Michigan

Hello, American Pie! Why a 40-Year-Old Song Became This Weekend’s Viral Video

Peter Kafka in Media on May 29, 2011 at 9:17 pm PT

Because it’s fun, because it’s a long weekend, and because the people of Grand Rapids, Michigan, have an axe to grind.

Austan Goolsbee Explains Obama's Wireless Plan in Three Minutes (Video)

Arik Hesseldahl in Enterprise on February 11, 2011 at 4:19 am PT

The chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers makes a short case for the National Wireless Initiative.

Obama's Wireless Broadband Plan: 98 Percent or Bust

Arik Hesseldahl in Enterprise on February 10, 2011 at 2:52 pm PT

The president outlines how he thinks the country might pay to cover nearly all of the country with a high-speed wireless network.

Viral Video: Bedbugs Get Taiwanesed (And It's the Weirdest Ever)

Kara Swisher in News on January 10, 2011 at 4:12 am PT

It is saying a lot about this video that the CGI wizards at Next Media Animation have produced a doozy. It’s based on a report by Forbes.com, which asked the two largest pest exterminators, Orkin and Terminix, in the U.S. to pick the cities with the worst infestations of bedbugs.

FCC Vote: Reactions Are Pouring In

Arik Hesseldahl in Enterprise on December 21, 2010 at 12:52 pm PT

Now that the FCC’s vote on net neutrality rules is official, reactions are pouring in from every quarter. No one seems especially happy.

Voices

Ford Uses Wi-Fi to Customize Cars

Matthew Dolan, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on August 26, 2010 at 11:29 am PT

The auto industry is getting fired up about wireless technology in cars and trucks but it’s not just for connecting passengers’ laptops or streaming Internet radio stations.

Voices

News Corp. to Settle Suit for $500 Million

Shira Ovide, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on January 30, 2010 at 3:57 pm PT

News Corp. said it agreed to pay $500 million to settle a lawsuit, days before the case was to go to trial. The legal dispute started four years ago, when marketing firm Valassis Communications Inc. alleged that News Corp.’s News America Marketing, which sells coupon inserts in Sunday newspapers and in grocery-store displays, unfairly used its power with customers to gain advantages over competitors.

Voices

Almost Famous: Ethan Beard of Facebook

Drake Martinet, Intern, All Things Digital in News on January 25, 2010 at 1:48 am PT

In this installment of “Almost Famous” that we call “Need to Know,” focusing on less prominent but very important tech execs you need to know better, we friended Ethan Beard, director of the Facebook Developer Network. He’s a mover inside the Web’s biggest social networking shaker. We talked Facebook platform, music, 1200-baud modems and his addiction to social gaming. Also: Don’t miss the picture of Ethan dressed as a banana.

Ford to Enable Wi-Fi Hotspots in Some Cars: BoomTown Rejoices

Kara Swisher in News on December 21, 2009 at 3:00 am PT

Last week, when BoomTown was taking a taxi from JFK Airport, I was more of a geek loser than usual, using my USB broadband modem to connect and write a post. But the jostling cut off the connection several times, which was frustrating. Now comes news that Ford will make the next generation of its Sync-enabled vehicles into Wi-Fi hotspots, allowing you to connect to the Internet everywhere much more seamlessly in a moving car. Oh, joy! Now, I can obsessively Gowalla myself while moving at 80 miles per hour, which should freak some people out.

Voices

Marrying High-Tech Innovation and Midwest Manufacturing

Timothy Hay, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on December 14, 2009 at 4:38 pm PT

Most venture capital firms shy away from the Midwest manufacturing and automotive industries, instead favoring high-technology regions like Silicon Valley. Not RPM Ventures. Located less than a mile from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, the firm aims to bridge the divide between high-tech start-ups and major manufacturers in the Midwest.