"If you're not prepared to be wrong, you'll never come up with anything original." Sir Ken Robinson

"If you're not failing, you're not doing something sufficiently difficult or creative." Scott Berkun

"As the spirit wanes, the form appears." Charles Bukowski

"...privacy is not just about information. It's all about the defaults." David Weinberger

Dr Dave has written a thoughtful piece about Facebook and privacy...

"Our privacy norms are changing rapidly. They have to because we've now invented so many new ways to be in public. That's why Facebook's move is especially disappointing. Although they are rigorously supporting informational privacy, they are setting the defaults based not on what's best for their users but on what's best for them. It's clearly and inarguably better for users to be able to opt out of the entire third-party system, but it's clearly more lucrative for Facebook to make it hard to opt out (not to mention making it an opt in system)."

Read the entire writing here. Kudos David! Perhaps this is another one of those cohort issues. The privacy norms of the Gen Y crowd are radically different than those of Boomers. Still, there is something fundamentally wrong in requiring someone to opt out before being automatically opted in. TOS and lawyers be damned. Transparency and disclosure should ever be plain and simple when it comes to personal elections. Facebook will get this right (or not). The issue will likely become which generation of users should decide? The deeper issue here concerns the myth of privacy. Sidebar: What would Jan Deverson and Charles Hamblett have named those Gen X teens provided advanced insight of the wide adoption of their convention? So, Gen Z is succeeded by?

John Battelle makes an excellent point...

"Pull to point" - I find that I read more things that have been pointed to by others, rather than only those which I pull down myself.

Agreed. Read John's post From Pull to Point: How to Save The Economist and The Journal from Irrelevance here. Deep links make it possible to export content, and help to make digital assets discoverable.

Bonus: The mad cool gift of this holiday season and the perfect early 08 buzz must-have.
Behold - chumby

Let the marketplace decide: Programming ace Dave Beasing of Jacobs Media blogs an open letter to the I-man wherein he suggests JD use his considerable talents to "everyone's benefit." I respectfully disagree with that notion. Read Dave's letter w/comments here. Some of my previous posts on the Imus mess here, here, and here.

"Maybe Mr. Moonves could put his prime-time schedule where his mouth is and stop milking that format (reality game show) merely for the fun of humiliation, voyeurism and sexual high jenks. If locking Imus and his team in a house with Coach Stringer and her team 24/7 isn't must-see TV that moves this conversation forward, then I don't know what is." Frank Rich

The quotation taken from Rich's NYT writing Everybody Hates Don Imus. Bravo Frank! Tim Russert did an excellent roundtable on Imus this morning. Howie Kurtz led a good segment about Imus on his show.

Questions: Now that MSNBC has the opportunity to stage a morning news show will they field a solid effort? The network remains a confused mess. Models NYC? Now that CBS Radio has an opening at WFAN and Westwood has need for a new morning offering will they each field programs as successful as Imus?

My sense is leaving a new and improved Imus on the air with a mission, one focused on candid discussions about the issues of race, gender, and diversity would have perhaps been a very effective approach to keeping the discussion alive. Not that he would discontinue the discussion of politics or world affairs. Seems to me we are losing one of the best forums on American politics not to mention one of the only shows offering serious discussion about non-fiction writing. What will we gain? Too early to tell. The pc police, gotcha journalism and the freak show had a great week last week. Stay tuned.

So many have sent emails about this so-called "national moment" - thank you. Some included links to interesting writing. A few provided links to rants by idiots. One of the laugh out loud rants suggested Imus was the product of the evil media consolidation and this court jester of the media cabal would never be fired. Gimme a break. Wrong on both counts.

Congrats & cheers: Google buys DoubleClick. Smart!

"One of the few good things about modern times: if you die horribly on television, you will not have died in vain. You will have entertained us." Kurt Vonnegut

We have lost the Voltaire of our age. Vonnegut was more than a great writer, he was an original thinker. Funny, yes, but more than just funny.

The Imus controversy and termination have prompted some interesting discussion. More on this another day. On balance, we have a leadership problem that is not getting the attention deserved.

"Tell the truth, tell it completely, and tell it immediately." Dan Edelman

Don Imus said something stupid.

He offered a sincere apology.

He has been suspended for two weeks.

He will meet with the Rutgers students and offer an apology in person.

His bosses at CBS Radio and MSNBC will likely establish new rules of engagement for the show. JD's suggestion that they would be better served by adding minority participation to the show is an outstanding idea that deserves serious consideration.

My sense is before acting further management should wait to hear from the students.

In advance of that meeting my take is Don Imus should not be fired. He and all others on his crew should agree to do his act within new zero tolerance parameters and be held accountable. Being a man of means he should make some significant contributions to the Rutgers team and to each student on the offended team. While he is certainly guilty of being stupid with no excuse, he was offensive without malice, this event does not merit his termination.

Let the marketplace decide. Listeners, affiliates, and sponsors are the final arbiters.

LATER: MSNBC drops Imus. "What matters to us most is that the men and women of NBC have confidence in the values we have set for this company. This is the only decision that makes that possible." says the NBC News release. Bruce Gordon, former head of NAACP and a director of CBS said he hopes the company makes the "smart decision" by firing Imus. Ball now in Les' court.

"CBS Radio and NBC News needs to remove Don Imus from the airwaves. That is what needs to happen. Otherwise, it looks like profit and ratings rule over decency and justice." Al Roker

"I did a bad thing, but I'm a good person." "Our agenda is to be funny and sometimes we go too far. And this time we went way too far." Don Imus

What Imus and McGuirk said was patently stupid but what happens next is what's important. Should there be consequences for this behavior beyond the two week suspension? Should these old white guys be allowed to continue doing what they've been doing for years? What makes this event different? After all, Imus and McGuirk have a well documented history, a pattern as some have called it, of making stupid and offensive remarks.

"Here's what I've learned: that you can't make fun of everybody, because some people don't deserve it" said Imus. My sense is the offensive remarks struck a responsive chord not simply for what was said but because of the targets. The young women of Rutgers advancing against all odds was a Cinderella story. These ladies became targets because of their success and their color. To demean Black women is wrong and without excuse. To demean these champion student athletes, to diminish their achievement with an offensive attempt at humor, is clearly beyond the pale. They are simply not fair game for an Imus shredding. This time, Iman, you picked the wrong folks to trash.

Making matters ever more reprehensible is the Imus Walk of Shame. The groveling old white guy on tour. The "you people" remark during yesterday's Sharpton show. This morning's NBC appearance with Lauer and Sharpton. The "comedy" defense and the etymology argument (popular, pervasive "use" of Black slang by others), each serves to confirm Imus and his crew are tone deaf. Out of touch geezers. Imus has been sucked into that vortex that is the freak show. The story becomes nothing but sound bite and react, this is the Iman's "Howard Dean moment." B roll of the well managed Rutgers press conference with headshot of the old white guy. In all this mess it would appear the Rev Jackson owes an apology of his own to Alison Stewart. MSNBC is not all white, all day, all night.

Imus ignited his own firestorm. From his inept delay in offering a first apology to his overwrought repeat offender contrition to his off-topic reminders about all his years of good work and service to others. The ideal moment for him to have said "I'm an idiot, an old fool, an aging clown, it was a joke, get over it" has long passed. Where was management the day this happened? The talent said what they said, however producers, program directors and general managers are also culpable here. MSNBC and CBS Radio each have a stake. The lack of management acuity in prompting a quick and proper apology is eclipsed only by what appears to be management's ham-fisted involvement, if not boneheaded counsel, in the Walk of Shame. We have a talent issue here and a leadership issue as well.

Now that the ladies have agreed to a private meeting with Imus this story is far from over. The young champions will have their say.

It seems too much has been made about how Imus feels. The only feelings I care about are those of the young ladies. And before you tell me there's a "sticks and stones" lesson here let me stop you and suggest there's a much bigger opportunity here - an opportunity to teach and to educate. To move forward by setting an example, move forward by doing the right thing.

What is certain at this point is the Iman has become radioactive. P&G and Staples have pulled their advertising. Should he stay or should he go? Your comments welcome. My take tomorrow.