Conference Keynote #1
Joel Stein, columnist for TIME Magazine and the LA Times
Joel’s keynote was casual and pretty darn funny! He kept it interactive, too, taking questions from the audience throughout.
When he recounted his Martha Stewart days, Joel said it reminded him of “revolutionary times” when he first heard of someone named “Martha”…who lived in Connecticut…and made crafts. HA. Then, at the audience’s request, he dished about Martha, too.
To get the angles for his stories, it seems that “doing” (like exploring his attic with George Clooney) is more powerful for Joel than just “talking.” He said his Leonardo DiCaprio interview was fairly challenging at the start – until they actually went out and “did” something (in this case, go to a supermarket…and only after Joel offered to pay for the groceries).
I like this strategy – diverting attention to something very regular, natural, or habitual in life. This makes sense, too, because the mainstream media today focuses often the abnormal and bizarre! I also imagine that these routine actions would contribute to a sense of calm. In the end, Joel’s sighting of Leo’s supermarket discount card proved to be quite catalytic for his interview process.
Joel also touched on the mainstream media’s role in today’s social media environment. He said: “TIME still feels like they can dictate the conversation. NO WAY.” But, he also encouraged us to avoid completely jumping ship from traditional media until we at least knew where new media was going end up. Joel’s sentiments are underscored by his blog, which hasn’t been updated since 2006. 😉
Questions and conversations then evolved to information as commodity and the value of “news” today…particularly regarding the 24-hour news channels. “It’s depressing,” Joel said, “I feel like I’m walking into an old person’s home every time I hear CNN or Fox 24-hour news on.” Everyone who had a mother, father, grandmother, or grandfather smiled and nodded.
I thought it was a perfect keynote for our luncheon: Light and lively with a little bit of dish thrown in.
Oh, in case you didn’t already know…Joel’s favorite decade is the 80s. 🙂