Coverage of Tropical Storm Ernesto is all over the Web. The most recent reports indicate that the storm is headed for South Florida. Here are the links to some local news outlets in that area:
West Palm and Fort Lauderdale could get smacked, too (see the South Florida Sun-Sentinel for updates).
Newslink.org has a listing of all Florida TV stations that you might find helpful.
About.com's live Webcam collection for Miami -- and a few others:
- Miami Herald Eastern View -- This shot showing the eastern view from the Miami Herald building provides a great look at Biscayne Bay and the MacArthur Causeway.
Campaigns and YouTube
I am getting more interested in how political campaigns are using YouTube and other such viral/community sites. (We covered this on Al's Morning Meeting early last week, and the story just keeps getting more interesting.)
For campaigns, the beauty is the low cost -- and the fact that they do not have Federal Election Commission oversight. It would be possible to launch an attack, have it spread as a viral video and not have your candidate associated with it.
The video of Sen. Conrad Burns seemingly falling asleep in a committee hearing is an example of one of these viral videos. The video has been viewed almost 70,000 times on YouTube.
The New York Times points out:
(Recently,) Sen. George Allen, the Virginia Republican, was caught on tape at a campaign event twice calling a college student of Indian descent a "macaca," an obscure racial slur.
The student, working for the opposing campaign, taped the comments, and the video quickly appeared on YouTube, where it rocketed to the top of the site's most-viewed list. It then bounced from the Web to the front page of The Washington Post to cable and network television news shows. Despite two public apologies by Senator Allen, and his aides' quick explanations for how the strange word tumbled out, political analysts rushed to downgrade Mr. Allen's stock as a leading contender for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination.
"The Daily Show" even fed off the video.
The
Times story continues:
YouTube's bite also hurt Senator Joseph I. Lieberman, who was defeated by the political upstart Ned Lamont in Connecticut's Democratic primary earlier this month. In that contest, pro-Lamont bloggers frequently posted flattering interviews with their candidate on YouTube and unflattering video of Senator Lieberman. The Lamont campaign even hired a staffer, Tim Tagaris, to coordinate the activities of the bloggers and video bloggers.
Slate.com has a nice piece that includes links about how online videos undid Lieberman. Everywhere he went, somebody from the opposition campaign trailed him with a camera.
Look at this viral anti-Lieberman ad as an example. Another videoblogger confronted Lieberman and Sen. Barbara Boxer and posted the viral video.
The rules of how these campaigns are being portrayed and reported are changing, as practically anyone now can capture on camera his or her own comments and the candidates' answers -- then post them for the world to see.
Drought Tough on Livestock
They are running out of hay and water -- and now, farmers are trying to sell off cattle.
Here is the nation's drought monitor map for this week. Most of the nation's midsection is experiencing drought conditions right now.
You can find more resources at the
U.S. Department of Agriculture's Livestock & Grain Market News site, including
hay and
feed summary reports.
Financial Exploitation of the Elderly (Multimedia)
The Dallas Morning News has a unique twist on covering a big (and growing) problem. The paper looked at the financial exploitation of the elderly through a highly personalized narrative. The paper explains:
The story of Mary Ellen Bendtsen is not just a private tragedy. Experts estimate that one in five elderly Americans will be victims of some form of financial exploitation, losing at least a third of their assets. For each case reported to authorities, 12 to 15 cases are believed to go unreported.
As you read the story, pay attention to how it is footnoted. Dozen and dozens of footnotes lead you to the evidence on which the story is based. I am crazy about this technique because, to me, it adds tons of credibility to any story and it is an especially good way to use online linking technology.
The project includes a video interview with the main character of the piece. Make sure you click on the "video" button and watch the segment called "The Will." This is such an amazingly effective use of video online to augment a print story.
The reporter, Lee Hancock, also took online chat questions from readers.
We are always looking for your great ideas. Send Al a few sentences and hot links.
Editor's Note: Al's Morning Meeting is a compendium of ideas, edited story excerpts and other materials from a variety of Web sites, as well as original concepts and analysis. When the information comes directly from another source, it will be attributed and a link will be provided whenever possible. The column is fact-checked, but depends upon the accuracy and integrity of the original sources cited. Errors and inaccuracies found will be corrected.
