Monthly Archives: January 2014

Sharp suits, warm beer – Guinness, sapeurs and the seduction of Congolese fashion

Posted on January 31, 2014 by Ethan

A Guinness ad featuring a group of splendidly-dressed men from Congo-Brazzaville, called Le Sapeurs, is making a splash online. The men in the ad (below) are members of Le Société des Ambianceurs et des Personnes Élégantes, a group of middle … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa | 2 Comments

Promise Tracker and Monitorial Citizenship

Posted on January 24, 2014 by Ethan

It’s not obvious from looking at me, but while I’m American, I’m deeply partisan towards the nation of Ghana. I moved to Accra, Ghana in 1993 to study xylophone music, and I’ve traveled back to the country almost every year … Continue reading →

Posted in CFCM, ideas, Media Lab | 7 Comments

“Audio Never Goes Viral”… and maybe that’s a good thing

Posted on January 21, 2014 by Ethan

Stan Alcorn, a producer for WNYC (one of the leading lights of public radio in the US), has an excellent essay on Digg.com titled “Why Audio Never Goes Viral”. The title comes from a post on Transom.org, the community newspaper … Continue reading →

Posted in ideas, Media, rewire | 7 Comments

Data and its Discontents – notes and reflections from a panel at Microsoft Research Social Computing Symposium

Posted on January 21, 2014 by Ethan

As I’ve mentioned in years past, Microsoft Research’s Social Computing Symposium is my favorite conference to attend, mostly because it’s a chance to catch up with dozens of people I love and don’t get to see every day. I wasn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in ideas, Media Lab | 4 Comments

Rest in peace, Teresa Peters

Posted on January 14, 2014 by Ethan

I got an email from an old friend today, the sort of mass email we send our friends and colleagues to update each other on our lives and goings on. I didn’t make it past the first line, because he … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa, Personal | 3 Comments