Earth Day Edition

The trouble with “tweet seats,” Andrew Sullivan explains to the president why gays are hollering at him, and why a gutless YouTube is stifling free expression — and comedy.

On a regular basis, Truthdig brings you the news items and odds and ends that found their way to Larry Gross, director of the USC Annenberg School for Communication. A specialist in media and culture, art and communication, visual communication and media portrayals of minorities, Gross helped found the field of gay and lesbian studies.

The links below open in a new window. Newer ones are on top.

So what if the iPad hasn’t launched in China yet … It often happens that small factories set themselves up next to big company productions. And funnily enough these small factories produce exactly the same product as the one next to them and then sell them on the Chinese market.

Goldman Plays, We Pay The story of the financial debacle will end the way it began, with the super-hustlers from Goldman Sachs at the center of the action and profiting wildly.

Andrew Sullivan tells Obama why the gays were hollering at him Because, Mr President, it is not enough to be “supportive” of ending “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” When you have the presidency and your party controls both Houses of Congress, it’s a matter of having the political will to end it. Not all gay people are HRC-fundraisers. Some are even risking their lives every day for this country, in uniform, only to be treated like second class human beings and citizens by their own government.

The pernicious comedy of Frank Luntz Last week, Republican pollster Frank Luntz offered himself up as a punch line in a segment for “The Daily Show.”

We Moved from a Manufacturing to a Service Economy under Reagan-Bush-Clinton-Bush A statement released last week by Obama administration Council of Economic Advisers Chair Christina Romer warns that when it comes to the economy we are very far from being OK.

American Kleptocracy : How Fears of Socialism and Fascism Hide Naked Theft Kleptocracy — now, there’s a word I was taught to associate with corrupt and exploitative governments that steal ruthlessly and relentlessly from the people.

DMCA strikes again: Hitler ‘Downfall Meme’ gets taken down A recent wave of takedowns affecting many of the Hitler “Downfall” parody videos has resulted in their removal from YouTube. (EDIT: These videos were blocked by YouTube’s Content ID system, not taken down via DMCA notices. For more on the difference between these two, see the EFF’s Guide to YouTube Removals.)

Playhouse decides against ‘tweet seats’ West Yorkshire Playhouse has decided against letting patrons use internet message service Twitter on their mobile phones at the back of the auditorium during some performances.

Can the iPad topple the Kindle, and save the book business? The industry’s great hope was that the iPad would bring electronic books to the masses—and help make them profitable.