Dateline: Portsmouth RI, 1 December 2004
Interesting sort of intense media day I had, compared to yesterday's very frustrating experience.
Got an email of 18 questions from Expedito Filho, the NYC-based correspondent for the Brazilian magazine Epoca, which enjoys a circulation of about 3 million down there. Filho is working on a special issue focused on America's role in the world this century. It's an interesting set of questions, that will take some time and effort to answer.
Also did a quick second interview with Hiroyuki Akita of the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, aka the Nikkei Newspaper, as it is known in English. It's the equivalent of the Dow Jones/Wall Street Journal here. I gave Mr. Akita a long phone interview a while back and he used a quote or two in an article he wrote, which I hope to receive soon from him, but now he wants to use the bulk of the interview in a piece that showcases my thinking. Word I got from the DC bureau of the paper was that I would get the Nikkei's version of the "dimpled" head shot, much like the WSJ one I treasure and display (ahem!) so prominently on this site.
When Mr. Akita said he wanted to send me the transcript of the phone interview, I thought it would nothing too long, but when I printed it out, it ran 39 pages! Turns out Nikkei must have some sort of transcription software that took down our entire conversation, including the 5 pages it took Mr. Akita to explain about his newspaper, with me going "Right. Right. Right. Right." in response time after time. It's actually pretty weird to read an exact transcript of a long phone conversation like that, but what Mr. Akita really wants is for me to okay the substantive responses so he can shape them into a print interview format.
I also had to get on the horn with Esquire to figure out how they would write about me on the contributor's page for the February issue—always a tricky subject, but more so on this one cause I'm once again offering my advice directly to "Mr. President."
Finally, I'm discussing with yet another editor about the possibility of my writing a quick piece for Wired magazine on yet another potentially very touchy political subject, which is just tricky enough for me to want to try and tackle it.
So it was one of those days when your left ear starts to ache terribly near the end of the day and you realize it's because you've been holding a phone to your head all day.
No time to dawdle though, as I get ready for the Highlands Forum next week in northern Virginia, a very exclusive sort of gathering of high-tech types that is regularly put on for the benefit of the Office of the Secretary of Defense. I am the featured speaker on day one of the forum, which will focus on alternative global futures and the theme of "connectivity." Gotta like that. Anyway, while I gear up for that trip and presentation I'm also prepping for a couple of workshops I'm involved with here at the college, so it was the kind of day when you come in early, eat at your desk, somehow manage not to get to the gym, and still leave so late your spouse has to hold dinner.
Then again, I've had periods when no one called, no one asked for interviews or articles, no one invited me to give talks, and there were no workshops that I was storming to get ready for, and all those days got you were really long workouts and a very organized office, both of which are nice, but not exactly intellectually fulfilling.
Today I cross-post a nice piece by Mark Safranski writing for the History News Network. In it, he analyzes the recent election from a historical perspective focusing on foreign policy mandates and makes a nice pitch for the middle-path vision offered by PNM.
Then there's today's catch:
■ The reality of the coming "national" elections in Iraq
■ The political rule set on leadership in the Middle East defines its Gap-dom
■ What we really need the Department of Homeland Security to be
■ The proposed new rule set for the UN Security Council: Don't hold your breath!
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