• ONLINE SPIN
    Data Without Context Is Noise
    I spend a lot of time trying to tell the story about data: What is data, why is it important, and how can marketers harness its power to make better campaigns? I have little epiphanies on a regular basis that I like to share in this column. This week, my epiphany was clear: Data without context is noise.
  • ONLINE SPIN
    When Evolution (And Democracy) Get It Wrong
    The world is eliminating friction. Generally, that's a good thing. But there may be unintended consequences. Let's take evolution, for instance.
  • ONLINE SPIN
    Targeting Follies: Youtube Thinks I'm A Woman, Web Sites Think I Should Hire Myself
    Last week, I was traveling and missed late-night reactions to the Republication Convention. So I turned to the trusted Interweb to catch up with Stephen Colbert, James Corden, Samantha Bee, Bill Maher and assorted others. It was no problem finding the highlights I had heard about on social media and elsewhere via my interactive TV and its YouTube interface. But once I got started, I was surprised to learn that Google thinks I am a woman -- and one who could do with some new make-up, tampons and women's energy drinks.
  • ONLINE SPIN
    Political Awareness In The Facebook Age
    We're just finished one presidential convention, heading toward another -- and it's not my job to discuss the candidates or their positions. Instead, I want to discuss the way we come to conclusions about the candidates and their positions: the quality of our data, the depth of our knowledge, the level of our ability to make informed decisions.
  • ONLINE SPIN
    The Ad-Tech Tax
    There is some research, and a lot of loose talk, about the so-called ad-tech tax. The term suggests that selling advertising with technology has a hidden, possibly unjustified, cost. Not true. As in every supply system, there is some waste, but it's trivial compared to the fact that advertisers pay way less than they used to for a better audience, thanks to technology.
  • ONLINE SPIN
    The Over/Under Is Four Weeks On Pokemon Go
    I caved the other day and let my kids play Pokemon Go at the park. I read all the articles about it beforehand to make sure I wasn't opening up some Pandora's box that would lead - like a twentieth century gateway drug - toward a new dimension of screen-time addiction for my boys. We downloaded it, registered, did a quick tutorial, and they were off to the races. But after seeing it in in real life, I still don't quite get it.
  • ONLINE SPIN
    Happiness As A Corporate Goal
    Costa Rica is the happiest place on earth. The least-happy place on earth? That would be Botswana. At least, those are the results according to the criteria measured by the Happy Planet Index.
  • ONLINE SPIN
    Perception Is Reality -- And That's True For TV And Pokemon Go
    We are about halfway into 2016. So how is the year shaping up against some of the predictions for this year? Well, many are proving to be true. The ANA report that came out is as damning as expected, but agencies so far seem unaffected. What is also fact in 2016 is the continued decline of TV viewing among younger audiences.
  • ONLINE SPIN
    Echo In The Ashes Of The Fire: Apple, Amazon Jump Mobile Stack
    Over the past week, while everyone I knew wandered the streets playing Pokemon Go looking like a horde of hip zombies, I spent quality time with that dowdy old workhorse of mobile telecommunications, iMessage. But I'm not talking about the version of iMessage your grandma has, I'm talking about iMessage 10.
  • ONLINE SPIN
    It's More Than A 'Team With A Dream' For Angels
    Remember that last couple of times the bubble burst in the start-up world? Back in 2000 and then again around 2008, things went south and the venture money dried up for many. Now that it's 2016, we're hearing conversations about how the venture money is drying up again, but this time it's different. It's not completely gone. The money is no longer going to the storytellers and the dreamers. It's going to the businesspeople and those with a proven concept.
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