Pop Goes the Culture

Think different? iThink not!

Steve Jobs, Apple CEO and snazzy dresser, unveiled the newest "must-have" gadget today - the iPad. Here's thoughts on it by Courier Copy Editor and self-proclaimed "giddy Apple dork" Nabil Shaheen...

The masses of media types, bloggers and the cult of Apple fans all converged upon San Francisco today for the unveiling of what Apple called its “latest creation.” And with that, the worst kept secret was revealed — Apple was getting into the tablet computer market.

Apple’s latest and greatest invention eliminated the need for a physical keyboard, wires or desire to hold a dirty, grimy newspaper or book to be able to read it.

Wait, didn’t the innovative company do all that nearly three years ago with the back-to-back releases of the iPhone and iPod Touch?

As a card-carrying member of the media I was looking forward to this afternoon’s major announcement because of the fact that 1) it’s a pretty major story and 2) allegedly it was the quick-and-forever fix to all our problems in the newspaper and magazine business.

As a giddy Apple dork, I looked forward to hearing what product the company’s CEO, Steven P. Jobs, would brilliantly market as a “need” and not just a “want.”

It had all the usual makings of previous releases with the mystery appeal of what the product is and how the workaholic black turtleneck and jeans clad chairman would sell his “latest creation.”

Unfortunately, all the hype was met with a long, heavy, disappointing sigh. Though the presentation was met with a raucous applause and a standing ovation, I’m not sure it was warranted for what is basically an giant iPod Touch.

The iPad can be used for the thousands of available apps and comes with photo and video editing software, Internet and e-mail access, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and more all on a 9.7-inch screen that weighs 1.5 pounds and is one-half inch thick.

There’s pretty much nothing it can do that an iPod Touch or any smartphone cannot.

Are you as underwhelmed as I am? Are you asking yourself if it’s worth the $499 price tag if it costs more than a netbook and can do none of the computing things netbooks can?

Perhaps the hype was overwhelming, perhaps the pressure is on for an innovative company that has revolutionized our consumption habits or maybe technology, for the moment, has hit a plateau. But whatever it was, fair or unfair, it led to a very disappointing announcement today the result of which can be heard among Apple fans and investors alike.

Apple and its Macintosh offshoots have previously changed the game in desktop computers, laptop computers, Mp3 players, music consumption and mobile phones among other things. Obviously, with the iPad (and I didn’t even get to address the name choice!) they can now compete in the tablet market. I just thought this, like previous announcements, was going to be a game-changer. And, regardless of price, it doesn’t look like the tablet game has been changed today and no “wants” were turned into “needs” by any means.

- Nabil

For AP Video of the iPad's unveiling, click here.

What do you think? Excited by the prospect of the iPad or just kinda' let down after all the hype?

The Bachelor: Episode 4 — "It's a bachelorette bloodbath!"

Gia

"It’s just the little things I'm noticing 

that are going to cause me to, you know, 

fall in love with this girl." 

—Jake

So I can't say I saw it coming that Jake would hit it off so well with Gia on their first one-on-one date. I underestimated her, I think, though I don't really know if she's "right" for Jake, or ready for the engagement he seems very determined — eerily so, even — to nail down by the end of this season. It appears to be a matter of opposites attracting between Gia, a New York City girl and swimsuit model, and Jake, with his southern accent, aw-shucks smiles and traditional values. Until now I thought Gia just wanted to be on television. That could still be the case, but it seems she might like Jake, as well.

Meanwhile, the benefit of the doubt I was giving Vienna is slipping. ABC is obviously not showing us her nasty side. I used to think Ali was especially hard on Vienna because she was jealous and just didn't like her. But with every other girl cautioning Jake (and ranting about Vienna to the cameras), I'm ready to take their word for it. Vienna's gotta go.

ABC was touting this episode as "a bachelorette bloodbath" on their Web site, and now we know why. Jake was only supposed to send home three girls tonight, one on the two-on-one date and two at the final rose ceremony. When he decided to send home both girls on the two-on-one date, he should have only had to eliminate one girl at the final ceremony. But he didn't have the heart to lead on the girls who — as he told Chris Harrison in an awkward, unscheduled conversation in the middle of the rose ceremony — he couldn't see himself marrying.

So he sent home a total of four: Ella, Kathryn, Jessie and Ashleigh. So long, ladies. We hardly knew ye.

But Vienna stays. And Ali is about to explode. "If that's what he wants, I am not what he wants," she whispered to Tenley at the rose ceremony. I'm hoping she loses it and attacks Jake for liking Vienna. Who's with me?

Episode Awards:

Best quote: "Is that coyotes? Oh, it’s the girls.” — Gia

Second-best quote: "In ninth grade, they called me Mr. Dateless." — Jake

Final two prediction: Ali and Tenley

— Linsey

The Bachelor: Episode 3 — The Claws Are Out

Vienna

I don't know where to begin. Was anyone else's head spinning after all of the ridiculous arguments in this episode? Most surprising to me was the ruthless fighter that came out in Ali. Yes, cute little Ali with the bright yellow dresses and equally sunny personality! The one I was praising as being adorable and genuine only one post ago!

Ali doesn't seem to be responding well to sharing Jake's attention; at least, not with Vienna. I didn't see it coming that Jake and Vienna would hit it off so well, and apparently neither did Ali. She says she can't understand how Jake would have feelings for "someone so fundamentally different from me" — but she's only making herself look worse by being so confrontational toward Vienna. 

And while it's clear that Vienna is the least popular girl in the house at the moment, I have trouble understanding what it is Vienna did that was ever so horrible. True, she gushed about her bungee jumping date with Jake. But is all of the controversy surrounding her founded?

Meanwhile, we're three episodes in and already Vienna and Ella are feeling confident they'll marry Jake. What are these ladies thinking? It's too soon to say! Exercise some patience and rationality, please! Ella, at least, should know better — she's a mother!

Other noteworthy events: 

* Michelle's creepy forced kiss with Jake, after which he sent her home. I was happy to see he stood up to her.

* Jake's improved self-confidence. He's finally seems more comfortable and in control, and thus relaxed and less likely to say weird things or laugh uncontrollably.

* Corrie's stand-up comedy act, in which she made fun of all of the other girls. (Except, um, who's Corrie? We've never seen much footage of her. Or Jessie. Or Kathryn. Or Valishia.)

* Tenley coming clean about her previous marriage, and Jake claiming he likes her more for it.

Episode Awards:

Best Quote: Jake, to Elizabeth: "You maybe dangled it like a carrot."

Best Elimination: Elizabeth. Like Jake, I was tired of her games.

Most Likely To Pee His Pants If He Ever Bungee Jumps Again: Jake

Most Delusional: Elizabeth, for saying, "I felt like we were advancing as a couple" in regard to her relationship with Jake.

— Linsey

Jessica Biel Graces February Vogue Cover

February 2010 Vogue

Vogue magazine is always really good at keeping secret who will grace the cover of their forthcoming issues. I started searching online about a week ago to see if any sites were leaking the news of February's lucky starlet, but had no luck. Then I checked back at Vogue.com last night and found they've at last released the image of the new cover, featuring Jessica Biel.

The other thing to know about Vogue covers is that Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour is extremely choosy about which celebrities are worthy of the cover. You're not going to, for instance, find Kim Kardashian staring back at you. I think Jessica Biel, looking gorgeous in denim for February, is a fine choice; even though, as the feature story about her in the magazine (and online) states, her career has yet to fully blossom.

She appears in February's Valentine's Day, which, from the looks of the trailer and the all-star cast, aims to be 2010's version of He's Just Not That Into You. I'll probably see Valentine's Day, even though something about the trailer isn't winning me over like I wish it would. And I look forward to seeing what comes next for Biel.

- Linsey

Plastic Surgery Hypocrisy on 'The View'

 

Heidi Montag, 23 

By chance, I happened to catch part of Wednesday's episode of The View. The hot topic of conversation was Heidi Montag's new People magazine cover, on which she's exposed for having a reported 10 plastic surgery procedures in one day. I haven't read the full article, just the shortened version online.

The ladies of The View were in agreement that Montag should love her body the way it is, and that her obsession with looks and her belief that she needs to change herself are only encouraging other young women across the county to be equally critical of, and uncomfortable with, their own bodies.

I can't disagree with the hosts' sentiments on this issue.

Joan Rivers, 76

But once the topic was dropped, out came guest Joan Rivers, who shared, among other things, the tale of an experience she recently had in an airport. Not a word was spoken between Rivers and The View's hosts on the topic of plastic surgery.

Did the irony of criticizing Montag's plastic surgery choices and saying she should accept her body the way it is, and then proceeding to bring out Joan Rivers, escape the hosts and producers of this show?

Probably not.

It's quite obvious that Joan Rivers would defend a woman's right to plastic surgery. So the fact that the hosts weren't willing to broach the topic with Rivers makes it a tad less easy to take them seriously when they say a woman should love her body the way it is.

One host's compliment to Rivers, praising her for looking like she's only in her 40s when Rivers complained of being 76 years old, was the nail in the coffin.

-Linsey

Cyber attacks may leave Chinese googling "free speech" with no results

A number of cyber attacks is making Google rethink its strategy in China and opening up the possibility of pulling out of the country altogether.

The cyber attacks (breaking into and illegally accessing private information) affected not only Google, but "at least twenty other large comapnies from a wide range of businesses," according to Google's David Drummond on his blog.

The attackers' main goal seems to have been accessing the Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists, along with other human rights activists and supporters in the U.S., Europe and China. Luckily, no real relevant information was stolen - the cyber-thieves only got away with basic account information (subject line, date email was sent) and none of the main emails.

"We have taken the unusual step of sharing information about these attacks with a broad audience not just because of the security and human rights implications of what we have unearthed, but also because this information goes to the heart of a much bigger global debate about freedom of speech," Drummond said in his post. The implications of this attack are a little nerve-racking, especially considering the amount of censorship that occurs in China.

The noose around internet free speech has slowly gotten tighter in China in the last few years, with the Chinese government even going so far as to block certain subjects from being called up during certain times. Last summer, for the 20th anniversary of the massacre in Tiananmen Square, web sites across China were forced to shut down for a period of time surrounding June 4. Google.cn, China's version of Google, had to block all results that came up for Tiananmen Square for 8 days.

It seems pretty disturbing, though not unexpected, considering Google may totally pull out of the country. What kind of message is sent to those wanting a voice in an oppressive country when a huge opportunity like this packs up and leaves. Then again, if Google can't do business there, why stick around? What do you think?

By the way, the below picture isn't doctored - it was taken at China's Google headquarters just days ago. It looks like someone saw fit to pay tribute...

- Jason

The Bachelor: Episode 2, or, "Can I get my rose back?"

Rozlyn

There were several great moments in Episode 2 of The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love, but after reviewing the contenders, none stood out as much as host Chris Harrison's obvious discomfort in having to tell Rozlyn she was being sent home.

Of all the possible bachelorettes Chris might have delivered this news to, none could have possessed as much brazen confidence or shot as many eye-daggers in response as Rozlyn. It was as though she felt she had nothing to apologize for (for those who don't know, she was busted for fooling around with a member of the show's production staff — the "biggest scandal in Bachelor history," of course), and for a little while it seemed that veteran host Harrison, who's lived through his share of dramatic reality television moments, might turn red, trip over his words, or maybe even cry out of discomfort as he awkwardly explained to her that she had to go home.

I liken Rozlyn to the character Regina George in Mean Girls, played by Rachel McAdams. Both are the same sort of icy, fearless, queen-bee beauty one should never trust. Young women overtly capable of making grown men cry.

So I was pleased to see that Jake didn't cry when he learned of Rozlyn's infidelity (he has a history of crying that dates back to his days of warning Bachelorette Jillian that country singer Wes was no good). But Jake did express disappointment, and asked for his rose back.

Moving on, what a fun opportunity for the six girls selected for the first group date! The girls got to do a real photo shoot for InStyle magazine, which was supposed to be featured in the magazine at some point. Has anyone seen the photos in InStyle? I have not.

And how adorable was Ali when she teared up (quite genuinely, I do believe) after Jake picked her for the one-on-one date, on which she got to wear an insanely expensive, enormous diamond necklace? Along with Tenley, this girl seems serious about wanting to find love. And it also seems that Ali may have taken the lead over Tenley in the race for Jake's heart (I'm sorry I don't have a pilot/airplane pun for you here, because the show is ripe with them).

Episode Awards:

Best Quote: Christina, for saying “I would rather be doing a math test right now" during the InStyle photo shoot.

Biggest Hypocrite: Elizabeth, for writing Jake a lengthy note about how she won't kiss him until she is the last girl left, getting him to give her a rose because he "admires her values," and then proceeding to flirt with him shamelessly, asking how badly he wanted to kiss her. And he ate it all up.

Biggest Nutbar Still Getting Roses: Michelle.

So who's your favorite bachelorette so far? What do you like/dislike about this season? 

And while we're at it... Jake: Dreamy or Not?

— Linsey Maughan, Courier Reporter

It's the Tonight Show with....uh...someone....

Well, it's only been a little over 4 months since Jay Leno hit the 10 p.m. time slot for "The Jay Leno Show" and already there's talk of trouble. It seems Leno's ratings have taken a bit of a nosedive since moving to the earlier time and allowing Conan O'Brien to take the wheel of "The Tonight Show." The problem is, O'Brien is starting to lose ground to main competitor David Letterman.

Now there are some mumblings coming from the NBC executives about moving Leno back to his old time slot of 11:30 p.m. Why? Besides the low ratings, network affiliates are complaining that the lack of viewers makes for a bad lead-in to their late local news. Leno even called NBC out on the oddball situation. If the move happens, though this leaves us with a slight problem: If Leno goes back, where does that leave O'Brien?

The solution: use 'em both!

Yep, NBC says it's considering giving both comedians their own 1/2 hour shows being followed by Jimmy Fallon. They want to placate both hosts without running the risk of Conan jumping ship (say, to Fox, perhaps?). Is this a good idea? Who knows. All I know is I want to get off the "Late Night" roller coaster now...

What do you think? Is moving Leno a good idea? Should O''Brien be tossed?

- Jason

UPDATE: It was confirmed Sunday that Leno's 10 p.m. show will be moved to an 11:30 p.m. timeslot. NBC executives say that they've talked with both O'Brien and Fallon and no decision about the fates of their shows has been made yet.

ANOTHER UPDATE: Looks like Conan has said "No!" to moving the "Tonight Show" back to midnight.

The Bachelor: Season Premiere!

Jake Pavelka

ABC's The Bachelor is one of my guiltiest of guilty pleasures. 

First of all, there's the catty, phony, ditsy, antifeminist, shallow and sometimes psychotic behavior of many of the girls on the show, which just makes the rest of us look bad. And how many of these conversations and kisses, when surrounded by camera crews, could actually be genuine? And don't you think ABC is going to shape the comments and actions of the people on this show to portray them in the way they think will bring in the highest ratings? And isn't it true that the majority of the relationships and even "engagements" formed on the show fail almost instantly once the cameras stop rolling? 

I know all this. And yet, I can't stop watching. Because somewhere amid all of the sweet nothings and strapless dresses, the stolen kisses and spray tans, a few girls each season actually seem to develop genuine feelings for the bachelor, and he for them. How do they do it? It fascinates me.

Tonight ABC aired the premiere of the new season, titled The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love. Yep, our new bachelor, Jake, is a pilot. Naturally, he's also a reject from the last season of The Bachelorette, in which Bachelorette Jillian Harris deemed him "too perfect." Jake proclaimed all along that he was looking for true love, was on the show for the right reasons, and was not too perfect. When he was eventually dismissed, he complained that "Nice guys finish last."

So now is his chance to choose between 25 ladies. If all goes according to plan, he'll propose to one, whom he will have known for about eight weeks. I'm pretty sure 100 percent of marriage counselors would say that this kind of impulsiveness is ill-advised. But who cares? It's such good entertainment!

Among this season's crop of bachelorettes are four models, two dancers, a pilot, a flight attendant and a nanny. The frontrunner so far appears to be Tenley, a 25-year-old from Oregon who got the first kiss and the first impression rose both on the first night. But Tenley has been married before, and she hasn't told Jake yet. Maybe he won't care? Maybe he will? We shall see! She seems like a sweet girl.

I can't wait to watch this season in all of its glorious, unnecessary drama. Maybe Mr. Nice Guy will even break a heart or two.

So what does the bachelor have to say about this season, anyway?

Episode Awards:

Best Quote: Ali, for telling Jake, "It's like Christmas morning right now, and you're my gift."

Worst Pick-Up Line: Ella, for asking Jake, "How does it feel to be talking to the woman that you're going to marry?"

Most Likely to Go Insane: Michelle, for crying after only knowing Jake for an hour.

— Linsey Maughan, Courier Reporter