Word: mainstream
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...snarkier precincts of the left-wing blogosphere, mainstream journalists like me are often called villagers. The reference, so far as I can tell, has to do with isolation: we live in this little village on the Potomac - actually, I don't, but no matter - constantly intermingling over hors d'oeuvres, deciding who is "serious" (a term of derision in the blogosphere) and who is not, regurgitating spin spoon-fed by our sources or conjuring a witless conventional wisdom that has nothing to do with reality as it is lived outside the village. There is, of course, some truth to this...
When Finnish filmmaker Timo Vuorensola came up with the idea for his movie Star Wreck, a parody of Star Trek, he knew that looking for conventional distribution would be futile. An amateur, science-fiction comedy with a miniscule budget - and in Finnish, to boot - would hardly be attractive to mainstream studios. So Vuorensola took matters into his own hands: he used a Finnish social networking site to build up an online fan base who contributed to the storyline, made props and even offered their acting skills. In return for the help, Vuorensola released Star Wreck in 2005 online for free...
...Even some mainstream filmmakers are starting to use online distribution to build buzz about their projects or simply to get their films to as many people as possible. Last year, Michael Moore released Slacker Uprising - a documentary about his attempts to have President George W. Bush removed from office in the run-up to the 2004 election - online for free in the U.S and Canada to encourage young people to vote. And in May, documentary filmmaker Franny Armstrong launched a website called www.indiescreenings.net, where people can buy a license and then screen her climate-change documentary, The Age of Stupid...
...Pacquiao and Mayweather never meet in the fight, it will be a major body blow to boxing, a sport that seemed to gain mainstream momentum this year, mostly because of charismatic Pacquiao's rags-to-riches story. His November fight in Las Vegas against Miguel Cotto brought worldwide, and more importantly American, attention back to the fight game. After Pacquiao defeated Cotto there was immediate talk of a bout with Mayweather. The crowd at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas chanted, "We want Floyd! We want Floyd!" (See the rise of mixed martial arts: the new rules of fight club...
...American Muslim community has become better at nipping potential threats in the bud. In the case of the Virginia Five, the families of the men approached CAIR, which encouraged them to get a lawyer and make contact with the FBI. Hooper says community leaders are working harder to promote mainstream Islamic thinking among younger American Muslims, to counter extremist interpretations they may discover online...