The Internet Age; Or - Is There An Internet Vaccine?!

We can all count a thousand ways our lives have been altered by the Internet, whether through online shopping, networking, dating, messaging, blogging, blah, blah, blah...you know where I'm going with this. Oh, and there's that silly little business of the fall of print journalism , the rise of Craigslist and the complete overhaul of want ads and personal ads and anything ads since everything now needs an online site, or a portal, or a www-dot attachment if you want to gain any traction in the market. Even TV, once an evil empire itself, is now kowtowing to the power of the Internet and its hulu-netflix-youtube-network-preview-giving entertainment tentacles. It has to. And we sort of all do. Which is all well and good, time marches on and new innovations occur, we become a space-age society wearing solar-paneled shirts to power our computer necklaces etc. etc. But lately I've been reading a spate of articles that have piqued my already-strong interest in the way the Internet-infected world will play out. 

Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia for the masses, by the masses is increasing its editorial oversight. According to CNN, the web has "erupted in debate" over this news. So I guess this is my contribution to... the lava. As I was telling KM over brunch this morning, I think this is a move indicative of more editorial oversight for The Net in general. I don't want to be reading an entry on some little-known historical event only to see that someone's edited its last paragraph to include the sentence "Billy Fisher likes tits" or, even worse, to see that every other sentence in the entry is "questionable" or needs further proof to be considered legit. I like knowing the information I'm getting is written by experts. Call me crazy. So I guess my lava in this case is taking the form of polite applause for Wikipedia. 

It seems like what we've done in the past 10 years or so as a society is to throw anything and everything up online. And it is awesome, in the true sense of the word. That it is such a large and vast ever-moving wave of information that it inspires awe and fear and joy all at once when trying to wrap your mind around its power. And now, I want at least part of it to be reliable. As Wikipedia responds to user complaints of inauthenticity and false information, I hope that online news sources will be held to similar standards. That's not to say that people still shouldn't be able to throw whatever completely random crap they want up on the Internet, but just that there will be a certain "tier" of information sites that are 'vetted in some way.

I'll wrap up my whiny little essay with a link to a NY Times article on a new documentary about a now-batshit insane Internet pioneer who seems to think we will all be living in a virtual world in 20 years. Here's the trailer:

And one for old times' sake:

-KE

And in Addition

Another source of inspiration for the anti-apatow film yet to be released...

and maybe a dash of...

A Word About Judd Apatow Movies

Okay, I'll just say it. Are they funny? Sure. Are they entertaining? Of course. Do I launch into uncomfortable, slightly-than-way-more-than-slightly annoyed speeches about the blind social acceptance of yet another iteration of american teen boy comedy splooging transparently-plotted adolescent fantasies all over movie screens across America every two weeks while the number of films depicting realistic young female protagonists in popular movies remains close to zero? I think you know my answer. Look, I'm game as the next guyish-gal to laugh about a dude's balls being dipped in something -- that's not necessarily my issue here. I find that numbering my rambling thoughts might help bring some fake coherence to them:

1. In case it's not clear by now, we saw Funny People, the latest Japatow vehicle in theaters recently. I had read some reviews that seemed to suggest this movie represented a departure or advancement of some sort in the Apatow oeuvre; however, it was not so.  Triad of dorky-but-hilarious young men? Check. Penis yarn after penis yarn? ("yarn" in this sense meaning detailed story or focus on penises and how important they are to everyone involved) Check. Female characters that end up representing some media-inspired conglomoration of motivations and actions that don't make sense to any actual female viewers (when they are given any thought at all)? Check. So I felt a little stupid for going and expecting something, well, different. 

2. So, fine. Yet another movie full of funny jokes and dude romps. It's his movie, I don't have to watch it. I get it. I'm not really mad at Apatow, or the nerd-dude actors, or even the poop jokes, which are pretty funny most of the time. Nay, it is the reception of these movies, and the lack of any female challengers stepping up to the plate to make a good, funny movie that can stand toe-to-toe with these penis-and-poop princes. I guess maybe it's also the inability for Apatow to explore the life of the other sex. I mean, he has millions of dollars, he's made the same movie every year for the last ten years, and he's wrung every bit of adorableness out of Seth Rogan: you'd think he's want to give a little more thought to the characters he makes his wife play in every movie. I dunno. I guess it's not a fair complaint, and instead I should be focusing on why more women either a)aren't writing and pitching scripts or b)they are writing and pitching scripts, but no one is making them. I just want it! Isn't that reason enough, Internet hole?

3. Typically, once I get to this point in the rant, I start plotting to write my own female-teen comedy, that will brilliantly lampoon all the stereotypes laid across the backs of all the hot camp counselor/sweet good girl neighbor/unattainable vet and/or kindergarten teacher with very little personality characters that have come before. A movie that will realistically portray a group of smart, funny, self-aware girls that aren't made from jetstreams of wet dreams, video games, lightning and magic, Drew Barrymore movies, and tampon commercials. Then KM tells me she's heard this speech like three times and that I need to calm down. 

4. So let's have it. If I don't do it in time, and Apatow clearly isn't anywhere near this kind of revelation, somebody will have to. What kind of script am I looking for? Here's some inspiration to start:

The Sarah Silverman Program
That's Been Done
comedycentral.com
Joke of the Day Stand-Up Comedy Free Online Games

- KE

Some Thoughts (I have no thoughts)

In an attempt to thwart facebook and the status update craze I have decided to conduct an experiment in which I update my status every hour for one day. I will tell my 200+ friends exactly what I am doing just like they frequently tell me. The difference will be I will not tell them exactly what I'm doing but rather reveal an inspirational aphorism possibly/probably referring to light, connectivity, the weather or my sleeping habits. 

The point: I don't really care when you went to bed and I have nothing to say to these people. 

Also, we finally retrieved the new cat, a fine looking black and white male with yellow eyes. After testing various forms of Michael Jackson for a name it has been decided, while a great idea in theory, like so many things it doesn't work in practice. We are currently testing the name Condo, inspired by the location of the animal shelter we adopted him from which is in Williamsburg.

Condo?

Stereo is not pleased.

Thank you. KM.