Derek Powazek » Internet

Our Generation’s John Lennon

Derek Powazek — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 23:40:40 +0000

The other day I was talking to my uncle. He's my dad's age, a boomer. I was struggling to explain the importance of Steve Jobs' death to my generation ("Generation X", more or less) when this popped out of my mouth: "He was our generation's John Lennon." Ever since I said it, it's been rattling around my brain. Could it be so?

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Our Generation’s John Lennon
By Derek Powazek

“Nobody Uses Their Real Name” and Other Outdated Notions

Derek Powazek — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 17:59:58 +0000

I got my first email address in 1991. I was a freshman at UC Santa Cruz and a friend took me to a basement geek office where you had to fill out a paper form to get your free ucsc.edu email account. In the box labeled "User-name" I started to write "Derek." My friend stopped me. "Nobody uses their real name." He said it like he was talking to a child.

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“Nobody Uses Their Real Name” and Other Outdated Notions
By Derek Powazek

How to Turn a Fan into an Enemy in Under 140 Characters

Derek Powazek — Sun, 12 Jun 2011 08:43:35 +0000

Because I’m a media dork, I’ve listened to NPR’s On The Media since its debut. It’s the first podcast I…

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How to Turn a Fan into an Enemy in Under 140 Characters
By Derek Powazek

On The Network Manifesto

Derek Powazek — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 20:19:27 +0000

I'm thinking about starting a podcast or something called "On The Network" to counter all the idiocy I hear in traditional media about the internet. If I did, here's the beta version of the 10 guiding principles that would guide it.

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On The Network Manifesto
By Derek Powazek

All Media Is Social*

Derek Powazek — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 02:49:30 +0000

All media is social because human beings are social. The only difference is that it happens much, much, much faster now. We've sped up the refresh rate in our mediated conversations so much that the previous version looks like it's not moving at all.

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All Media Is Social*
By Derek Powazek

Yochai Benkler on Why Now’s Better

Derek Powazek — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 22:10:31 +0000

Yochai Benkler, when asked the usual asinine internet-as-echo-chamber question by Brooke Gladstone on this week’s On the Media, said this:…

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Yochai Benkler on Why Now’s Better
By Derek Powazek

Why Everything Sucks, Why That’s Awesome, and How It’s Changing Us

Derek Powazek — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 20:51:39 +0000

I think I’ve finally figured out why everything sucks. And it’s actually kind of awesome. I bought my first guitar…

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Why Everything Sucks, Why That’s Awesome, and How It’s Changing Us
By Derek Powazek

How To Save A Newsweekly in 5 Easy* Steps

Derek Powazek — Wed, 05 May 2010 23:18:04 +0000

Newsweek is for sale. While sad, it’s also an amazing opportunity to reinvent what a newsweekly could be. And it…

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How To Save A Newsweekly in 5 Easy* Steps
By Derek Powazek

Two Brain Cells Is a Lot in Some Places

Derek Powazek — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 01:15:31 +0000

Some old friends of mine are quoted in Tech Radar’s elegy to GeoCities. My soundbite is on page two. “The…

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Two Brain Cells Is a Lot in Some Places
By Derek Powazek

Spammers, Evildoers, and Opportunists

Derek Powazek — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 20:34:02 +0000

Search Engine Optimization is not a legitimate form of marketing. It should not be undertaken by people with brains or souls. If someone charges you money for SEO, they are running a scam.

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Spammers, Evildoers, and Opportunists
By Derek Powazek