The Polliwog Journal

You never know when you’ll find yourself out there on the Web, something I tell my CyberEnglish students all the time. I tell them that creating content on the Web means that your real audience is potentially anyone. I also say that not too many people, probably, will be interested in their essays on To Kill A Mockingbird, but they get what I mean. I feel that way about my little polliwog blog sometimes, too.

I sometimes just click around and the places I land are in random succession. I began tonight at Technorati, checking things out, looking at my favorites and what they’d posted lately and I found myself suddenly at Stanford’s Philosophy Talk website. Still being a little annoyed that they have begun to charge for podcasts, I clicked on the link to their page for podcast subscriptions and, da da, I found myself. Me. Lil’ ole me. I had to double check, but sure enough, they summarized my endorsement of them as beneficial for schools and students and published it on that page. It was taken right out of my post titled Philosophy, Podcasts and Me.

Here’s what I said (copied and pasted from their page):

“Philosophy Talk podcasts are perfect tools for schools… Students have access to great discussions from one of the most respected universities in the nation.” Dawn

I love Philosophy Talk. The lectures are wonderful, engaging, and transport me to the world of ideas that I lack so much in my daily life.

What I don’t love is the idea that they’re charging for this experience now. I even told them as much. In their option to submit a conundrum I asked if charging for philosophy podcasts, which are a democratic force, is a paradox. Give it to the people!! What would Socrates have said about a subscription fee?

Well anyway, the ultimate irony is that I find myself on the very page that promotes their subscription service as evidence of its value. I do realize the further irony in that writing about this experience I am promoting them even further. What would you call that? Is there a term for that?

I imagine I won’t subscribe. I can’t really afford it. And, to be honest, I’ve gotten used to getting some amazing things (This American Life, The Writers Almanac, etc.) for free via podcasts. So it goes against my values now to think that I should pay.

Still, it’s funny to find myself an unwitting sales agent. But beyond that, I am simply flattered to have had Stanford University as MY audience, if only for a little moment.

Cool!