Colbert: Mo Betta Than Dowd

Just when you’re so tired of reading Maureen Dowd’s whiny, sassy scribblings, she saves the day by handing her column off to Stephen Colbert, who is busy getting as much ink and face-time as possible in the wake of the release of his book. (Last year, Dowd, penned a Rolling Stone cover story on the Colbert/Stewart phenomenon)

So leave it to Colbert, to sum up the entire NYT Sunday Op-Ed experience in under 100 words:

I’d like to thank Maureen Dowd for permitting/begging me to write her column today. As I type this, she’s watching from an overstuffed divan, petting her prize Abyssinian and sipping a Dirty Cosmotinijito. Which reminds me: Before I get started, I have to take care of one other bit of business:

Bad things are happening in countries you shouldn’t have to think about. It’s all George Bush’s fault, the vice president is Satan, and God is gay.

There. Now I’ve written Frank Rich’s column too.

Hilarious. Lo, Rich’s Op-Ed today on the shadiness pervading Iraq — still — unbelievable — is a must read, as his columns generally are. As for Colbert’s “new bestseller,” I am America (And So Can You)!, I have absolutely no intention of reading it. I have, however, obtained the audio version — narrated by Colbert, of course — to listen to on an upcoming road trip (road trip tbd). I’ve listened to the introduction, though, and so far, so good. Time permitting, I’ll post a snippet for your aural pleasure.

Earlier in the week he admitted to Larry King that the book was a tool leading up to his seeking of a presidential nomination “from both parties.” (Video here and below). Continue reading “Colbert: Mo Betta Than Dowd”

What Happened to TimesSelect Podcasts?

Recently I stopped receiving New York Times Op-Ed podcasts via iTunes and today I figured I’d investigate — perhaps they changed the URL or something.

However, the icon at left goes to a new NYT page, NYTimes.com Podcasts where there are no links to subscribe to readings of the daily Friedman, Kristof, Dowd, Krugman, or Brooks, whether or not I’m logged into my TimesSelect account. Am I somehow missing something?

When I subscribe to the feed, say Krugman’s podcast feed, the latest return is the August 3 podcast although his most recent column was August 20. Additionally, I can’t seem to find links to subscribe via Audible, the company that produced and published the op-ed podcasts. Perhaps just a burp in the Times’ transition to freeing up its TimesSelect content or are these Op-Ed podcasts gone for good? Say it ain’t so.

USC Center on Public Diplomacy Awarded MacArthur Grant

The New York Times just broke the news that the Center on Public Diplomacy won a generous MacArthur grant to further its research, presence, and to produce future events in the Second Life virtual world. Josh Fouts and Doug Thomas are the co-principal investigators on this $550,000 grant.

Check out the first MacArthur / CPD event at 9 PT this morning. more info here.

(Disclosure: I have been the Center’s Web editor since 2005.)

photo from the public diplomacy flickr stream.