December/January 2010

Ashton Says, "Follow Me"

How Ashton Kutcher is pioneering a new kind of media business, bridging Hollywood, technology, and Madison Avenue. Really.
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John Mackey's Whole Foods Vision to Reshape Capitalism

John Mackey, the Libertarian CEO of Whole Foods, says not to worry: Capitalism and the invisible hand will cure the world's ills. But isn't it a little late to start believing in magic?
Conscious Capitalists Focus on the Ideals of Businesses
The Rise and Fall of Design Within Reach

This article, originally published in the December 2009 issue of the magazine, won the 2010 Deadline Club Award for Best Business Feature.
Seeing Double: Is It DWR or Someone Else?
Which Poverty-Fighting Policies Work? J-PAL Has the Answer

A global league of economists called J-PAL is deploying its experimental methods and one all-powerful asset -- data -- to explain human behavior, change how we help the poor, and try to save the world.
J-Pal’s Most Provocative Inquiries
Jeffrey Katzenberg Plans on Living Happily Ever After

As a young prince, Jeffrey Katzenberg made billions for the Magic Kingdom, but his ambition got him banished. Now the CEO of DreamWorks Animation has a (smaller) kingdom of his own -- and every intention of living happily ever after.
DreamWorks Animation Has Become a Tech Incubator
Zimbabwe's Diamond Mines Lead to Rape, Murder, and Thievery

Zimbabwe's newfound diamond fields could have helped lift the country from its misery. Instead, they've fueled a cycle of government-sanctioned rape, murder, and thievery -- and pushed the place still closer to collapse.

Fast Company Recommended Events December 2009
December MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT SUN
Freeze: The Antarctic Treaty Turns 50

On the first of December 1959, 12 nations signed a pact freezing territorial claims and banning military activity in Antarctica. It isn't human-free (29 nations have research stations there, and 11 people have been born on the continent), but it remains remarkably untouched. Here's a tour.

To Sell or Not to Sell: Silicon Valley Acquisitions Market Heats Up

That is the question in Silicon Valley as the acquisitions market heats up. And with it, another head scratcher: Are acquisitions good for anyone?
For-Profit Universities Want Some Respect

For-profit higher-education programs are booming -- even Jack Welch has signed on. Can market-driven schools award online diplomas that graduates are proud of?
For-Profit Colleges and the Student-Loan-Default Gap
Cenk Uygur Sets Out to Take Down Traditional Television

Cenk Uygur and his rebel band are out to take down traditional television, with a hand from YouTube, satellite radio, and 500,000 fans.
Biotechs Look Overseas to Launch a Stem-Cell Revolution

According to one small biotech, the best way to launch a stem-cell revolution is to do it overseas.
The Price of Winning FDA Approval
Ideo Reimagines the Lowly Thermostat

What happens when a couple of designers from one of the most influential design firms on earth take a break from working for clients like Kraft Foods and Samsung to experiment in pure future gazing?
Corventis's PiiX Monitor Promises to Predict Heart Failure

How to Make Corporate Training Rock

How one team transformed a training binder into must-see TV.
When Companies Rev Up Their Corporate Routines

When companies rev up their corporate routines
Why Not-For-Profits Should Enlist Celebrity Spokespeople Who Care

Why celebrity-seeking not-for-profits should find a friend like David Arquette.
Yesterday's Vision of Tomorrow: Cracking Open a Time Capsule from 1999

A voice from yesteryear calls out through the decade -- via his iBook with a 56k modem on Al Gore's series of tubes -- to see how far we've come.

Letter from the Editor: Attitude Is Everything

My father-in-law uses an expression, "Attitude is everything." It's his nonconfrontational way of saying, "Stop complaining." This expression has been on my mind lately when I talk to media and advertising executives about the disruption and uncertainty in their industries. I hear a lot of nostalgia, resistance, and barely contained anger as lucrative ways of doing business are undercut by shifts in technology, new spending patterns, and client enthusiasm for ideas that have never been tried before. It's no wonder that AMC's Mad Men has become such a cultural touchstone.