Washington Post (October 29)
“China’s conduct in recent days in the South China Sea seems neither accidental nor unintentional.” President Xi Jinping may be trying to divert “his people’s attention from growing domestic problems — a faltering economy and a leadership crisis.” Regardless of China’s motives, “it’s imperative that the administration send constant reminders to Beijing and to America’s allies in the region that the United States is a Pacific power and can deal with multiple crises at once.”
Tags: Accidental, Allies, Attention, China, Conduct, Divert, Domestic problems, Faltering economy, Leadership crisis, Motives, Reminders, South China Sea, U.S., Unintentional, Xi
New York Times (February 12)
“Attention-grabbing ads for cryptocurrency trading platforms were ubiquitous during last year’s Super Bowl.” What a difference a year makes. Last year, they spent $39 million on Super Bowl spots. “At this year’s Big Game? Crypto ads are nowhere to be found.”
Tags: $39 million, Ads, Attention, Cryptocurrency, Nowhere, Spots, Super Bowl, Trading platforms, Ubiquitous
The Guardian (January 1)
In 2004, “people shifted their attention, on average, every three minutes or so (including to interact with colleagues). When restricted to just computer activity, it was about 30 seconds quicker.” Eight years later, “the average time spent on any screen before switching was down to 74 seconds.” In 2021, that dropped to “just 47 seconds.”
Tags: 2004, 2021, 3 minutes, 47 seconds, 74 seconds, Attention, Colleagues, Computer, Interact, Restricted, Screen, Switching
WARC (May Issue)
With ad-blocker adoption soaring on mobile devices, “a lighter ad load may prove more effective for brands, with ‘too many ads’ being the most damaging factor for brands according to consumers. A growing focus on audience attention is also emerging, particularly around advertising in quality environments.”
Tags: Ad-blocker, Advertising, Attention, Audience, Brands, Consumers, Damaging, Effective, Environments, Mobile devices, Quality
Wall Street Journal (December 16)
“Impeachable or not, Trump’s foreign policy is reckless. He begins with disruption—breaking things—but lacks the patience and attention to rebuild.”
Tags: Attention, Breaking things, Disruption, Foreign policy, Impeachable, Patience, Rebuild, Reckless, Trump
Newsweek (March 29)
“As a master of misdirection, Donald Trump is exceedingly good at shifting our attention away from things that matter. With a single tweet, he can magically shift the news narrative in an entirely new direction….President Trump’s greatest rhetorical magic trick, however, has been to create the illusion that he won the Presidency of the United States without the aid of the Russian government.
Tags: Attention, Illusion, Magic trick, Misdirection, Presidency, Rhetorical, Russia, Shifting, Trump, Tweet, U.S.
New York Times (August 10)
“Mr. Trump has again made himself the focus of attention, when it should be Kim Jong-un, the ruthless North Korean leader, and his accelerating nuclear program.” His “threats have also diverted attention from a genuine accomplishment, the new Security Council sanctions.” This is a time for “prudent, disciplined leadership…. Rhetorically stomping his feet, as he did on Tuesday, is not just irresponsible; it is dangerous.”
Tags: Attention, Dangerous, Disciplined, Diverted, Irresponsible, Kim, Leadership, North Korea Nuclear program, Prudent, Ruthless, Sanctions, Security Council, Threats, Trump
Chicago Tribune (August 17)
“In the ongoing war for our attention, books are losing. Badly.” The average American only reads 19 minutes per day, but spends over 2 hours watching TV. “So to get modern readers’ attention, some publishers are taking a cue from Charles Dickens and releasing their books in installments.” The serials are “A-OK with us. We admire this approachable, one-bit-at-a-time tactic. It could be a godsend for a niche market of readers.” That said, “the best method for binge-reading is the same today as it was in Dickens’ day: a good, old-fashioned book”.
Tags: Approachable, Attention, Binge-reading, Books, Dickens, Installments, Publishers, Reading, Serials, TV, U.S.
New York Times (April 21)
President Obama’s trip should provide opportunity to explain that America’s strategic tilt toward Asia does not mean the U.S. will abandon the rest of the world. “A volatile and chaotic world will continue to demand America’s attention, but Asia is the future and warrants being a top priority.”