They Heart A Computer

On Tuesday, October 3, Rhizome.org is throwing a 10th Anniversary party at The Kitchen in NYC.

This evening of live performances and video screenings explores forms of expression, desire and anxiety prevalent in a culture increasingly influenced by the Internet. Doo Man Group (made of Ben Jones, Jessica Ciocci, and Jacob Ciocci of Paper Rad) interweaves live percussion with a dense collage of web-based visual emphemera. Jona Bechtolt (of Yacht) and Claire L. Evans combine music, dance and Powerpoint to explore the possibilities and fallacies embedded in online communities. In addition, videos by Michael Bell-Smith, JODI, Shana Moulton, Takeshi Murata, and humorist Ze Frank investigate how the Internet amplifies and exxagerates life offline.

Rhizome, now an affiliate of the New Museum of Contemporary Art, is an organization dedicated to new media art. Their site once served as the place to be for new Flash-based work and internet installations. They Heart A Computer is being sponsored by Engadget, one of my favorite tech blogs. It's probably worth going just for Ze Frank.

Keith Olbermann Mega Post

I'm many of you have heard about or seen these commentaries by MSNBCs Keith Olbermann, but for those that haven't I urge a viewing. For being honest, carefully constructed, and not dumbed-down for an already lobotomized public, Keith Olbermann earns a special place in my heart for these commentaries. He avoids the staccato bursts of sensationalism that makes O'Reilly #1 in the same time-slot, but sadly keeps him tethered to a small audience and a liberal blogosphere sensation. But it's still important to note that this aired on nationwide television and is making people excited for a return to the Edward R. Murrow style of journalism that George Clooney made look so Oscar-sexy (and also happened to remove a tyrant from political office). I'm going to try and keep better track of these moments and hopefully, soon, we'll be able to look back at all of them as the markers on the trail that took Bush and Co. out of office. Who were then eaten by bears.