Continue reading »]]> Greece’s prime minister Lucas Papademos continues to push ahead with severe austerity measures in an attempt to avoid a horrible default next month. The public reaction has been a strong one with protesters throwing fire bombs, clashing with police and walking off the job, according to a New York Times article, Greece Plunged Into Political Turmoil Over Austerity Measures.

The backlash is not only about austerity, higher prices and less consumption, but also about the “so-called troika of foreign lenders — the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund,” who are behind the policy.

Last year at the Economists’ Buttonwood Gathering, finance experts accurately predicted that Greece’s problems would really come down to politics: No country and its citizens want to become a “protectorate,” under the thumb of powerful EU representatives.

Greek Debt Writedown: Too Little, Too Late? from The Economist on FORA.tv

Continue reading »]]> The world is still mourning the death of the world’s great iconoclast, Christopher Hitchens. This month the Atlantic published the last essay he did for the magazine, The Reactionary–The charming, sinister G. K. Chesterton. He is as insightful and thoroughly as ever. We miss you, Hitch.

Here’s a link to some of our best Hitchens videos–just in case you missed the series when it was first published at the new year.

Continue reading »]]> Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s paintings from the mid-1870s to the mid-1880s are often hailed as masterpieces of the Impressionist art movement. Not only do they explore the grandeur of Parisian life, they are grand and ambitious works unto themselves and were usually painted in large scale vertical and horizontal formats.

The Frick Collection is displaying nine of Renoir’s iconic paintings in an exhibit titled “Renoir, Impressionism, and Full-Length Painting” from now until May 13. In the following video Colin B. Bailey, the Deputy Director and Peter Jay Sharp Chief Curator of The Frick Collection, discussed the discoveries he made about Renoir’s works during the preparation of the exhibit:

Renoir’s Wall Power: Colin B. Bailey from The Frick Collection on FORA.tv

Continue reading »]]> Today, the Huffington Post has a fascinating article on Steve Jobs’ FBI file, which was created when Jobs was being considered for a position in President George H. W. Bush’s administration. Those familiar with Jobs and his life won’t find anything too groundbreaking here, but there’s some interesting nuggets (Jobs had a 2.65 high school GPA).

The FBI undercovered Jobs drug use, his monastic life and interest in Eastern philosophies. Several pages of the file detail the “$1 million bomb threat that was made against Apple on Feb. 7, 1985, several months before Apple fired Jobs.”

In a recent program presented by the Commonwealth Club and FORA.tv, author Walter Isaacson talked about another personality trait the FBI report uncovered.

Isaacson: ‘Nice’ Not an Adjective to Describe Steve Jobs from Commonwealth Club on FORA.tv

Also check out other FORA.tv programs on Steve Jobs

Continue reading »]]> By Internet standards, sites like Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter now represent the old guard of online media and social networking. While these sites remain both pillars of and pioneers in the tech world, industry leaders and investors are always looking for the “next big thing.” So which innovators and entrepreneurs are making waves among their peers?

On the Next Big Thing, presented by The Paley Center for Media and featured on-demand at FORA.tv, the founders and CEOs at several up-and-coming start-ups will showcase their sites for members of the online media industry. Tomorrow’s gathering will feature presentations from PolicyMic, ElectNext, …ology., Veenome, and YouNow.

Before checking out tomorrow’s event, watch the previous Next Big Thing presentation from the Paley Center below:

Paley Center’s Next Big Thing from The Paley Center for Media on FORA.tv

Continue reading »]]> Though nine years of American military presence in Iraq came to an end on December 15 of last year, the United States planned to maintain a massive diplomatic presence in Baghdad’s Green Zone consisting of almost 16,000 people working for the U.S. Department of State. Just recently, State Department officials announced they may cut embassy operations by almost half.

At the height of American involvement in Iraq, Coalition administrators chose Baghdad’s Green Zone as a starting point from which to rebuild the country after toppling Saddam Hussein. At the same time, the Bush administration planned to build the largest embassy in the world within the Green Zone. While some said the embassy would be a symbol of democracy and freedom in the Middle East, critics suggested the embassy was merely a symbol of continuing American hegemony.

Rajiv Chandrasekaran wrote about American reconstruction efforts and their long-term implications in his 2006 book Imperial Life in the Emerald City: Inside Iraq’s Green Zone:

Imperial Life in the Emerald City from WAC: Connecticut on FORA.tv

Continue reading »]]> Move over barcodes: The proliferation of smartphones with scanning apps means more and more commercial products are relying on QR Codes (or Quick Response Codes) to convey information to a consumer. Originally created by a subsidiary of Toyota in order to track vehicles, QR Codes are popping up everywhere, especially in advertising.

But Erik Lautier of Lacoste USA wonders if digital strategists are actually using QR Codes effectively and in the right places? The codes are great if you’re able to take the time to scan them, but what good are they in an airplane magazine when you aren’t allow to use your cellphone or in an advertisement on the side of a moving bus?

(Note: Did you scan the QR Code featured in this article?)

Erik Lautier: The Dos and Don’ts of QR Codes from Fairchild Fashion Media on FORA.tv

Continue reading »]]> Today a federal appeals court struck down California’s ban on same-sex marriage, ensuring the issue will ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court. At the heart of the matter is whether or not marriage is a fundamental right that cannot be legislated away, or is simply a priviledge or a legal right that can be decided by a majority of California’s citizens.

Back in 2009 FORA.tv and the National Constitution Center presented a debate on the issue of gay marriage where many of the pro-and-con arguments were presented. Watch Chapter 3 to get to the heart of the matter.

Gay Marriage: A Debate from National Constitution Center on FORA.tv

What would our founding fathers think of gay marriage?

Would the Founding Fathers Have Supported Gay Marriage? from The Constitutional Sources Project on FORA.tv

Image courtesy of Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com

Continue reading »]]> At the heart of politics is the law of unintended consequences. Fix one problem, say in Africa, and then watch with frustration as it creates a different problem, say in the Middle East.

From the West’s point of view, the intervention in Libya was a resounding success, politically and morally. Here’s what Senator John Kerry said:

John Kerry Justifies US Military Force in Libya from Commonwealth Club on FORA.tv

But the Libyan intervention has had a number of negative consequences and is an important reason why China and Russia vetoed a Security Council measure that would have condemned the killings in Syria.