TV was at one time considered the penultimate time-waster. The “boob-tube” was where one went to zone out (translation/clarification: for people who were too much of a boob to read a book or be active….a modern colloquialism has changed the term “boob” to mean something not intended here).

It stands to reason, then, that as TV loses its strangle hold on viewers, the main culprit leading people away from television would itself create its own special time waster (no, no…the internet itself is not a time waster). The internet’s relatively new and certainly more popular eye candy is called Stumble Upon .

Based on votes, unique and popular web content (sites, particular pages etc) in fields of interest chosen by you (the viewer) will pop up on your screen with the press of a button you have installed on your browser’s tool bar.

It is a fascinating look at some amazing content that, unless you spend a lot of time surfing specifically for such things, you simply won’t come across anywhere else.

Purely as research (ahem) I have compiled a few sites I found on Stumble Upon that interested me. I hope you will too.

By the way, as you’ll notice in the icons posted beneath this story, you can vote for this blog story as worthy of “Stumble Upon” by clicking on the SU logo.

Enjoy!

25 Great Calvin and Hobbes Strips

Five Lesson About How To Treat People

Buddy Networking

Computer Enhancers

The History of Branding

Telling Time in A Different Way

The Art of Schmoozing

South Park Create A Character

Another Cool Way To Tell Time

The Pattern Game

Learning Sign Language

Storms

Type Tester (picking the right font for your web site)

The Blue Ball Maze (Note: avoid this if you are on some mind altering drug)

Tags: commentary, internet, marketing, media, silliness, tv by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
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Although we’ve got something like 500+ days left before the next United States Presidential election, candidates from the Republican and Democratic parties are already having debates on CNN, MSNBC and Fox News. The debates are summarily ignored by the majority of the voting public even though they are covered ad-nauseum by the networks. It’s a vicious cycle.

This Presidential election has gotten the earliest campaign start in history I have been told and yet I’m convinced more people vote for singers on American Idol than for a President. I’ve nothing to back this up, research-wise, it’s more of a “gut” thing. Yet what choice do candidates have, especially those running for president?

The branding and marketing of a political candidate, public referendum or issue has become a real art or a fascinating battle depending on your perspective. How would YOU create a brand (and hopefully buzz…positive buzz) about a candidate or policy while competing for the attention of an ever more diversified and distracted voting public? Oh yeah, and you have to do it on a budget based solely on how well your candidate can fund raise…assuming he/she can get enough people who know him/her as well as who thehave money to even contribute to a campaign. That is why I guess we’re starting so early on each party’s “horse race” for the presidential brass ring. In politics as in life: follow the money.

And with the election season comes the political ads…some good, some questionable (again, trying to gain attention) but always thought provoking. Political consultants will again do their level best to map out a salient strategy for their candidate clients. These strategies will include a “theme” or “message” that consultants and candidates hope will resonate with the voters. Likely, TV and radio political ad campaigns will remain the mediums of choice to spread that political message to the widest audience.

Voice over scripts for political commercials are a great deal of fun for most voice talents (for me I refer to some of these political spots as requiring “vocal summersaults“). But overall today’s political spots are really not that different than commercials for any other brand. Political advertisers need to gain the public’s attention, summarize a key message and elicit an emotion in anywhere from thirty to sixty seconds. Sometimes the audience is uplifted by the message (“It’s morning, again, in America,)” and sometimes some mud is slung (politics didn’t invent attack ads; a quick example: wasn’t “The Pepsi Challenge” mud slinging at some of its most famous?).

I’m looking forward to the coming political advertising season whether from a presidential, congressional, state, regional or local election level. It gets citizens more involved in the democratic process for a while and I just don’t see how that can ever be a bad thing.

Tags: advertising, commentary, commercials, marketing, media, narrations, radio, tv, voice actors, voice casting, voiceover by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
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Thanks to the efforts of people around the country and in at least in the case of one reader of this blog around the world, Buffalo, New York Police Officer Carl Andolina wons the voting in America’s Most Wanted All-Stars, it was reported on WBEN-AM radio this morning.

Thanks to all of you who read about him here and elsewhere and voted, not only for Officer Andolina but for any of the deserving nominees.

Tags: commentary, tv by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
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There is a lot to like about Jon Stewart’s “The Daily Show”. While I don’t have time to watch it often, I see clips on You Tube (which is sort of like my internet DVR). For the most part, Stewart’s show makes fun of everyone; an equal opportunity offender of sorts which speaks directly to my sensibilities (I’m just too dumb sometimes to know when I’ve unintentionally offended, which is why God invented the apology).

Combine that like with my fervent dislike for shows like “Nancy Grace” on Headline News and The O’Reilly Factor on Fox News. Both are popular cable programs that I think set professional broadcasting back centuries and give their audiences a terribly warped view on most topical issues not to mention what should be considered acceptable on-air behavior, especially when it comes to debate and discussion.

Anyway, I found a clip of a recent Stewart show in which he replays Grace’s vitriolic, vehement indictments of the Duke students accused of raping a woman at a party. It was a serious accusation that if proven true, should have been severely punished….through our legal system….not our cable news networks. After over a year, the accusation was proven untrue and the defendants were completely cleared of all charges. Save for the fact that they were convicted in a court of public opinion through the efforts of many ill-conceived broadcasts, including Nancy Grace’s show…as Jon Stewart observed.

Tags: commentary, media, tv by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
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Fox Television Network’s America’s Most Wanted regularly honors those in law enforcement whose selfless dedication to their communities and their fellow officers went far beyond the call of duty. The award is called America’s Most Wanted All-Stars. There are many worthwhile nominees. Luckily for those of us around the world, in every country, we’re honored to have these brave men and women on our side.

In my hometown of Buffalo, New York, one amazing police officer is being recognized as a nominee and finalist and I would like to ask you to vote for him, once a day, everyday until May 8th, 2007. reading the story in print cannot evoke the true horror of the circumstances he and his partner faced.

Last December, Officer Carl Andolina, responding to a fight in progress at a convenience store, faced the ultimate nightmare scenario for a law enforcement officer. The veteran officer and his partner Officer Patricia Parete, approached a suspect pointed out by the store clerk. Little did they know that this individual was a violent convicted felon who was on parole. The two officers approached the suspect who waited until they were literally inches away before he began firing his weapon. Two rounds struck Officer Parete – – shattering her jaw bone and lodging in her spine. Officer Andolina acted quickly – – he grabbed the suspect’s gun and was shot. Without regard for his personal safety and with a bullet in his neck, Andolina wrestled the shooter to the ground, subduing him until help arrived. Andolina is recovering from his injuries while his partner was not so fortunate. Today, Officer Parete remains on a respirator undergoing a slow recovery. Andolina’s selfless actions are still evident as he assists in raising money and providing support for Parete’s family. Buffalo Police Lieutenant, Danny Williams, commented ” both officers were two young good cops. Carl’s first response was ‘how is my partner.'”

Please place your vote once a day, everyday for Officer Carl Andolina by clicking here. And please encourage your friends and family to do the same. The prizes Officer Andolina would receive as a winner could never be considered proper repayment but recognized he must be.

It is not in my nature to make such a public request unless I believe a situation to be extremely worthwhile. I hope you’ll help me in this effort.

Tags: commentary, tv by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
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OK, I’ll grant you that there are a lot of people “Monday morning quarterbacking” the Imus thing (your humble author included). But I saw this post regarding how the public relations (or crisis communication, if you prefer) was handled by Imus and company during this whole debacle (which wouldn’t have even been necessary if he hadn’t made his stupid comment, blah, blah, dead horse).

I agree with a lot of it and some it just made me laugh. Maybe the author always writes well or is often off the mark, I don’t know. I do know I liked what he said in this article.

I hope you enjoy it too.

Tags: advertising, radio, tv by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
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