No Spin Zone. “Mr Dromi [a former government press adviser and air force colonel] admitted that the administration will struggle to win hearts and minds if footage of those suffering in Gaza continues to be shown. ‘When you have a Palestinian kid facing an Israeli tank, how do you explain that the tank is actually David and the kid is Goliath? That is why the television kills us.’” Not only has the Israeli government barred journalists from entering Gaza, they also bombed the local TV station on second day of the assault.

Meanwhile, the Israeli Consulate in New York yesterday held a “citizen’s press conference” on its new Twitter channel and blog, while the IDF’s new YouTube channel is going strong.

Update January 13, 2009: Hamas has launched its own YouTube equivalent and Al Jazeera has made its latest video from Gaza freely available at broadcast quality under a Creative Commons license.  ¶

Feed the World. “In 1986, the anarchist band Chumbawamba released the album Pictures of Starving Children Sell Records, as well as an EP entitled "We Are the World", jointly recorded with US band A State of Mind, both of which were intended as anti-capitalist critiques of the Band Aid/Live Aid phenomenon. They argued that the record was primarily a cosmetic spectacle, designed to draw attention away from the real political causes of world hunger.”  ¶

Commodify Your Dissent, 3. Screw the Flash game, since a pair was hurled at President George W. Bush the Model 271 shoe is flying off the shelf. “Baydan Ayakkabicilik San. & Tic. has received orders for 300,000 pairs of the shoes since the attack, more than four times the number his company sold each year since the model was introduced in 1999.... ‘Model 271’ is exported to markets including Iraq, Iran, Syria and Egypt. Customers in Iraq ordered 120,000 pairs this week and some Iraqis offered to set up distribution companies for the shoe, Baydan said.” More on The NY Times.  ¶

whatdavoloves.com. This brief but clever social-networky video web site published by Queensland Transport in Australia is really an anti-speeding campaign. The twist is sudden and unexpected.  ¶

spot.us. What will happen to investigative journalism when news is free and the old newsprint conglomerates have evaporated? Spot.us is one interesting, simple trial in “citizen-funded community journalism:” 1. People submit tips. 2. Journalists pitch stories based on the tips. 3. Community members share the cost of reporting with micro-donations. 4. Spot.Us will work with local news organizations to publish the story in as many places as possible, or will give exclusive rights to a news organization that is willing to reimburse the original donors. The pilot is focused on the San Francisco Bay Area, but it could be easily adapted to other areas.  ¶

Little by Little, Silkscreened. The kickass team at the Groundswell Collective took my little poster sketch, made a silkscreen and printed up a couple of T-shirts and hoodies. (With silver ink, no less.) Very cool!
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A Visual Guide to the Financial Crisis. Clever flow-chart of recent events leading to the housing bubble and financial market collapse punctuated with some choice, embarrassing quotes from the heads of state. It doesn't go into deregulation, predatory lending or other deeper roots, but does a good job with the immediate cause and effect.
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Whatever Happened to "A Day Without Art?". What began on December 1, 1989 as an annual day of action and mourning in response to the AIDS crisis seems to have mostly vanished today. Whatever happened to a day without weblogs?
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