tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70378382011-09-08T23:09:51.292+02:00semi-qualified opinions on society, media and politics. Mostly from Norway, as that's where I live.Mariusnoreply@blogger.comBlogger271100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-14350208049293060782007-03-21T09:56:00.000+01:002007-03-21T10:34:48.945+01:00

Since the Internet started to become popular we have heard concerns about the digital divide. A fear that in the information age, those who are not computer-literate will struggle to keep up with the rest of us, and that we might even see a new kind of working class. Those without access to the Internet.But there is another type of digital divide, a divide that is potentially far more dangerous,

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1164104463295254442006-11-21T10:00:00.000+01:002006-11-21T11:21:03.850+01:00

Åge Hareide, manager for the Norwegian international team, is worried about all the anonymous comments that are being posted about him and his team in blogs, forums and comments. Anonymity is part of what makes the net a great forum for debate, but is it also undermining the seriousness of online discussion?It seems that anonymous people will say just about anything that comes to mind when

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1160741686639110012006-10-13T14:10:00.000+02:002006-10-13T14:22:20.110+02:00

I won't go into all that semiotics stuff, but  rarely have I seen a more negative signifier than in Edda media's (formerly Orkla Media) new logo... Maybe the designer wanted to recreate the negative comments Orkla received when they sold their media division to a capitalist of the worst kind? 

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1159471087110218412006-09-28T20:48:00.000+02:002006-09-28T21:18:09.150+02:00

TV2 Crime reporter Karianne Solbrække was today exposed as the woman who allegedly had an affair with Arfan Qadeer Bhatti, who faces terror charges for the synagogue shootings in Oslo. TV2 did not want to release the reporters' name, but after names appeared on several web sites, Finansavisen finally let the name drop today.Solbrække, who has been with TV2 since 2000, is an experienced

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1159435924508651482006-09-28T10:55:00.000+02:002006-09-28T11:47:29.086+02:00

An Israeli unnamed official source claims that Norway is the country in the world that is most unfriendly towards Israel.These allegations come after Jostein Gaarder's article in Aftenposten, which was written as a spontaneous response to Israel's invasion of Lebanon, as well as other critical remarks made by Norwegian officials and public figures.Norwegians and Norwegian media are generally

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1159306096891441992006-09-26T22:29:00.000+02:002006-09-26T23:28:17.520+02:00

I just watched an interesting debate on NRK TV on climate change. We all know the dangers by now, but what can the average Joe citizen do about it? And why is the government so reluctant in doing the things that would matter?There are things that we can do, many of which aren't even all that much of a hassle. Turning off lights in rooms that aren't in use (no, Norwegians still haven't learned to

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1159190064853576252006-09-25T14:44:00.000+02:002006-09-25T15:14:24.890+02:00

If it's on TV it has to be real, right? Wrong! The media presents us with an edited version of reality. The images we are shown are only a piece of the truth. A representation of what happened within the camera's frame at that exact moment when it was pointed towards something.Sports is a good example of selective representation. In recent years, we've seen more cameras than spectators on some

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1148777542540451422006-05-28T02:29:00.000+02:002006-05-28T02:52:22.556+02:00

I've just seen the excellent film "V for vendetta", expecting a standard Hollywood action. But instead I saw a film which got me thinking about fascism and how dangerously close to it we sometimes are.While the original comic book by Alan Moore and David Lloyd has been altered somewhat to better fit the big screen, bot the comic and the film gives me an eerie feeling. In the foreword to the most

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1147368916657592022006-05-11T19:13:00.000+02:002006-05-11T19:35:16.676+02:00

Norwegian tabloid VG has announced that it wants to downsize their staff by 70-90 employees. The move comes as VG's circulation is down by 10 percent as well as experiencing falling advertising revenues.Norwegian media jobs are disappearing in their hundreds. Dagbladet announced job cuts several months ago, and Orkla Media, owner of several local newspapers, web sites and radio stations, are also

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1146247303072859752006-04-28T19:59:00.000+02:002006-04-28T20:01:43.073+02:00

Don't waste your time with stupid pizza songs... Pearl Jam is giving away free downloads of their new single "world wide suicide" from their upcoming album. Download it at bootlegs.pearljam.com

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1146246940207792122006-04-28T19:09:00.000+02:002006-04-28T19:55:40.220+02:00

In her book No Logo, Naomi Klein discusses what happens when corporate sponsors of cultural events become more important than the event itself. A recent example is the song "respekt for Grandiosa", a song from a frozen pizza TV-commercial that the ad agency decided to launch as a single.The song has been number 1 on the charts for several weeks, and has beome immensely popular. Has advertising

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1146244110878643462006-04-28T18:43:00.000+02:002006-04-28T19:08:30.890+02:00

Today, Netcom's mobile phone network fell out for three hours. People were furious when they found their phones not working, and politicians called for increased competition in the mobile phone market.Young women interviewed by NRK P3 radio were frustrated, as the downtime meant they were unable to get in touch with their friends and co-workers, and some even considered switching networks.I

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1145910594239994782006-04-24T22:04:00.000+02:002006-04-24T22:31:46.606+02:00

 Opera software recently released the beta-version of Opera 9. Opera 9 let's you download widgets, has a built-in torrent program and allows you to block certain kinds of content from a site, such as ads.I've missed a good ad-blocking service. even though I design Net ads for a living, some sites are just flooded with ads.  And since Opera 9's ad blocker lets you specify which sites you want to 

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1145742556458126642006-04-22T23:10:00.000+02:002006-04-22T23:49:16.496+02:00

Six students from a high school in Fredrikstad were recently expelled because of a relatively innocent prank.The students removed the hinges of a classroom door, causing it to fall on the teacher when she entered the classroom. More or less innocent, and kind of fun if you're not too old to remember what it was like being in high school. The problem is that the prank didn't stay in the classroom.

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1143792928656330202006-03-31T09:03:00.000+02:002006-03-31T10:15:28.703+02:00

Norwegian news corporation Orkla Media has announced its decision to move resources away from the traditional newspaper in favour of online news and web-TV. Analysts have talked about "the end of paper" for decades. Is this finally it?While readership have declined somewhat since the Internet became popular, there is no immediate threat to the strong position of local newspapers in Norway, but

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1141219851456531552006-03-01T08:41:00.000+01:002006-03-01T14:30:51.493+01:00

For three years my lecturers tried to explain postmodernism to a bunch of stupid undergraduates. But I didn't really understand it until this morning, when I waddled through the snow on my way to the bus stop.It suddenly occurred to me that snow is a very postmodern "object". Just as the example my lecturers loved about a table being a table only because we chose to define it as a table, with the

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1141050097329813552006-02-27T15:11:00.000+01:002006-02-27T15:26:12.906+01:00

Six months ago, I thought seven years of moving around and being restless was enough. I've never been so wrong about anything my entire life... So now I've decided to move back to Perth. I'm aiming towards a master's degree, but knwoing how "well" I handle Norwegian winters I won't be surprised if I stay longer. So if you're in Perth and have a job for me sometime around early 2009, drop me a

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1140987559441893192006-02-26T21:54:00.000+01:002006-02-26T21:59:19.450+01:00

Music is important to most of us, and finding new bands can sometimes be a hassle. But now the web can help out with that as well. pandora.com let's you enter the name of your favorite artist or song and tells you about other artists in the same genre. It also lets you stream music from the artists it finds for you. Worth a try if you're bored at work.

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1140445828151492512006-02-20T13:52:00.000+01:002006-02-20T15:30:28.176+01:00

A few days ago, 2005 circulation numbers for newspapers were released. For most papers the trend is negative.The two major tabloids, Dagbladet and VG each sold 20.000 fewer papers a day than in 2004, and are responsible for more than half the total decline in the newspaper market. All in all, Norwegian newspapers were down 68.000.The good news is that Aftenposten and DN, papers which cover the

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1140208331684563212006-02-17T21:10:00.000+01:002006-02-17T21:32:11.716+01:00

Most Norwegians are polite and law-abiding citizens. They don't steal when they go to the supermarket, they obey every stupid law the government throws at them (even the stupid ban on smoking in pubs). But when they get behind the wheel of a car something strange happens. When Nils Norwegian hits the road you need to watch yourself. Speed limits are for wimps, signal lights are only used as

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1140171465662566192006-02-17T11:02:00.000+01:002006-02-17T11:17:45.676+01:00

So far the Norwegian Olympic team has won more medals and points than any other nation. But when it comes to winning the gold, it seems the entire team is allergic.Not only have the Norwegians missed that last 1/10 second that would have taken them to the top. 12 of Norway's athletes have been too ill to participate in one or more events. Hopefully the allergy will pass, and Norway climb ahead of

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1140103939561843362006-02-16T16:18:00.000+01:002006-02-16T16:33:04.626+01:00

Ever heard about curling? Neither had I, until the 2002 olympics...During the winter olympics in Salt Lake City, the Norwegian interest for curling skyrocketed. That Norway's men's team took the gold probably explains most of the interest, but heaps of people actually followed every curling game during the olympics.But where are the curling people outside of the olympics? You never hear from them

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1139561221749259612006-02-10T09:39:00.000+01:002006-02-10T09:47:01.760+01:00

I always thought that time was constant. 60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour etc. But that was before I started working...In the morning, a minute is more like 15 seconds, and an hour goes by in 20 minutes. Showering, brekkie and tooth-brushing takes twice as long as they do other times of the day, and walking the three meters from my front-door to my car, getting in and starting the

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1139481171115219082006-02-09T11:24:00.000+01:002006-02-09T11:32:51.123+01:00

Southern Norway is a strange place. We get heavy snowfalls just about every winter, so you'd think we were prepared. But every winter the papers are full of stories about buses driving off the road, trains stopping due to snowy and icy tracks, People in Oslo walk around in the snow wearing high-heeled shoes and don't understand why they keep falling on their ar**es. And so on. And we never, ever

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1139426034668646152006-02-08T20:04:00.000+01:002006-02-08T20:13:54.670+01:00

The first people who settled the Scandinavian peninsula must have had a huge quarrel with the rest of humanity. Or a terrible urge to be alone. What kind of sane stone-age guy would want to move to a place where the sun's behind the horizon for months at a time with only a wolfskin and a tent to protect themselves from the cold?I haven't been awake since October. Late October the sun didn't come

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1139424805532721622006-02-08T19:25:00.000+01:002006-02-08T19:53:25.560+01:00

I had hoped that my first post should be on a more cheerful issue, but I just can't keep my mouth shut any longer.Fanatic muslims have for the past few days tried to dictate what Danes and Norwegians can and cannot publish in their news media. Trusted members of the Muslim community in both countries are shouting "racism" and calling for a ban on expressions against the prophet Muhammed and even

Mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037838.post-1111572464454025592005-03-23T11:07:00.000+01:002005-03-23T11:07:44.453+01:00

Team Aqua: March 2005

Mariusnoreply@blogger.com