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Full-Length Pilot Show

By Virginia Prescott on Tuesday, February 26, 2008.

It’s been a busy week at Word of Mouth headquarters. We’re getting ready to launch our first live broadcast this Thursday, 2/28. Tune in to NHPR at 2pm for the big event!

To prepare for the inaugural program, we spent today in a dress-rehearsal of sorts. We went into the studio and ran through a full hour-long broadcast to see how it would sound. We’re posting the audio here so you can listen and tell us what you like, what you didn’t like, and what you think we can do better. Also, chime in with your own two-cents on any of the topics we discussed.

Check out the audio, and leave your comments below. If you’re more of a talker than a writer, feel free to give our listener-line a jingle at (603) 223-2448. We'd love to use some of your comments in future broadcasts.

Here's a rundown of what we covered on today's pilot:

Favorite Books By Indie Sellers
The Publishing business lives and dies by the New York Times best-seller list. But that's not the only list bookstores pay attention to. Independent bookstores put a lot of stock in the Book Sense list, a compilation of sales reports from the indies. Kelly Horan shares some of her favorite selections with us. Kelly runs the Friday Night Authors Series at Jabberwocky Bookshop.

Green Rock Tours
Putting on a rock show isn't the most environmentally-friendly thing you can do. So some musicians are taking action by kicking-off "green tours" to reduce waste and carbon emissions while on the road. Virginia speaks with Lauren Sullivan, co-director of Reverb, a Portland, Maine non-profit that helps musicians plan their Earth-friendly tours.

Is Tina Fey the New Mary Tyler Moore?
Funny women are revitalizing TV sitcoms. Shows like 30 Rock and The Sarah Silverman Program show that female comedians are no longer being relegated to the role of best-friend or wacky neighbor. Virginia talks about this with University of Michigan Assistant Professor Bambi Haggins. She teaches Television History and Popular Culture.

An Introduction to Meiko
In Word of Mouth’s ongoing quest to find new music, we stumbled upon West Coast artist Meiko. But it’s not like we had to dig very deep to find her. She’s already been featured on Grey’s Anatomy and KCRW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic -- two important stops on the path to stardom. Word of Mouth host Virginia Prescott talks with new-music fanatic Bill Slammon about Meiko’s young career. Click here for more Meiko-related links on the Word of Mouth blog.

Black is the New Black
Scientists have created a new material that absorbs more light than anything else ever made. Basically, it's blacker than black. It's super black. And Faith Salie discussed it on her public radio show Fair Game. We listen to an excerpt. Click here to check out her whole interview with Washington Post science writer Rick Weiss.

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Zombies: A Window Into Our Culture

By Virginia Prescott on Tuesday, February 26, 2008.


George Romero – the undisputed godfather of zombie flicks – releases a new thriller this weekend. Diary of the Dead is mostly told through the lens of an amateur filmmaker documenting a monster attack. Romero’s new approach to filmmaking reflects the influence of the hand-held, low-fi, self-referential nature of the YouTube generation. According to film critic David Wildman (of the Weekly Dig and Worcester Magazine), all of Romero’s films speak to the attitudes and politics of their day – from the tumultuous 1960s to the Bush/Cheney years. Word of Mouth host Virginia Prescott speaks with David about that, and she looks back on 25 years of Michael Jackson’s Thriller.


(Photo By Keith Ivey)

Read David Wildman's review of Diary of the Dead
Watch Night of the Living Dead
See the trailer for Chopper Chicks in Zombietown (Viewer Discretion Advised)
Watch Filipino prisoners perform Michael Jackson's Thriller
See Naomi Campbell's Thriller Superbowl ad

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Rocking Out For The Planet

By Virginia Prescott on Tuesday, February 26, 2008.

Swedish musician José González is concerned about our impact on the planet, and he sings about it on his latest album, "In Our Nature." It’s easy to sing about, but harder to act on if you’re a rock star on the road. In fact, the event industry as a whole is one of the worst contributors to carbon emissions in the world, second only to the construction industry.


(Photo by Fredric Egerstrand)

But some musicians are taking action. González kicks off a month-long "green tour" of North America on Saturday, and he’s partnered with the Portland, Maine-based environmental non-profit Reverb to reduce waste and carbon emissions while on the road. Word of Mouth host Virginia Prescott spoke with Reverb’s co-director, Lauren Sullivan, about making tours more earth-friendly.

Find out more about Reverb

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Fairpoint Gets Final Approval from New Hampshire Regulators

By David Darman on Tuesday, February 26, 2008.

New Hampshire regulators have approved Fairpoint Communication’s 2.4 billion dollar purchase of Verizon’s Northern New England phone system.

With the approval, Fairpoint has cleared the last regulatory hurdle it has faced in seeking the telecommunication takeover in Vermont, Maine and New Hampshire.

New Hamsphire Public Radio’s David Darman has more.

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About Word of Mouth

Our culture is changing rapidly.

New books, movies, music, technology, food – even the way we process and share information.

Smaller, faster, portable, more convenient – these are the new forces shaping our reality.

But how do we distinguish passing fads from trends that affect our lives, our families, our communities and our world?

To find out, listen to Word of Mouth from New Hampshire Public Radio.

listen: No audio currently available. Order on CD (pdf).

Sugar Hill

TOWN MEETING 2008

Map | About the project | Help

With help from many people we assembled a sampling of some of the items on the warrant this March. We hope you find this list helpful and we hope you will use this page to post a comment on specific items. Three big points:

  • If you post a comment, keep your subject to just one warrant article. You can post as many separate comments as you like; our goal is to keep the online discussion organized in the same way that a town meeting goes through warrant articles one at a time.
  • You can comment on any warrant article whether it is on this short list or not. The goal of this list is just to get the conversation started but you are free to draw attention to any item that you think is important.
  • If you post a comment, please give your full name at the bottom, just as you'd have to state your name at town meeting.
Click here for more help with comments.

Sugar Hill

This list does not represent the full warrant. Consult your town report for the complete list.

Discussion

New Hampton

TOWN MEETING 2008

Map | About the project | Help

With help from many people we assembled a sampling of some of the items on the warrant this March. We hope you find this list helpful and we hope you will use this page to post a comment on specific items. Three big points:

  • If you post a comment, keep your subject to just one warrant article. You can post as many separate comments as you like; our goal is to keep the online discussion organized in the same way that a town meeting goes through warrant articles one at a time.
  • You can comment on any warrant article whether it is on this short list or not. The goal of this list is just to get the conversation started but you are free to draw attention to any item that you think is important.
  • If you post a comment, please give your full name at the bottom, just as you'd have to state your name at town meeting.
Click here for more help with comments.

New Hampton

This list does not represent the full warrant. Consult your town report for the complete list.

Discussion

Littleton

TOWN MEETING 2008

Map | About the project | Help

With help from many people we assembled a sampling of some of the items on the warrant this March. We hope you find this list helpful and we hope you will use this page to post a comment on specific items. Three big points:

  • If you post a comment, keep your subject to just one warrant article. You can post as many separate comments as you like; our goal is to keep the online discussion organized in the same way that a town meeting goes through warrant articles one at a time.
  • You can comment on any warrant article whether it is on this short list or not. The goal of this list is just to get the conversation started but you are free to draw attention to any item that you think is important.
  • If you post a comment, please give your full name at the bottom, just as you'd have to state your name at town meeting.
Click here for more help with comments.

Littleton

This list does not represent the full warrant. Consult your town report for the complete list.

Discussion

Newton

TOWN MEETING 2008

Map | About the project | Help

With help from many people we assembled a sampling of some of the items on the warrant this March. We hope you find this list helpful and we hope you will use this page to post a comment on specific items. Three big points:

  • If you post a comment, keep your subject to just one warrant article. You can post as many separate comments as you like; our goal is to keep the online discussion organized in the same way that a town meeting goes through warrant articles one at a time.
  • You can comment on any warrant article whether it is on this short list or not. The goal of this list is just to get the conversation started but you are free to draw attention to any item that you think is important.
  • If you post a comment, please give your full name at the bottom, just as you'd have to state your name at town meeting.
Click here for more help with comments.

Newton

This list does not represent the full warrant. Consult your town report for the complete list.

Discussion

Dublin

TOWN MEETING 2008

Map | About the project | Help

With help from many people we assembled a sampling of some of the items on the warrant this March. We hope you find this list helpful and we hope you will use this page to post a comment on specific items. Three big points:

  • If you post a comment, keep your subject to just one warrant article. You can post as many separate comments as you like; our goal is to keep the online discussion organized in the same way that a town meeting goes through warrant articles one at a time.
  • You can comment on any warrant article whether it is on this short list or not. The goal of this list is just to get the conversation started but you are free to draw attention to any item that you think is important.
  • If you post a comment, please give your full name at the bottom, just as you'd have to state your name at town meeting.
Click here for more help with comments.

Dublin

This list does not represent the full warrant. Consult your town report for the complete list.

Discussion

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