Dick Zigun says he supports plans to redevelop Coney Island on a grand scale, but not if it means turning it into a mall.

The Mayor of Coney Island has been working since 1980 to preserve the old landmark neighborhood and promote a future fitting the magical  nexus of sand and sea and four subway lines.  His not-for-profit Coney Island USA “interprets the past and experiments with the future of American popular culture and offers a growing panoply of arts events and exhibitions rooted in the traditions of P.T. Barnum, vaudeville and Coney Island itself”.  High aspirations in a time and place about a century removed from the glory days.

But there remains a loyal tribe steeped in the hustle and carney scene around the Bowery and the Sideshow - an underground hipster vibe on the fringe of the city, only minutes away from the LES.  Unique and worth preserving?

Zigun: “People find the seediness charming, and I realized that in terms of the way capitalism works and real estate works, you can’t become enamored of the seediness,” he said.

“That’s not what Coney Island was in its heyday.”  Read more in the NYT
So, the mantra today on the web is “keep it raw”: people are suspicious of polished video and website design.  That’s not what marketing was in its heyday, either.  Simple and aw-shucks is fine.  But with good production values - well-lit with perfect sound, and a well-executed script.

Look at the sideshow - in the seediest of surroundings, absolute pros gathering the thirsty crowds with rehearsed and polished pitches, getting them in the tent with previews of the highly practiced and professional stars of the show, and best of all collecting the toll as they turn the tip.  The production values are spectacular considering the price of admission and the scene.

Rick Butts really kicked the hornets’s nest with his recent post on launch overload, triggered by the Stompernet launch.

Seems he hasn’t had enough yet.

Go read Unsubscribe From Whomever Emailed You Stompernet

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Ken McCarthy goes to the sideshow in his interview with Ann Convery, who will be on the faculty at the 2008 System Seminar in Chicago in June. Ken uses the example of the outsider talker building the crowd (the tip) and telling them enough to get them inside the tent (turning the tip.)

Ann’s specialty is designing a good hook to bring the tip up close, and inside.

Click here to listen in.

Dave Winer believes we’re getting closer to the end in the warfare defined by social networks.

Now that Google, MySpace and Facebook are going nose-to-nose, is the winner there?

Or, could it be “two kids in a garage that no one is paying attention to.”

Stay tuned.0

The challenge with any new marketing tools is getting a high enough Return on Time Investment.  2.0 sites like Twitter can seem to be bottomless time sinks (how does Scoble follow 22,000 +?)

Fortunately, the  more gifted start tweaking almost immediately and make the new and interesting, new and usable for us grinds.

Today’s find, thanks to Bill Hibbler, is Twitter Groups.  Great leverage.  His video  tells how and why.

Seth Godin is feeling noise creep. Too much incoming info of little to fair value drowning out the good stuff.

What’s the average information sink to do?

The unsubscribe button helps a lot. But do you keep your top 10 or 50? Or Scoble’s 21, 224 on Twitter?

How much info helps before it strangles?

Tonight, we watched Pope Benedict head home after his inspiring visit to the US this past week. Recognizing a good marketer when he sees one, Vice-President Cheney noted, “All Americans respect your message of peace, justice and freedom.”

Not to be outdone, Dr. Joe Vitale, Mr. Fire himself, tells how he and Steve Reeves conspired to” contribute peace to the world.” Check out his story at blog.mrfire.com/cars/attracting-hercules-car/

Seth Godin has announced the Pope is coming.  I suspect it’s just prepub buzz for his new book.