Equipment/websites:
Medusa computer (5 video capture cards in one computer allowing for 5 simultaneous recordings)
Radio Shark (AM/FM antenna attached to computer for recording local radio)
Sharpreader – RSS
RSOE Emergency and Disaster Information Service Website

We have two separate but similar systems to handle media monitoring. We have one PVR computer that can record five channels simultaneously preprogrammed to record the various news broadcasts that happen outside of normal work hours. These recordings are reviewed every morning with the items of interest edited out, and copied to our internal network. These clips are then catalogued and a short description of each clip and link is sent to those people on our base who by position would be interested in the subject of the report. The description of the clip is also sent by email to those individuals within the military but outside of our location with a link to an internal FTP location to download the selected clips from.

The second system is an almost real time distribution system. Due to security restrictions, a PVR system cannot be attached to our internal network. To counter this we have a second bank of PVR computers maintaining watch over the main 24 hour news channels available in Canada; CNN, CBC Newsworld and CTV NewsNet. These systems all have their own LCD/Plasma TVs constantly on during the workday. When we note a story of interest, we start recording, doing line editing as the story progresses. On completion we transfer the clip to the internal network using a thumbdrive. The distribution system is the same as the overnight clips, just sent from a different email account.

We monitor one local and one regional talk radio broadcast using streaming audio and an AM/FM radio antenna attached to our computer. This allows us to digitally capture audio broadcasts and distribute them quickly to those people who are interested for their situational awareness.

RSS
RSS feeds have become integral to our ability to quickly receive breaking news. We receive feeds from over 100 different sites, covering all types of information.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s West Coast & Alaska Tsunami Warning Center and the Alaska Volcano Observatory both send out alerts using RSS. In the past we would surf every few hours to both of these sites, plus we were on their respective e-mail/fax list. Now that we have subscribed to their RSS feeds we receive alerts wherever they provide an update.

RSS feeds cut down on our workload and stress from having to constantly search websites for updates and has improved our speed-reading ability from having to scan the over 1600 messages that we receive daily.

We have subscribed to Google News Feeds using a number of keywords for our searches. We have then subscribed to the news RSS feed allowing for specific news articles to be sent to our RSS reader. This system has assisted us in finding obscure stories of interest that we would have not normally have found so easily.

Stories
Situational Awareness

We watch for stories to distribution to the group in the military called Joint Task Force Pacific. JTFP is the military section that responds quickly and efficiently to civil emergencies in British Columbia including floods, major forest fires, devastating earthquakes or any other emergency that the civilian authorities require military assistance for. The JTF commander can order any military asset within their area to assist the civilian authorities under this arrangement. Being aware of a mounting problem allows for added time to plan and prepare for any event.

We watch for stories dealing with emergency preparedness, potential or actual disasters, major changes to transportation routes and the local government and community’s relationship with the military. This information is brought in for review, comment, and situational awareness and/or for planning purposes. During an actual emergency a Public Affairs Officer will be part of the deployed task group. We have a pack-up box containing all the material needed to set up a remote office and maintain communications between the deployed Public Affairs Officer, the media and our office.

The role of media monitoring during a natural disaster would be to provide the decision makers in the military with media reports, giving them an added source of information for their situational awareness. As we have seen during Hurricane Katrina and the confusion around the Superdome, the media can sometimes have important information that the local powers don’t or reports that substantiate information that we currently have. These added pieces of information are an important part of the situational awareness that the commanders must have to make an informed decision.

The Canadian Military coordinates with many countries around the Pacific in military exercises, United Nation missions and humanitarian assistance. When a ship or a unit from our base is deployed we are constantly searching for news items about their activities. This includes mainstream news items, blogs and other services such as YouTube/Google Video services. Not only are these reports captured for our records, but they are also forwarded to the organization in charge of that activity.

RELATED WEBSITE LINKS
www.navy.forces.gc.ca/marpac
http://www.snapstream.com/community/articles/medusa/
http://www.sharpreader.net/
http://visz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/woalert.php?lang=eng

Recently, I stumbled into the ability to stream live video to my existing community - through a service that is still relatively rough around the edges. The results, thus far, have been nothing short of amazing:

http://live.pirillo.com/

Minutes after a recent earthquake in Acapulco, we connected with at least two Mexico City bloggers in real-time (video and audio). Our live stream had already been active for a few hours at that point, so the audience was already assembled and ready to go. The discussion was loose, but relatively important - in the sense that we were delivering experiences much quicker than traditional media could.

Kevin Cupp, Virginia Tech student, was able to phone in and discuss his perspective on the day’s events with our live audience - hours before appearing on CBS Evening News. Again, we were able to beat traditional media to the punch (so to speak). We cut through the clutter and sensationalism with a raw, truly direct feed. Our live chat room was asking plenty of questions without any kind of filter.

Then I worked a bit of simple marketing magic:

http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/04/17/monday-night-live/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVIyvJYkBOI

Upon arriving at the Web 2.0 conference, I happened to meet the investor and development team for this new video streaming platform (which has enabled me to connect to our audience in a completely new and dynamic way). That interview turned out to be a very public one, generating deep interest from our remote audience. The stream continued throughout my session at the end of the day, where I sat on stage in between Robert Scoble and Thomas Hawk to discuss the future of the Web.

During that recent trip to San Francisco, I happened to take part in a video commercial - streaming “behind the scenes” with Justin.tv as another participant. Later, two relatively well-known digital pundits came to my hotel room and started to do interactive Q&A with the chatting / streaming audience. Each one of them was drawn into the compelling discussion, twisting and turning around topics at seemingly breakneck speed.

I wound up streaming live video from the most recent “Podcast Hotel” conference in SF - as both on stage and off. I planted myself in a corner and let people come to me - there wasn’t be a dull moment. Every time someone new approached the camera, the chatting community wanted to know more about him or her. Instant interactivity through a “social network” of one (me).

We’ve talked with astronomers:

http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/05/02/a-planet-nowhere-near-mars/

I’ve done quick product reviews:

http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/05/02/aluminum-keyboard/

We’ve covered lifestyle subject matter:

http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/04/28/cooking-videos/

We’ve had fun:

http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/05/01/dog-video/

The ustream service is still experiencing a few growing pains, but it’s worked well enough to help us do organize amazing experiences at a moment’s notice. Join us, anytime!!!

Nicer Dicer - http://www.asseenontv.com/prod-pages/nicer_dicer.html
Price: $39.99

Pros - I bought this hoping it would help with my least favorite task in the kitchen - dicing onions. I also thought it would be awesome to make little square potatoes ideal for adding to beef for tacos or for corned beef hash. Uniformity in size of veggies is key in cooking so I thought it would be a great help to save on time and accuracy. It also looked like a win for the storage capacity.

Cons - It’s really hard to work. You must practically put all your weight and down on the item to get it to cut. That was a little scary since it’s plastic. I ended up having to slice everything before putting it in the gadget which sort of defeats the purpose of saving on time and clean up. I used the lids for the onion not used in my recipe and they didn’t seal properly. The result, our fridge smelled like onion the next morning. Yuck!

Remote Digital Cooking Thermometer - http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?order_num=-1&SKU=12123876&RN...
Price: $39.99

Pros - This thermometer makes cooking meat easier and tastier. It monitors he internal temperature of cooking meats from up to 100 feet away. Programmable for six types of meats with a count up or down timer. The transmitter has a built in stand, so you can set it on the countertop. A wireless remote monitor has LCD and beeps and flashes when meat is ready. The probe wire is heat resitant and fits through the oven door without affecting insulation. And, there’s a belt clip for all you uber geeks.

Cons - It takes a bit of time and effort to learn how to use it. You can’t go more than 100 feet away. The transmiter stand is cheaply constructed so be careful with it or it will break off. Not, dishwasher safe and sort of a pain to wash thoroughly.

The Bullet - http://www.buythebullet.com/
Price: $59.99

Pros - It’s a small mini blender/chopper/mixer with attachable cups that are microwavable safe and usable for immediate consumption. We use this for lots of quick snacks, smoothies and mini meals. It’s small and doesn’t take up a lot of space and it’s dishwasher safe parts make it great for easy clean up. It also makes wonderful whipped cream and coffee drinks.

Cons - It has several little parts which need to be thought about when it comes to storage. The cups are rather small for a crowd. You’d need to make several batches of any item if friends are around. There are two attachment blades so if you are going to make a sweet and savory dish you have to clean the blade area really well in between to avoid transfering flavors. I prefer to put it through the dishwasher before changing from savory to sweet or vice versa. You could accidently mix flavors.

Recapping the convo with Sean - The idea is to start out talking about high tech vs low tech and how to strike a balance in the beginning then lead into the gadgets we use in our house listed above and round out with a few recipe sites we use. I’ll also post this info to my blog the day of the show and we can refer them there for the fondue recipe we’ll make on air with the bullet.

Websites worth using for recipes ideas:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/cooking
http://allrecipes.com/Recipes/Main.aspx