Friday Five: Sep 16, 2016
1. Tom Sachs goes to Europa
Ex-Mythbuster Adam Savage casually name drops Tom Hanks and spends some time with Sachs & Co. as they gear up for a new exhibition in San Francisco. The interview goes a lot of places but does a good job of encapsulating Sachs’s working style and philosophy towards art in general, as well as Sachs’s ongoing and interesting relationship with the fine folks over at NASA.
2. Yvon Chouinard: Philosopher-King
The New Yorker profiles Patagonia founder Chouinard on the heels of the updated release of Let My People Go Surfing, addressing the history of the company, as well as the movement it helped spawn. Chouinard’s lifestyle and philosophy are fully engrained in the company, from the CEO level down to each retail employee. The company takes a stand on environmental practices and produce quality even when it is in direct opposition to profit margins or traditional business practices. I can’t say I’ve ever heard of another business owner telling his employees to play hooky and go surfing when the waves are good. Plus, a brief cameo by the infamous HQ employee: Chipper Bro.
3. A Very Long Conversation About Deleting Gawker Posts
Part of the Univision deal to acquire Gawker Media was the right to not take on any of their withstanding liabilities. So, as Univision placed their own employees as interim in two of three vote holding seats, they decided to delete six posts deemed as “carrying liability” by Univision legal. This was frowned upon by Gawker employees and the general media industry alike. So, the current Executive Editor of Gawker flew down to Miami to have a lengthy chat (a deposition, really) about it.
4. Snowden Deserves a Presidential Pardon
Edward Snowen outlines his case to President Obama for why he deserves to be pardoned. Arguing that, while what he did is illegal “on paper”, his actions have only gone on to prove for the greater good of American citizens and the world at large. Many other voices and publications have come out to support his case. See also: pardonsnowden.org
5. The Stories Told In The Library of Andressen Horowitz Lobby
The most storied VC firm in Silicon Valley may also have one of it’s more interesting lobbies. While startup founders pour over their pitch deck, rehearsing their spiels, they are surrounded by books. Many of which came from Andressen’s personal collection. So, WIRED writer Cade Metz pondered if they could glimpse a bigger picture about the Silicon Valley world by glancing over the titles included, and he found a pretty interesting story indeed. A story drawing parallels between early Hollywood and the tech industry today.
