Euro-hypocrites

A Brussels debate organised by think tank Notre Europe, dedicated to keeping alive the flame ofJacques Delors, featured a panel ofnotables— Margot Wallstrom, vice president ofthe commission; Giuliano Amato, Italian interior minister; and Valééry Giscard d’Estaing, former president of France and chairman ofthe European constitutional convention. After delivering themselves ofsuitable sentiments on the need to get the people more involved, the panel were asked ifthey thought Nicolas Sarkozy’s idea ofappointing 12 wise persons to reflect on Europe was a good idea. Walstrom thought it bad; Amato thought it worse. When the moderator, John Lloyd, put the question to Giscard, he gave an enormous Gallic shrug. Pressed, he gave an even bigger one. Later, though, as he left the hall, he bent over the questioner and said: “I do not think it is a good idea.”

Quakers get going

The Quakers, long the most self-effacing of denominations, are waking up to the fact that, in the competitive 21stcentury religious marketplace, you’ve got to go out and spread the word. The last week of September is Quaker week, part of a campaign by BritishQuakers to raise awareness—respectfully and non-invasively—of the “Quaker Way.”An army of publicists has been hired; the Quaker slogan—“Simple. Contemporary. Radical”—has been pasted across advertising boards; numerous chapters are holding meetings (in silence) on public squares for all to join. A group whose worship has traditionally consisted of “sitting in quiet expectation of God”is at last starting—as one of their new ads puts it— to “live adventurously.”

The NYTand the power of search

On 18th September, the New York Times announced it would stop charging for access to “premium”parts of its website, ending a controversial “paywall”experiment that began two years ago. The Times’s move is likely to cost it around $9m a year in foregone reader payments; its executives expect the eventual increase in revenues from advertising to outweigh this. But the move also marks a significant shift in the development of a search-engine-led internet. With around 13m unique visitors a month, the Times is the world’s most-read newspaper online. Yet it is still regularly beaten by blogs and other free resources in the top ten results for major stories, and this access-via-Googling is now setting the agenda. At the same time, “informal”online outlets are seeing their influence increase. With their NYT -sized readerships, leading blogs earn enough from advertising to pay full-time writers, and even send them around the world.

Technology blog Engadget sent 12 people to cover the CES technology conference, more than most major newspapers. Advertisers are also getting more savvy with their online spend, something established names can turn to their advantage: time-per-visit is becoming at least as important as number of visits, which helps brands like the NYT , with their lengthy and informed content. The NYT ’s move could also be a reaction to News Corp’s purchase of the Wall Street Journal , one of the internet’s last bastions of paid-for content: Rupert Murdoch has suggested he may soon make it free.

“The little round label has fallen off”

NEWS & CURIOSITIES

in fact...

The production of a kilogram of beef emits the same amount of CO2

as the average European car driving 250 kilometres.

NEW SCIENTIST,21ST JULY 2007

During the first year of the Nazi invasion,the Red army issued 800,000 death sentences to its own soldiers. ”NO SIMPLE VICTORY”BY

NORMAN DAVIES

In Chicago and New York,among other US cities,full-time female employees in their 20s earn more than males.

QUEENS COLLEGE,NEW YORK

After the end of donor anonymity, there are now only 205 sperm donors registered in Britain. BBC NEWS ONLINE,16TH MAY 2007

In 2002.Bangladesh became the first country to ban plastic bags.

THE GUARDIAN,12TH MAY 2007

In 2006,177 British men had cosmetic surgery to reduce their breast size. HARPER’S,MAY 2007

About 25 per cent of American workers in the private sector get no paid holiday at all.

NEW REPUBLIC,30TH JULY 2007

Windscreen wipers,laser printers and bulletproof vests were all invented by women.

BRITISH ASSOCIATION FOR THE

ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE

About 80 per cent of all news on the internet originates from print newspapers. NEW YORK REVIEW OF

BOOKS,16TH AUGUST 2007

Four of the five richest Americans— Bill Gates,casino owner Sheldon Adelson,Oracle's Larry Ellison,and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen— are college dropouts. “ ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD:HOW

THE FORBES 400 MAKE—AND SPEND—

THEIR FORTUNES”BY PETER W

BERNSTEIN AND ANNALYNW SWAN

Prospect OCTOBER2007 11