I think that most blogs, Youtube videos, Myspace accounts and so on, are less about putting great content out there than they are about people putting themselves out there. In a day when fame is more about exposure than actual accomplishment (seriously, what is on Paris Hilton's W2?), people are scrambling for a chance to be seen by the public or to be on TV, even if it is fleeting. After all, how many idiots and lousy singers showcase themselves on American Idol? How many people spend hours on Myspace reaching out to strangers to boost their friend count? How many people humiliate their friends, family, and selves for the sake of creating a video to upload to the internet? While I think attention is definitely being devoted to other avenues that normally would be dedicated soley to TV, it's more about personal ability to manipulate media than it is about the quality of the programming. After all, kareoke is still a fairly popular activity, but people prefer listening to their iPods.

In one way the My Space/You Tube 'evolution' may well produce some excellent ground breaking talent that could easily be transferred to the big screen/stage/ipod, but who is going to spend the days, weeks even years trawling through all the nonsense before they find it. But if someone has talent, they have talent, whether viewed via a podcast or on the big screen. I kind of like some of the stuff on You tube that isn't so rehearsed and plastic. A two minute rant, song, gaff or piece of music seen on one of these sights maybe won't change your life, but some broadcasts are as, if not more memorable than alot of the tried and tested safe tv and film churned out by many an established broadcaster. However with another series of Big Brother starting this week in the UK, it's hilarious to see how some desperate shameless, talentless bods will go for their slice of user generated fame, fear not prime time tv will always deliver.

Today, there is not more talent than yesterday. But there is one big difference: Today, we ourselves decide who has talent and who does not. I've worked in the music industrie for three year, and it's good to know that the so called A&R experts are loosing influence. With the rest, I totally agree. Talent will always need to be paid...eventually.

Thanks for this point of view and for asking questions that some of us indeed struggle to come to terms with over the weekend. To me it is clear that 'business as usual' does temporarily not apply. At the same time frenzy means opportunity. Taking a risk means accepting consequences. In this case each of the players played their cards in a game for which we are still defining the rules. Will we ever have time to define them? Who knows… the beauty of the current playing field are the dynamics imposed on us by, well the playing field itself. I am simply curious to see how it plays out between WPP and Microsoft. I think in the heat of the moment some strategic ramifications of the concluded deals have been overlooked in the process. Is that good or bad? Think that this is slightly out of my zone of influence but I am sure some interesting solution will be found. I further agree with you that Customers Really Manage today. But I think there is another element we tend to overlook. As Michael Schrage rightly puts it in an article recently published in the FT: “The central marketing question confronting brand leaders therefore is not “how can we radically increase customer loyalty?” but “how can we radically increase our own loyalty to customers?” Let’s take a step back for the moment and see how this applies to Wunderman as well. If we are loyal to our customer and consistently strive to deliver the best the customer has all the reasons in the world to be loyal to us. If they choose to do otherwise then we face a tough decision: keep going or let go? Invest or divest? Play down or play up? I think we should cross that bridge when we get there. Even better, hopefully that bridge to cross was built by us to explore new horizons. Let's keep our heads up and practice what we preach and keep that sandwich shop in mind for a rainy day. Thanks, Matt

I'll cut the bread......seriously -- excellent point on customers -- are we loyal to our clients???

Is it about NO? "NO" is a bit like falling down. Like been pushed back. But one NO means nothing, doesn't it? You say, Jobs talks about success. So, what is success in conjunction with NO? One NO too much at the wrong time can lead to disappointments but plenty enough also save you from wasting time or money. No answer up to know - but what about this: "Success consists of getting up one more time than you fell."* So, if you have the power to say NO to a NO, there must be something good in what you're representing. *) Quote from a song ("Dr. Ring-Ding"), does somebody know the real author?

There was once an Ox and a mule. The farmer rode the mule to town daily and the mule would rest for the day. The ox ploughed the field and was suffering from fatigue. The mule's 'idea' was for the ox to play ill and being sick did not have to plough the field the next day. The mule did it instead! What a bad idea.. He should've said NO! If you don't understand then, sometimes an idea can produce more work than it is worth, only to yield the same result! So put your thinking caps on people, we are HTW!!

That's definitely worth a thought or two. You see, there's a feminine pov: Some of us, the well raised women of the western and eastern hemisphere, have been teached to never (never?) bluntly say NO. Well, almost never. You know the exceptions, Gentleman. Myself, having been raised within a rigid and tight Prussian household and educated at some public schools – I well remember how much my mother, my father and my teachers regimented me, when I allowed myself to say “No”. I had to shrug that off. It wasn’t easy. Too often I was trying to find a way around this two-lettered word. But I learned. And today I know it’s true: You have to say NO once in a while. Whenever you feel something isn’t the way it should be. Since the Better is the enemy of Good (Voltaire)

At iMpact, we try to say "No, but...." Simply saying "No" doesn't engage in conversation, and doesn't imply a willingness to help solve the question, problem, or issue. "Can we do this?" "No, but we can do this...or if we change this parameter to this, we can do it." It's worth a shot...every time you think you should say "no," start with "no, but..." and finish the sentence.

Peter -- love it -- know when to say to no.....as a measure of success Angelika -- sometimes no is really no.....no? and -- glenn -- no -- not as a conversation stopper -- but as catalyst!! No can be positive - if said right -- positve no - ing???