The following is a comment on my book, The Fifth Estate, from Marian FitzGerald, a Visiting Professor of Criminology at Kent Crime and Justice Centre in Social Policy, Sociology and Social Research at the University of Kent and a freelance consultant & researcher. Posted with the permission of Professor FitzGerald. Marian FitzGerald "Your … Continue reading The Fifth Estate Needs Better Public Information
General Interest
The Magic of Networking in Life and Work
Last week I had the opportunity to speak to an incredibly talented group of rising stars in their respective fields. They were the participants in the Young Muslim Leadership Programme, organized and supported by the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies, and The Prince’s Charities. Participants included a British Muslim doctor, a physicist, a senior business … Continue reading The Magic of Networking in Life and Work
Technology is Catching Up with Seminal Thinkers in Education
I read with interest today that some leading computer scientists believe that AI innovations might well transform basic educational practices, such as what goes on in the classroom. While I agree and believe these changes are most likely to be quite positive, let me suggest that the sequence is somewhat the opposite of what the … Continue reading Technology is Catching Up with Seminal Thinkers in Education
AI and The Fifth Estate: The Power Shift of the Digital Age
The emergence of ChatGPT and related Artificial Intelligence (AI) tied to Large Language Models (LLMs) is the hot-button issue of the day. There are those who see AI as the new-new thing that will boost productivity and jobs. Others have raised concerns over LLMs being error prone – like other media, in not getting the … Continue reading AI and The Fifth Estate: The Power Shift of the Digital Age
The Right to Send Anytime, Anywhere, All at Once
I respect the right of anyone to choose when and how they reply to an email. The person receiving an email has the power to delete, ignore, read, respond immediately or respond whenever they choose. They can even have an automatic response, say over their holiday or weekend, that they are away from work and … Continue reading The Right to Send Anytime, Anywhere, All at Once
A Democratic Train Wreck – Biden versus Trump 2024
US President Joe Biden has announced his campaign for a second term, 18 months before the 2004 election. His announcement follows that of former President Donald Trump in mid-November. This puts us on track for a predictable train wreck as both candidates are viewed by many in the voting public and in their own parties … Continue reading A Democratic Train Wreck – Biden versus Trump 2024
A London Forum on Histories of the Internet
AIT Forum on the Histories of the Internet: Call for Papers Archives of IT (AIT) is organising a one-day academic-practitioner forum on the Histories of the Internet in January 2024. The forum is designed to: foster more critical, multidisciplinary perspectives on the history of computers, telecommunications, the internet, and related digital media; illuminate how people, … Continue reading A London Forum on Histories of the Internet
Trump’s Flight to New York City: No Media Event
Donald Trump's flight to NYC on 3 April 2023 from Mar-a-Lago, Florida, seemed initially to have all the making of an extraordinary media event. The press was out in force. UK's Sky covered it continuously, with ‘breaking news’ announcements, such as "Trump Force One has just entered the airspace over North Carolina"! Truly extraordinary coverage, … Continue reading Trump’s Flight to New York City: No Media Event
AI Hype
AI HYPE: A Commentary by A. Michael Noll March 29, 2023 Copyright © 2023 A. Michael Noll The 1968 movie “2001: A Space Odyssey” by Arthur C. Clarke and Stanley Kubrick frighten us with the computer “HAL” that reads lips, makes decisions, kills, and ultimately goes berserk. Decades later around 2011, IBM introduced its “Watson” … Continue reading AI Hype
Confidentiality Online?
In the UK, over 100,000 WhatsApp messages between a former health secretary and government ministers during the COVID-19 pandemic were leaked.[1] The former health secretary, Matt Hancock, shared his WhatsApp messages with a journalist, Isabel Oakeshott, with whom he was collaborating on his book entitled Pandemic Diaries (Hancock with Oakeshott 2022). They essentially co-authored the … Continue reading Confidentiality Online?