Michael Socolow
@MichaelSocolow
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Communication & Journalism, University of Maine 2019 Fulbright Scholar, University of Canberra Tweets=my own opinions
Bangor, Maine
Joined March 2013
"These are eye-popping numbers. People are going to be shocked.". -Bob Carey, superintendent of the Maine Bureau of Insurance, on the rate increases submitted by insurers to his office for 2026.
bangordailynews.com
Mainers who receive health coverage through the individual and small group employer market could see rate increases up to 32 percent next year.
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The assumption "everyone" listened to radio in the U.S.A. in the 1930s, & were influenced in the same ways, needs more analysis. Even at the dawn of the network age, audience reception was more complex & varied than many people assume. Just like today.
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"Who Owned Radios in 1933?".Many more [poor] people in New York than in North Carolina were tuned in. Even in the broadcast era, not everyone heard the same information or accessed the same content. There were distinct American "publics.".Latest in the Lint Trap. Link in reply⬇️
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". and that's the way it *REALLY* is, this is Walter Cronkite for CBS News, goodnight.". 55 years ago this evening, CBS News anchorman Walter Cronkite addressed the rumor that he wore a toupee at the end of his newscast.
In August, 1970, Walter Cronkite returned from vacation to anchor "The CBS Evening News." The audience flooded CBS with letters about Cronkite's new hair(piece), calling into question his honesty. His response was legendary.
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I found this today on the walking path linking Sylvan Rd to Stillwater Ave in Bangor, Maine. It wasn't there yesterday.
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When I first heard the "Dead Internet Theory" a couple of years ago, I found it creative + amusing (also: silly). But here's where life gets weird: the theory is in-process of being actualized in reality. A conspiracy theory that only later *becomes* real?.
en.wikipedia.org
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Seems a reconceptualization of the brand based on the press releases [i.e.: "free market" opinion section, "Third Newsroom" etc] but I don't see must-reads being hired, or new investigation(s), or novel innovation, or other draws related to classic brand value?.That's confusing.
The radical tear-down & remake of @washingtonpost is confusing. It doesn't make any sense, except as a natural experiment to test the load-bearing strength of a classic brand. Reminiscent of what happened to Newsweek. A "zombie" or "ghost" brand transformation in real time?.
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The radical tear-down & remake of @washingtonpost is confusing. It doesn't make any sense, except as a natural experiment to test the load-bearing strength of a classic brand. Reminiscent of what happened to Newsweek. A "zombie" or "ghost" brand transformation in real time?.
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Long before AI and "deep fakes," there were attempts to use new media to create & distribute phony content intended to inflame political tensions. We've been living with new media dangers a long time.
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"When a 'Fake News' Movie Tried to Swing the Presidential Election. in 1904". You never know what you'll find using the Google Newspaper Archive. The latest in the Lint Trap. Link in reply⬇️
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This will help complete my collection - it'll go on my shelf, right next to my 8-track tape of Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme's Greatest Hits.
My new vinyl album “Lonely Dreamer” is for sale on EBay. Each album is signed by me. Use link. Only ship to the U.S. Limit one per customer.
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The story of Tom Tryniski and his incredible Old Fulton Newspaper website:.
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I once found out my father, in 1954, discovered a cave on Iwo Jima filled w/ the remains of 2,000 Japanese soldiers killed 9 years earlier. Because one man in upstate New York digitized over 57 million newspaper pages & put 'em on the web. The latest in The Lint Trap. Link⬇️
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The end of local event listings in outlets like Time Out NY & @NewYorker reminds me of the old TV adage [about introducing new shows]:. "Audiences like what they know, but they don't know what they like.". [*i.e.: You never really know what'll hit big].
theatlantic.com
Publications like Time Out New York were my bible and my road map.
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When you reach a certain age you read Obits first.*. Then you assess 'em according to @imalexbeamyrnot 's "Obituarary Baseball". *Kids: Comics. Teens: Sports, movie + concert reviews. Middle Age: Editorials + Op-ed, Style, Real Estate. Elderly: Obits.
wgbh.org
Boston Globe columnist Alex Beam was back on Boston Public Radio with Jim Braude and Emily Rooney (filling in for Margery Eagan). Beam discussed his…
“'Obits are one of the three or four most essential elements in creating what Bezos calls the daily habit' of news consumption". Obits have always been widely-read & profitable, but as @michaelschaffer points out, WashPost's Obit Desk is dead. RIP.
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“'Obits are one of the three or four most essential elements in creating what Bezos calls the daily habit' of news consumption". Obits have always been widely-read & profitable, but as @michaelschaffer points out, WashPost's Obit Desk is dead. RIP.
politico.com
RIP for DC’s chroniclers of the dead.
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I know I shouldn't be stunned by these kinds of announcements in 2025, but I can't believe the Chicago Tribune just fired its (last?) Chicago Bears beat reporter.
Four months after landing a dream job covering the Bears in my home city, the Chicago Tribune informed me yesterday that my position has been cut. I’m proud of the work I did and grateful to everyone who helped me along the way.
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I know it seems hard to believe, but once upon a time cable TV news wasn't six people sitting around a table arguing with each other for an hour. It provided interesting and informative news reporting from around the country and the world.
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First Swaggart, then Ozzy. and now Hulk. I'm reminded of those weekend mornings in the 1980s, when, seated on the couch, clicker in hand, I'd pop past each of them in rapid succession (though, to be honest, I think I'd pause to watch Ozzy on MTV). Sic transit gloria mundi.
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I found Queen Elizabeth at a University of Maryland football game (1957) and an image with a personal connection at the "Free to Use and Reuse" portal. Give it a look for things that interest you:.
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