Smoke signals
: The original BREAKING NEWS! came from that smokestack over the Vatican. The official, binary news was released — white or black, straight from the source, no chance for rumors — and then it spread with the speed of voice and feet. That’s how news used to work and that’s why it’s so amusingly anachronistic to see people sitting at the Vatican with their cell phones — “nope, no smoke yet,” they’re all surely saying — while MSNBC puts up its smoke cam. Today, the news should be announced via SMS.
: LATER: At 11:50a, MSNBC is debating whether the smoke coming out now is black or white. The wires say it’s black. But the crowds are cheering. And Vatican Radio, they say, just switched from saying that it’s black to saying it appears white.
