Axis and Allies - Dec 29, 2009

Allies

1. Piratebay - Already one of our favorite sites, TPB gives people the power to control their own media again; without it being treated like a commodity. This week PB tops the allies list with its addition of magnets. This new feature allows users to download torrents directly to their client software. This enables TPB to function even if the many torrent sharing sites like TPB go down. “Now that the decentralized system for finding peers is so well developed, TPB has decided that there is no need to run a tracker anymore, so it will remain down! It’s the end of an era, but the era is no longer up2date. We have put a server in a museum already, and now the tracking can be put there as well.” According to TPB blog.

2. Oren Peil (Paranormal activity) -Although the film is more shock then awe, it isn’t the substance of the film by the way it became successful that lands it the second spot on our list. The film was able become the most successful film of all time (grossing 106,407,695$, for it’s 15,000$ budget) without using traditional advertising styles. The films intrigue was mostly spread through a word of mouth campaign where
the director asked people to call their cinemas as part of a viral strategy.We list him as the second ally this week for bypassing Hollywood’s traditional models.

3. Black Cab Sessions -Conceived by Jono Stevens, Black Cab Sessions, has become one of the most organic sites of the digital age. The site features a series of short performances by (mostly) independent singer/songwriters and poets. The artists enter a charming black cab, and cruse around Britain as a small camera crew shoot their craft. Notable participants include Death Cab for Cutie, Spoon, and My Morning Jacket.They make our list at number 3 for being one of the most sincere sights on the web, and providing a unique venue for some amazing talent. Check out the site out here.

Axis

1. Summit Entertainment -Their film (New Moon) was rushed to theaters, sacrificing any quality it may have had, to capitalize on the hype. New Moon is now the all time fastest grossing film, and it does not deserve it.

It makes our top spot not only for its poor quality, but mainly because of its productions. Film should not be rushed for capital gain, and directors and actors should be allowed the time to capture on film what they need to.

2. News Corp -The second-largest media conglomerate is also the second Axies this week. It seems that News Corp is considering delisting itself from Google, and prioritizing Microsoft’s new browser Bing. We have a problem with this because what News Corp is essentially doing is starting a process where the internet will be divided into teams of corporations. This is a problem because it could make searching the internet much more difficult as some information would not be available on certain browsers, and the corporations would start to gain more control over cyber space as they are able to brand it. We at the Vanguard feel that the internet, and the freedom it can give people, is a very powerful tool for media proliferation, and that News Corp is looking to blunt it.

3. Harmonix – MTV – Viacom - In the early 90’s there was a counter culture movement in the American mid-west. The spearhead of that movement was Kurt Cobain, and the song that catalyzed the movement: Smells Like Teen Spirit. Now, Viacom is letting you play that culture changing cold-water-to-your-face symbol, in your room alone, with a plastic guitar, pretending to be a CG Cobian. Viva la revolution, indeed.