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The elephants in the room at TED

scobleizer.com

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Re: The elephants in the room at TED

#61

Post by blasdel »

dsplittgerber wrote: post #8
3dFlatLander wrote: post #5

My only wish is that TED would release all the talks on the website. I think the talks are secondary to the networking that happens there, and that gives the conference its value and keeps people coming. The videos they've posted are awesome, but I always wonder on what isn't up there.

Chris Anderson said that it's mostly the second-rate stuff that doesn't get published, even over time. There must have been a handful of talks that were really disappointing and they don't seem to want them making the rounds.

Note that this is a different .com boom magazine publisher than the one of the same name from Wired: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Anderson_(TED)

Re: The elephants in the room at TED

#62

Post by tsally »

nandemo wrote: post #23
tsally wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

the almost stereotypical Stuff White People Like content and tone of some talks. I'll take a wild guess, East Asian or South American? Yes, there is a cultural difference in a conference like TED and the rest of the world. But it is an amazing and inspiring conference that hosts some of the most accomplished people in the world as speakers. The fact that you dislike it because culturally it is different than you says…

You're reading way too much into it; please see my reply to Tichy. Oh, I happen to be South American, but it's not at all about that level of cultural difference. In my country there's a clone of the SWPL blog called "stuff middle class people like". On the other hand, someone very white like Mark Steyn would likely agree with me.

Ah, ok. Thanks for the clarification.

Re: The elephants in the room at TED

#63

Post by wrs »

moron4hire wrote: post #49
dho wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"TED has never paid speakers to attend, but we're committed to creating an experience that's tremendously fulfilling and beneficial on all sides. We do, of course, cover travel costs to Long Beach or Palm Springs, and provide excellent hotel accommodation." Source: http://www.ted.com/pages/view/id/73

Well, the travel expenses aren't anywhere near what a speaking fee would be, but at least the speakers aren't having to dip in to their own pockets to make a free talk happen. So where does the $6000/ticket go? It seems like a bit more than what would be necessary to cover those costs.

$4000 is a donation to the non-profit Sapling Foundation. The rest is pretty reasonable considering it's a 5-day conference with very high production values. (Except the food, which is kinda hit or miss.)

Re: The elephants in the room at TED

#64

Post by tsally »

_delirium wrote: post #15
tsally wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

...the talks are 18 minutes or less. If any of the talks seemed lacking in intellectual content to you it's most likely because of time constraints. For example Ken Robinson's talk on education was 100% motivation/life-philosophy, simply because he doesn't have time to present the proof he's based his opinions on. The proof does exist though; all the speakers have the credentials to back up their presentations. I'd b…

Daniel Pink came to mind when I was writing that part. I agree in an 18-minute talk you can only sort of speak in generalities, but in his case, his books are similarly unscientific.

I never watched Pink's talk, but based on his bio I can see what you are basing your opinion off of. However, it's my impression at least that speakers like that are a minority.

Re: The elephants in the room at TED

#65

Post by rdouble »

jhancock wrote: post #47
rdouble wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"I don’t have $6,000..." More surprising is that Scoble's been doing whatever it is he does for so long and he doesn't have $6000.

I believe Mr. Scoble has a family. Anyone here with a family that still works for a living will tell you that you don't have $6000 to spend on yourself.

Thanks for clearing that up. I read somewhere that he had children, but wasn't aware that he worked for a living.

Re: The elephants in the room at TED

#66

Post by dnsworks »

rdouble wrote: post #65
jhancock wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I believe Mr. Scoble has a family. Anyone here with a family that still works for a living will tell you that you don't have $6000 to spend on yourself.

Thanks for clearing that up. I read somewhere that he had children, but wasn't aware that he worked for a living.

Working for a living? I thought he was a tech blogger.

Re: The elephants in the room at TED

#67

Post by dnsworks »

fnid2 wrote: post #59
fexl wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is not a tax, because no force is involved. But you're right, it is a delightful business model.

Tax is not forced. The government doesn't force you to pay taxes. They punish you if you don't pay taxes and you earn more money than you spend keeping your business running. However, there are myriad ways to legally pay zero tax and many people do it every year.

The threat of force is still force.

Re: The elephants in the room at TED

#68

Post by dnsworks »

heed wrote: post #48

I don't like TED, but I like information. Don't get me wrong, there is spectacular information being distributed by TED, but I almost feel tricked into obtaining it. The conference is so heavily designed around status, and ego that it seems like more of a marketing tool for the intellectual elite to boost their personal brand than a platform to share ideas. It's inefficient, and deceptive. What I'd like to see instea…

I can think of more than a few TED talks that just wouldn't have translated without the oral and verbal clues. The joy in Erin Mckean's voice when saying synecdochically or erinanceous would be completely lost in text.

Re: The elephants in the room at TED

#69

Post by dnsworks »

nandemo wrote: post #10

What makes TED TED? Well, for one, it’s TED because Sarah wasn’t there (and I won’t be there next year because I didn’t pay the $6,000 in time). Its elitism and expense IS part of why TED is magical (...) This sounds really weird to me. I think what makes TED TED are some amazing talks by interesting people. We can watch it on the net. Who cares how rich the audience is? If anything, I suppose the audience is partly…

I think he's trying to say that "being there feels magical". Like walking around, looking at all of the drunk, white, upper middle class people who were ridiculously elated after the election was called for Obama. Mass hysteria?

Re: The elephants in the room at TED

#70

Post by ramchip »

pw0ncakes wrote: post #58
ramchip wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd like to know where you went to pay 100-200k in tuition fees and get nothing but networking out of it. Where I live, a bachelor's degree is about 15k (total), and is about learning engineering, physics or whatever you want to do. Going to TED twice won't give you quite the same skills...

That was perhaps a bit inflammatory... I probably shouldn't have posted it, at least not in that tone and manner. Certainly college doesn't provide "nothing but networking", nor does going to TED. You learn a lot in the process, sure. The reason American tuition is so high, however, especially at elite schools, is because a lot of Americans believe that attending the right college is a golden ticket of sorts. I guess…

Yes, it was a bit inflammatory, but I see your point now and I agree.
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