To the Point
Facebook IPO: A Touchstone Cultural Moment for America?
Tomorrow, shares in Facebook will start publically trading. Will it really be a financial milestone or another dotcom disappointment? We hear strikingly different views.
By Warren Olney • • 50m ListenTomorrow's the day that shares in Facebook will start publically trading, one of the most highly anticipated events in Silicon Valley's history. But some of the major players are hedging their bets and General Motors has stopped advertising on Facebook altogether. Will it really be a financial milestone or another dotcom disappointment? We hear strikingly different views. Also, minorities become the majority in the US, and political polarization and presidential politics — from 2004 to 2012.
Banner image: A man opens the door of Building 10 at Facebook headquarters in Menlo Park, California, May 15, 2012. Photo by Robyn Beck/AFP/GettyImages
In this episode
3 storiesMinorities Become the Majority
For the first time in history, the Census Bureau reports that white births are no longer a majority in the United States. In a nation founded by white Europeans, Latinos, blacks, Asians, other minorities and children of mixed race made up 50.4 percent of all births over a 12-month period.
Read the story7 minFacebook Is Going Public
New York's financial media are obsessed with Silicon Valley as Facebook — with 900 million subscribers — prepares an initial public offering that could set records on Wall Street. There's no clear evidence that advertising on social media really works, but everybody has got to be there. So Facebook might be worth $100 billion.
Read the story37 minA Look Ahead at Presidential Election Politics
In 2004, Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry spent big on TV advertising, in search of undecided voters in the political middle ground. George W. Bush's campaign knew they were just not there. This year's presidential campaign will be decided in so-called "swing states" -- including Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
Read the story6 min
