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I'm Drew Breunig and I obsess about technology, media, language, and culture. I live in New York, studied anthropology, and work in advertising technology.Twitter

These are reactions to things I feel are important.

shortformblog: ericmortensen: newsflick: Shouldn’t it read, “Hey! We just bought Current TV”? Odd how networks break news about themselves, so take it from the Guardian.  Current TV is done. Al Jazeera is simply buying Current’s access to US cable operators. Al Gore will remain as an advisor to the new network. That should shake things up in the cable news scene.  Question for you guys: Does the fact that Time Warner Cable is dropping Current TV in the wake of this news signify any sort of unsavory motives on their part? It struck me as not a business decision (though that’s what they say, of course), but one critical of what Al Jazeera represents. The fact that the blackout took effect almost immediately after the deal was signed seems like a clear indicator of someone being really pissed that the deal happened at all. I think many are reading into this too much. Current’s ratings were abysmal. Really terrible. Even among my Current-target-market friends I don’t know a single person who watched the network since 2008. It’s programs weren’t ones you wanted to watch, but ones you felt you should be watching. And if you’re feeling guilty about watching TV you’re far more likely to simply turn it off than venture into the 100+ channels. A new owner likely voids the current contract. Time Warner took the opportunity to walk away.

shortformblog:

ericmortensen:

newsflick:

Shouldn’t it read, “Hey! We just bought Current TV”? Odd how networks break news about themselves, so take it from the Guardian. 

Current TV is done. Al Jazeera is simply buying Current’s access to US cable operators. Al Gore will remain as an advisor to the new network. That should shake things up in the cable news scene. 

Question for you guys: Does the fact that Time Warner Cable is dropping Current TV in the wake of this news signify any sort of unsavory motives on their part? It struck me as not a business decision (though that’s what they say, of course), but one critical of what Al Jazeera represents. The fact that the blackout took effect almost immediately after the deal was signed seems like a clear indicator of someone being really pissed that the deal happened at all.

I think many are reading into this too much. Current’s ratings were abysmal. Really terrible. Even among my Current-target-market friends I don’t know a single person who watched the network since 2008. It’s programs weren’t ones you wanted to watch, but ones you felt you should be watching. And if you’re feeling guilty about watching TV you’re far more likely to simply turn it off than venture into the 100+ channels. A new owner likely voids the current contract. Time Warner took the opportunity to walk away.

(via futurejournalismproject)

Source: newsflick

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  1. selfmadegoonie720 reblogged this from newsflick and added:
    lit
  2. w0rd2da-wise reblogged this from newsflick and added:
    Time Warner Cable in New York City has already dropped...won’t broadcast Al Jazeera. Da...
  3. lookingforgrandermaybes reblogged this from happy-you-daughter and added:
    I really don’t understand why Time Warner Cable is getting so butthurt about it. I’d consider them to be a more reliable...
  4. shindi93 reblogged this from newsflick
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  12. secrets-sacres reblogged this from futurejournalismproject and added:
    º: Shouldn’t it read, “Hey! We just bought Current TV”? Odd how networks break news about themselves, so take it from...
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