Reading back through some journal articles for class from 2001 about the potential of the internet to shape public relations. It’s a flashback to a moment after the popularization of the web, but before social media. A very different world. (I miss that world.)
Got to film in the South Caroliniana Library on campus today. Hadn’t been in since the renovation started in 2015. Designed by Robert Mills in 1840, South Caroliniana is the oldest freestanding college library in the United States. The renovation/restoration is phenomenal.
Sports talk radio all over South Carolina is going to be a dumpster fire tomorrow.
Rewatching the first few episodes of Ahsoka again. Thrilled to see the Star Wars Rebels storyline continuing.
Today is a holiday, but my daughter needed to study and I had some grad school work to do so we headed out to Starbucks. This was the only coffee shop near my house when I started grad school and I was here for long hours most weekends. It was open late and was seemingly always filled with other grad students. After COVID shut everything down, several new coffee shops opened up including two very close to my house. I don’t visit “Grad School Starbucks” very often these days, but it’s funny how a space can hold so many memories…
I realized a long time ago that watching South Carolina play football on TV just stresses me out. So I’ll follow along with the game against UNC on the ESPN website. I’ll be happy if they win. And I’ll be less frustrated if the lose.
The wifi at my daughter’s dorm room is slow and she has a hybrid class that starts this week. I dropped off an ethernet cable and a USB-C adapter today and now her internet incredibly fast. Wifi is convenient, but ethernet is fast and reliable.
Saw these flowers outside of a restaurant this evening.
I had a great view of campus today. From the 8th floor, you can really see how many trees are all over the University of South Carolina campus.
I follow a handful of Mastodon accounts here on Micro.Blog. Every so often, I notice them replying to some controversy swirling around Mastodon. Or arguing with a particularly rude commenter. I’m glad I can follow Mastodon accounts on Micro.Blog, because I don’t think I’d enjoy Mastodon.
24 years ago today… Happy anniversary, Lizzy.
The Beekeepers Who Don’t Want You to Buy More Bees - The New York Times:
“But that’s an agriculture story, not a conservation story,” Mr. Black said. “There are now more honey bees on the planet than there have ever been in human history.”
Recently, we started rewatching Alias, the 2000s ABC spy thriller by J.J. Abrams.1 All five seasons are on Disney+ and we started from the beginning. Season 1 has 22 episodes, which was once considered a “full season.” Now, a streaming show rarely has more than 8 or 10 episodes a season.
Alias became a hit and attracted new viewers over the first season. But in the broadcast TV era, there wasn’t an easy way for people to go back and watch the episodes they’d missed. I remember ABC trying to rerun episodes as it gained popularity. And the “previously on” section got hilariously longer to try and catch people up.
The 17th episode of season 1, “Q&A,” is an exposition-filled clip show where a skeptical FBI agent quizzes super spy Sydney Bristow (played by Jennifer Garner). She answers his questions, explaining the premise of the series while showing clips from previous episodes. Sydney basically tells the viewer everything they need to know in the lead up to the season finale. There’s a reveal at the end of the episode… a revelation to keep the newly updated viewer hooked to come back next week.
As I watched it, I realized that this type of clip show episode — once a staple of 20+ episode network TV seasons — will likely fade from existence. Streaming services like Disney+ allow people to go back and watch the whole season easily. And shorter seasons mean that you don’t need a budget-friendly recap episode. In today’s streaming world, there is simply no longer a reason to make a clip show.2
We are in the midst of a huge shift in television. Most of the attention is directed at the financial aspects of the streaming era. The demise of the clip show episode is a comparatively minor shift, but it demonstrates how the changing financial model of the television industry directly shapes the creative product itself.
Bob Wertz is a creative director, type designer, Ph.D. student and researcher living in Columbia, South Carolina.
Dropped my oldest off at college today. She is living in the same building that my wife lived in her freshman year. She’s only 20 minutes away from our house, and my office is 6 blocks away, but it’s still a big change for Team Wertz.
With the start of school, my wife’s sleep schedule has changed radically. She goes to bed much earlier because she wakes up much earlier. The result is that I’m going to bed earlier, too, but waking up at 1 am. Not fun. I’ll get used to the new schedule, but it will take a couple of weeks.
Just discovered that the Apple TV MLB app lets you stream minor league games if you have MLB AtBat. (AtBat is the radio broadcast streaming MLB product which is much cheaper than MLB.TV.) Currently watching the Cub’s Low A Affiliate Myrtle Beach Pelicans play our local Columbia Fireflies.
The Clean Energy Future Is Arriving Faster Than You Think - The New York Times:
Today, solar and wind power are the least expensive new sources of electricity in many markets, generating 12 percent of global electricity and rising. This year, for the first time, global investors are expected to pour more money into solar power — some $380 billion — than into drilling for oil.
What’s driving new growth in renewable energy? It’s not saving the environment. It’s saving money.
Finally got around to watching the season finale of Strange New Worlds. What a great season with an intense ending. Ready for season 3… which won’t be coming for a while. 🖖