Re: Reddit : Leakspin
Subject: Re: Reddit : Leakspin
From: Barrett Brown <barriticus@gmail.com>
Date: 12/23/10, 12:22
To: "emilieduchatelet8@gmail.com" <emilieduchatelet8@gmail.com>

Tell Jesse immediately not to worry the least bit, we have that new fellow who can do those things and she's not letting me down at all. Maybe she can help by just reposting important things involving First Praxis or Sci/Journ on her Facebook if she happens to see them. Later when she's done we'll give her some tasks that are important but won't take long - we have lots of those. Sweet little thing.

On Thu, Dec 23, 2010 at 7:21 AM, emilieduchatelet8@gmail.com <emilieduchatelet8@gmail.com> wrote:
Good morning Barrett, I have emailed William. I looked on your uncompleted tasks sheet and there is only one task which you have not completed - that is ME. You need to complete me. The rest is peripheral flotsam. 

Also I discussed the Project with my beautiful Jessica and she was quite concerned with how much free time she would have which to devote to the Project - I could tell she was feeling stressed about letting you down so we concluded that her time is precious until at least mid January - the reason being she has exams as soon as she returns to school on the 8th or 10th - I forget the exact date she returns but the exams last for a week or two. So I have assured her that I will do any work that has been assigned to her and to that end I will do the contact info for the newspaper editors. In fact, since Nick Cohen works for the Observer I'll just message him and ask for his contact list. 


On Wed, Dec 22, 2010 at 1:44 AM, Barrett Brown <barriticus@gmail.com> wrote:
This kid will work well. Emma, if you would, take a look at my task document and e-mail me this kid when you have a moment. Just introduce yourself and ask him to get us the contact info for editors of some various city newspapers. If they have science editors, have them get that info. Otherwise, just first and second highest editors there. Jess can do this as well, actually; have her do so for England, but not Scotland, of course, because Scots don't have science.

Clark, if you can think of anything that needs to be done that this kid can do, let him know. If you would, send him a quick e-mail introducing yourself as well.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: will bird <willbird10@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, Dec 20, 2010 at 11:04 AM
Subject: Reddit : Leakspin
To: barriticus@gmail.com


It's good to hear from you Barrett. Don't worry about the delayed response, I have been busy with graduation and packing/unpacking the last 5 years of my life. I think that it is great you are able to work with famous journalists like Michael Hastings. That is really something to be proud of. 

I watched the Project PM video and I think that it has some serious potential behind it to become a very useful way of sharing news and ideas. I would love to help with any projects you have going on and need a little extra help to complete. I will send you some writing samples I have written for some of my classes either later today or tomorrow. (I need to find my flash drives in the moving mess I now have)

The criticisms I have of the US media are basically with the Gatekeepers who decide what can and cannot be published. 
Print media and the journalists who contribute to it are for the most part doing an alright job. One example of them not doing a good job is Time Magazine in their most recent Person of the Year scandal. Time gave Mark Zuckerburg the award instead of Julian Assange. Assange won the poll online by a landslide compared to Zuckerburg! Obviously if Time were legit they would have given the award to Assange but the Gatekeepers and the US government decided otherwise.  I think Wikileaks is important so people can see the truth about events and not what the Gatekeepers say is important).
I read our local newspaper when I come home and I have a subscription to Fortune magazine but I read the majority of magazines online. I am 24 and I get 98% of all my news off the internet. It's just easier and if I think a particular story is full of shit I can research what they are reporting about on the fly. Websites like Reddit are useful because you can also read other peoples reaction to news stories and see their opinions and not just your own. I think in a democracy everyone should voice their opinion and be able to decide what the best outcome should be. The only way for that to happen though is if people are given real information to begin with.

Another problem I have is with the broadcast media. I absolutely cannot understand how people can sit down and watch celebrities like Bill O'Reilly and Nancey Grace for example every single night an expect to learn something. It's a circus with each of them yelling back and fourth as loud as possible, cutting to commercial breaks that push bullshit products, then coming back on the air and telling only their side of a story or only what they have been told they can say. They have bullshit stories they push, bullshit people giving interviews, and bullshit questions they ask.Broadcast media has become pathetic and I really am really ashamed that so many people use it to get their information. 

I appreciate you taking the time to respond to my emails and I can't believe that a simple Reddit post has been able to do this for me. I will find my flash drives and email you some of my past papers soon i promise. I hope we can change the world!

Thanks Barrett, 
William Birdsong



--
Regards,

Barrett Brown
512-560-2302




--
Regards,

Barrett Brown
512-560-2302