Journalism

Wired News publishes CQ’s insistence that their reporting on this falafel fiasco was right all along. Like you, we take the issues of national security and civil liberties very seriously, which is why Jeff Stein thought it important to write about the domain management program. His sources described to him the intelligence-gathering program that involved the sales of Middle Eastern food in some detail, and we had no reason to believe that those sources inaccurately portrayed it when the column…

Dear Friends, I’ve been informed that my radio piece on the return of President Ahmadinejad’s blog will be airing today. Will be available on any of these stations (and their Internet streams): New York – 3 pm Eastern – WNYC – 820 AM – www.wnyc.org Washington, DC – 8 pm Eastern – WAMU – 88.5 FM – www.wamu.org Los Angeles – 12 pm Pacific – KPCC – 89.3 FM – www.kpcc.opg Boston – 4 pm Eastern – WGBH – 89.7…

I’ve been informed that my radio piece on MC Hammer’s DanceJam.com will air on Morning Edition today! It will be available on any of these stations (and their Internet streams): New York – 5 am to 9 am Eastern – WNYC – 820 AM – www.wnyc.org Washington, DC – 5 am to 10 am Eastern – WAMU – 88.5 FM – www.wamu.org Los Angeles – 2 am to 9 am Pacific – KPCC – 89.3 FM – www.kpcc.opg Boston –…

Big ups to NPR’s Nate DiMeo for this awesome story explaining ringtones and the tech behind T-Pain, a rapper that I’d never heard of. Apparently he makes up for one in three of this week’s Billboard Top 10 tracks. Listen to the piece here. (No, seriously. This piece works best as a piece of audio.) The money (har) quotes: “It’s his signature vocal sound, maybe more so than his actual voice, that has become one of the defining sounds in…

Big ups to my buddy Richard Morgan for his neat piece in this month’s issue of Wired, on how the rush for the Arctic may have implications for a similar rush on the moon: But what has gone unnoticed amid the international clamor is that the Arctic battle has implications that reach far beyond the top of Earth. The squabbling will be a prelude to — and even set the tone for — eventual sovereignty claims on the moon. At…

Oh yes, I’m back in The Economist. Capsule hotels Thinking small Nov 15th 2007 From The Economist print edition Hotels with tiny rooms, pioneered in Japan, are spreading and evolving WITH their tiny, cupboard-like rooms and prices as low as ¥2,000 ($18) a night, capsule hotels have existed in Japan since the 1980s, but have not caught on elsewhere. They have, however, helped to inspire a new breed of inexpensive, no-frills hotels outside Japan that are not quite as small…

Dear Friends, I’ve been informed that my radio piece on language lessons over Skype will be airing today. Will be available on any of these stations (and their Internet streams): New York – 3 pm Eastern – WNYC – 820 AM – www.wnyc.org Washington, DC – 8 pm Eastern – WAMU – 88.5 FM – www.wamu.org Los Angeles – 12 pm Pacific – KPCC – 89.3 FM – www.kpcc.opg Boston – 4 pm Eastern – WGBH – 89.7 FM –…

Paul Boutin links to this gem in this weekend’s WSJ: Some potential buyers are having second thoughts. Officials in Libya, who had planned to buy up to 1.2 million of the laptops, became concerned that the machines lacked Windows, and that service, teacher training and future upgrades might [therefore] become a problem. It now sells for $188, plus shipping. The higher price has made the laptop vulnerable to competition. Taiwanese, Indian and Israeli sellers of inexpensive Windows laptop see the…

The interview went awesomely! MC Hammer was a gentleman and was happy to let me monopolize his time for the better part of an hour. After the interview, we totally geeked out, comparing our iPhones — he was giddy over the Labrnyinth game for the iPhone. He was cooler than I ever could have imagined.

While I normally don’t write about what I’m working on until after it’s done, I’m really stoked to be able to have the chance to sit down tomorrow with MC Hammer, on behalf of NPR! I totally bought his album — on TAPE — when I was in fifth grade. So, if there’s anything that you’ve ever wanted to know about him, now’s your chance. Give me some questions in the comments, and I’ll do my best to ask him.…