Lifting Paywalls: A Public Service That’s Also Great For Business
‘We’ve lifted the paywall on our coverage’ has become a common phrase lately, whether for hurricanes, fires, mass shootings, elections,
What You Can Do Right Now To Defeat Trump
(Final Update: Oct 7th, 2020) Act now: this election will be scarily close. Another four years of Donald Trump is
A Fork In The Road: The Future Of Innovation In Education
I was asked to be on a panel this week about innovation in education. Here’s some thoughts: Hi everyone –
How To Host A ‘Name That Tune’ Party On Zoom
Want to get away from the worry and stress for a couple of hours, and do something fun on Zoom
Bagpipes Never Sounded So Good
Our neighbor here in Berkeley has been playing bagpipes in the evenings, in his apartment, for nearly 15 years. But
Before Bailing Corporations Out From Coronavirus, Make Them Stop Destroying The Planet
Make corporate America stop profiting off carbon emissions, and start creating sustainable jobs, as a condition of the bailout. Corporate
Imagine If Climate Threat Education Was As Good (And Global) As These Coronavirus Posters?
The world’s governments are moving quickly to educate people about the Covid-19 coronavirus; specifically: 1) how to tell the symptoms;
How Great Posters And Distributed Design Made Extinction Rebellion A Global Movement
Most climate posters are one-offs. And so are most climate protests. But Extinction Rebellion broke that mold, becoming the first
If You Only Try To Understand One Financial Graph, This Is The One
We’ve all gotten used to tuning out financial market noise, because it’s just too damn complex. But something really dramatic
Yeah, That Makes Sense… A Fun Newsy Data Distraction After Super Tuesday
Sometimes when you know a city really well, and you see some detailed data about it, it just makes sense
Amazing Cuban Poster Exhibit From the 1960s and ’70s
I recently saw an exhibit of Cuban posters that took my breath away. Pictures speak louder than words, so I’m
Academic Performance Trends For Berkeley’s Middle Schools, By Student Subgroup
Update: Read Berkeleyside’s Jan. 28, 2020 deep dive on the situation at Longfellow. For those who saw my previous post
Academic Performance At Longfellow Middle School Has Plummeted, While Willard and King Thrive
Update: Read Berkeleyside’s Jan. 28, 2020 deep dive on the situation at Longfellow. Dec. 15, 2019 – The latest school
Berkeley Wants To Buy Nine More Fossil-Fueled, 15-mpg Pickup Trucks… Just Say No!
There’s still time to stop this purchase. Let’s avoid buying nine new vehicles that will keep emitting carbon for decades.
Climate Escape Room: Make Your Own Fun Group CO2 Learning Game
Last week at the Getting To Zero (carbon) conference I played an excellent group game that showed how with a
(Updated With More Ideas) How Berkeley Can Lead The World In Bold, Aggressive Climate Action
Let’s act now with radical policies that can change the global trajectory. August 2020: Note that this post is already
Restorative Justice, And That Thing I Stole When I Was A Teenager
Lately I’ve been hearing a lot about restorative justice… the idea that harms done can be repaired, through encounters among
Let’s Fix This: Berkeley’s Sidewalk-Cleaning Trucks Are Spewing Noxious Emissions
Update: On September 26th I received this email from the Downtown Business Association, which owns the truck: “Dave, Thanks for
Running For Berkeley City Council Is Easier Than Ever (Updated for 2020)
Thinking about getting more involved in Berkeley? It’s never been easier to run for City Council: there are four seats
How Berkeley’s Biggest Donors Helped Hillary Beat Bernie In 2016
TLDR: Wealth and political giving are extremely concentrated in Berkeley. With the 2020 primaries around the corner, I thought I’d
Why Berkeley Should Ban Natural Gas Hookups, Now
Update: On July 16, 2019, Berkeley became the first California city to ban natural gas in new buildings. I’m a businessperson.
Photoessay: My Private Tour Of The New York Times’ Morgue
Today I spent a couple of hours in a basement archive belonging to the New York Times. It was a
The Five Questions Tech Funders Will Ask About Your Journalism Venture
Think these over before meeting with potential funders from the tech world. More and more journalist-entrepreneurs are looking to Silicon
Flashback To A Very Young Netflix, Climbing The Wall of Worry
Check out the first five Netflix annual reports (2002-2007), which for some reason I saved and have now scanned: 2002
Save Those Rejection Letters
“You don’t seem cut out for business.” That’s what some guy from Harvard Business School essentially told me when I
Notes From The Day Larry And Sergei Pitched Us On Google
This morning I found the notes from my memorable early-1999 meeting with Google’s Larry Page and Sergei Brin. I was
In The Recording Studio With Dad (Grandpa Harry)
Dad and I finally got into a professional recording studio last week, at U.C. Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism. I
Celebrating The Early Quizlet Team
The early Quizlet team was awesome. We bootstrapped the company for almost a decade, with a small, scrappy, team that
What Does Berkeley Get When We Spend $20 Million?
$19 million for 23 affordable housing units, and $22 million for a seismic retrofit. Update: After I published this post
Don’t Do Journalism For The Money… But Do It.
In January 1984, I got offered a summer reporting internship at the Virginian Pilot in Norfolk Virginia. On hearing about it,
What Local Journalism Needs Now
The recent Online News Association event in Austin was great – full of passionate, committed local journalist-entrepreneurs all trying to figure
Are Mannequins Running Pensacola’s Biggest Newsroom?
I recently spent 24 hours in Pensacola, and stumbled across a ghostly reminder of how far local journalism has fallen
Are Teachers And Journalists On The Same Wild Ride?
They’re facing a lot of change, and the same tough questions. Google ‘what do teachers and journalists have in common’
Paywalls Are Killing Local Journalism. Could A Robin Hood Model Save The Day?
Paywalls have dramatically failed journalism. In an attempt to adapt to the Internet, American newspapers of all sizes have erected
For A Fun, Educational Project, Build This Cardboard Pinball Machine
What can America do with its mountains of recycled cardboard? Make educational toys, that’s what! Last week, in Burlington, Vermont,
What’s Holding Back The New York Times?
Why does The New York Times only have two million digital subscribers, when there are two billion smartphone users on
Berkeley’s Wall For Peace, Revisited 30 Years Later
How long can a symbol of hopeful activism last? A long time, in the case of Berkeley’s Wall For Peace,
Introducing ‘Watch Berkeley Gov’
Note: due to low viewership, I’ve decided not to go forward with this experiment… its not worth the time. While
Life Advice From Letterpress Artist Amos Kennedy Jr… ‘It’s a Joy To Make Stuff’
If you’re a creative person and want to get inspired, watch this talk with Detroit letterpress artist Amos Kennedy Jr.
Why Run For Berkeley City Council?
Thinking about running for Berkeley City Council? You should! There are four seats open in this year’s election, and there’s
Deflation Is Tightening Its Grip On Us All
Why so many people are feeling squeezed. What’s the United States’ biggest export? iPhones? Airplanes? Nope – it’s deflation. For
Bruce
His book is worth reading – and his second act worth considering. A friend snapped this cell phone picture of
Local Music Moments, Caught on Video
Wurlitzer Organ at Berkeley High School, Jan 13, 2018 Was walking by Berkeley High today and saw the door to
The Best Lap Swim Pools in the East Bay (Updated)
Looking to swim laps in the East Bay? We have some awesome pools here. Here’s my roundup so far, after trying
Homelessness: A Reading List
Want to learn more about homelessness in the United States? I spent a couple of days trying to find the
Bay Area Artists I Like (Updated)
Here’s a list of local (Bay Area) artists I’ve discovered – and liked – for one reason or another. I’ll
Electric Cars’ Low Operating Costs, Confirmed
Finally some research is coming out about the real cost of owning electric cars – confirming that while they cost
Capitola Sea Wall Tiles Project
I was in Capitola last weekend and came across this awesome public art project, on the boardwalk downtown, from 2008. What’s
What If We’d Spent $1.7 Trillion On Education, Instead Of The Iraq War?
Fourteen years after the war in Iraq started, the New York Times is now reporting that Iran has essentially taken over
My House Concert Experiment Was a Hit
Just wanted to post a few pictures and a video from my house concert this Saturday featuring the awesome bluegrass