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Michael Avila

April 27, 2010 | by Marist Poll

Michael Avila has spent an inordinate amount of his life absorbing and exploring as much of the Pop Culture-verse as possible.

Michael Avila

As a veteran TV producer, he’s covered everything from the Sundance Film Festival to the San Diego Comic Con. As a pop culture contributor for msnbc.com, mtv.com and newsarama.com, he’s managed not to embarrass himself in interviews with George Clooney, Will Ferrell, Robert De Niro, Michael Douglas, Morgan Freeman, Harrison Ford and other A-listers. Michael has also recently launched his own production company, AviLand Productions, specializing in broadcast and digital media content.

From the Shire to the Promised Land, Michael’s wide range of interests works well in tandem with his ADD personality. Besides his beloved Florida State Seminoles, he worships at the altar of Bruce Springsteen and as a lifelong comics fan, he hopes to convert all the world’s children into fanboys (or fangirls).

Michael lives in Manhattan with his wife Cindi, daughter Alexia, and their two dogs, Bernice & Serena.

4/20: Tug-of-War: Technology’s Impact on Plagiarism

April 20, 2010 | by Mary Griffith

I don’t care what you call it. Using another writer’s words and claiming them as your own is wrong. And, yes, there is a common word associated with the practice — stealing.

Don’t take my word for it. According to Merriam-Webster.com, to “plagiarize” someone’s work is:

“to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own : use (another’s production) without crediting the source.”

But, is the outrage over plagiarism outdated? If you were to ask a highly lauded 17-year-old author from Germany, the answer is, “Yes.” Helene Hegemann is the “author” of Axolotl Roadkill in which she lifted passages from unattributed sources.

According to a recent New York Times article, Hegemann did not offer an apology for what many, including myself, would call plagiarism. Rather, she offered a mea culpa for not being “more open about her sources,” and said that she is “representative of a different generation” which “mixes” information from both new and old media.

Am I the only one who sees something wrong with this? First of all, words are property just like a car or a piece of jewelry. Would we excuse Ms. Hegemann’s behavior if she walked into a department store and walked out with a “free” bracelet, using the excuse that the vast variety of products on the market allows her to freely take the accessory to mix and match with her own?

Perhaps, equally disturbing is that Ms. Hegemann was not disqualified from the Leipzig Book Fair where she was chosen as a finalist. In fact, the panel of jurors knew Ms. Hegemann was accused of plagiarism before the finalists were even chosen!

There is, though, a bright spot of hope for the future of literature. According to the latest national Marist Poll, half of U.S. residents think the Internet has made it less acceptable to practice plagiarism. To the 35% who say it makes the act more acceptable, I pose this question, “How would you feel if your hard work went uncredited?”

Literature, like any art form, has the ability to both reflect and define a generation. And, there are some who say what Ms. Hegemann is doing is an offshoot of today’s culture where technology breaks down barriers and bombards us with limitless information. In fact, that New York Times article describes Ms. Hegemann as being in the middle of Germany’s established literary community and Berlin’s youth who “breathe creativity into old forms.”

Does this mean that the future of literature will be nothing but a regurgitation of others’ creativity? How will this help societies advance? Will original thought be replaced by copy and paste commands?

If Ms. Hegemann simply cited her sources, perhaps, she would have been praised universally for creating a new literary genre — one which mashes different fictional works together to create a new piece of prose. She could have been hailed as innovator who created a new fictional template mirroring today’s technological advancements. Instead, Ms. Hegemann finds herself in the eye of the storm called, “controversy,” and in a tug of war between new and old media.

4/6: The 2010 Congressional Elections: 1994 Meet 2008

April 6, 2010 | by Marist Poll

By Dr. Lee M. Miringoff

The health care debate was certainly about health care, but it was also about the mid-term elections. Pundits, pollsters, and pols are assessing the potential impact of congressional action against the backdrop of what it may mean for November. So-called generic ballot questions have already been monitoring the ebb and flow of public sentiment. If change is still in the air, will the Democrats suffer because they are now the incumbent party and had a sloppy time getting health care passed? Or, have the Republicans overplayed their hand by appealing too much to their unwieldy base to the displeasure of more moderate voters? Will the Tea Party movement turn out to be a blessing or a curse for GOP candidates?

The most recent national Marist Poll tried to gauge the electorate on these matters.

President Obama dragged some of his congressional party members across the health care finish line, but will he be an asset or liability to them at election time? Certainly, President Obama’s opponents are now hard-pressed to claim that he has failed to achieve a major accomplishment. Over 80% of the electorate thinks he has brought about significant change. But, voters divide over whether health care reform is change for the better or change for the worse; whether it is a milestone or a mistake. This battle is ongoing.

The bigger picture: Although a majority of voters nationwide disapprove of how President Obama is handling health care, his approval rating is within striking distance of the share of the vote he received when he was elected in 2008. Also, his favorability score is above 50%. On the all-important economic front, 64% nationwide still think current economic conditions are mostly something President Obama inherited. These are all points in the president’s favor.

Recent beltway battles have further fractured the partisan divide and fueled the Tea Party movement. This is a development of uncertain electoral payoff for the GOP. Will the Tea Partiers support Republican candidates a la Massachusetts or challenge more middle-of-the-road Republicans by encouraging others to run. One major beneficiary of this movement has been Sarah Palin who is cornering the market of the “send them a message” crowd. The big unknown is whether she can ride this ticket to the White House in 2012, or will this newfound political energy derail by then?

Although speculation about the 2012 timetable has already begun, first things first. The train for 2010 has barely left the station. For many voters, recent D.C. fisticuffs represent a plague on both the Republican and Democratic congressional party houses. 52% of voters think Republicans in Congress have not been playing by the rules and have been acting inappropriately. 49% feel that way about the Democrats. Republican voters tell us they are more likely to vote for someone new come November. Democratic voters are more likely to support their current congressperson.

No one will argue against the likelihood of the GOP picking up seats. But, anything close to the average net gain for the out party will leave them short of re-claiming majority status in either chamber. The morning line is that both will end up being able to salvage some element of victory as Republicans pick up seats, yet Democrats maintain control.

4/1: Big Apple Baseball, Past and Present

April 1, 2010 | by Marist Poll

By John Sparks

Sports journalist Len Berman has been a fan of New York baseball since the 1950’s, when the city boasted three teams. He talks with the Marist Poll’s John Sparks about what Yankees’ and Mets’ fans can expect from the 2010 season.

John Sparks
Len, baseball season’s just around the corner. The Marist Poll conducted a survey of fans in New York State. They found that more [New York baseball fans] considered themselves to be Yankees’ fans than Mets’ fans. Now you’re a New Yorker, how about you, Yankees or Mets?

Len Berman

Len Berman
Well, I grew up a Yankee fan, but that was at the time when there were the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Giants, and I was really a Mickey Mantle fan. I remember going to early Mets’ games at the Polo Grounds and Shea. So, I am one of those people that are from New York that like both teams. And, then when I got into the media, I couldn’t root for either team, but I’m not surprised that there are more Yankee fans because everyone loves a winner. I mean during the ’80s around New York, there were many more Mets’ fans because the Mets were winners and the Yankees weren’t.

John Sparks
I grew up a Yankees’ fan, believe it or not, down here in Texas because Casey Stengel was a relative.

Len Berman
Ahhh.

John Sparks
When did you first go to Yankee Stadium? Can you tell me about that first game you ever saw there?

Len Berman
Yeah, I’ll never forget it. I was nine-years-old, and I think we couldn’t afford the box seat, which was $3.25 or $3.50. So, we sat in the reserve seat, which might’ve been $2.50, and I was just so excited because we had black and white TV sets and to see that green grass was just — it was the greenest grass I ever saw in my life. You would come up out of the dark, out of the subway, and as you approached, in the old configuration of Yankee Stadium, you could look in and see the field and as you came up out of the darkness, into the light and there was this green grass in center field, it was the most amazing thing I’d ever seen. And then my only memory of the game, I don’t know who played, but — or who the Yankees were playing, but I remember a foul ball was hit I believe by Hank Bauer, but I could be wrong, and it went ricocheting off those metal posts that used to exist in the old Yankee Stadium and I was scared out of my mind because I said, “Oh boy, I’d love to catch a foul ball.” And after that ball went ricocheting at about a million miles an hour, I changed my mind.

John Sparks
So, you were a Mickey fan and of course you followed Maris in ’61 and over the years there have been a lot of history that’s taken place there, what was your biggest thrill as a Yankee fan from all those years?

Len Berman
Well, I guess it was really away from the field getting to meet Mickey Mantle. I mean he was my idol. I mean I lived and died with Mantle. I remember as a nine- or ten-year-old sending him a self-addressed stamped envelope asking for his autograph and he actually wrote back to me with his autograph. Well, I read that he only answered fan mail from young women. There you go — my hero. So, I said to him, “Mickey, you answered my letter. What was the deal with that?” He said, “You must write like a girl.”

John Sparks
Love it. Love it.

Len Berman
That was really the biggest … in person, I don’t know, it was just a number of things. I mean I remember the 1961 World Series, the Yankees were playing Cincinnati Reds and we had the day off from school. I was in high school at the time, and so we just — I think there was some kind of standardized testing going on in the city. So, we just hopped on a subway. We went to the World Series. We didn’t have a ticket. It was ball one and walked into the bleachers and watched the World Series’ game. So, it just shows you how times have changed.

John Sparks
Now you mentioned of course growing up in the ’50s and of course the Dodgers were in Brooklyn at Ebbets Field and the Giants were in the Polo Grounds. Do you ever go watch them?

Len Berman
Well no, I was such a Yankee fan to the point where … my brother and my dad would go once a year to either Ebbets Field or the Polo Grounds to see a Giant/Dodger game. I had no interest. I just hated the National League. I hated Brooklyn so much that I not only wouldn’t go to Ebbets Field, I wouldn’t allow my parents to even drive me to the borough. So, I have regrets now because I eventually I got to the Polo Grounds when the Mets were playing there. I never got to Ebbets Field. So, I really wish I had gone.

John Sparks
When you know in ’62 in those early days with Casey and the Mets, it had a lot of marquee value that had Yogi and Warren Spahn and I think Willie Mays even wore a Mets’ uniform, but it wasn’t until Seaver in 1969 that they emerged as a team, could be taken seriously. I’m just curious, even though you’re a Yankees’ fan, at what point did the Mets win a place in your heart?

Len Berman
Well, I always enjoyed them. I mean it was just a lot of fun in the early days. I mean it was just crazy with Marv Throneberry. I’ll never forget the anticipation of the Mets’ first game and then they lost and then they lost a bunch of them, and, then, next season opening day everyone’s excited and they lost again. It was just that “Let’s Go Mets” cheer started almost derisively and became really their mantra, and I think it was hard not to want the team to win. It was just… It was fun. I have a new kids’ book coming out next September called “The 25 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time.” And, there’s not a single Met in there unless you count Willie Mays at the end of his career and Warren Spahn at the end of his career, but that’s just so typical Mets. I mean they’re still the only team or one of the only teams without a no-hitter in their history. I mean they’re the longest running team without a no-hitter, so that’s just Mets. It’s just part of your fabric. It just doesn’t seem to change.

John Sparks
Well let’s fast forward to 2010, one of the things that the New York fans told the Marist Poll was that they believe the Yankees did just the right amount to improve the team over last year’s World Champions. I’m curious what you think. Do you think people like Curtis Granderson and Javier Vazquez and Randy Winn and Chan Ho Park will help bring about the first repeats since ’99/2000?

Len Berman
That’s hard to say. It’s so difficult to repeat. The core of the Yankees is still kind of an older group, Posada and Jeter and A-Rod’s not getting younger and Mariano Rivera and Andy Pettitte, I mean there’s a lot of, you’re banking on some older guys. I’m surprised that your poll determined that because I would’ve thought Yankee fans would’ve been disappointed that Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui did not return, so that poll result does surprise me.

John Sparks
Interesting. I was just about to ask you next about Damon and Matsui. I mean Matsui was a hero of the World Series …

Len Berman
Yep.

John Sparks
And Johnny Damon, even though he was a devil incarnate as a Red Sox, was great where the Yankees had them, will the loss of those two guys do you think really hurt the club?

Len Berman
I think on some level yes. Now that goes against my earlier argument about older players, but they made up a certain fabric of that clubhouse. They were both loved. They were both great spirits and great teammates and don’t forget Johnny Damon’s mad dash during the World Series where he stole second and third on the same play, which is a critical moment in the World Series. Yeah, I think that the Yankees took a little bit of a step back there, and I don’t know what’ll happen. I’m not … you try to be objective and really so much of it comes down to pitching and if CC Saba … here’s a team that their biggest concern in spring training is who is the fifth starter? Most other teams in the Major Leagues, their biggest concern is who’s the second, third, and fourth starters. So, the Yankees have a leg up on so many people. But, yet, if CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett and Andy Pettitte and Vázquez, and I assume Phil Hughes is the fifth starter, if they don’t deliver, then it’s a long season. So … that’s the beauty of baseball, anything’s possible.

John Sparks
I was going to ask you, you’re Joe Girardi, Joba or Phil Hughes for the fifth man?

Len Berman
Well, I put Joba in the bullpen. I always thought that he was just a great bullpen pitcher, and he’s a wild man who comes in and throws all these god for couple of pitchers or an inning or an inning in the third, and I think he’s more suited for the bullpen. The people that know baseball, the coaches and all the insiders, feel that since he has three or four different … bullpen guy usually has one or two great pitches, because he has the full repertoire, they want to see him as the starting pitcher. And, I just think he’s so well suited for the bullpen, especially on this team. I think he’d be a great weapon out there.

John Sparks
Girardi has a lot of left-handed hitters in the lineup taking advantage of the stadium, is there a downside to stacking that many in the lineup?

Len Berman
No, I think he’s got a bunch of switch hitters in there too. So, I think you’ll get the righty bats as well. The Yankees should score some runs. I mean the ball, we’ll see if it flies out as much as it did last year. That became an issue. They got a lot of money. They spend it. They’ve got a lot of talent, and it’s just throw them out there and see what happens. I mean there are always question marks. The second baseman, they don’t really know what they have. Gardner, I guess is going to be their leftfielder with Granderson in Center, and Nick Swisher is an interesting character in right field, and I know the fans like him. So, even with all that money, all those all stars, there are always questions, and that’s why they play 162.

John Sparks
Fans told Marist that they expect the Bombers to win again. Do you think that they will or what other clubs in the AL do you think we ought to be paying attention to?

Len Berman
Well, I certainly think they’re one of the favorites. A lot of people are looking to see what Seattle does. They’ve put together a nice ball club on the West Coast. The Red Sox are always an issue. Tampa Bay was not a fluke a couple years ago. Baltimore is improving. Yeah, if you had to put your hand on the Bible and say, “Who’s going to repeat?” You’d say, “Yeah, the Yankees probably would,” but they got a lot of talent, and they got a lot of money. So, I mean that’s a pretty good daily double right there.

John Sparks
Okay. Things aren’t quite so rosy over in Queens at Citi Field. The fans told us that only one in five think that the Mets can win the series. What seems to be the problem over there? They picked up somebody like Jason Bay. What’s going on over there do you think?

Len Berman
They’ve really had a string of bad luck. The ownership’s heart is in the right place. They spend. They outspend just about every team in the Majors except for the Yankees, and maybe the Red Sox. Here’s a team that’s fighting for its identity and will always be number two in New York, or it seems that way, and they ran this incredible bad string of injuries last year. On top of that, they have so many question marks in their starting pitching. So, I can see where … my goodness, you said one in five thought they’d win the World Series. I think one in five might’ve said they had a chance for a winning record because Mets’ fans are pretty down over the way things have gone. They got a little bit of good news recently with José Reyes and it looks like he’s coming back and hopefully Carlos Beltrán will be able to return and be healthy, but they’ve just — boy, you talk about a snake-bit outfit. They bought a leftfielder when they really needed another pitcher. So, that’s why fans are a little bit skeptical.

John Sparks
Well you know they do have some bright spots. They got … speaking of pitching, they got K-Rod and David Wright, I think is still solid. He hit .307 last year, but he did strike out a lot. Do you think that they have the potential to surprise some fans, or do you think the Phillies are just way too much?

Len Berman
Well, I think the Phillies are good. Don’t forget Johan Santana, he may be the best pitcher in the National League, and it all depends on … I joked about the second, third, and fourth starters, but let’s say Pelfrey and Oliver Perez and John Maine, let’s say all of sudden they start looking like Seaver and Koosman and Gentry. Then, gee, maybe they got something there. So, yeah, they’ve got talent. There’s no question. I mean I like Wright and Reyes on the left side and Bay and a healthy Beltrán, Francoeur seems to fit in nicely out there in right. I think first base and catching a little bit of question of marks, but bullpen looks decent. So, yeah, can they surprise people? Absolutely.

John Sparks
Any other National League teams that have caught your attention this year?

Len Berman
Well, you got to look at Philadelphia because they went to the World Series. I mean Atlanta, believe it or not, is making noises. You have to like what they’re doing. You always have to… I mean those long suffering Cubs’ fans, you have to look and see what’s going on over there. The Cards are always strong and the Dodgers too out West, so there’s some strong teams out there. There really are. So, the Mets not only have to overcome the Phillies, but they have to overcome those other teams as well.

John Sparks
I’ve told you before and I hear from people all the time that agree with me, just can’t tell you how much we miss seeing you on television, but I must tell you I really look forward to getting your daily Top 5 in my email. Can you tell me a little bit about how you came up with that and how folks can get it?

Len Berman
Thank you. I appreciate it. I don’t miss being on the nightly news. That’s for sure. I had some long hours and didn’t see my wife for a lot years, but I’ll do some future television. It just won’t be a nightly newscast. The Top 5, I always had this theory that not everybody is a hard core sports fan, and that’s how I approached my newscast at night. I think there are a lot of people who want to sort of know what’s going on, but don’t want to know all the gory details. So, I came up with this idea of sending out a daily email which is kind of a cheat sheet, water cooler conversation for people who don’t want to read the sports sections and don’t tune to all sports radio or ESPN TV, and they want to know what’s going on anyways. So, I send out a daily Top 5 I call it, and some of its serious. A lot of its frivolous and it has some fun facts and information. If anybody’s interested in getting it, my website is: thatssports.com, www.thatssports.com, and it’s free. Get it every day.

John Sparks
Great, we’ll certainly put out the word. Anything else on the horizon you want to share with us?

Len Berman
Well, I mentioned this kids’ book coming up in September, “The 25 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time.” It’s really going to annoy a lot of people, because Sandy Koufax didn’t make the cut and Yogi Berra didn’t make and Nolan Ryan, and a bunch of great names did not make it. But it’s not my fault, because I had a blue-ribbon panel which included former players and some journalists and reporters and the producers. So, I had a pretty good cross section of panelists, and they made some interesting choices. There are only unanimous players in the history of baseball that people consider the 25 Greatest, of this panel anyway. Obviously Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays and Ted Williams, names like that.

John Sparks
Can’t wait to see it, and let’s make a day to talk about that as it gets closer to publication.

Len Berman
Great. Maybe we can have a Marist Poll and people agree or disagree with “The 25 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time.”

John Sparks
Great idea. Great idea. Len, it’s always a pleasure taking to you, really appreciate your time.

4/1: A Personal Encounter with Mickey Mantle

| by Marist Poll

By John Sparks

Len Berman tells the story of Mickey Mantle saying Len writes like a girl. My encounter with Mantle was probably not so pleasant.

First of all, let me state, that I liked Mickey, but he was not my favorite. Yogi was. There was no one better in the clutch, and as a young boy, I could really relate to someone who read the same books that I did — Superman and Batman comics!

The year was 1960. It would be Casey Stengel’s last year managing the Yankees, it was the first year Roger Maris wore pinstripes, and I was a young boy of 13 in Fort Worth, Texas, whose only experience seeing his baseball heroes was on black and white television with Dizzy Dean and Pee Wee Reese bringing the Game of the Week into my living room.

The Fort Worth YMCA was sponsoring a weekend bus trip to Kansas City to watch the Yankees play the Athletics in a four-game weekend series. (That was before they made the move to Oakland.) By staying at the Kansas City “Y” and making the most of a chartered Greyhound, it was fairly affordable.

Besides the trip to the old Municipal Stadium, we got to go downtown to the hotel where the Yankees were staying. We had learned that the players were all staying on the 7th floor, and so, we would gather ’round the elevators in the lobby, and anytime we saw that the elevator stopped on 7, we huddled around the doors in anticipation of those bigger than life Yankees getting off in the lobby so we could ask them to autograph our baseballs.

I was run down by a very large Bob Turley as he made his way to the coffee shop, but he was happy to sign my ball. The same for Ryne Duren, the fastball reliever who wore glasses thick as coke bottles. Yogi came off, and although he was only 5’8”, I still looked up to him at that time. It was the year rookie starter Jim Coates put together a string of 15 victories. I got him to sign the ball. Pitcher Eli Grba also accommodated me. So did Ralph Terry. Little did I know at the time that two months later he would be the goat of the World Series by serving up that high hanging curve to Bill Mazeroski in the bottom of the ninth of Game 7 in Pittsburgh. Gil McDougald signed the ball. Casey Stengel did as well. Maris was not at the hotel. He had been with the A’s the previous season. His family still lived in Kansas City. So, he had been given permission to stay with them.

Finally, Mickey Mantle emerged from the elevator. Everyone immediately recognized the man who just 3 seasons earlier in 1956 had won the Triple Crown. He was by far the most popular Yankee among boys my age. And I, like the others, wanted to have his autograph on my baseball.

Everyone began crowding around him shoving their baseballs out toward him. He began to sign, but also kept warning us to quit crowding or he would stop. He repeated this warning at least two or three times. But, the excitement overcame the reality of what he was saying. Finally, he reached out and grabbed mine and began to sign.

All of a sudden, he looked up and that was it. He told us he was through. He would not tolerate the pushing and crowding. He handed the ball back to me. I looked down, and there where he had been writing were the letters “M-I-C.”

Now, who is going to believe that Mickey Mantle wrote that?

He headed through the lobby and out the hotel door to the team bus.

I had red hair back then and the temper to match. I was not a happy camper. So, I trailed him out the door and saw him take a seat near the rear of the bus on the driver’s side. The window was open.

I thrust my hand up to the window and shouted. “Finish it.” Not please. It was imperative, direct, and probably would get me nowhere, but at that point, what was there to lose?

Then to my surprise, amazement, and relief, he reached out, took the ball, and finished the job.

Happy? Yes, I suppose. But ever since, I have always had a bittersweet opinion of the Mick.

Don’t get me wrong. I liked him. When you’re 13, it’s hard to put yourself in his spikes and even begin to fathom the number of times he was hounded for his signature.

I continued to be thrilled by the tape measure jobs. I loved to see his speed when he would lay down a drag bunt from the left side of the plate and beat it out. The next summer I followed with the rest of the world as he and Maris put on what I believe was the greatest exhibition ever seen during a season.

But, I’ll never forget my Mickey Mantle encounter.

4/1: For the Love of the Game

| by Marist Poll

By Stephanie Calvano

Rogers Hornsby said, “People ask me what I do in winter when there’s no baseball. I’ll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring.” I share this sentiment with the legendary second baseman.

Stephanie Calvano

The Yankees take top honors among baseball fans nationally with 11% of those fans saying they support the Pinstripes. In New York, 58% of the state’s registered voters who are baseball fans do the same. As a person who shares this allegiance, I couldn’t have imagined a more picture-perfect ending to the 2009 season than a 27th World Series Championship, but with my elation came a sense of sadness. Baseball season was over … now what? I think A. Bartlett Giamatti put it perfectly… “It breaks your heart. It is designed to break your heart. The game begins in spring, when everything else begins again, and it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings, and then as soon as the chill rains come, it stops and leaves you to face the fall alone.”

Yeah, sure, I enjoy football season, and it gives me my sports fix through the winter, but it’s not the same. I don’t watch football with the same knowledge and passion that I do with baseball. I wait and wait for the day pitchers and catchers report to spring training. It’s a signal that a new season (as well as a visit to Florida for spring training) is just around the corner!

To say the least, I can’t wait for Sunday! No, not because it’s Easter, and I have an excuse to eat chocolate all day, but because its baseball’s opening night! And, as if the start of the 2010 season wasn’t exciting enough for this baseball fan, the game is a marquee matchup between my Bronx Bombers and rival Boston Red Sox. The baseball gods must really love me this year!!

As the 2010 season begins, and my quest to attend a game at every Major League Baseball stadium continues, I have one thing to say, “Play ball!!!”

Len Berman

March 31, 2010 | by Marist Poll

Len Berman is an Emmy-Award winning sportscaster and New York Times Best Selling Author who has covered just about every major sports event including multiple Super Bowls, World Series, and Olympics during his 40-year career in broadcasting. Mr. Berman is the creator of “Spanning the World,” a monthly collection of sports bloopers, which was a 20-year staple on NBC’s Today Show. Len has thousands of subscribers to his Top 5 daily email which he sends from his website www.ThatsSports.com.

Len Berman

Mr. Berman is the recipient of eight Emmy Awards and 6-time winner of New York Sportscaster of the Year. He has just published his fifth book, The 25 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time (Sourcebooks). His kids book, The Greatest Moments in Sports (Sourcebooks, 2009) immediately debuted on the New York Times Best Seller List. His other works include: Spanning The World (HarperCollins), And Nobody Got Hurt! (Little, Brown), and And Nobody Got Hurt 2! (Little, Brown).

His daily Top 5 email is featured on The Huffington Post and is received by thousands around the country.

3/17: Cuomo: Decisive or Defensive?

March 17, 2010 | by Marist Poll

Lee Miringoff breaks down the political future of Andrew Cuomo after the New York attorney general recused himself from investigating Governor David Paterson:

3/15: Hopping on the Bandwagon? The Internet’s Impact on Intelligence

March 15, 2010 | by Marist Poll

With the news from The Marist Poll that an overwhelming 68% of U.S. residents believe the Internet is making us smarter, I’m beginning to think I should just hop on the bandwagon and see where it takes me. Still, I can’t help asking why people are so optimistic.

The general argument linking smarts to the Web seems to go like this: Because of this vast online memory store, parts of our mind that would have been tied up in the dark days preceding the Web are freed to accomplish new tasks. With the Web harboring all the data we need, we know finding an answer is as simple as typing a query into a search engine, and this certainty alters our approach to any task that requires information we lack. Now, we don’t have to spend time and effort acquiring such knowledge; the Internet holds it for us, and we are more productive under this lightened load.

Some people characterize the Internet as an extension of our brains. In his Atlantic article “Get Smarter,” Jamais Cascio discusses the rise of computers and devices dubbed “exocortical technology,” which allow us to perform tasks we never dreamed of. He writes: “As the digital systems we rely upon become faster, more sophisticated, and (with the usual hiccups) more capable, we’re becoming more sophisticated and capable too.” The article is fascinating, and I encourage you to read it – among other things, it suggests that in addition to computers, drugs will be developed that help us perform cognitive tasks better.

But I can’t stop myself from protesting that the Web, one of these “sophisticated” systems, has spawned a certain amount of unpleasantness: paparazzi-fueled “news,” silly viral videos, a huge number of scams … the list goes on. While the Web can be seen as a tool to help us achieve things, it also appears to be able to distract us, sell us things we don’t need, and lead us down fruitless paths as we seek information. One could argue that the Web is still in its infancy, and guides will emerge to point us in the right directions. But one could also argue that powerful entities who see the medium as a piggy bank waiting to be smashed don’t want that to happen.

Nicholas Carr, whose article “Is Google Making Us Stupid,” also in the Atlantic, created quite a buzz among tech pundits, points out that for all of the Internet’s innovative power, it could be altering something fundamental about the way we read. Carr writes: “In the quiet spaces opened up by the sustained, undistracted reading of a book … we make our own associations, draw our own inferences and analogies, foster our own ideas.” Such deep reading, he says, isn’t encouraged by the Web’s architecture, which is designed to accommodate shallow, fast processing: the more we click, the more some company stands to sell us something.

I doubt Carr was surprised when a survey from the Pew Internet & American Life Project revealed 81% of experts believe “Nicholas Carr was wrong: Google does not make us stupid.” He knows as much as anyone that the bandwagon is alluring and swift, with some authority figures at the wheel. So while the Web skeptics and evangelists will go back and forth (the evangelists enjoying the majority position), one thing is abundantly clear: most people trust the Web to propel them into the future. If that’s the case, then regulation, analysis, and organization are in order. Perhaps we need the skeptics to keep the bandwagon from tipping over.

3/11: The Excitement to be Counted: Welcome 2010 Census!

March 11, 2010 | by Marist Poll

Lots of things happen every ten years…
– Your passport expires
– Tibet’s average annual temperature rises 0.3 degrees
– You ‘re supposed to get a tetanus booster
– The world loses 7% of its topsoil due to human impact
– You have to convince yourself 40 is the new 30, 50 is the new 40, or 60 is the new 50.
– And most excitingly (for me, at least), the United States Census Bureau undertakes the DECENNIAL CENSUS!

Mandated by the Constitution and conducted every ten years since 1790, The Decennial Census is a formal count, or enumeration, of the entire United States population. The vital data is collected by mailing survey forms to all known residential units…and then eagerly awaiting your response…a response that will take less time than needed to make a cup of coffee since the 10 simple questions (such as the number, age, and gender of people living in your home) make this the shortest form in Census history.

My guess is that the 4% of Americans who, in a recent Marist Poll, described their feelings as excited when the census form arrives in their mailbox were survey methodologists, pollsters, and Census employees. We must have (randomly, of course) called them all! While eager, enthused, and even energized all capture my emotions, the vast majority of Americans – normal people, in fact – feel obligated, interested, or patriotic…not exactly excited. But, hey, I’ll take it – at least nearly nine out of ten Americans report they are likely to complete this year’s form.

So, why do I think this is exciting, you might ask? Why do I think it’s critical that, in the wake of an economic crisis, our government spends close to $15 billion dollars on the decennial Census…and over $2 million dollars pumping up Americans for this count with a Super Bowl commercial? For me, the answer is two-fold: (1) I love all things ‘survey’…their design, purpose, and utility; and (2) the accuracy of my job relies, to some degree, on the accuracy of the Census. But, the two major reasons noted by the Census Bureau are:

1. Census counts are used by Congress to determine how many seats your state will have in the U.S. House of Representatives.
2. Federal, state, and local government use census information to allocate over $400 billion in federal funds for community programs, services, and infrastructure (such as schools, hospitals, roads, and job preparation services).

The 2000 Census undercounted the actual population of the United States by over 6 million people. While some of that undercount is due to difficulty in locating some housing units, a significant proportion is due to Americans simply not completing the form. Many are concerned and suspicious about disclosing information to the bureau but rest assured, the government goes to great lengths to protect our confidentiality and privacy. Personal data is not shared with anyone – including other federal agencies.

And think about it…6 million people is a lot of people…and a lot of time, resources, and money that your own community may have been short-changed because our government had no way of knowing its needs based on the population. In fact, according to a study by PricewaterhouseCoopers after the 2000 Census, thirty-one states potentially lost a total of over $4 billion (for programs and services meeting the needs of the poor, children, and minorities) due to the undercount.

So, when your census form arrives in your mailbox in just about a week, you may want to think twice before tossing it aside. Forget that the census is required by law and that it could cost you a $250 fine if you don’t complete it. Not filling it out could, ultimately, hit you and your community where it hurts – in your wallet. Just remember what we tell our Marist Poll interviewers: “Everyone’s participation is truly important!”