New Think Thunked

I’ve seen a fair number of remarkable events at SXSW over the years, but I’ve never seen anything quite like what unfolded at the New Think for Old Publishers panel yesterday afternoon.

Let me be clear. Absolutely clear. Not one word spoken in that session, either from the panelists or from the audience, was new or innovative. The panel, well, we’ve all heard job descriptions before. The audience? That was one very long line of people saying the same things we’ve been saying to the publishing industry for ten years. And yet the publishing people treated our comments as if they were items to be added to a list. A list that will be filed in a drawer along with other conference ephemera.

“Maybe we should begin cultivating relationships with bloggers, or something”. Or something?

You can read the real-time reactions at Twitter #sxswbp. hat tip: Susannah Breslin

March 18th, 2009 by Eric Jacobsen

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