C4SS Media Coordinator Update, 06/17/11

Thomas L. Knapp | June 17th, 2011

Dear C4SS Supporters,

Another week under the bridge here at the Center, and I’ve got a lot to report, including something I forgot last week:

Last week, I submitted 10,274 C4SS op-eds to 2,819 publications worldwide.

This week, it’s been 11,095 submissions to 2,818 publications.

The line between “mainstream media pickups” and “blogosphere action” is definitely beginning to blur in a big way. So is the line between “pickup” and “citation.” These are getting to be somewhat subjective calls, and I’m the guy who has to make them … but I’ll explain myself.

I’m calling it eight “pickups” this week, and I’m going to start with the two that really hit that blurred line:

Last week, I mentioned that Forbes blogger E.D. Kaine had name-checked/quoted our own Kevin Carson.

This week, Kain linked directly to, and quoted long sections of, two of Kevin’s articles.

At Forbes, Kain quotes/links Carson’s “If This is the Free Market, Why do I Feel so Unfree?” in an article on “The Problem with Patents.”

And at The League of Ordinary Gentlemen, Kain quotes/links Carson’s “‘Public Service?’ I’m Taking My Business Elsewhere” in “On So-Called ‘Public Service.'”

What makes these “mainstream media?” I don’t think I have to argue that Forbes is reasonably “mainstream.” The dividing line that The League of Ordinary Gentleman falls on the “mainstream” side of is that the site, and the cite, show up in Google News.

What makes them “pickups,” rather than mere “mentions?” The fact that Kain quotes the pieces extensively — multiple paragraphs, not just a sentence or two — and prominently links them. We’re getting real mindshare for the actual text, not just a tip of hat to concept.

So, judgment call, and that’s how I made it.

Six other “pickups” to report for the week: