Great Falls, Virginia, as told by lying clickbait

Great Falls, Virginia, is a quiet, woodsy, upscale suburb of Washington, D.C. But location-based clickbait advertisements tell a very different story about the community.
I live on the border of Great Falls in the town of Vienna, so I get location-based ads for those communities as well as Washington, D.C.
Internet advertisers only customize the text of their ads, so some of the photos they use are pretty ridiculous. They’ll say Great Falls, Va., but show a desert landscape, for instance.
Here are some of the latest examples of inaccurate depictions of Great Falls and the surrounding region, according to lying clickbait.

Let’s start with the lovely ladies of Great Falls. There are many beautiful women here, of course, just not the ones clickbait ads are showing.
One ad distributed by Revcontent shouted “Meet the girl in Great Falls!” It showed a fit lady in a tight miniskirt. “The girl” is actually Instagram model Anna Nystrom from Stockholm, Sweden. That particular photo was taken on April 11.

Another dating service ad carried by Revcontent was headlined “Divorced woman looking for new partner in Great Falls.” It used a photo of former teenage Instagram model Claire Abbott. She is from Canada.
(For more on Abbott, see the articles “What Happened to Claire Abbott, Famous Instagram Model?” by the Frisky and “Why Did This Famous Instagram Model Disappear?” by Travelfuntu.)

If you believed lying clickbait, this area also has some famous attorneys and judges.
Outbrain distributed an ad titled “The cost for an elite Great Falls attorney might surprise you.” It used a photo of Julianna Margulies from the CBS television series “The Good Wife.”

Another Outbrain ad titled “Virginia may pay off your home if you live near Great Falls.” It used a photo of Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer, who is overseeing the case of school shooter Nikolas Cruz in Broward County, Florida.

Lying clickbait articles about “new rules” often feature pictures of women being arrested. Often they are stock images, but occasionally the selections are really odd.
One article titled “Little-known rule leaves Great Falls, Virginia, drivers stunned.” It used a news photo of Jamie Lyn Basinger of Morganton, N.C. She was charged with involuntary manslaughter and felony child abuse in the March 2017 death of her 3-year-old son.

A clickbait article titled “New rule in Great Falls, Virginia. (Drivers are furious)” used an on-set photo from the HBO series “Girls.” It showed actress Jemima Kirke getting arrested for a scene in the show. (See article by the Daily Mail.)

An article titled “New rule in Washington, District of Columbia” used a photo of actress Debby Ryan who was pretending to get arrested at a charity event in 2014. (See article by TeenInfoNet.)

Finally, an article titled “You may not believe the prices on these new cars in Vienna” used an image of a lot filled with new cars and vans in Brazil. The picture is available on Getty Images from photographer Luoman.

Related articles:

My neighborhood looks exciting and exotic thanks to lying clickbait (Aug. 11, 2018)

Celebrities in my backyard thanks to lying clickbait (June 24, 2018)

Artificial intelligence in sex technology

If there’s a new technology, someone is going to figure out a sex app for it. I’ve written a couple of times about entrepreneurs coming up with porn or sex applications for the latest technologies.
Lately I’ve seen stories about businesses touting AI in their sex gadgets.
A sex toy company called Very Intelligent Ecommerce Inc. has developed an oral sex simulator for men that it says uses AI technology.
The product, Autoblow A.I., provides 16 different oral sex experiences using artificial intelligence, the company’s Indegogo page says. (See articles by the Sun and AVN.)
Meanwhile, a Barcelona-based engineer has created a smart sex doll called Samantha. The doll has the power to say “no” to a man’s sexual advances. Samantha also requires some foreplay to get her “in the mood.” (See articles by Geek.com and Metro.)
Some scientists are concerned about possible negative consequences of developing sex robots. They worry about the impact they’ll have on human sexual relations. (See article by the Sydney Morning Herald.)
Technology marches on.

Related articles:

Augmented reality: Is there a porn app for that? (July 30, 2018)

Blockchain: Is there a porn app for that? (Jan. 20, 2018)

Is there a porn app for that? (Jan. 30, 2016)

Photos: Smart sex doll Samantha (top) and Autoblow A.I.

Netflix DVD subscribers fall below 3 million

Yes, Netflix is the top subscription streaming video network, but it still runs a DVD-by-mail service in the U.S. that’s beloved by movie fans.
But the subscriber base for the DVD service continues to shrink. That’s mostly because people are choosing the convenience of streaming video. It doesn’t help that Netflix no longer promotes its legacy DVD service.
Netflix ended the third quarter with 2.85 million DVD subscribers, down 20% year over year. It exited the second quarter with 3 million DVD subscribers.
Seven years ago, the DVD service had 13.93 million subscribers.
I hope Netflix doesn’t pull the plug on its DVD service any time soon. It has a superior selection of movies compared with its more popular streaming cousin. It also offers a complementary set of TV series on DVD that aren’t on the streaming service.
Check out the service at DVD.com.

Related article:

How many Netflix DVD subscribers are there? (May 18, 2018)

Tech-media-tainment turns 10

Tech-media-tainment – a blog covering personal technology, media, pop culture and entertainment – marks its 10-year anniversary today.
The blog is still a catchall for my personal interests, which have evolved over the last decade. I hope readers have found the subject matter interesting over the years.
One constant has been my support for freedom of speech and specifically the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
The First Amendment has come under attack by political groups who want to narrow its scope by including exceptions for so-called “hate speech” and some forms of political speech. Thankfully the courts have held firm on the broad protections for the First Amendment.
For free speech to survive, we as a people must be willing to accept speech that we disagree with or find offensive. As my favorite T-shirt reads, “Free Speech More Important Than Your Feelings.”
Other major topics of interest for Tech-media-tainment include the importance of the public domain and abuses of copyright.
I’ve also written a lot about halls of fame, Donald Trump magazine covers, revisionist Disney princess art, post-apocalyptic entertainment and the proliferation of lying clickbait.
Unfortunately I’ve cut back on my blogging activity this year as I’ve been busy with other things.
I’m on pace in 2018 to post my lowest full-year article count since I started Tech-media-tainment.
Maybe I should pick up the pace a bit.

Photo: T-shirt from Libertarian Country.

Disney ramps up Mickey Mouse promotions ahead of public domain debut

The copyright for the first Mickey Mouse film, “Steamboat Willie,” is scheduled to expire in 2024 and the work will enter the public domain. Then artists will be able to do their own interpretations of the work without having to get permission from copyright holder Disney and pay the media giant a licensing fee.
In the past, Disney has pressured the federal government to extend copyright terms to protect Mickey Mouse from falling into the public domain. The last extension was widely viewed as a corporate handout to Disney and others, which makes another extension unlikely.
Until the 1970s, copyright terms only lasted for 56 years. Now works published in 1923 or later are protected for 95 years.
Disney now is likely to use trademarks to extend its ownership of Mickey Mouse. Unlike copyrights for creative works, trademarks are renewable for perpetuity. So Disney could do an end-run around copyright law using trademarks. Trademarks were designed to protect consumers from knockoff products, such as fake Rolex watches or fake Gucci handbags.
This will keep a lot of lawyers busy for years.
Lately I’ve noticed a big increase in licensed products featuring Mickey Mouse, purportedly to celebrate the character’s 90th birthday.
At the grocery store, I’ve seen Mickey Mouse branded Eggo waffles, Oreo cookies and Dole pineapples. In technology products, I’ve seen Mickey Mouse branded Beats headphones and OtterBox smartphone cases.
My guess is Disney is bucking up its argument that Mickey Mouse isn’t just a creative work but a corporate brand. Thus, Disney would argue, that it can stamp out any works that use the Mickey Mouse name. That would not be in the spirit of copyright law and would hurt the public domain.

Related reading:

Why Mickey Mouse’s 1998 copyright extension probably won’t happen again (Ars Technica; Jan. 8, 2018)

A Landslide of Classic Art Is About to Enter the Public Domain (The Atlantic; April 8, 2018)

These 1923 Copyrighted Works Enter the Public Domain in 2019 (Lifehacker; April 13, 2018)

X is the new Y: a favorite journalist crutch

The Netflix series “Orange Is the New Black” will end next year with its seventh season. But one thing that won’t end is the use of the expression “X is the new Y.” You know, statements such as “sitting is the new cancer.”
What follows are just a few examples online from the last few weeks. Journalists can’t resist using them.

Air pollution is the new tobacco (The Guardian; Oct. 27, 2018)

Sneaker Rat is the new Pizza Rat (The Cut; Oct. 23, 2018)

Barra is the new salmon (The Guardian; Oct. 23, 2018)

Data is the new oil (Salon; Nov. 4, 2018)

In Europe, ‘hate speech’ is the new blasphemy (American Greatness; Nov. 1, 2018)

Amazon is the new Apple (The Motley Fool; Oct. 16, 2018)

Abundance is the new sustainability (Forbes, Nov. 4, 2018)

Celebrities knocking on doors is the new fancy fund-raiser (Vogue; Oct. 31, 2018)

Photo: Scene from “Orange Is the New Black” (Netflix)

The world’s richest cats

Insurance aggregator Compare the Market recently launched its inaugural list of the world’s richest pets.
The 2018 Pet Rich List includes 19 dogs and 12 cats. It also features two tortoises, two monkeys, a chimpanzee, a parrot, a bear, a cow, a fox and even a chicken. (Keep those last two apart!)
As a cat lover, I’ve decided to repurpose the list. So I present …

The world’s richest cats 

1. Grumpy Cat (aka Tardar Sauce). Net worth: $99.5 million. She started as an internet meme and branched into merchandising and media appearances, including the 2014 movie “Grumpy Cat’s Worst Christmas Ever.”

2. Olivia Benson. Net worth: $97 million. She is one of singer Taylor Swift’s two cats. Named after the lead character on TV series “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” the Scottish Fold has appeared on advertisements for Diet Coke and Keds shoes.

3 Tommassino. Net worth: $13 million. The Italian cat inherited its wealth from its deceased owner.

4. Blackie. Net worth: $12.5 million. The U.K. cat inherited his riches.

5. Street Cat Bob. Net worth: $5 million. The U.K. cat was the inspiration for a best-selling book and movie.

6. Choupette. Net worth: $3.5 million. The French feline is the beloved cat of fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld. The Birman has been in multiple photoshoots for Chanel and other brands. She also has a large social media following.

7. Tara. Net worth: $1.85 million. Known as “the Hero Cat,” Tara rose to fame in 2014 when she rescued her family’s small child from an attacking dog. A video of the incident went viral on social media. She now has a large social media following.

8. Maru. Net worth: $1.8 million. The adorable Japanese cat is a social media star. The Scottish Fold is best known for his love of boxes.

9. Hamilton the Hipster Cat. Net worth: $826,800. The mixed breed cat has a large social media following. He earned his nickname because of his unique mustache of white hair.

10. Henri, le Chat Noir. Net worth: $316,000. The mixed breed cat inspired a web series of short films which are based around his existential musings.

11. Lil Bub. Net worth: $195,000. The odd-looking feline became an internet meme. She makes money from media appearances, sponsorships, YouTube royalties and merchandising.

12. Tinker. Net worth: $160,000. The U.K. cat is another trust fund pet.

Photo: Grumpy Cat on the cover of the Sunday Times Magazine in December 2014.