The GOP plans to paint the map red through a new Super Pac

Monitor Breakfast Preview: Congressional Leadership Fund Super PAC

It’s less than a year to go until the 2012 general election, and with Congressional approval ratings at their lowest levels in almost a century, races in both the Senate and the House of Representatives are shaping up to be tumultuous. On November 29, the Monitor Breakfast will host members of the Congressional Leadership Fund, …

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Daniel Boulud, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, and Michael White

TimesTalks: Interviews with Celebrity Chefs

This week, FORA.tv launched a partnership with TimesTalks, premier programs presented by the New York Times, that features top journalists in conversation with some of the most famous names in art, music, film, sports and more. The first series, Celebrity Chefs, presents well-known names in food and dining, including several famous New York City restaurateurs. …

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Would the world be better off without religion?

Intelligence Squared Debate: Are We Better Off Without Religion?

From sectarian violence in Northern Ireland between Protestants and Catholics to the ongoing Israeli-Palestine conflict, many skeptics see religion as a dangerous, divisive force.  Yet, out of 7 billion people around the globe, upwards of 75 percent identify with some sort of religious group. For the majority of them, organized faith offers comfort and solace. …

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L2 Social Graph: Plotting Strategies for Online Media Marketing

Take a brief glance at some of the more dynamic marketing campaigns on major sites such as Yahoo!, ESPN or the New York Times, and you might think online marketing has come a long way since the simple days of banner ads. But has it really? And what can we expect to happen in the …

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FORA.TV Presents the Conference Channel Video App for the iPad

In the last year, we’ve heard a persistent request from you, the FORA.tv user: “Why can’t I watch FORA.tv videos on the plane, outside the office, without an Internet connection?” Now you can. Check out our new Conference Channel iPad app, available free at the iTunes App Store. Our app is the only one dedicated …

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Monitor Breakfast Preview: Congressional Leadership Fund Super PAC TimesTalks: Interviews with Celebrity Chefs Intelligence Squared Debate: Are We Better Off Without Religion? L2 Social Graph: Plotting Strategies for Online Media Marketing FORA.TV Presents the Conference Channel Video App for the iPad

Nov
28

Monitor Breakfast Preview: Congressional Leadership Fund Super PAC

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It’s less than a year to go until the 2012 general election, and with Congressional approval ratings at their lowest levels in almost a century, races in both the Senate and the House of Representatives are shaping up to be tumultuous.

On November 29, the Monitor Breakfast will host members of the Congressional Leadership Fund, a Republican political action committee. Washington journalists will interview fund board members Brian Walsh, Tom Reynolds and Fred Malek on how the GOP plans to win a majority in the House in 2012. The program will be featured on demand at FORA.tv.

The GOP plans to paint the political map red through a new Super PAC

Political action committees, otherwise known as PACs, are privately formed groups that to help elect candidates or advance issues. Businesses, unions, or other interest groups typically establish PACs to raise money from PAC members. In the past, laws restricted the amount of money a PAC could raise. But in 2010, the US Supreme Court handed down a landmark decision that lifted funding restrictions and allowed the formation of “Super PACs.”

The Congressional Leadership Fund, a Super PAC formed by several prominent GOP political directors and chaired by former Minnesota Senator Norm Coleman, is one of many PACs seeking to take advantage of these new funding rules to raise unlimited capital from corporations and individuals. While many, including protestors of the Occupy Wall Street movement, see these large financial contributions as a corrupting influence, defenders hail the ability to raise capital as freedom of speech and a counterweight to groups like the Democratic House Majority PAC, a political lobby supported by major labor unions across the United States and sponsored by Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.)

Brian Walsh, president of the Congressional Leadership Fund, believes that his Super PAC will also help counter efforts by nongovernmental groups, including ACORN-style community organization groups that commonly support liberal candidates and causes and were a driving force behind the President Barack Obama’s successful campaign in 2008. Walsh said, “Congressional Leadership Fund is the tip of the spear to re-elect Republican incumbents and build on the Republican majority won in 2010.”

Watch the Monitor Breakfast on demand at FORA.tv.

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Nov
23

TimesTalks: Interviews with Celebrity Chefs

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This week, FORA.tv launched a partnership with TimesTalks, premier programs presented by the New York Times, that features top journalists in conversation with some of the most famous names in art, music, film, sports and more. The first series, Celebrity Chefs, presents well-known names in food and dining, including several famous New York City restaurateurs.

Chefs Daniel Boulud, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, and Michael White

Frank Bruni, an op-ed columnist and former chief restaurant critic for the New York Times, sat down with three restaurateurs and chefs, Daniel Boulud, Jean-George Vongerichten and Michael White, to discuss their experiences in the restaurant business, including encounters with celebrity diners, how food television has influenced customers, and which menu items they recommend to order and why.

Even celebrity chefs must cater to other celebrities. Boulud once hosted former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, former PLO leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu all in the same dining room, and felt nervous that he would accidentally “poison Arafat” and undermine the entire Middle East peace process. Lady Gaga left Boulud most star-struck especially after she visited his DBGB Kitchen and Bar in the Bowery District, which happened to be the same night she appeared on Saturday Night Live with Madonna. Luckily, Boulud said, Gaga “had a healthy appetite for a skinny girl.”

Dining at gourmet restaurants is a unique part of New York City culture, and many establishments such as Le Bernardin, Per Se and Masa attain mythical status as patrons vie for a reservation. Once inside, the menu choices can be daunting. For guests of his widely acclaimed Italian restaurant Marea, White suggests first-timers should pick three or four menu items they can’t find at other establishments. “The market dictates what we offer,” he said, and certain dishes may only be available once a season.

That said, Vongerichten has tried to remove certain dishes from the menu at his Michelin-rated Jean Georges restaurant, but keeping popular items is part of what makes a restaurant great. “Part of the business isn’t just innovative menu ideas, but also maintaining consistency,” Vongerichten said.

Has the popularization of gourmet cuisine on television and in the media created hardship or headaches for celebrity chefs? White believes that business has improved because of specialized programming. “More Americans are now exposed to different types of cuisine than they were 10 years ago because of the Food Network,” White said. “And the sincerest compliment is to have someone compare my food with something they may have tasted on a gourmet food tour or seen on the Food Network, which is something that may not have happened 10 years ago.”

Watch TimesTalks: New York’s Star Studded Chefs on demand at FORA.tv

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Nov
22

Intelligence Squared Debate: Are We Better Off Without Religion?

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From sectarian violence in Northern Ireland between Protestants and Catholics to the ongoing Israeli-Palestine conflict, many skeptics see religion as a dangerous, divisive force.  Yet, out of 7 billion people around the globe, upwards of 75 percent identify with some sort of religious group. For the majority of them, organized faith offers comfort and solace.

On November 15, FORA.tv presented The World Would Be Better Off Without Religion, a debate hosted by Intelligence2. Now available on demand, this event featured strong and insight arguments for and against faith and the current organized religious establishment.

Would the world be better off without religion?

A.C. Grayling, a noted English philosopher and atheist, began the debate by explaining that religion isn’t the only avenue people can take to develop a sense of morality or a set of ethics. “Everything good about religious morality, such as loving one’s neighbor, kindness, responsibility, is shared by nonreligious ethical outlooks also, ” he said. “If you look at ancient Greek philosophy, a dominant strain of thought nearly a thousand years before Christianity, you’ll see they developed morality and ethics through reason and human experience.

Even though religion does offer moral and ethical guidance, Matthew Chapman, an English journalist who writes extensively on evolution vs creationism, says that religion often complicates and distorts morality. “In almost any holy book, you can find validation and justification for many acts that are considered immoral in today’s modern world,” Chapman said. “Afterward, you don’t have to defend the humanity of your actions because God told you to do it.” Morality is muddled even further because “everyone is an infidel to someone of another religion.”

While atheists and humanists often deride the religious establishment as the root of the world’s ills, David Wolpe, an influential American Rabbi and religious leader, says that the media rarely covers the acts of faith-based organizations doing good across the world. “If you took religion out of people’s lives, the world would be tremendously impoverished in terms of how people in need receive help,” Wolpe said. In addition, medical and research journals, which are not often sympathetic toward religion, say religious Americans are more likely to be civic minded and are generally healthier than nonreligious Americans.

Dinesh D’Souza, a leading conservative thinker and defender of Christian theology, took a more global view in his argument for religion. Atheistic regimes such as socialist or communist societies have perpetuated far worse crimes than acts committed under the name of religion such as the Spanish Inquisition or the Salem witch trials, he believes. D’Souza quotes Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky on the topic of atheistic crimes: “If God is not, then everything is permitted.”

Watch The World Would Be Better Off Without Religion on demand at FORA.tv.

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Nov
21

L2 Social Graph: Plotting Strategies for Online Media Marketing

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Take a brief glance at some of the more dynamic marketing campaigns on major sites such as Yahoo!, ESPN or the New York Times, and you might think online marketing has come a long way since the simple days of banner ads. But has it really? And what can we expect to happen in the future?

On November 21, FORA.tv presented L2 Social Graph: Europe, a conference that showcased best practices in social media and detailed how European brands can benefit from these practices. L2 founder Scott Galloway kicked off the event, now available on demand on FORA.tv, by speaking on how and where brands currently spend their marketing dollars.

While many businesses have adjusted to online advertising as a key source for branding, there is still a disconnect between where marketers target customers and where these customers are actually spending their time online. Galloway says that many brands are still “trapped in yesterday’s media plan” and aren’t taking advantage of mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets. “Almost one in ten minutes of media is consumed on a mobile device,” Galloway explained. “The shift toward digital by the consumer is well ahead of the shift toward digital dollars being spent by brands themselves.”

By not investing in the digital space, companies risk losing money, and they may turn off potential investors who see their business plan as lacking a high “digital IQ,” according to Galloway. “Primary shareholder value in the market today is demonstrating digital competence,” he said.

The good news is that consumer brands can and should change their marketing strategies to adjust to a more dynamic digital platform. The bad news is that Google and Facebook dominate the field. These two Internet giants control most of the highly trafficked advertising space, whether it’s through Google Adwords or through a user’s Facebook profile, and the cost of acquiring consumers and making conversions is skyrocketing. “Consider these the salad days if you want to buy advertising space online,” said Galloway. “Because it’s only going to get more expensive—even prohibitively so.”

Galloway said businesses should ask themselves several questions when it comes to creating a strategic marketing plan that fits into the digital age. “Are you changing or clinging to what your company is comfortable with? In a world where shared media is king, what have you done to get people to talk about your brand?” In order to succeed, Galloway adds, business must foster “a digital culture” and be prepared move quickly. “Ready, fire, aim, should be the motto of any company looking to expand their digital presence. Digital [marketing] rewards risk-taking.”

Watch L2 Social Graph: Europe on demand at FORA.tv

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Nov
21

FORA.TV Presents the Conference Channel Video App for the iPad

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In the last year, we’ve heard a persistent request from you, the FORA.tv user: “Why can’t I watch FORA.tv videos on the plane, outside the office, without an Internet connection?” Now you can. Check out our new Conference Channel iPad app, available free at the iTunes App Store. Our app is the only one dedicated to streaming pay-per-view conference and event video programming on the iPad. The new app offers free previews and paid access to more than 1,000 full-length video programs curated from world-class events. All your favorite premium programs are here, including:

•The New Yorker Festival
•The 2011 Washington Ideas Forum
•The Economist Buttonwood Conference
•Christian Science Monitor Breakfasts
•92Y events
•Fairchild Fashion Media Events

Features of FORA.tv’s Conference Channel app include:

•Curated Homepage: Enjoy video programming on a variety of topics, including the economy, environment, politics, technology, science and culture;
•Cross-Platform Synch: Watch purchased programs on either the FORA.tv web site or the Conference Channel app by synching your accounts;
•Offline Viewing: Download videos and enjoy the programs without an Internet connection: ideal for airplane flights or outdoor viewing;
•Personal Library and Bookmarks: Create a personal library of favorite conference videos;
•Memory Management: Control media storage via custom hard-disk space settings;
•Enhanced Navigation: Discover the most compelling videos when browsing by topic, event name or conference organizer.

Photo courtesy of  Tsubaki Kaworu

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Nov
21

The New York Times Launches TimesTalks

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We are excited today to announce an important new partnership with The New York Times. Together with FORA.tv, The Times is launching on-demand videos of its TimesTalks series.

The series features members of The Times’s prize-winning editing, reporting and writing staff in conversation with today’s most-celebrated talents and thinkers in thought-provoking and entertaining discussions.

First up on FORA.tv is a series of conversations with celebrated chefs that will be followed, beginning November 28, by a series of conversations with the stars of the comedy world. A slate of conversations with acclaimed actors will begin on December 5. TimesTalks will add more conversations across a wide range of topics to the FORA.tv offering in the future.

Tickets for on-demand viewing of individual conversations, as well as access to specific topics and the entire series, can be purchased at TimesTalks.Fora.tv. Individual segments are priced at $4.95, with the All Access passes for Food and Film topics priced at $29.95 each, and Comedy All Access priced at $19.95.

 

Jacques Pepin

 

Luminaries from the worlds of food and cooking, comedy and film featured in the initial launch events include:

CELEBRATED CHEFS: Daniel Boulud, Jean-Georges Vongerichten & Michael White; Alton Brown; Paula Deen; Bobby Flay, Jose Garces & Masaharu Morimoto; Ina Garten; Jacques Pépin; and Eric Ripert & Jennifer Carroll.
COMEDY STARS: Lewis Black; Russell Brand; Jimmy Fallon; Tracy Morgan; and Ben Stiller.
ACCLAIMED ACTORS: Jeff Bridges; Bradley Cooper; Julianne Moore; Natalie Portman; Mark Ruffalo; Kevin Spacey; Quentin Tarantino; and Denzel Washington & Viola Davis.

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Nov
12

Brian Eno, Anish Kapoor and Peter Sellars at the New York Public Library

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Rarely does the creative magnitude of three of the world’s most significant artists come together in a candid, wide-ranging discussion. On Sunday, November 13, Paul Holdengräber, Director of Public Programs at the New York Public Library, will sit down in conversation with composer Brian Eno, visual artist Anish Kapoor and theater director Peter Sellars in an exclusive, FORA.tv event.

Brian Eno

Since the 1970s Brian Eno has collaborated with some of the world’s most influential artists and music groups, such as Roxy Music, Talking Heads, David Bowie, and U2. But it’s his solo work that brought him the most acclaim as a key innovator in ambient sound. As a musician, Eno expanded production techniques and emphasized music theory and experimentation over basic practice and technique. Eno was also a pioneer of “generative music”—a technique that combines ever-changing sounds created by a system such as a computer.

Anish Kapoor

For over three decades British sculptor Anish Kapoor has worked in granite, marble and metals to create a variety of sublime forms that seemingly transform the space around the observer. Kapoor’s highly reflective steel creations have received worldwide acclaim, and several of his structures are permanent fixtures in a number of famous outdoor parks, including Cloud Gate in Millennium Park, Chicago and Sky Mirror at Kensington Gardens in Nottingham, England. He is currently commissioned to create a granite monument to commemorate British victims in the September 11 attacks in Manhattan’s Hanover Square.

Peter Sellars

Peter Sellars is known for his unique staging of both classical and contemporary operas, often adding modern storylines and themes to each production he directs. Sellars once used Mozart’s unfinished opera Zaide, a piece that dealt with human bondage and freedom, as a commentary on modern slavery and how to abolish it. Recently, Sellars directed a production of Nixon in China, and drew parallels to the momentous opening of China to the West to the current uprisings in the Arab Spring.

Watch Brian Eno, Anish Kapoor and Peter Sellars live and on demand at FORA.tv.

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Nov
11

Next Week: Intelligence2, Monitor Breakfast and Shaping Young Minds

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Join FORA.tv next week as we cover two important events on religion and international affairs. Plus, in Boston, there’s a fascinating conference taking place on learning and the human brain.

Religion: Good or Evil?

People around the world find comfort in religious practice, but there are many who also manipulate religion to serve themselves. On November 15, an Intelligence2 debate, presented live on FORA.tv, will discuss the pros and cons of religion in a program titled “The World Would Be Better Off Without Religion.” A pair of outspoken voices from the atheist movement, journalist Matthew Chapman and professor A.C. Grayling, will square off against scholars Dinesh D’Souza and David Wolpe. Among the many questions they will ask: Has religion been a source for good, or is it merely a breeding ground for evil?

After the September 11th attacks, the United States looked to Pakistan as an important ally. Ten years later, many are wondering if Pakistan is not so much an ally as an antagonist in the War on Terror. On November 16, the Monitor Breakfast Series will host Husain Haqqani, the Pakistani ambassador to the United States, who will discuss bilateral relations between the two countries and why his country needs to placate militant tribal groups who could destabilize the country.

You’ve probably heard this saying before: “Humans typically use only 10 percent of their brains.” If we can push ourselves to use more, what could we achieve?  Scientists and educators will ask that question and more at the Learning and the Brain Conference in Boston on November 18. Researchers will present current findings on how innovate cognitive tools and teaching techniques can help students learn and succeed in the 21st century.

Watch Intellgence2 live and the Monitor Breakfast live and on demand next week at FORA.tv.

 

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Nov
11

Glenn Greenwald: Who Corrupted the American Elite?

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When Bradley Manning, the US Army private suspected of handing over classified documents to Wikileaks, was imprisoned, many believed he deserved his fate. Little did he know, however, that he had an ally in Glenn Greenwald, the former civil rights litigator and now investigative journalist, who believes that Manning acted heroically to uncover the injustices of our political system.

Glenn Greenwald speaks with Salon.com's David Talbot

On November 2, Greenwald sat down with Salon.com founder David Talbot to discuss his new book, With Liberty and Justice for Some: How the Law is Used to Destroy Equality and Protect the Powerful, which details how the American elite manipulate the justice system to serve and protect themselves. This fascinating event has become one of the most-watched shows in the last week on FORA.tv, and is currently available on-demand.

Greenwald says constitutional rights throughout American history have always been tested and subsequently reaffirmed through social changes such as the emancipation of slaves, the enfranchisement of women and the advancement of gay rights. But over the last 40 years, the American elite has gradually renounced the principle that everyone is equal under the law. “From the shielding of crimes under Bush by the Obama administration to the refusal to investigate or prosecute industry-wide fraud that precipitated the 2008 financial crisis, there is a prevailing, Orwellian sense that protecting the elite is in the best interests of the entire nation,” he said.

Although political corruption manifested itself under the Nixon administration and in scandals such as the Iran-Contra affair, Greenwald believes that the Bush administration took it to new heights. “We’ve seen abuses of power in the past. What changed under George Bush was 9/11,” he said. “This horrific act was so aggressively exploited by Bush … that it raised the bar of what the citizenry and the political class would tolerate as far as bending or breaking laws to protect the people.”

Greenwald pointed to the media as perpetuating this current level of corruption among America’s elite class. While 50 years ago, journalists were considered to be a part of the working class—a group of “subversives” dedicated to keeping the powerful in check—reporters and anchors are now merely rich employees of  large corporations. “Journalists used to deliberately sit on the outside of power as a watchdog of the elite,” he explained. “Now they serve as spokesperson and servant of the elite.”

Aside from manipulating the political system and the media, the members of America’s elite have become so entrenchment that they are “too big to jail,” according to Greenwald. “We’ve created a framework for elite immunity, yet we have one of the harshest criminal justice systems in the world and imprison more of our fellow citizens than any other country on the planet,” he said. “These alarming disparities mean that many white-collar criminals get off scot-free for heinous crimes, while those without means who commit trivial offenses are subjected to the harshest of punishments.”

Watch Glenn Greenwald with David Talbot on demand at FORA.tv

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Nov
10

Stephen Fry and Friends on the Life, Loves, and Hates of Christopher Hitchens

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Rarely does an individual like Christopher Hitchens come along who can speak with such intellectual vigor on a variety of topics, from politics and religion to literature and philosophy. While he has been both a lauded and controversial figure throughout his 40-year career as an author, journalist and critic, Hitchens’ influence among his peers is undeniable.

Christopher Hitchens

On November 9, FORA.tv featured a special event presented by Intelligence²: Stephen Fry and Friends on the Life, Loves and Hates of Christopher Hitchens. In one evening the likes of scientist Richard Dawkins, actor Sean Penn and writers Salman Rushdie and Martin Amis came together to pay tribute to their friend, who is suffering from cancer and was recently hospitalized with pneumonia. Hitchens himself joined the event virtually by emailing comments and participating in the live chat.

Even though Hitchens is often labeled a polemic figure, UK television personality Stephen Fry said his contrarian approach is a direct result of his deep intellectual commitment to personal causes such as the Iraq War and atheism. “The first thing I want to disabuse you of is the notion that [Hitchens] is a humorless, political and utterly sanctimonious figure as he is sometimes painted,” Fry explained. “He pours his energies and talents in a thousand directions with the belief that a true thing badly expressed is no more than a lie.”

Throughout his career, Hitchens has been a scathing critic of several prominent public figures like George W. Bush, Hillary Clinton and even Mother Teresa. Fry spoke with Sean Penn on why Hitchens fierce attack on one of the most powerful men in American history, Henry Kissinger, served as inspiration for the actor. “It was his book The Trial of Henry Kissinger that led me to follow him, but also the magnificence of his language and the clarity of his thought that are of particular interest to me and to those of us in America who often undervalue these types of intellectual pursuits,” said Penn.

Even though Hitchens has relied on his remarkable command of the English language to convey his thoughts, his detractors often describe him as offensive.  Evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins said he and Hitchens wear the offensive badge with honor.  “One of the great problems in this world is that we’re expected to be respectful all the time, whether respect is deserved or not,” Dawkins said. “I don’t see any reason to do that if offense is deserved.”

Salman Rushdie, whose controversial book The Satanic Verses offended many in the Muslim world, found an ally in Hitchens when the Iranian religious leader Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa calling for the murder of the author. Rushdie explained that the primitive reaction by Khomeini was a seminal moment in their friendship. “What got up [Hitchens’] nose was the idea that an aging zealot in an antique land could sentence to death someone across the world for the crime of writing a book,” he said. “Because of that event, he became an extraordinary ally and he was at the heart of that struggle. Being grateful to him understates what I feel.”

Watch the entire Intelligence² event on Christopher Hitchens on demand at FORA.tv.

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