Best of the Web - Videos For Your Soul

Videos For Your Soul.com - This is actually a project by a friend of mine (Randall Curtis - The Holy Geek.  I'm pretty sure you're going to run into him again later in this series).  It began as a spiritual practice during Lent.  He gathered together some of the best and most inspiring videos on YouTube.  Then he offered up a comment or a question with each one and opened it up to discussion.  The framework for the progression is the Christian practice of Lent but the videos are not especially Christian or even religious in nature.  He uses them to open a wider discussion of who we are and what we are doing in our lives.  Randall even notes in his description of the site that his goal is beyond the walls of the church:

 I hope that some of these videos and reflections might even turn in discussions at Sunday school classes, at coffee shops and at bars.

 You can come at this website from a variety of angles.  Certainly you can approach it from a faith based direction.  Or you can simply appreciate the effort to sift through the enormous number of videos out there (48 HOURS of new video is loaded per minute on YouTube) to find ones that will make you laugh, make you think, make you cry or make you want to change the world.  Or maybe a little of both.

It's a faith based site that isn't preachy or condemnatory or designed to make you feel bad.  It's intent is to lift you up.  Nice to find out here on the Wild Wild Web.

I know there's a whole new series coming for Lent 2014 (Lent begins this year on March 5.  I wanted to give you time to enjoy what's already there before the new ones start flowing)

Day of the Doctor, R.I.P. Blockbuster, Too Much Information

 "The View From the Phlipside" is a media commentary program airing on WRFA-LP, Jamestown NY.  It can be heard Monday through Friday just after 8 AM and 5 PM.  The following are scripts which may not exactly match the aired version of the program.  Mostly because the host may suddenly choose to add or subtract words at a moments notice.  WRFA-LP is not responsible for any such silliness or the opinions expressed.  You can listen to a live stream of WRFA or find a podcast of this program at wrfalp.com.  Copyright 2013 by Jay Phillippi.  All Rights Reserved.  You like what you see?  Drop me a line and we can talk.

Program scripts from week of November 17, 2013


My name is Jay Phillippi and I've spent my life in and around the media.  TV, radio, the movies and more.  I love them, and I hate them and I always have an opinion.  Call this the View from the Phlipside. 

Too Much Information                                                                                       

There are a lot of us who worry about how much information there is floating around about us out on the internet.  Whether you’re concerned about stalkers or identity thieves or avoiding certain failed romantic entanglements from your past there are a lot of reasons to be watchful over your personal information.  Of course the information that’s floating out there is largely what we’ve put there.  The rest are the public records that become easier and easier to access.

Now some of us will try to hide some of that personal information.  In fact for some people it becomes a bit of a priority.  That’s where those pesky public records come into play.

In this case an actress is very upset with the information that is out there about her.  Specifically, her age.  Like generations of actresses before her Junie Hoang had lied about her age.  Nine years ago she had gone on the website IMDB (Internet Movie Data Base) and created a profile for herself.  IMDB has become pretty much the go to website for information about actors in movies and on TV.  Apparently even for folks like casting agents.  So it was important that Ms. Hoang present the version of herself that gave her the best chance of getting work.  So she cut 7 years off her age.  A few years later she decided to just drop the whole birthdate on her profile.  At which point IMDB refused to change the entry unless she could prove it was wrong.  Which she could of course but didn’t want to.  After repeated requests were turned down someone at the website used information from the credit card used to create the account, found out her real name, looked in those troublesome public records and found out her real age.  And then added that information to her profile.

At which point she sued.  The first round went to Amazon owned IMDB but the actress is appealing the verdict.

The reality is that Hollywood plays unfair games with actresses as they get older.  Junie Hoang has made a career in smaller roles but she’s made a career.  A career that just might be jeopardized because IMDB decided to play holier than thou.  It’s possible that they did nothing wrong under the law.

But the violated one of the unwritten rules of the Internet.  On the Internet you get to be who you want to be.  I’m rooting for Junie on the appeal.

RIP Blockbuster                                                                                                    

Upon occasion we remember the passing of figures in the world of the media.  More often than not they are folks who were cult stars or lesser known behind the scenes types who don’t get the big front page notices when they make their final exit.

Today I thought we’d take a moment to remember a former giant of the media world that had fallen on hard times in the last couple years.  Heck, let’s be honest this star had started fading years ago.  You have to kind of wonder what took so long to shuffle off this mortal coil.

In this case it’s not an actor or special effects magician but the video store chain Blockbuster.  Be honest, when you heard the announcement last week that Dish Network, who bought the chain back in 2011, was closing the last 300 stores was your first thought “There are still Blockbuster Video stores in the world?”?  Yeah, me too.

My second thought was that I kinda missed the old days.  Walking the racks looking for a movie for the weekend always reminded me of checking the stacks in the library.  You never knew what fascinating discovery might be waiting for you.  Some little gem that you’d heard about but never seen or even better something that was totally new to you.  Movie nerd nirvana.

Then I remembered.  That almost never happened.  Why?  Because places like Blockbuster were always aimed at the great middle of the viewing audience.  This is why you would find a dozen copies of whatever had been popular in the last year.  Didn’t matter if it was an utter piece of drivel.  If there were anything really interesting in the collection you could certain of two things.

First, there would only be one copy.  Second, that copy would be checked out already.

So in the end I am not particularly unhappy with the demise of the classic video store.  I have a much wider selection of movies going back decade after decade through services like Netflix than I would have had at every Blockbuster store combined.

For a brief shining moment places like Blockbuster were a great new entry way into the wider world of the movies.  But that moment has come and gone.

Blockbuster Video was 28 years old.

Day of the Doctor                                                                                                                   

Lots of people get crazy about lots of different things.  I work with teens so I see them getting all hot and bothered about their favorite new band, movie star or teen star.  I have a long time friend who is very clear.  Saturdays are off limits.  If you want to come watch college football with him that’s fine, otherwise, pick another day for a visit.

There’s not a lot I get that excited about.  I love sports but I don’t live or die with my teams (which is a good thing since I’m a Pittsburgh Pirates fan), the only college game I must see every year is the Army/Navy game (Go Navy, Beat Army!).  Twenty plus years in music radio pretty took the shine off of most music stars.  I love their work but I’ve watched too many of them crash and burn to put them up on pedestals.

But this weekend there is something coming that does bring a bit of the fan boy out in me.  I haven’t been this excited about a media event in a very long time.  You see Saturday is the Day of the Doctor.  I’ve mentioned before that I’m a fan of the long running BBC science fiction series “Doctor Who”.  Saturday November 23rd marks the 50th anniversary of the very first episode of the show.  To borrow from the Grateful Dead “What a long strange trip it’s been”.

The truly amazing part of this is that the series has had as long a run as it has.  The original series was intended as a semi-educational family show.  I’m certain no one expected it to become an media icon and a multi-media smash.  The original episodes were so low budget it’s a little embarrassing to watch today.

So why has the show endured?  Why is now on it’s on to its third or fourth generation of viewers?  I discovered the show on PBS while in college.  My daughter was a teenager when the show returned from the dead and she’s now as big a fan as her old man.

Even these cynical days there’s something appealing about a traveller looking to make the world a little better place.  The Doctor believes in the essential value of the human race even when we don’t.  Through his eyes we see our best qualities amid the trials and tribulations of being human.  We see that his eternal optimism endures even the pain and experience of a lifetime that is measured in centuries.

And I think that’s something worth getting excited about.

Call that the View From the Phlipside

A total geek intersection of my life

I've just been feeling guilty about not posting anything other than the radio scripts here and I promise to amend my ways very soon.  But as soon as I saw this I KNEW I was posting it on the blog.

The intersection of my love of movies and theater:



 Love it!  The reactions are great too.  Especially the couple people who start looking worried when the Storm Troopers arrive. 

h/t to Chris at Youth Ministry Geek

Sabbatical video check week 6

My sabbatical is drawing to an end.  Here's my latest check in on what's going on and how I'm feeling.

Preach it Brother!

Great commentary on Christians by a Christian (Chris Tse).  Tough stuff but very much on target.  LANGUAGE ALERT!  you have been warned.



I believe this is Chris's blog

Sabbatical video check week 5

Another good week to report on. Quickest one yet! Looking forward to the next several weeks.

View From the Phlipside - Death Video

My name is Jay Phillippi and I've spent my life in and around the media.  TV, Radio, the Movies and more.  I love them and I hate them and I always have an opinion.  Call this The View From the Phlipside.

A tragic story from a month or so ago continues to reverberate as the news media fights with the victims family over video taken of the event.  As much as I love the protections given to the media by our Constitution I'm not sure I'm on their side in this case.

The videos concern the death of Sea World trainer Dawn Brancheau by a killer whale named Tilikum.  For reasons unknown the animal, which has been involved with at least a couple other human deaths, dragged the young woman into the pool during a public performance where she drowned.  Cameras at the park recorded the entire performance including the trainer's death.  The battle over the tapes began almost immediately.

The split on the question isn't particularly surprising.  The media would like a look at the video.  It was a news event and there is a record of it.  On the other side is the Brancheau family who can not imagine anything worse than having the death of their family member replayed over and over and over.  The legal question comes down to how Florida can deal with the issue since the videos are part of the investigation and therefore potentially part of the public record.  The Florida Sunshine Law may require that they be released.

My question is why?  Not from the legal point of view, a judge will decide that.  Why do we need to see them?  What possible benefit is there for society?  There is a small protion of the population that enjoys watching death, there's even a name for it, death porn.  It is a sick and twisted past time that does not require or deserve public support.  There's a larger portion of the population that simply fall into the voyeur category, the kind of person who can't stop themselves from rubber necking at a car accident.  I don't think we need to feed that tendency either.  There is no legitimate news value in this tape.  There is no benefit to society and a considerable potential cost.  Let the police get the information that they need, let Sea World discover what they can to improve the safety of their parks for animal and human alike.  Then destroy the video.  History has more than adequately recorded tragic deaths like this for centuries without the benefit of having the ability for endless instant replays.  Any desire to watch this young woman's death comes from the darkest recesses of the human soul.  I don't believe the Constitutional protections were intended to protect our rights to diminish and demean ourselves and others.

The court will hear arguments on releasing the video April 5.  My fervent hope is that the judge will agree or barring that that the media will have the good sense not use what comes into their hands.  But I wouldn't lay money on that possibility.

Call that the View From the Phlipside.

"The View From the Phlipside" airs on WRFA-LP Jamestown NY.  You can listen to WRFA online HERE
Copyright - Jay Phillippi 2010

Sabbatical video check week 4

Forgot to mention what I'm reading this week - Joan Chittester's book "The Breath of the Soul - Reflections on Prayer".  Loaned to me by a friend who had just gotten it and hadn't read it yet herself.  Thanks Kim!

Sabbatical video check week 3

Sabbatical video check week 2

Still struggling with the audio. Not sure what the solution is but we'll keep working on it.