Mad Murdoch Maligns Mousy Mitt
Early Monday morning, NASA’s half-ton, nuclear powered Curiosity rover touched down on the surface of Mars. Minutes later, the rover tweeted, “GALE CRATER I AM IN YOU!!!” The Robot’s outburst prompted a retort from Stephen Colbert. “I don’t know who this Gale is, but gentlemen don’t kiss and tell,” he admonished on his Tuesday show. But Colbert had his facts wrong—Curiosity is no gentleman. READ MORE >>
The Naked and the TED
I. READ MORE >>
Bad political analysts received a gift today: a new tool to reinforce their worst instincts. Twitter has launched the “Twitter Political Index,” which will apparently provide a daily assessment of political sentiment on twitter. READ MORE >>
Beltway Media Cynicism? Yeah, You Built That
The Global Reach of Conservative Conspiracy Theories
Much has been written about the role of the internet and social media in the Arab Spring last year, particularly in Egypt, where protestors organized and communicated on Facebook and Twitter. But while global connectivity can help protestors overthrow dictators and tell the world their story, it also gives everyone access to the less-inspiring corners of the web. That was on display this past week during Hillary Clinton’s visit to meet with leaders in Egypt. READ MORE >>
Buffalo Hunting and Twitter's Revival of our Epigrammatic Impulses: Today's TNR Reader
Editor’s Note: We’ll be running the article recommendations of our friends at TNR Reader each afternoon on The Plank, just in time to print out or save for your commute home. Enjoy! Rotten Apple: New York is the best city in the world ... unless you are a poor child. NYRB | 18 min (4,454 words) READ MORE >>
