Diary on Darfur (World Politics Review)

A firsthand 20-day account of life in and around Darfur is available on foreign policy daily World Politics Review written by Kurt Pelda the Africa Bureau Chief for the Swiss daily Neue Zürcher Zeitung.

Here is an excerpt from Day 2's entry entitled "Day 2: The Harmattan and Angelina Jolie: Cinema-Ready Mass Murder?"

"...Just what a "Goodwill Ambassador" is -- and what purpose the whole media circus around them is supposed to serve -- is not entirely clear to me. Is it only possible to draw the attention of the global public to a tragedy, to mass murder such as is occurring in Darfur, when Hollywood stars are flown in for quick visits to refugee camps and then shed tears at a press conference afterwards? I have trouble believing it. But when I ask a high-ranking U.N. official, he merely replies, "That's the way the world is. You have to be realistic."..."

Pelda's detailed insights on life among rebel groups and refugees are both chilling and surreal.

Read more of "Among Darfur Rebels and Refugees: A Road Diary"

Large Volume of User-Generated Content Creates Opportunity for New Sites

The large volume of user-generated content created as the natural result of the Web 2.0 revolution provides a unique set of challenges and opportunities. Specifically, what will be the best model for aggregating large volumes of content - blogs, podcasts, videos, restaurant reviews, Facebook wall-to-walls, etc?

Boxxet is one example of such an approach. Though initially launched as a solely user-driven means for individuals to create "box sets" of content, the site appears to be inching towards a blended system of automation and user-managed content and ranking.

From celebrity chefs to sports teams, Boxxet's simple interface lets you browse through large volumes of content quickly. Other sites such as squidoo offer similar features.

As the Internet transitions to the Web 3.0 model of machine-friendly 'scrapability', sites like these and vertical search may shed some light into what the new web will look like.

Virgin America May Give Low-Fare Airlines the 'Jet Blues'

It's admittedly disappointing that I have to wait until fall before Virgin America starts flying out of DC. But if the fares can remain competitive with other coast-to-coast carriers, it may be worth the wait.

Richard Branson is king of the customer experience and the new website promises quite the experience indeed:

• In-flight 110V power/USB/ethernet
• Entertainment system offering 3,000+ MP3s, TV, movies, games
• Wine and food ordered from entertainment system
  
• Seat-to-seat chat

JetBlue and Southwest may have something to worry about.

Now you tell me!

Back Blogging again once I sorted out the Blogger- no, wait Google -- I mean Blogger powered by Google account thing all squared away.