Kardashian

Measuring the tech world in 'Kardashians'

Earlier this month, Ethan Zuckerman, who directs the Center for Civic Media at MIT, proposed a new unit of measurement for keeping track of how much attention a person, place, thing, or concept garners in the media. Fittingly, he dubbed the new unit the "Kardashian," presumably because the obvious alternative -- "KFC Double Down Bacon Sandwich" -- is too long.

Here's how Zuckerman explains the Kardashian unit:

Conceptually, the Kardashian is the amount of global attention Kim Kardashian commands across all media over the space of a day. In an ideal, frictionless universe, we'd determine a Kardashian by measuring the percentage of all broadcast media, conversations and thoughts dedicated to Kim Kardashian. In practical terms, we can approximate a Kardashian by using a tool like Google Insights for Search - compare a given search term to Kim Kardashian and you can discover how small a fraction of a Kardashian any given issue or cause merits.

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Kim Kardashian's ShoeDazzle gets a revamp

The Kim Kardashian-backed venture called ShoeDazzle gets a makeover today. This online customer-focused shoe boutique for women is debuting a new CEO, changing its payment structure, and venturing into clothing as well as shoes.

"We are taking this business to a whole other level," said ShoeDazzle's new CEO, Bill Strauss, who joined the company after being CEO of Provide Commerce. "We want to increase our 'share of closet.'"

For those who haven't heard of this e-commerce site, it's backed by the powerful Silicon Valley venture firm Andreessen Horowitz, which threw down a $40 … Read more

LAPD asks Gaga, Kardashian, Kutcher to tweet traffic news

Stars can, sometimes, be vehicles for good. But can they be good for vehicles?

This question, which almost sounds like a lyric from a Sheryl Crow song, is resonating around Hollywood because the LAPD has decided that only the likes of Lady Gaga, Ashton Kutcher, and Kim Kardashian can save the city from crazed drivers.

The way the Los Angeles Times tells it, the local police are so worried that their forthcoming closure of the 405 Freeway will lead to a hysteria not seen since The Blues Brothers decided to go for an evening out that they have begged these … Read more

The 404 720: Where an Angry Bird in the hand is worth two in the Hanukkah bush (podcast)

You can thank today's guest Natali Del Morris for the clever show title that incorporates two of Jeff's favorite things: Angry Birds and Hanukkah! Actually, only one of those statements is true.

Topics for today include the arrival of Angry Birds Seasons, Mark Zuckerberg's upcoming interview on "60 Minutes," Michael Jackson's new song release, the top searches in Yahoo Search and Microsoft Bing, a Playboy external hard drive, and a 3D porn channel launching in France. The rundown is packed today, so enjoy the show!

If you're as obsessed with Angry Birds as Wilson, you'll be happy to hear that Rovio, maker of the top-selling smartphone game, plan to release a console version for PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii next year. For non-players like Natali and me, here's the gist: the video game tests your accuracy with a slingshot; it's one of the most popular smartphone games right now, with more than 36 million downloads as of November.

Even better, Rovio will also release Angry Birds 2, a follow-up to the original game that will feature more of the same characters but with even more pigs to shoot with a slingshot. No word on whether Angry Birds will support motion control on those consoles, but if you can't wait another year, the holiday expansion pack titled Angry Birds Seasons is now available for your addiction in the App Store.

It's going to be a lot harder to hide this from your partner/parents/roommates, but imagine holding 56 years of Playboy magazines loaded onto an external hard drive. That won't mean much to the kid with a hundred gigs of bootleg skinema buried in a system sub-folder, but surely some of our listeners remember analog porn and will appreciate the entire Playboy catalog in a 2.5-inch portable enclosure!

And while we're on the subject, you should also check out the FleshDrive, a similar peripheral for the more "selective" consumer, and France's new 3D on-demand porn channel.

Just after the break we wish a very happy birthday to Richard from Atlanta, who sent us this video voice mail!

If you'd like to leave a comment for the show, record a YouTube video and send the link to the404(at)cnet(dot)com! You can also leave an audio-only voicemail at 1-866-404-CNET (2638), or just shoot us a note at the404(at)cnet.com!

Episode 720 Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Lady Gaga quits Facebook, Twitter for charity

Stars sometimes cause us vast moral dilemmas.

Should we support those stars who gyrate appallingly, but whose music we secretly love? Should we adore those stars whose songs we adore, but whose personal life seems a sewer of broken hearts and severed senses?

Now there is another parameter to this axis of complication.

Lady Gaga, she of the interesting designer fashions and music for gym clothes, is, along with other stars, quitting Facebook and Twitter.

There are those for whom this news might signify disaster on a worldwide scale. Lady Gaga, after all, has more than 7 million Twitter followers, … Read more

Kim Kardashian outs air marshal via Twitter

Are you one of the 297 million Americans who has yet to start following Kim Kardashian on Twitter? Perhaps you'll be enticed to fly her way.

Or perhaps not. You see, on Tuesday, the astoundingly famous celebutante was flying from Los Angeles to New York.

Who knows what exciting project she was involved in. However, nothing could compare with her excitement at discovering the claim to fame of the chap sitting next to her.

As breathless as a groupie at a Julio Iglesias concert, she booted up her tweeting app (TweetGenius, for those who care) and sent this important message … Read more