The thing about independence movements is they lead to single-issue parties. All other differences are put aside as everyone agrees on the One Big Issue. This is why a war of independence is often followed by a civil war as all those differences resurface. Scotland is having one of those moments where the One Big… Continue reading Caledonia
Category: 200 Words
Chill Out
I’ve been thinking again about the Mastodon experience for journalists. Mastodon isn’t Twitter. You’re not the main character over there. And the moderators actually moderate. Don’t be the guy walking into a quiet pub demanding they turn on the TV News at full volume. You’ll get barred. Sit first. Listen. Learn. Twitter trains people to… Continue reading Chill Out
New Media Rules
Like many others, I’ve spent the weekend finding my way around on Mastodon, as Twitter goes from being a hellsite to a place you suspect may soon literally burn to the ground because they fired the guy whose job it was to stop the servers overheating. If you’re interested, you can find me at https://mastodon.ie/@faduda.… Continue reading New Media Rules
Martian Robots
Journalists and radio producers love a talking head. No matter what the issue is, it feels good to be able to identify the person at the head of the group who has a strong opinion about it, either for or against. This is why an organisation like Martian Robots can get ahead. All it takes… Continue reading Martian Robots
Fanboys
It is often said of sports journalists that they are sports fans. This, the argument goes, makes them reluctant to criticise and challenge. I think anyone who said that doesn’t know many fans. Fans often engage critically. On the other hand, fanboys (and girls) are uncritical – and often defensive. But the real trouble is,… Continue reading Fanboys
On Ukraine
[Notes from a Twitter thread, 28FEB] Everyone keeps writing takes about how rapidly Europe reacted to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but I never see one about what I think is the most significant reason why change came so fast: EU soft power. The EU spent seventy years patiently building interconnected webs since ECSE in… Continue reading On Ukraine
NaNoWriMo
I wrote a story in November. NaNoWritMo is the national novel writing month, the aim being to “win” by writing 50,000 words. In the end, I produced just short of 60,000 words. It’s got a beginning, middle and end, mostly in that order. But it’s very definitely a zero draft of a story, not a… Continue reading NaNoWriMo
Elephant in the Room
It’s weird how invisible the pandemic is in TV. It’s there in the background, reduced crowd scenes, fewer extras, more outdoor action, but mostly unacknowledged. I’m told that references to current events date a show very quickly, but I’m not sure that stands up. Compare to how pop culture dealt with the 2016 US election… Continue reading Elephant in the Room
This is how we have always done things
There’s a story in today’s Dublin Inquirer about delays in citizenship applications leading to legal action from applicants. Here’s a quote: “A spokesperson for the Department of Justice didn’t say whether it considers policy reform based on the issues highlighted in cases it settles out of court. But they said it considers court judgments when… Continue reading This is how we have always done things
Nano Nano – Day One
Canon From the introduction by A O’Kelleher to the 1918 translation of the Betha Colaim Chille, Manus O’Donnell’s Life of Columcille: Like many other mediaeval writers, O’Donnell thinks of the traditions which he has collected as a fragment of a once complete and perfect whole. “Be it known,” he says, “that this Life was lost… Continue reading Nano Nano – Day One