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News site deters comment rants by making you take a quiz
It's all too easy for comment sections to get nasty, especially when people rush to spout off without having read more than the headline. How does a site prevent rants from showing up without resorting to cutting-edge tech? If you're Norway's NRK, the answer is simple: make people take a quiz. The news outlet is trying out a system that asks you to pass a short multiple-choice test, making sure you've at least had a cursory read-through before you share your opinion. It leads to more informed discussions, as you might guess, but it also introduces a brief delay that might give you a chance to cool down and write a more rational comment.
NRK pulls Beatles podcast citing legal concerns
Lost in the din of yesterday's Macworld announcements and video was a story from NRK that they've pulled down the "Our Daily Beatles" podcast -- featuring all 212 songs available for free -- citing contractual obligations with an organization that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. The three players in the debacle are NRK (Norway's publicly-funded broadcasting company), TONO (managers of the rights for Norwegian composers and writers), and IFPI (which represents the rights of international record companies). While NRK and TONO are happy with their contractual agreement to release the podcast, IFPI is not. NRK's contract with IFPI states that they can only create podcasts for shows aired on the radio in the last four weeks where music accounts for less than 70 percent of the show's length. Since "Our Daily Beatles" was aired in 2007 (and not 2001 as they originally stated, but that's neither here nor there) it falls outside the bounds of the agreement. NRK, rather than air the broadcast again to comply with IFPI's rules, instead decided to pull the podcast offline. NRK is negotiating with IFPI to update their contract to match the one they have with TONO. Their current agreement expired at the end of last year, but apparently NRK is still bound by its terms. NRK had originally posted the podcast on Sunday.
NRK offers free podcast containing every Beatles song
The Beatles could have all their songs on iTunes, but not the way you might think: via a podcast describing the story behind each song, released by a Norwegian broadcasting company. NRK is podcasting its segment called "Our Daily Beatles" that chronologically tells a three-minute story of every Beatles song ever written -- 212 of them -- along with the song in its entirety. NRK offers its podcast of the segment here. According to its website, NRK says it has procured the rights to publish podcasts of all its previously-broadcast radio and television programs that contain less than 70 percent music. While not an ideal way to download the entire Beatles catalog specifically for the music, the podcast is free. Apple has been negotiating with Apple Corps and the various owners of the Beatles' catalog to offer the music on iTunes. Last word was in November, when Paul McCartney said that talks broke down. Thanks, Kenken! Update: Unfortunately, the podcast has been pulled offline, citing legal concerns.
