Chicago Tribune's gaffe on Pronger compounded in digital time

In this digital age of instant everything -- with live news and video at our fingertips -- newspapers still have the luxury of time, time to get things right.

That isn’t always the case, though, and the Chicago Tribune’s special pullout poster Tuesday is living proof of that.

With the Stanley Cup finals being played between Chicago and Philadelphia, the Tribune printed a poster of Philadelphia’s Chris Pronger. In a dress. With a headline that says Pronger “looks like Tarzan, skates like Jane.” Seriously.

The poster is demeaning to women. There is no gray area here. This wasn’t a case of poorly chosen words tumbling from the mouth of a corporate executive -- like BP’s CEO and his now infamous “I'd like my life back” quote -- or a bad headline that lived briefly on the Internet.

Gizmodo says the Froyo is sweet. Should I buy one?

One of the best things about working in the digital space is having an excuse to go out and buy/try the newest thing on the market. It’s kind of like when you have children, which gives you the built-in excuse to watch fun kids' movies -- “Ice Age and Wall-E” anyone? -- or dress up in a silly costume  on Halloween.

That’s the way I feel after reading Gizmodo’s review of the Android 2.2 ‘Froyo.’ I don’t have a Froyo. But I’ll probably go get one soon so I can compare it with the iPhone.

Do I need two phones? No, not really, though I can make the argument I can use one for my business and one for personal use. I’ve got a good friend at ESPN who had to get a second phone for work. And she chose a second iPhone. Sigh.

So give Gizmodo’s review a good look (and sift through the comments, too). Tell me what you think. Should I get Froyo or not?

Android 2.2 'Froyo' review: It's sweet {Gizmodo}
Wall-E review {RogerEbert.com}
Ice Age review {RobertEbert.com}

Star Wars meets the World Cup: A fun idea to discuss

So much of today’s technology is created or adopted outside the U.S. that it gets overlooked by media here. Think 3D, virtual life, or of wireless and quick response codes, audio tweets, augmented reality and radio frequency identification.

Such was the case with last week’s bid by Japan to host the 2022 World Cup. Lost -- well, not exactly lost but certainly under-reported and under-tweeted --  was Japan’s plan to beam holographic broadcasts of the event around the globe. Think Princess Leia and Ben Obi-Wan Kenobi meet Lionel Messi and Wayne Rooney.

For the small sum of $6 billion, Japan is suggesting that by 2022 it could project lifelike 3D images onto real pitches in real stadiums around the world and have fans watch players playing real games, holographically speaking.

That technology doesn’t yet exist. But it may within the next five or 10 years.

Of cricket, Google TV and altered playing fields

As the masses dissect Thursday's reveal of Google TV -- and Mark Cuban's blog has an interesting take on it -- the debate is on about how successful it will be. While not everything Google has touched turns to gold, it consistently has been ahead of the curve. Its recent foray into broadcasting live sports is the most recent example.

YouTube, a subsidiary of Google, just concluded broadcasting cricket around the globe to unparalleled success. YouTube carried the Indian Premier League's third season, broadcasting the league's 60 matches live. 

YouTube's IPL channel reportedly got 54 million video views. To put that into perspective, NBC got 45 million video streams for the Winter Olympics in Vancouver. According to the New York Times, 40 percent of the IPL viewers came from outside of India.

It was the first time YouTube carried a major sporting event. It won't be the last. Google has already indicated it will pursue other sports to broadcast live, and other events such as concerts. India has a population of nearly 1.2 billion. Getting 54 million streams for the IPL was just a first step. Sports that attract global audiences -- think soccer, cycling and field hockey -- may be next up.