Graham Hancock

More on the TED debacle

From Graham Hancock:

New and deeply disappointing TED tactic

Just when I thought TED had seen the error of their ways and were trying to fix things (see my post here:

http://www.facebook.com/Author.GrahamHancock/posts/10151559299442354 ) I receive an email from TED Curator Chris Anderson telling me that yet another of their famous Blog pages has now been set up, this one apparently as a special standalone ghetto for discussion of my “War on Consciousness” presentation. This tactic helps to distance TED from the PR debacle they created for themselves by axing my talk from their Youtube channel in the first place (where it had attracted hundreds of comments and 132,000 views). Now not only is the presentation cut off from the discussion initiated by all those original commentators (and their ability to share it) but it is also cut off from the new discussion that followed exposure of TED’s censorship and shoddy methods – here: http://blog.ted.com/2013/03/14/open-for-discussion-graham-hancock-and-rupert-sheldrake/ and here: http://blog.ted.com/2013/03/18/graham-hancock-and-rupert-sheldrake-a-fresh-take/

I’m left reeling by this continual slicing down of my presentation and its context which is nonetheless cleverly done so that TED can say, effectively, “we’re not censoring the presentation because it is on our website.” Well yes, but in such an obscure place that pretty soon no-one will be able to find it, the whole debate and furor will be forgotten and TED will be able to move forward as though this never happened.

Anyway for those with the energy to keep this hot potato hot, here is the new page that TED have created as a secluded ghetto for my presentation: http://blog.ted.com/2013/03/19/the-debate-about-graham-hancocks-talk/ . So far there is no link back or forward between the two previous blog pages and this one. I have asked TED to provide such links as a matter of urgency and to make them prominent. I expect they will do so but this will only slightly reduce the problem, not solve it.

You will note when you go to http://blog.ted.com/2013/03/19/the-debate-about-graham-hancocks-talk/ that in order to actually post comments you have to click the link near the bottom that says “Join the conversation here” which takes you to yet another page!! And when you get there you will find that you can no longer post full-length comments, as on the two previous Blog pages created by TED, but only rather abbreviated ones.

In this way, little by little, I fear that TED will succeed in making the problem they created vanish like a puff of smoke. But just in case the public doesn’t allow them to get away with that disappearing act they have imposed a time-limit on this new “conversation” which they will close in less than two weeks from now. I guess the big powers like TED always do win in the end since they control the agenda no matter what we the people try to do.