http://echolsgroup.com/blog The Echols Group Blog Fri, 06 Aug 2010 15:47:23 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en People are more likely to share their negative experiences with others. For some reason, we pay more attention to negativity and bad news. The media business knows this and makes hay with it every hour. Social networks, blogs and search engines make the spread of bad news easy -- too easy. If ... http://echolsgroup.com/blog/?p=18 The Tour de France starts later this week for its annual athletic and cultural spectacle. And as always, it's anybody's guess as to the cycling controversy that may erupt. I absolutely love watching the Tour de France. Not just the cycling and the strenuous physical feats, but the amazing camera shots ... http://echolsgroup.com/blog/?p=17 The U.S. space program of the 1960s was wondrous.  As a small boy, I peered into our black-and-white TV set to soak in every minute of every launch, orbit and splashdown of the spacecrafts.  On my birthdays, my mother stuck a model rocket on top of my cake.  I was ... http://echolsgroup.com/blog/?p=16 My hometown newspaper has changed a lot. Like all daily newspapers, it continues to struggle with costs, online competition, and relevance.  Its very recent changes include another round of difficult staff reductions -- all of which have impacted long-time friends and professional colleagues of mine -- and dramatic new designs.  ... http://echolsgroup.com/blog/?p=15 It's hard to pick just one. One crisis. When the news is saturated with bad stuff, feeling upbeat isn't easy. But let's try anyway. The U.S. financial crisis.  Yep, it's a big one alright. Have you ever heard so many opinions about what caused it, how bad it really is, and when ... http://echolsgroup.com/blog/?p=14 There have been more tumultuous years than 2008, but not too many in my lifetime.  Fortunately, we've got a lot to look forward to.  A rough and tumble presidential election.  Economic distress at every level of society.  And unprecedented ripple effects.  The U.S. still fighting two foreign wars.  These things that ... http://echolsgroup.com/blog/?p=13 When a public figure does bad things and goes to jail, at what point should we begin the forgiveness process?  With so many examples to choose from, I suppose we can be picky. Let's take Sen. Ted Stevens, the Alaska Republican recently convicted of felony charges related to lying about the ... http://echolsgroup.com/blog/?p=12 Oh, Lord help us.  A company holds a golf tournament to raise money for charity and to bring together its executives and suppliers?  The Wall Street Journal story, “At CVS Golf Gala, Suppliers Pay for Access to Executives” (Sept. 24), reads like breaking news.  Of course, it is not anything ... http://echolsgroup.com/blog/?p=11 Media outlets fall over themselves to report the news faster and first.  I heard a lot about their strategies at the Society of Professional Journalists national conference last week.  The pace of information is relentless -- we all know that.  For me, the biggest question arising from that pace is this:  ... http://echolsgroup.com/blog/?p=10 The Tour de France represents what is both great and disappointing about sports.  It is arguably the world's most demanding athletic attempt, requiring cyclists to ride nearly 2,200 miles over an entire month across famous mountains and ancient cities.  Yet, it is unquestionably the world's most corrupt sport, marred by ... http://echolsgroup.com/blog/?p=9