POP CULTURE: IS THE INTERNET KILLING FAMILY TIME??

HERE’S AN INTERESTING QUESTION FOR THE POPULAR CULTURE AT LARGE: IS THE INTERNET KILLING QUALITY TIME FOR FAMILIES?? WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS? CHECK THIS ARTICLE OUT & LEAVE YOUR COMMENTS. CHEERS & ENJOY.

Cell phones make it easier for parents to keep track of where their children are, while giving kids the kind of privacy they wouldn't have had in the days of landlines.

Television has cut into dinner time, and as TV sets became cheaper, they also multiplied, so that kids and parents no longer have to congregate in the living room to watch it.

But Gilbert said the Internet is so engrossing, and demands so much more attention than other technologies, that it can disrupt personal boundaries in ways other technologies wouldn't have.

"It's not like television, where you can sit around with your family and watch," he said. The Internet, he noted, is mostly one-on-one.

Likely because they can afford more Web-connected gadgets, higher-income families reported greater loss of family time than those who make less money. And more women than men said they felt ignored by a family member using the Internet.

The center's latest survey was a random poll of 2,030 people ages 12 and up was conducted April 9 to June 30, 2008, and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

More on Internet use

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31373702/ns/technology_and_science-tech_and_gadgets/

POP CULTURE: NEW ONLINE COMEDY SHOW, ROFL, IS ON DECK

IF YOU WANNA LAUGH DO YOURSELF A FAVOR & CHECK OUT THIS ARTICLE. WELL, THE ARTICLE ITSELF WONT’T EVOKE LAUGHTER, BUT…. WELL YOU’LL SEE, JUST READ. LOL. ENJOY

Comedy Show ‘ROFL’ Debuts Today

The hottest and funniest new comedy show debuts on the Internet today as ROFL sets to take the humor industry by storm.

Created by Revision3, the TV network for the Internet generation, and RooftopComedy, the leading new media provider of performance-based comedy content, “ROFL – Roll On The Floor Laughing” is a weekly series featuring the most timely, relevant and hilarious live stand-up comedy of the week.

ROFL is a new kind of comedy show. Each 12-15 minute episode showcases the performance of 5-7 comics who have been recorded live at one of RooftopComedy’s 20 partner clubs around the world.

As RooftopComedy records every performance at each venue 365 nights a year, there is an endless amount of comedy content to create ROFL, a weekly round-up of the most hilarious acts.

ROFL will air every Monday.

POP CULTURE: BOLLYWOOD MEETS HULU

GREAT NEWS FOR ALL BOLLYWOOD FANS, & MOVIE FANS ALIKE, BOLLYWOOD IS COMING ONLINE TO THE FREE VIDEO STREAMING SITE, HULU. I CAN ATTEST TO THE FACT THAT HULU IS A GREAT SITE TO VISIT & BROWSE. YOU CAN CATCH UP ON YOUR FAVORITE SHOWS, ACQUIRE SOME NEW ONES, CATCH A MOVIE, CLASSIC, NEW, OR OTHERWISE, OR A HOST OF OTHER THINGS. AND NO THEY AREN’T PAYING ME FOR THIS WONDERFUL PLUG, BUT I’M WORKING ON THAT. HAHA.IN THE MEANTIME CHECK OUT THE ARTICLE. ENJOY

Bollywood Comes to Hulu

The free online video service makes deal with Saavn to stream contemporary hit films from India.

NEW YORK, NY—Saavn, the world's largest digital distributor and marketer of Bollywood entertainment and Hulu, an online video service that offers hit TV shows, movies and clips at Hulu.com and other online destination sites—all for free, anytime in the U.S., have teamed up to stream Bollywood films. The initial launch will include five contemporary hits from India, including "Sarkar," Bollywood's homage to the "Godfather." All films include English subtitles and can be found at Hulu.com in the Feature Film category.

"Making some of the best Bollywood films available on Hulu is very exciting to us," said Vin Bhat, co-founder and chief executive officer of New York-based Saavn. "One of Saavn's goals is to make Bollywood more accessible for everyone and by having these films on Hulu, we believe that more people in the U.S. will open up to the genre that is revered by billions around the world."

At launch, Hulu and Saavn will offer these Bollywood hits:

"Sarkar" (2005) - The family politics of an Indian mafia family play out on a large scale in this critically acclaimed drama. Known as the Godfather of Bollywood, this film stars beloved actor Amitabh Bachchan; in a BBC poll, Bachchan was voted as the most important star of the millennium—beating Charlie Chaplin, Marilyn Monroe, and Sir Lawrence Olivier, among others.

"Hera Pheri" (2000) - Three unemployed friends accidentally intercept a ransom demand and try to make a quick buck off the misunderstanding in this rip-roaring comedy hit. This classic Indian comedy was so successful, it spawned one of Bollywood's first sequels. It stars Ashkay Kumar, Bollywood's golden boy whose films earn more money in the industry than any other star.

"Deewana" (1992) - This dramatic classic was the "king" of the Bollywood's first release, Shah Rukh Khan. Khan is arguably one of the world's most recognized figures; recently, he was the only actor named to the TIME 100, a list of global influencers. The film follows a promising singer who soon is thought to be murdered by his greedy uncle and cousins. Years later, he suddenly reappears and creates confusion for those he left behind.

Other films are romantic comedy "Hulchul" (2004) and "Dhaai Akshar Prem Ke" (2000), starring global icon and former Miss World Aishwarya Rai. More films will be released throughout the year.

CELEBRITY NEWS

Check out this article on the latest venture from my ace, Common. I’m a fan of the music, definitely in his corner with the new sag card action, & now he’s doing bigger & even better. Big ups to my ace on all of that & more. Check out the article

Rapper-turned-actor Common has gone back to "the people" with the announcement of The Corner, the first national online book club for teens in the United States.

Aimed at kids from middle to high school, Common's new venture will inspire members to read and voice their thoughts.

Each month, The Corner educational team chooses a book-of-the-month that conveys messages of tolerance, compassion and non-violent expressions of achieving social justice. Through lively discussions about the world of books through "Let's Talk," The Corner book club blog, members are encouraged to discuss, debate, critique, and comment on the selected material. A monthly spotlight of celebrity interviews focus on artists' favorite books, why reading is important to them and issues that teens face today. (Yahoo News)

The Chi-town emcee's motivation stems from strong family ties.

"My mom was a teacher, and growing up she always stressed the importance of education. So when I look back it's not a surprise for me to use words as a tool to make change, and to inspire children for the future." (Hip Hop Press)

The program was created in part with a grant by Best Buy's @15 which also recently worked with Ludacris on an outreach program.

Luda has joined forces with Best Buy's teenage-based social networking site @15 for a special TSA ("Teen Service Announcement"). He participated in the TSA as an early supporter of @15, a new teen-led social change platform underwritten by Best Buy to give teens a voice and give them opportunities to direct the company's philanthropy through the newly-created @15 Fund. (MSN News)

Aside from charity events and movies, Common previously told SOHH he hoped to continue making music far beyond a rapper's expected "retirement" ages.

"God willing, you'll get albums nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen," Common laughingly promised. "I feel like a jazz musician in many ways and I wanna keep creating music. I feel like I want to be doing shows when I'm sixty something." (SOHH)