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WHERE THE HECK IS THE FOURTH ESTATE THESE DAYS?

l3wis November 14, 2007 0Comments

The term Fourth Estate refers to the press, both in its explicit capacity of advocacy and in its implicit ability to frame political issues. The term goes back at least to Thomas Carlyle in the first half of the 19th century.

It seems as of late the press has become more advertorial (advertising disguised as actual news stories) then informational. Some examples on a national level are the selling of the Iraq War and on a local level the endless coverage of Sanford Health by print and TV media.

There are some basic reasons why this has happened; media has become huge conglomerates that no longer care about getting the story, just the advertising dollars. They choose more often then not to ignore certain news items fearing they will lose advertisers.

Just look at all the Women’s magazines in Sioux Falls? Do any of them have content that is news worthy? Do any of them cover politics?

I think the Fourth Estate still exists, loosely. Blogs have become the new Fourth Estate.

Is everything true that we read on the blogs? No. But neither is our mainstream media either. The advantage the internets has over TV or print media is you can sort out the info on your own. Blogs are edgier then other media sources too, they don’t sugarcoat the news. Many great stories have broken on blogs (Monica Lewinsky scandal for instance, and the the Moveon.org Petraseus ad comes to mind).

There is a part of me that wishes I was still a part of the print media, but I will admit I have met some interesting people through my blog and have heard some pretty good stories to (stuff you will never see in our local media).

Eventually the OLD Fourth Estate will no longer be able to ignore the NEW Fourth Estate. I’m hoping the 2008 election cycle proves this.

NOVEMBER 14, 2007

l3wis November 14, 2007 0Comments

Jackie, looks like you have a little competition.

SOUTH DaCOLA ART CLUB w/TIM BENSON

l3wis November 14, 2007 0Comments

THE COLOR OF SOUND – MUSIC INSPIRES ART

l3wis November 14, 2007 2Comments

IS FINISHED!

The cast and crew will have a private screening before the first of the year and I will do private screenings over the next year. It will be entered in several film festivals over the next year, and rules and guidelines prevent us from showing it for money or selling DVD’s.

For those of you who can’t remember what the documentary is about, here is a brief synopis:

The Color of Sound – Music Inspires Art was an interactive concert featuring local visual artists and musicians.
 
Four talented Sioux Falls artists, Hope Happeny, Eyob Mergia, Scott Ehrisman & Jamie Scarbrough, created several paintings on canvas while listening to the region’s premier Jazz and Blues Bands — Dakota Jazz Collective & Urban Blues. The five-hour event included three 45-minute sets of unique performance art.

“We have high expectations for this film as a public educational tool,” Sioux Falls musician Jess Christen said.  “The Color of Sound – Music Inspires Art was independently produced by the artists and musicians involved. We are very proud of this aspect.”  “This event exhibited the relationship between visual art and music,” Eyob Mergia said, “and hopefully evoke cultural awareness by presenting the artistic diversity in our community.”

DIRECTOR: Chris Carlblom
Ex. PRODUCER: Scott L. Ehrisman

Dakota Jazz Collective is: Jim Speirs, Chris Janzen, Matt Hackett, John Kelly, and Bobby Gripp
www.jazzsd.com

Urban Blues is: Jess Christen, Fred Epstein,  Dave Fermenich and Derek Snow
www.myspace.com/theurbanblues

Dedicated in memory of Razmik ‘RAZ’ Mkhitarian, Sioux Falls biggest Jazz Fan

GOOD LUCK JASON IN WHATEVER YOU DO.

l3wis November 13, 2007 6Comments

Don’t bother leaving a message, I’m not interested.