.\u00c2\u00a0 And find out I’m all wrong.\u00c2\u00a0 They’re attacking the queen of all media!<\/p>\n
Can you attack Oprah?<\/p>\n
Conventional wisdom says no!\u00c2\u00a0 Oprah is god, she can sell anything.\u00c2\u00a0 Millions of women are devoted to her, will follow her anywhere.\u00c2\u00a0 You must pledge fealty to Oprah, the same way you smile and shake hands with that reprehensible politician, or that guy you do business with.\u00c2\u00a0 Truth happens behind closed doors, if at all.\u00c2\u00a0 We live in a smiling, beatific nation, where everybody loves everybody.\u00c2\u00a0 Oh, other than the snits between stars.\u00c2\u00a0 Who snubbed who, who head-butt who.\u00c2\u00a0 We want to know if Brad Pitt is really pissed at Angelina, but we never question the movie stars’ expertise on world issues.\u00c2\u00a0 They’re famous, they know!<\/p>\n
Like Suzanne Somers.\u00c2\u00a0 She was on "Three’s Company"!\u00c2\u00a0 And now she’s got the key to longevity, she’s found the fountain of youth!\u00c2\u00a0 She’s on "Oprah" telling us how she did it.\u00c2\u00a0 And Oprah’s endorsing her!<\/p>\n
This article is stunning.\u00c2\u00a0 It unmasks all the quasi-science that Oprah is purveying on her show, to the detriment of her viewers.\u00c2\u00a0 Jenny McCarthy saying vaccines cause autism, even though studies have definitively proven otherwise.\u00c2\u00a0 Do corporations truly want Jenny’s kid to be fucked up?\u00c2\u00a0 Are they truly squashing him under their wheels in the name of profits?\u00c2\u00a0 Is the government truly in bed with corporations to the point where all studies are flawed, and a former Playboy playmate has the answers?<\/p>\n
No.<\/p>\n
And all this is interesting.\u00c2\u00a0 But what’s truly fascinating is "Newsweek" took a risk.\u00c2\u00a0 They broke a taboo.\u00c2\u00a0 They attacked Oprah.\u00c2\u00a0 Because they were DESPERATE!<\/p>\n
I won’t walk you through "Newsweek"’s plan for survival, but the magazine’s long term health is truly in question.\u00c2\u00a0 So why hold back now?\u00c2\u00a0 Why play by the rules now?\u00c2\u00a0 If GM can go bankrupt, anything can happen.\u00c2\u00a0 Take a chance!<\/p>\n
That’s what’s going on in today’s society.\u00c2\u00a0 Corporations have stopped worrying about blowback and have started doing what’s right, for their survival.\u00c2\u00a0 At least some have.\u00c2\u00a0 Those that haven’t, like the aforementioned GM, end up losing their CEO and getting a right-minded replacement.<\/p>\n
Put it this way.\u00c2\u00a0 Is Doug Morris so busy trying to protect the old ways that he’s losing his complete business?<\/p>\n
I’d say YES!<\/p>\n
Sure, the RIAA, driven by Universal, took action, suing file traders.\u00c2\u00a0 One can see that as a desperate move.\u00c2\u00a0 It’s just that the goal was wrong.\u00c2\u00a0 If you’re desperate, if you’re rewriting the playbook, you must contemplate a new reality, one in which your company is remade for the future!<\/p>\n
The "New York Times" said that the rights holders are loosening up terms for online startups (http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2009\/05\/28\/technology\/start-ups\/28music.html).\u00c2\u00a0 That’s a good beginning.\u00c2\u00a0 But what about one step clearing!\u00c2\u00a0 You want to start an online music company?\u00c2\u00a0 Just follow these rules and you’re in business!<\/p>\n
When are the promoters going to stand up to the acts?\u00c2\u00a0 And tell them that they must make a profit.\u00c2\u00a0 And that ticket fees must be included, without commission, in the overall price?\u00c2\u00a0 Because the customer is pissed, to the detriment of both.<\/p>\n
If you’re worrying about politics, if you’re worried about the after effects of your desperate move, your Hail Mary pass, your effort to save your enterprise, you’re missing the point.\u00c2\u00a0 It’s open season.\u00c2\u00a0 We’re experiencing a restructuring of media heretofore unseen.\u00c2\u00a0 Who will rule in the future?\u00c2\u00a0 Well, if Universal doesn’t get its act together, every new act might end up with Topspin!<\/p>\n
Your only limit should be breaking the law.<\/p>\n
Other than that, go ahead.\u00c2\u00a0 Piss off Jimmy Iovine.\u00c2\u00a0 Say what you want about Eminem.\u00c2\u00a0 In an era where "Radio & Records" goes out of business, are there truly any sacred cows left?<\/p>\n
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