December 2012

Romney spent more on TV ads but got much less

Senior Republican campaign operatives who gathered over beer in Alexandria for a post-election briefing were taken aback by what they were told. A nonpartisan research firm presented data showing that President Barack Obama had far outperformed Mitt Romney in managing the largest single expenditure of the campaign: television advertising. Romney’s spending decisions on advertising look like “campaign malpractice,” said one person who had reviewed the newly circulated data.

President Obama and his allies spent less on advertising than Romney and his allies but got far more — in the number of ads broadcast, in visibility in key markets and in targeting critical demographic groups, such as the working class and younger voters in swing states. As the presidential race entered its final, furious phase, for example, millions of college football fans tuning in to televised games saw repeated ads for Obama but relatively few from the Romney campaign. All told, from June through Election Day, the Obama campaign and its allies aired about 50,000 more ads than Romney and his allies, according to the research firm’s data.

Sen Carper replacing Sen Lieberman as Homeland Security Committee chairman

Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE) has been chosen to take the helm of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee in the next Congress.

The Democratic Steering Committee made the announcement after meeting to approve committee chairmen and members in the upper chamber. Sen Carper will replace Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT.), who is retiring at the end of this Congress, and will face issues ranging from terrorist and cybersecurity and border security to postal reform and Social Security legislation.

Sen Blumenthal joins Senate Commerce Committee

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) is joining the Senate Commerce Committee.

Other returning Democrats on the panel include Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), Sens Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii), John Kerry (D-MA), Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Bill Nelson (D-FL), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), Mark Pryor (D-AR), Claire McCaskill (D-MO), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN); Mark Warner (D-VA) and Mark Begich (D-Alaska).

Governors plead for urgent online sales tax authority

Governors are urgently pressing Congress to pass Internet sales tax legislation in the coming weeks, saying states cannot afford to wait to collect billions of dollars from online retailers.

Governor Chris Gregoire (D-WA) and Governor Bill Haslam (R-TN) wrote to Senate leaders urging them to pass legislation granting states the authority to collect sales taxes from online businesses. They said the changes should be made this year and not be wrapped into "wide-ranging, comprehensive tax reform" in 2013. Legislation requiring online retailers to collect and remit sales taxes to states has languished in the Senate and House of Representatives for years, but the issue has grown more pressing as U.S. shoppers increasingly buy goods online. The governors, writing on behalf of the National Governors Association, said states "are unable to collect $23 billion in sales taxes owed annually from remote sales," and that current practices are "in essence an unwarranted yet growing subsidy to Internet sellers at the expense of brick-and-mortar stores."

How an Internet-connected Samsung TV can spill your deepest secrets

If you use a Samsung "Smart TV" that's connected to the Internet, there's a chance Luigi Auriemma can hack into the device and access files stored on connected USB drives.

The researcher with Malta-based security firm ReVuln says he has uncovered a vulnerability in most Samsung models that makes it easy for him to locate their IP address on the Internet. From there, he can remotely access the device and exercise the same control someone in the same room would have. That includes gaining root access and installing malicious software. The attack exploits bugs in features that allow end users to install Skype, Pandora, and other types of apps. The TVs can be controlled using smartphone and tablet apps and in some cases by voice commands.

Agencies Seek More Guidance on Mobile Technology

Government agencies want more guidance on how to safely and smartly adopt new mobile technology programs, such as bring-your-own-device plans, an interagency group of chief information officers said. Without more central guidance on security, policy and legal considerations, agencies adopting BYOD policies, building internal app stores and launching other mobile projects may waste money and take on unnecessary risks, according to the report from the Federal CIO Council. Agencies are also hampered by the lack of governmentwide contract vehicles for many mobile devices, the report said.

The report recommended that officials:

Develop more complex standards for how government information should be handled on smartphones and tablets.
Create a governmentwide team to evaluate the legal, technical and privacy implications of federal employees using non-government provided mobile devices.
Create either agency-wide or governmentwide guidance for procuring mobile devices.
Continue working on guidance to ensure government information is sufficiently encrypted on mobile devices and that the people using those devices are sufficiently authenticated.

Byliner, Simon and Schuster strike print deals for a digital era

Two separate announcements reveal the interesting ways that print book deals are changing in an ebook world. The deals show print distribution is still important (print makes up 75 to 80 percent of trade book sales today) and that digital authors often find it easier to work with a partner rather than trying the print-on-demand route.

First, Simon & Schuster has bought the U.S. print rights to Wool, the bestselling self-published science fiction title by Hugh Howey. Howey retains the digital rights, but Simon & Schuster will release hardcover and print editions.
Separately, the San Francisco e-singles publisher Byliner signed a deal with distributor Ingram to distribute its titles in print.

Google's Look Back on 2012 Will Warm Your Heart, Give You Feelings

What we Google is a pretty good mark these days of who we are -- what intrigues us, moves us, what we care about. In its end-of-year review, Google builds a story of 2012 out of the clues of a trillion searches, and tells that story in a sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes heartwarming.

New tools to help providers protect patient data in mobile devices

Launched by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), a new education initiative and set of online tools provide health care providers and organizations practical tips on ways to protect their patients’ protected health information when using mobile devices such as laptops, tablets, and smartphones.

The initiative is called Mobile Devices: Know the RISKS. Take the STEPS. PROTECT and SECURE Health Information and is available at www.HealthIT.gov/mobiledevices. It offers educational resources such as videos, easy-to-download fact sheets, and posters to promote best ways to safeguard patient health information. Despite providers’ increasing use of using mobile technology for clinical use, research has shown that only 44 percent of survey respondents encrypt their mobile devices. Mobile device benefits—portability, size, and convenience—present a challenge when it comes to protecting and securing health information. Along with theft and loss of devices, other risks, such as the inadvertent download of viruses or other malware, are top among reasons for unintentional disclosure of patient data to unauthorized users.

Social Networking Popular Across Globe

Social networking has spread around the world with remarkable speed. In countries such as Britain, the United States, Russia, the Czech Republic and Spain, about half of all adults now use Facebook and similar websites. These sites are also popular in many lower-income nations, where, once people have access to the internet, they tend to use it for social networking.

Meanwhile, cell phones have become nearly ubiquitous throughout much of the world, and people are using them in a variety of ways, including texting and taking pictures. Smart phones are also increasingly common – roughly half in Britain, the U.S., and Japan have one. Globally, most smart phone users say they visit social networking sites on their phone, while many get job, consumer, and political information. Technologies like these are especially popular among the young and well educated. In almost every country polled, people under age 30 and those with a college education are more likely to engage in social networking and to use a smart phone. These are among the key findings from a 21-nation survey conducted by the Pew Research Center’s Global Attitudes Project from March 17-April 20. The survey also finds that global publics are sharing their views online about a variety of topics, especially popular culture. Across 20 of the nations polled (Pakistan is excluded from this calculation due to the small number of social networking users), a median of 67% of social networkers say they use these sites to share opinions about music and movies. Significant numbers also post their views on community issues, sports and politics. Fewer give their opinions about religion.

Benton

Search