From My Bottom Step

Another Public Letter to Paul Berton

LFPress BS really disgusts me sometimes.

Walking the Walk

An article about pedestrian safety in the London Free Press? OMG!

Society Doesn’t Need Newspapers

If you’re in the habit of reading Paul Berton’s navel-gazing editorials then you may want to read ‘Newspapers and Thinking the Unthinkable’ by Clay Shirky.

Here are a few teasers:
The problem newspapers face isn’t that they didn’t see the internet coming.
“If the old model is broken, what will work in its place?” To which the answer is: Nothing. Nothing will work. There is no general model for … Continue Reading

A Challenge to London Bloggers

Yesterday, LFP blogger Dan Brown wrote: “I’m challenging London bloggers to do their own original reporting.”

Dan didn’t disclose who he was referring to, and I’m not jumping to the conclusion that he was referring to this site. But just for the record, FMBS contains lots of original reporting and opinion by me. And I’m also fortunate to get occasional submissions from other people as well (click HERE to find out how you can also). Continue Reading

Should McGuinty Butt Out?

David Gough starts off his recent blog post by stating “I always had the perception that Dalton McGuinty was kind of wishy-washy.” I’m not sure what he meant by that, since our current Premier has probably made and broken more promises than anybody else in Ontario’s political history. That seems pretty overt to me, not wishy-washy. But what really surprised me about his post was the expression of delight about … Continue Reading

The “feeble-minded defense” of traditional journalism

Unlike the London Free Press, which continues to resist with a mighty passion the provision of hyperlinks to external sites from it’s own (and even permalinks to it’s own material), this blog has never been afraid of providing such functionality. If you think there’s something of value here, you’ll come back. And if not, c’est la vie.

One of the things that many MSM entities still don’t seem to grasp is that dissemination of news and opinion can no longer be controlled by them, the way that it once was.

And I particularly don’t mind pointing you to other sites which consistently display a great deal of intelligence and which address subjects that I personally find interesting and/or important. Continue Reading

Silence When it Suits the LFP

This is the rejoinder that I just submitted in response to Paul Berton’s recent editorial (”Silence Unacceptable on Springbank Dam”; LFP; 2008/11/01): Continue Reading

My LFP Reader Rant

Have you listened to the latest LFP “Reader Rant” podcast yet?

Do you agree that we’re increasingly bombarded by stealth advertising, and that it’s becoming harder and harder to distinguish hard news from spin?

I’ve Been Reviewed (woot)!

Read it (and a critique of other local blogs) HERE, then come back and let me know what you think. And don’t forget to take the survey if you haven’t already done so (ty).
Added 2008/08/25: Local blogs are a hot topic! The LFP has now published an editorial about the aforementioned critique and the local … Continue Reading

In Response to Lynn Horton

In an online 2008/06/11 letter to the London Free Press, contributor Lynn Horton describes being struck by a vehicle in a parking lot and suffering “left arm in a cast, two broken ribs, and multible bruises.”

Because the driver of the vehicle on this occasion was an 82 y.o. woman, Ms. Horton expressed her hope that aging drivers know “when it is time to hang up … Continue Reading