BY Carla Marinucci, San Francisco Chronicle Political Writer It may be the most stunning and creative attack ad yet for a 2008 presidential candidate — one experts say could represent a watershed moment in 21st century media and political advertising. Yet the groundbreaking 74-second pitch for Democratic Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, which remixes the classic “1984” ad that introduced Apple computers to the world, is not on cable or network TV, but on the Internet. And Obama’s campaign says it had absolutely nothing to do with the video that attacks one of his principal Democratic rivals, New York Sen. Hillary […]
MAILBAG: Postcard From Rome
dear johnathan how are you?how has been philly in the cold cold winter?Rome wasn’t so cold…I’m writing to you to let you know that i’m coming back to philly on the 20th and that i’m gonna stay for a while and that i would really like to continue my collaboration with you.and speaking which i have an interview with Chris Leo from Vague Angels(and also the Van Pelt,The Lapse etc)ready if you are interested i can send it to you instantly just let me know. coming back on the 20th looking forward to meet you and the other phawker people […]
NPR FOR THE DEAF: We Hear It Even When You Can’t
FRESH AIR Blackwater USA is a secret army based in North Carolina with a sole owner: Erik Prince, a radical right-wing Christian multimillionaire. Jeremy Scahill talks about his book Blackwater: The Rise of the World’s Most Powerful Mercenary Army. From THE NATION, Oct. 10, 2005: The men from Blackwater USA arrived in New Orleans right after Katrina hit. The company known for its private security work guarding senior US diplomats in Iraq beat the federal government and most aid organizations to the scene in another devastated Gulf. About 150 heavily armed Blackwater troops dressed in full battle gear spread out […]
GUNCRAZY: Number 84 Bagged Near City Hall
A Kensington man died early this morning after being shot several times on a subway concourse near Philadelphia City Hall. The shooting took place just before 2 a.m. near 15th Street and JFK Boulevard. Kenny Philogene, 22, of the 3100 block of Arbor Street, was found shot in the chest, stomach and left shoulder, police said. He was pronounced dead about a half-hour later at Hahnemann University Hospital. The homicide was the city’s 84th this year. [Via the Inquirer]
GOOD DEED: 300 St. Joe Students Spring Break In Appalachia, Raising Barns And Downing Jello Shots
MORE THAN 300 students from St. Joseph’s University spent their spring break not in Cancun but working to repair and paint decaying houses in Appalachia.There they found that poverty isn’t only an urban affliction. Indeed, they learned that rural poverty has some of the same roots as living poor in North Philadelphia, as a St. Joe’s sociology professor put it. They also learned how to square-dance. Paul Staats, 21, a junior, who helped reshingle an elderly woman’s house and refloor a kitchen in Grundy, Va., said the townspeople were “very welcoming. We never felt like we were intruding. “I just […]
VOX POPULI: Killing And Maiming Foreigners In Their Own Country Not Nearly As Popular As It Once Was
AP: BAGHDAD – Sunni insurgents, resilient despite the five-week security crackdown in the Iraqi capital, killed at least six more U.S. troops over the weekend.
POGUE MAHONE: Live From St. Paddy’s Day
This man will be covering the Mayor’s race for Phawker. His name is Shawn Kilroy and, no, he doesn’t know any better. In the coming weeks he will be doing a series of live remotes from various campaign events. All on his own, he decided to go out and do a little practicing on drunks the Irish. Hence, this clip. Enjoy.
WHEN THE SHIT HITS THE FANS
What it Feels Like When The Band You Love Hates You BY JONATHAN VALANIA We all have bands we hate, really hate-you know, with the white-hot intensity of a thousand suns. You hate REM, I still hate Journey. There’s a lot of that going around. But how many people can say a band hates them? Tin-eared soundmen, people who jack the gear out of their van while they sleep, and the tiresome jokesters who still yell “Freebird!”–and that’s about it. And when you narrow it down to people who are hated by their favorite bands, well, it’s a very elite […]
THIS JUST IN: RITZ THEATERS TO BE SOLD
The Ritz Theatres, Center City’s beloved movie shrines, are on the brink of acquisition by Landmark Theatres. The nation’s premier chain devoted to indie and art films confirmed yesterday that it was in negotiations to buy the Philadelphia operations of the Ritz. Although the pact is not final, Landmark may take ownership of the 12 screens at Society Hill’s Ritz Five, Ritz East, and Ritz at the Bourse as early as March 30. Those close to negotiations would not comment on a purchase price. Landmark would buy the Ritz Five at Second and Walnut outright and assume the leases on […]