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05 Oct 2011 11:24

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World: Greek austerity protests: Tens of thousands take part in massive strike

Roughly 16,000 people showed up for protests in Athens, and another 10,000 showed up in the northern city of Thessaloniki. The protests are in reaction to expected job cutbacks due to austerity measures. source
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05 Oct 2011 10:53

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Politics: Three fairly edgy things Roger Ailes said in his AP interview

  • one On networks that criticize Fox News: “Everybody who’s getting their ass beat vilifies the opponent. This is the first rule of fighting.” Boom.
  • two On an anchor he thinks does it wrong: “Wolf Blitzer is an excellent reporter, but he’s not a star.” He says his back is to the camera too much.
  • three And the coup de grace, on one of his most notable hires: “I hired Sarah Palin because she was hot and got ratings.” Whew. source
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05 Oct 2011 10:38

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World: Amanda Knox, now out of jail, has massive debts to pay back

  • $1 million in legal costs incurred by Knox and her family source
  • » Two words: Book deal. Ananda Knox’s freedom wasn’t cheap, but it was a financial burden Knox was willing to pay. Her family had to foot most of the bill: Her parents both had to get second mortgages and dip into their retirement savings; her grandmother had to get a $250,000 loan. Fortunately for Knox, her story will prove to be very valuable to publishers. Sources say that she already started working on a memoir while in prison.
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05 Oct 2011 10:18

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Culture: Will “The Simpsons” end due to a salary fight? Quite possibly, kids.

  • what “The Simpsons” is facing some significant budgetary issues, and Fox is trying to figure out a way to cut costs so the show remains profitable. If it can’t, the 23-year-old show, which predates every other scripted show on the prime-time schedule, will face cancellation.
  • why The big problem is that the voice actors on the show, who fought for higher wages (and won) many times, are being asked to take significant cuts in salary (they make $8 million per year), which they’re fighting. Also, it probably doesn’t help that ratings are down. source
  • » Putting the D’oh out to pasture? The Simpsons is still widely-regarded, but with roughly 500 episodes under its belt, Fox may be ready for the next step in the “Simpsons” phenomenon — its own cable network. It’d be interesting if the salary battle is really an excuse to end “The Simpsons” outright.
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05 Oct 2011 01:01

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Biz, Tech: Could Bank of America’s debit card charge push us to digital wallets?

  • It may be too early now to talk about the Law of Unintended Consequences, but years from now, we may owe a debt to reforms like Dodd-Frank for finally weaning us off the physical wallet and encouraging us to experiment with the new technologies helping to create the Digital Wallet.
  • The Washington Post’s Dominic Basulto • Arguing that Dodd-Frank’s side effects — such as Bank of America‘s decision to start charging people for the right to use a debit card — will be great in the long run, because it will push consumers and businesses to stop relying on banks for these sorts of services, instead going for phone-based options, provided by companies such as Google or Square, instead. Basuito compares Bank of America’s controversial move to Netflix‘s price-raising scheme, and suggests it will hurt them long-term. source
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