• by OMMA Magazine Writers , April 21, 2008

When we attended a launch event for the news-skewering Web site 23/6 at the Upright Citizen's Brigade Theater in Manhattan, site editor Jason Reich deadpanned, "We think this Internet thing is really going to take off in a year or two, and we're happy to be getting in on the ground floor." The acts, all writers for 236.com, went on to tackle everything from Midwestern sleeper-cell bus drivers as covered by CNN to how to deal with an unwanted pregnancy, and The Daily Show's John Oliver hosted with his typical vicious wit.

But Reich's comment got us thinking. Thinking about the unintentional comic genius of Clifford Stoll. In his 1995 Newsweek article, "The Internet? Bah!" he has a habit of starting paragraphs with exclamations like, "Baloney," and does indeed use the interjection, "Bah," as if he were possessed by Andy Rooney. You may also remember his book Silicon Snake Oil, in which he states his case in more detail explaining that the Internet will never amount to anything. And e-commerce? Bah! Stoll now sells handcrafted glass Klein bottles for the mathematical prankster. Oh yeah, over the Internet (at kleinbottle.com). 

Life moves pretty fast on the Internets these days, and who can keep up? Starcom MediaVest, that's who. At a lovely extravaganza introducing SMG Search - complete with a palm tree-accessorized rooftop and dozens of hooded purple robes; okay, long story - Starcom MediaVest CEO, Americas, Laura Desmond laid out how Microsoft's 15 years of dominance became Google's five which in turn has become Facebook's one. Maybe. And who knows what's next? Well, nobody.

But we do know advertisers and brands did not heed Clifford Stoll's warnings. They continue to throw more and more money at online advertising every year. When our own intrepid Lynn Russo Whylly asked her source at WPP about getting below the line he referred her to our own intrepid Joe Mandese: "Why are you asking me? Joe Mandese knows more about this than anyone." When asked, Joe, for his part, simply shrugged.

The Editors
editorial@mediapost.com