Campus opened late today because of concern about the roads. The forecast called for ice, but I never did hear of anyone having any problems. So, perhaps, opening at 10 a.m. was the right thing. Or perhaps we all benefitted from an over-abundance of caution. Either way, that was a big part of the morning.
In the afternoon, in my never-ending effort to get more things out of my office, I ran across this old clip Crimson from 1988:
McClure coached seven academic All-Americans and won a conference title at Samford. Throughout his career he coached a remarkable 145 All-Americans. He produced three Olympians. His athletes held world records in eight events. He was an assistant coach in the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich. You can’t find a track and field or regional sports hall of fame that hasn’t inducted him. Previously, I’d discovered this photo of the “reserved gentleman,” Bill McClure among the hundreds of files I’ve inherited over the years:
He retired in 1996 after a 46-year sports career, the last 10 years at Samford. Before he picked up a whistle he was a Marine in World War II. He’d worked at Abilene Christian (63 All-American), South Carolina. LSU (34 All-Americans) and was the associate athletic director at Samford. He died in 2008 and was survived by five children.
Maybe they should name something after him.
Paper tonight, classes canceled tomorrow. So they’re reworking the front page and dreaming up contingencies for weather coverage. It has made for a long day, despite the late start.
Things to read … because the clock never stops.
We found the real Ron Swanson, and he’s just like the one on TV:
(T)rue fans know the loss that will hurt the most: Ron Swanson.
Ron Swanson, our freedom-loving, meat-eating, mustache-rocking man’s man. He’s our instructor of how to live on your own terms while remaining fiercely loyal to your people — characteristics we’d want in any man, especially our fathers and bosses. We’ll be lost without his rants, his wisdom, his giggle. Is there anyone who can replace him?
Well, there is a real Ron Swanson who lives in Indiana.
The guy doesn’t even watch the show. Also, remember how Ron Swanson was initially supposed to be a joke? Funny how that works out.
At times (quite a bit) the way that Twitter has chosen to roll out features and products has felt schizophrenic. And that’s no wonder, really, as the company now serves two masters. Its users and its shareholders. And while those interests may sometimes align, there is no question which is the more important to please for a public company.
This has led to rocky times when it comes to external, and even internal, perceptions of Twitter’s directional confidence.
[…]
Recent product decisions appear to be displaying more thoughtfulness about how to balance Twitter’s Dilemma. It remains to be seen whether the market will bear that, or if there is a way to truly find an equilibrium there. But there are some pleasant signs. We’ll see if the messaging products really do get the attention that Weil says they are, and whether video and onboarding continue to get polished.
There is a great deal of thought and insight in that piece. The big takeaway is that there are a lot of moving parts in play. The second takeaway is that Twitter might try to become all things to all people. And you know what happens when you do that.
Critics of President Obama’s “net neutrality” plan call it ObamaCare for the Internet.
That’s unfair to ObamaCare.
Both ObamaCare and “Obamanet” submit huge industries to complex regulations. Their supporters say the new rules had to be passed before anyone could read them. But at least ObamaCare claimed it would solve long-standing problems. Obamanet promises to fix an Internet that isn’t broken.
The permissionless Internet, which allows anyone to introduce a website, app or device without government review, ends this week.
And we’re going to miss it when it is gone.
Lawmaker with lavish decor billed private planes, concerts:
Illinois Rep. Aaron Schock, a rising Republican star already facing an ethics inquiry, has spent taxpayer and campaign funds on flights aboard private planes owned by some of his key donors, The Associated Press has found. There also have been other expensive travel and entertainment charges, including for a massage company and music concerts.
The expenses highlight the relationships that lawmakers sometimes have with donors who fund their political ambitions, an unwelcome message for a congressman billed as a fresh face of the GOP. The AP identified at least one dozen flights worth more than $40,000 on donors’ planes since mid-2011.
The AP tracked Schock’s reliance on the aircraft partly through the congressman’s penchant for uploading pictures and videos of himself to his Instagram account. The AP extracted location data associated with each image then correlated it with flight records showing airport stopovers and expenses later billed for air travel against Schock’s office and campaign records.
Reporters are watching politicians’ EXIF metadata. That’s brilliant.
Later in the story we learn that Schock is a 30something legislator that refers to people as “haters.”
Thank you, modern society.
Journalism links:
What can you do with a GoPro?
Snapchat stories: Here’s how 6 news orgs are thinking about the chat app
News Outlets Are Using This Site to Find Photos and Video on Social Media
Tomorrow: a snow day! But will we get snow?
