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Social Media & The Authenticity Deficit

2010-05-27T09:04:00.000-07:00

You can't manufacture authenticity. It's not something that can be rolled off an assembly line or announced in a press release. You have to actually live it through your actions as a company. It may sound obvious, but this is an important axiom for marketers because if there's a large delta between your organization's actual and stated values, consumers will eventually clue in to the discrepancy -- no matter how clever your marketing spin.

In the old days of traditional marketing, organizations that ran an "authenticity deficit" weren't exposed to a high degree of business risk, because consumers didn't have a substantial share of voice in the media. But that's all changed in the last decade with blogs, Facebook, Twitter, etc. With the rise of social media, consumers now have equal share of voice -- which means that marketing is becoming more like a conversation and less like a soliloquy. And when you're being inauthentic, real conversations rarely work to your advantage.

What we're seeing now is that organizations that have been running substantial authenticity deficits are stumbling badly in social media -- and when they do, it often becomes a story that gets picked up and amplified by traditional mainstream media.

BP is the most recent case in point. Since 2001, the company has put a lot of effort into rebranding itself as a green company by introducing a new logo, adopting the tagline "Beyond Petroleum," and running ads touting its environmentally friendly credentials. It was a clever marketing strategy, and it might have worked for a little while longer had it not been for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

The oil spill and its aftermath lifted the veil of BP's carefully crafted green marketing message, exposing the company's real values: oil profiteering and risk-taking with little regard for the public or the environment. It didn't take long for a fake Twitter account (@BPGlobalPR) to appear, mocking the company and attracting eight times as many followers as the company's official Twitter account -- and for mainstream media outlets to pick up the story.

The lesson for companies in the 21st century: Look in the mirror. You no longer control your company's message. Whether this shift works for you or against you depends in large part on your business practices and marketing strategy. If your actions are genuine and authentic, you will build trust with your customers -- and that goodwill (or the lack thereof) can go a long way when disaster strikes.

We Live in Public

2010-04-28T21:50:00.000-07:00

Ah, the mid-to-late 1990s: The sound of a 28.8 modem handshake over a PPP dialup. Downloading beta releases of Netscape Navigator. Watching live streaming video from Pseudo.com at five frames per second. Having a vague sense of being part of a global technology party that is about to reach its apex. The documentary We Live In Public brings it all back, focusing on insane genius entreprenerd Josh Harris and his deranged art experiments in media surveillance and manipulation.

In retrospect, it's clear that Harris presaged reality TV, blogs, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, and the whole dubious psychological dynamic around giving up a slice of privacy in return for the technologically mediated adoration of complete strangers. Definitely worth watching. Netflix has this film available for instant streaming, for those of you with Roku boxes.

The final resting place of cement ?

2010-03-17T13:33:00.000-07:00

It's rare to find typographical errors executed in wrought iron. Human nature being what it is, craftsmen tend to take extra special care when working in a medium that is costly to correct and has a great deal of permanence. So this 19th-century spelling mishap at a historic cemetery in Tubac, Arizona sure is a bit of a head-scratcher -- that is, until one realizes that the Spanish word for cemetery is "cementerio."

Image shot and processed with a Motorola Droid.

Ocean Sounds for Babies

2009-09-20T21:17:00.000-07:00

Download: audio | cover art

It's widely accepted that the sound of the ocean surf can help babies fall asleep, presumably because the white noise of waves breaking at the seashore is similar to the acoustic environment inside the womb. Not surprisingly, there's a multitude of electronic baby gadgets on the market designed to synthesize the sound of the surf.

Figuring the real thing to be preferable to a simulacrum, I decided it would be fun to record the actual sound of the ocean to have on hand as a tonic for grouchy babies. For the project, I used a Tascam GT-R1 digital recorder and a Nady CM 2S stereo condenser microphone.

I chose Muir Beach in the Marin Headlands as a setting because it's easy to get to, yet still reasonably secluded. By walking a few minutes along a footpath that leads away from the public beach, I was able to find a spot where nothing could be heard except the sounds of the ocean and the occasional chirping of birds.

Setting up, it quickly became evident that wind noise was going to be a considerable challenge. When wind blows on a sensitive mic like the Nady, the resulting bass rumble can easily drown out what you're actually trying to record. I was able to mitigate somewhat by using a windscreen and by activating the high-pass filters on both the mic and the recorder, but the results still weren't acceptable.

The solution I finally settled on was to sit directly in front of the mic with my back toward the ocean, thus shielding the mic from the wind. Not only did this solution cure the wind noise problem but it also created a much more favorable acoustic environment, which I would describe as being akin to resting your head in someone's lap: The crash of the ocean surf becomes somewhat muffled and distant, and occasional ambient beach sounds are perceived more intimately.

The end result was exactly the kind of snooze-inducing recording that I wanted to make. Listen for yourself and let me know what you think:

Ocean Sounds for Babies - Muir Beach, California
(MP3 / 192kbps / 22.6 MB / 16 mins)

p.s. The high-resolution CD cover art is available for download, in case you'd like to burn an audio CD of this recording. Enjoy!

Tascam GT-R1 Portable Guitar/Bass Recorder

2009-09-06T22:31:00.000-07:00

Inspiration has a way of striking at the unlikeliest moments. Anytime you pick up a guitar, there's a chance you might spontaneously invent a great new song or riff. But if you're like me, it's quite likely that you'll forget that new musical idea by the next day -- unless you're able to record it immediately. So what should you do if you don't happen to be in your home recording studio when inspiration strikes?

That's where the Tascam GT-R1 comes in. This essential traveling companion combines a high-quality digital field recorder with studio features created specifically for guitarists -- including effects, overdubbing, and more.

The GT-R1 records in WAV or MP3 format at up to 48kHz/24-bit resolution, using a supplied 1GB SD Card. (Cards up to 32GB are supported.) The built-in stereo condenser microphones do a decent job when you're recording a quick demo -- though for reference field recordings I definitely recommend plugging in a high-quality external stereo condenser mic such as the Nady CM 2S.

One of the great things about the GT-R1 is that you can also plug your acoustic or electric guitar directly into the 1/4" instrument input and record using the built-in amp simulator and multi-effects processor. While the built-in effects are no match for a rack of studio gear, they're good enough to help you capture a convincing sound for a rough demo. (One major drawback, however: The adjustable effects parameters cannot be saved. Whose lame idea was that?)

Overdubbing is another sweet feature of the GT-R1. While it's a far cry from true multitracking, this basic "sound on sound" feature allows you to first lay down a rhythm track and then record a solo on top of it -- with the mix recorded to a second track. It can be tricky to get the levels just right when overdubbing, but with some practice the results aren't too bad.

Here's how I created a quick demo recording with the GT-R1: First, I recorded a rhythm track with an acoustic guitar, using the internal microphones on the GT-R1 . Next, I plugged an acoustic-electric guitar directly into the GT-R1, selected a bit of mild compression and reverb on the internal effects processor, and recorded a lead track on top of the rhythm track. Start to finish, it took me about 10 minutes to record the two parts while reclined on my sofa. Here are the results:

Drakes Bay Boogie - composed & recorded by Lars Kongshem
(file type: MP3 / bit rate: 192kbps / file size: 3 MB)

(I used Audacity software to create a fade-out at the end, and to convert the track from WAV to MP3 format. The end result is untouched in all other respects.)

With a street price of about $250, the GT-R1 is a great deal. Sure, it's got a few drawbacks: The internal condenser mics are decent but not great, the effects settings can't be saved, and it lacks true multitracking capabilities. But I can't think of any other piece of gear on the market that beats the GT-R1 at its core feature set and price point.

Adding MP3 input to a 2004 Jetta

2009-08-24T23:43:00.000-07:00

My 2004 Jetta GLI VR6 must have been one of the last automobiles to be manufactured with a "pre-Internet" car stereo. Not only does the factory CD stereo system lack an MP3 player input jack, it actually boasts a built-in cassette deck. (Given that sales of prerecorded cassettes began their decline in the late 1980s, it's a bit of a head-scratcher why VW hadn't spotted that trend more than 15 years later. In 2001, cassettes accounted for just 4 percent of all music sold.)

At any rate, the lack of an MP3 player input jack means the owner must resort to a low-fidelity cassette adapter -- or even worse, a scratchy FM transmitter -- in order to listen to digital music files while driving. That's what I was doing until I came across this cool gadget: The Blitzsafe auxiliary audio input interface.

This clever device fools the factory CD player by masquerading as a trunk-mounted CD changer. Once you've hooked the unit up to the CD changer interface in the trunk, you simply run an audio cable into the cabin and plug in your MP3 player. (In my case, a Palm Treo 700p running Pocket Tunes software.) Now select the CD changer source on the stereo, and your digital tunes are piped in loud and clear. Highly recommended.

Risks of ultrasound exposure during pregnancy

2009-06-07T13:38:00.000-07:00

Ask a doctor about the possible risks associated with ultrasound exposure during pregnancy, and you're likely to be brushed off with phrases such as: It's just sound waves. There's no radiation. It's perfectly safe.

In fact, the truth is a lot more complicated -- but many medical professionals appear reluctant to discuss the subject. Some may even respond with condescension. As a result, it can be difficult for a patient to evaluate the risks vs. benefits of the procedure.

Here are some interesting facts I've gleaned from medical textbooks and other sources:

1. Ultrasound was developed during WWII to detect enemy submarines. The technology (known as "sonar") began being used in medical practice in the early 1960s.
2. The medical community has long recognized that ultrasound exposure can have an adverse effect on biological systems. In 2004, the FDA released this statement: "Ultrasound is a form of energy -- and even at low levels, laboratory studies have found it can produce physical effects in tissue, such as jarring vibrations and a rise in temperature."
3. One study found a significant association between prenatal ultrasound exposure and left-handedness in boys, indicating a possible effect on brain development.
4. In the 1990s, the FDA approved the use of obstetrical diagnostic ultrasound devices with significantly (8-fold) increased power output.
5. Newer "pulsed Doppler" ultrasound procedures can generate up to 100 times the power output of traditional (so-called "B-mode") ultrasound procedures.
6. No studies to date have examined the possible adverse effects of the increased power levels.

In the 2005 medical textbook Doppler Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology, the authors devote a chapter to discussing the Biological Safety of Diagnostic Sonography. The chapter describes the thermal and mechanical effects of ultrasound exposure on biological systems:

Thermal effects:

- As a beam of ultrasound propagates through body tissue, a portion of its energy is absorbed and converted to heat because the frictional forces in the tissue oppose the ultrasound-induced molecular oscillations.
- Embryonic and fetal tissues are more prone to thermal injury, and elevated fetal temperature (hyperthermia) is a known cause of birth defects.
- According to the International Perinatal Doppler Society, ultrasound exposure at the new maximum power setting allowed by the FDA may cause fetal tissue heating exceeding 2 degrees Centigrade, which scientific data has shown to have adverse effects on embryo and fetal development.
- Temperature increases of 8 degrees Fahreinheit have been measured in the brains of late-gestation live guineau pig fetuses when exposed to 2 minutes of Doppler ultrasound in utero.

Mechanical effects:

- Ultrasound exposure has been shown to cause the formation of microscopic bubbles in tissue that resonate and grow until they implode (a process known as inertial cavitation).
- Inertial cavitation can cause cell destruction through the generation of intense local heat and pressure and the generation of shear forces caused by the bubble implosion.
- The temperature of a collapsing bubble may exceed 5,000 degrees Celsius with pressures of hundreds to thousands of atmospheres.
- Ultrasound-induced generation of free radicals has been observed to cause gene mutation in cells.
- Animal experiments have demonstrated lung, kidney, and other organ injuries due to mechanical effects of ultrasound exposure.

Although it's possible that many of these biological effects are not relevant in the case of human prenatal ultrasound exposure, there certainly appears to be some cause for concern and caution when considering the use of ultrasound during pregnancy.

In the 2004 medical textbook Color Doppler Sonography in Gynecology and Obstetrics, the authors devote a chapter to discussing Safety Aspects of Doppler and Color Doppler Sonography. Their recommendations include:

1. Keeping power levels as low as possible.
2. Minimizing the time of each scan.
3. Exercising special caution when using pulsed Doppler ultrasound and contrast agents.

As the saying goes, "Talk to your doctor" -- just be prepared for some pushback.

Quote of the Week

2009-03-09T23:39:00.001-07:00

"One should, each day, try to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it is possible, speak a few reasonable words." - Goethe

For Sale: The stuff that dreams are made of

2009-02-01T00:58:00.000-08:00

It's the largest privately owned sailing ship in the world: 289 feet long at the waterline, with three 191-foot-tall computer-controlled rotating masts made of carbon fiber. It weighs 1,367 tons and can accommodate 12 guests in six staterooms. Although it's designed to carry a crew of 20, extensive computer control endows the ship with the ability to be sailed by a single person if needed. Price: $190 million.

View Photo Slideshow

I shot these photos of the Maltese Falcon in late September 2008 as the ship was making its maiden voyage to San Francisco, where it remained docked for several days. Silicon Valley venture capitalist Tom Perkins had the yacht built in 2006 for his 70th birthday -- and now, three years and one global economic downturn later, the Maltese Falcon is for sale.

In the 1941 movie of the same name, Humphrey Bogart (as private eye Sam Spade) described the elusive Maltese Falcon statuette as "the stuff that dreams are made of." In these troubled times, it appears some dreams have a price tag that not even the mightiest titans of Silicon Valley can afford to sustain.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

2008-12-27T11:41:00.000-08:00

Lake Geneva, Wisconsin

Encounters at the End of the World

2008-12-15T23:28:00.000-08:00

"We are the instruments through which the universe becomes conscious of its magnificence." - Antarctic philosopher in Werner Herzog's "Encounters at the End of the World."

A warm, happy place

2008-11-26T12:55:00.000-08:00

Hulopo'e Beach, Lanai, Hawaii.

Sunset on hill overlooking Muir Beach

2008-11-16T23:15:00.001-08:00

Marin Headlands, Calif.

Yes, We Can

2008-11-04T23:01:00.001-08:00

The stock market prefers Democratic presidents?

2008-11-04T12:00:00.000-08:00

If history is any indication, an Obama win might spell hope for the stock market to recover:

"Since 1901, the Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 7.2 percent a year on average under Democratic presidents and 3.2 percent under Republicans, according to Ned Davis Research."

Full article here.

Greenspan in a state of "shocked disbelief" to discover a flaw in laissez-faire economics

2008-10-26T11:43:00.000-07:00

You don't need a Ph.D. in economics to understand that greed and altruism make for unlikely bedfellows. How unfortunate that it should take a complete meltdown of the financial system for deregulation ideologues to come to that realization on their own:

"Those of us who have looked to the self-interest of lending institutions to protect shareholders’ equity, myself included, are in a state of shocked disbelief," said the former chairman of the Federal Reserve, Alan Greenspan, in addressing Congress on Oct. 23, 2008. "I’ve found a flaw (in my ideology). I don’t know how significant or permanent it is. But I’ve been very distressed by that fact."

Wassup! Eight Years Later

2008-10-26T11:15:00.001-07:00

Bird, Bridge, Sky

2008-10-15T00:02:00.000-07:00

Here's an unusual perspective on the Golden Gate Bridge that I shot from a ferry passing directly underneath the span. A seagull was riding the draft from the boat, and I was lucky enough to capture this shot at just the right time. I like the juxtaposition of organic, mechanical, and celestial elements in the frame.

Proposed neologism: "Enovation"

2008-09-17T22:31:00.000-07:00

e·no·va·tion (noun)

1 : an innovation that draws inspiration from the ambient aesthetics pioneered by Brian Eno.

2 : the introduction of a new minimalist idea, method, or device designed to exert a subliminal influence on the physical and conscious environment.

Eat Your Fruits & Vegetables

2008-08-10T14:52:00.000-07:00

JBL On Tour

2008-07-26T00:35:00.000-07:00

Speaker systems for iPods and MP3 players tend to come in two varieties: (1) Expensive docking systems that sound great but are too big and unwieldy to drop in a briefcase for a weekend trip. (2) Cheap and flimsy mini-speakers that are small and highly portable but sound terrible.

The JBL On Tour speaker system finds a middle ground between those two extremes. Retailing for about $50, this little gem boasts very respectable sound quality for its size.

I recently bought this system for use with my Palm Treo 700p smartphone running Pocket Tunes software, and I've found it to be a great combination for traveling. It's ideal for use in hotels and B&Bs when you want decent high-fidelity background music to accompany your travels.

The On Tour sports a classy and clever flask-shaped design that opens up to reveal the speakers:

With 3 watts RMS per channel and active equalization (see specs), the On Tour excels at smooth reproduction of most music types at moderate volume levels. The twin 1-inch ported transducers do an admirable job of reproducing bass down to 100Hz. Earth-shaking bass and ear-splitting volume obviously can't be expected with a system this small, but what's notable is that JBL has engineered a miniature speaker system that sounds natural and musical. For fifty bucks, that's quite an accomplishment.

Crash Landing?

2008-07-18T17:57:00.000-07:00

Let's hope not.

The Crucible's Fire Arts Festival

2008-07-13T01:14:00.000-07:00

View Photo Slideshow

Fire aficionados, Victorian steampunk revivalists, and Burning Man enthusiasts had their very own playground in West Oakland this weekend during The Crucible's 8th Annual Fire Arts Festival. A fundraising event for the nonprofit arts collective, the Fire Arts Festival "celebrates creativity through fire and light with a spectacular open-air exhibition of interactive fire art, performance and the largest collection of outdoor fire sculpture on the West Coast."

My favorites were the Fire Vortex, two different Tesla coils, a 1920 Steam Traction Engine, several neon light displays -- and numerous fire-breathing sculptures and contraptions that defied description.

Expecting photography to be off-limits, I had unfortunately left my good camera at home. Once it became clear that it was perfectly okay to take pictures, I pulled out my Palm Treo cameraphone and started taking still and moving images; check out the slide show (above) and video (below) for the results. Despite the Treo's low image resolution and poor light sensitivity (or perhaps because of it), I think I was able to capture the trippy ambiance of the event. Enjoy.

Soundtrack to video: "Little Dream In Turquoise" from the album "Traces" by Erik Wøllo.

Jim Campilongo @ Cafe du Nord

2008-07-08T23:37:00.000-07:00

I try never to miss an opportunity to hear Jim Campilongo perform live on those all-too-rare occasions when he returns to his home town of San Francisco to play a gig. Steeped in the American traditions of blues, jazz, and country picking, Jim is a highly authentic and original musician. In my humble opinion, he's right up there with rootsy guitar greats such as (the late) Danny Gatton and Junior Brown (both of whom I've had the good fortune to hear live on many occasions).

Monday night's show at Cafe du Nord did not disappoint. I doubt I've ever heard a more sensitive and moving rendition of "Cry Me a River" coaxed from a Telecaster. Switching gears, Jim next played a stormy and brooding tune called "I'm Helen Keller and You're a Waffle Iron" -- which sounded like it could be the soundtrack to a movie written by Quentin Tarantino and directed by David Lynch. (I was at first mystified by the song title, but a quick bit of googling revealed this old joke: "How did Helen Keller burn her fingers? She tried to read the waffle iron." A clever title for what one supposes is an instrumental tale of love gone wrong.)

I first met Jim Campilongo in August of 2001. I'd just been laid off from a dot-com startup that was going down in flames -- which meant that I suddenly had a lot more free time to play guitar. I decided to take a few lessons to shake off the cobwebs, and found an ad on Craig's List that sounded promising: "Guitar lessons by local recording artist."

When I arrived for my lesson at Jim's house in Brisbane, the first thing that blew me away was his LP collection. I've got a respectable number of albums, but Jim's archive of jazz and country vinyl records appeared to number in the thousands. Jim turned out to be a gracious teacher and a great guy, and I was stoked at the prospect of learning a few tips from such an accomplished musician.

Unfortunately, that turned out to be my one and only lesson with Jim Campilongo. On September 11, Jim happened to be in New York -- and with the restrictions on travel after the attacks, he ended up spending quite a bit of time in the city and making connections with local musicians (including Norah Jones). Eventually, Jim decided to move to NYC permanently. Jim now has a regular Monday night residency at the Living Room. Next time you're in the Big Apple, be sure to check him out.

Hot Club Sandwich

2008-06-22T21:11:00.000-07:00

Fans of Gypsy jazz got a rare treat this weekend when Hot Club Sandwich played a gig at Amnesia in the Mission. The Seattle-area band was in town to perform at the wedding of David Grisman's daughter, but the group managed to squeeze in a lively Friday night show at this laid-back bar on Valencia St.

The five-piece band (two guitars, upright bass, mandolin, and fiddle) played a number of tunes from their new CD Green Room, which I recommend highly. All the guys in the band have solid chops, and the level of musicianship is high. Our good friend James Schneider plays upright bass in the band, and was in fine form.

After the show ended, the band and a loose group of friends and fans gathered for food and drink at Radio Habana Social Club -- a tiny Mission bar that makes up in character what it lacks in square footage. With surreal pop art festooning the walls and ceiling, delicious sangria, great Cuban cuisine, and a friendly expat crowd, the club is a real gem.

Before long, guitarist Kevin Connor had persuaded the staff to green-light an impromptu acoustic gig in the back of the bar -- and for the next hour or so, the Radio Habana Social Club's denizens were treated to a blistering jam session in a salon-style setting dripping with atmosphere. It was a memorable evening.

Left to right: Violinist Tim Wetmiller and guitarist Kevin Connor.

Left to right: Guitarist Ray Wood, violinist Tim Wetmiller, guitarist Kevin Connor, and mandolinist Matt Sircely.