Sir Patrick Stewart on What Make Him Tick...and Tweet

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Alternative Title: This is Why I Love FRONTLINE So Much.

Sir Patrick Stewart on Digital_Nation | PBS FRONTLINE

Sir Patrick Stewart on Digital_Nation | PBS FRONTLINE

An in-depth exploration of what it means to be human in a 21st-century world

-- Part of a developing series on YouTube, in the build-up of anticipation for the world premiere of Digital_Nation, tonight at 9pm (EST) on PBS. Watch it.


FRONTLINE: digital nation: introduction | PBS

Within a single generation, digital media and the World Wide Web have transformed virtually every aspect of modern culture, from the way we learn and work to the ways in which we socialize and even conduct war. But is the technology moving faster than we can adapt to it? And is our 24/7 wired world causing us to lose as much as we've gained?

In Digital Nation: Life on the Virtual Frontier, FRONTLINE presents an in-depth exploration of what it means to be human in a 21st-century digital world. Continuing a line of investigation she began with the 2008 FRONTLINE report Growing Up Online, award-winning producer Rachel Dretzin embarks on a journey to understand the implications of living in a world consumed by technology and the impact that this constant connectivity may have on future generations. "I'm amazed at the things my kids are able to do online, but I'm also a little bit panicked when I realize that no one seems to know where all this technology is taking us, or its long-term effects," says Dretzin.

Joining Dretzin on this journey is commentator Douglas Rushkoff, a leading thinker and writer on the digital revolution -- and one-time evangelist for technology's positive impact. "In the early days of the Internet, it was easy for me to reassure people about what it would mean to bring digital technology into their lives," says Rushkoff, who has authored 10 books on media, technology and culture. "Now I want to know whether or not we are tinkering with something more essential than we realize."

[snowy]

Yum. Patrick Stewart. I love hearing him speak with his own voice, not the voice of a character. Sooo sexy.

And I'll be watching it. I enjoy Frontline. PBS is one of the few TV channels I get!

[Jetée]

I don't know why, only today, the day the feature premieres, that Frontline decides to upload and promote the new season premiere with these shorts. These videos should have gone up at least a week prior, if not earlier, to garner more interest towards the mass appeal of those who might not normally watch, or know about, public broadcasting.

Here's the trailer: Digital_Nation opening

as well as more popular testimonials:

[lostgirl]

Wonderful, I love it! I'm watching TNG right now.

[Jetée]

Perhaps I should have added my own commentary and personal experience with technology and cyber endeavors as a starting point for continuing discussion.

I mean, I don't even have a full five years with being "connected" to the internet, but that's only one side of me. Ever since grade school, I've been in computer typing classes, learning anything from better finger-placement technique, storybook creation, or blasting aliens away with my superior mathematical logic.

I'm sure a fair majority of Americans today, perhaps above 75%, have had a period in their lifetime in which they participated and played a video game.

The possibilites and stemming points are endless.

(I should have thought of this before and perhaps, instead, debuted this topic in 'General Discussion'. Let's see how it progresses regardless.)

What do you rely on technology for: solely applicable (such as light switches, occasional internet dalliances, a cellphone, and kitchen/bath wares) or are you more connected than you previously thought? how much more digital technology have you invested in since a decade ago? On average, how much time would you estimate you invest on being at a computer or online? (I have more queries, but the above should suffice for now.)

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And for those that would prefer not to look up their TV guide for when the next showing is, don't worry:
FRONTLINE: digital nation: watch the full program | PBS

-- (my exceptional inner timing meter, also known as my 'coincidental calculator', found that this online viewing was made available just 1 minute after the program had started on most PBS stations in the East.)