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About the book:
"POSTSECRET: Confessions on Life, Death, and God" contains the most personal secrets Frank has ever received—those dealing with life, death, and issues of faith and belief. The book lays bare the confessions of people at every stage of life, from every major faith (or from no faith at all). Shocking, funny, sexual, hopeful, and dark, the multi-dimensional secrets that Frank Warren receives never fail to amaze and captivate those who view the brief and poignant revelations. "POSTSECRET: Confessions on Life, Death, and God" also features a new, intimate trim that highlights a single, moving postcard per page, packaged and priced as the perfect gift.
Call Transcript:
David Studinski: Well, a very good afternoon to everyone. This is David Studinski here at our college meeting network headquarters in New York City. Thanks for joining us for this afternoon interphase call. We are going to start here in few moments. First of all just want to make sure that Frank Warne is still on the line with us. Frank, are you there?
Frank Warren: I am.
David Studinski: All right, terrific. Well we’ve got him and we’ve got all you guys so just over few remarks over you guys before we begin the goal. This is a completely open conference call as you can tell your lines are completely unmuted right now. So, if you can do us a favor and if you’re not talking or if you’re going to be in a noisy place so around people who were talking, if you could find the mute button on your phone now you can also just use *6 or #6 on your key pad on your phone that way, but you won’t mind muting for us when your not talking that will help reduce some of the line noise that we’ve got coming through. Additionally, we are recording this call this afternoon it will be posted to collegeplubisher.com later on this week so that you can go back and reference that and we will also be hosting some of the high resolution postcard that Frank has been kind enough to share with us at that site as well, that’s at collegepublisher.com/interface. Also in the interface you can stay up to date with some of the upcoming calls that we have going on. We also have globalpost.com coming back with us on November and also some food enthusiast and food authors that will be joining us in addition to a few journalism industry professional that we have coming up in the Spring so look out for those. You’re also welcome during the call, if you are a little more timid to tweet at us -college publish. We will be happy to take your question that way. In the mean while, you will be able to speak up in the call when the time comes, but as said we’re going to go ahead and move on. I would like to welcome Frank Warne to the call and Frank a very good afternoon and I know we were talking about this a little bit before, but just give everyone enough data of what you’re in the middle of right now and what you’ve been up to. I know you’ve got quite extensive tour going on from the looks of your twitter.
Frank: Well, right, now I’m in my home in Germantown Maryland, which is close to Washington DC and today I did some local television and radio and PBS look show in promotion with the new post secret book that was released last week on Post Secret confessions on Life, Death, and God and so I have more touring to do about that, and then also the college university post secret events continued I think I have started 20 more post secret events at college campus across the country just this year. So, I’m still busy, not just getting everybody’s secrets on postcards, but also traveling and doing other things too. So, that’s really exciting right now.
David Studinski: No, I know I noticed a blog post on your page really this week that this is the first time in five years -- the second time rather in five years, you’ve been able to post Sunday secret. How do you feel about that?
Frank: Well, it’s good and bad I mean, I really feel a strong commitment to the postcards and people’s secret. At the same time, I’m just one person. I have a little bit of difficulty delegating responsibilities of this project to other people. So, for example I still receive all the postcards at my home. I still read every secret and keep every secret and that’s something I hope to do independently for a long time, but it does sometimes put lot of burden on my time.
David Studinski: Oh, I just want everyone up to speed and I’m sure this is a little bit of rehash for you but -- and feel free to quickly if you want. Tell us a little bit about how this entire project got started and how its lead to where it is with the number of books that you have out, next tours and everything?
Frank: Post secret started five years ago in Washington DC. I printed up 3000 self address post cards and invited stranger to write down a secret and mail it anonymously. Secrets slowly began to find their way to my mail box so that was just a slow trickle at first, but it was not long after that it became an avalanche and to this day I receive about 200 postcards everyday from all around the world.
David Studinski: Now, this brings to me to a question that was submitted early on when we were taking RSVPs for this call. I know you’re talking a little bit about some of the college secrets and we want you to share and we will talk on that, but what was the most memorable secret that you’ve received?
Frank: Well, I received almost a half million secrets in five years and really the one that stays with me the most is one I’ve never seen. The only reason I know a bit is because of an email I received from a woman who lives in Texas and she said that she visited the post secret web site. She was really moved by what she saw there. She went out and bought a postcard, decorated it, choose her words carefully and wrote down a secrets she had been carrying for years and she said when she finished she looked at the card and She thought she was going to feel better, but when she saw her secrets starring back at her, she said she felt horrible and took her postcard and tore it in half and at that moment she said she decided to no longer be the person who carries that secret in her life and I love that story. I like what it says about our relationship with secrets. I think it’s something that we can all relate to; the idea that sometimes we think we’re keeping a secret in reality that secret is keeping us and maybe by letting it go we are actually kind of liberating ourselves and I think that’s one of the values of post secret.
David Studinski: Did you save them? When you first started doing this did you have any idea that, yeah, this could be a big thing and that it would explode into the phenomenon and that has? Did you have any feeling that it would become that and even how you handle it if it did?
Frank: Not at all. No incline of that at all. There are over a million post secret books have been sold and 250 million visitors have come to the web site. When I started post secret I thought, well, I knew that I would appreciate the secrets. I would think it would be pretty special but I’ve been shocked by how the project has resonated with people so much across the country and around the world.
David Studinski: Well, I want to take time now to turn things over to the student journalists that we’ve got on the call, so again guys we have an open line here so some of you might end up talking over each other. If that happens just feel free to allow someone to step aside. We will definitely make sure we can get as many questions as possible. Don’t be afraid to speak up. Let us know who you are, what school you are coming to us from and feel free to ask Frank a question. I will go ahead and turn this out to you guys.
Carl: My name is Carl from State University in Indiana. I was still wondering what has your post secret project taught you about humanity and kind of the human condition in general?
Frank: Hey Carl thanks for that good question. One of the things that I come away with after five years and 100’s of 1000’s of secrets is the deep kind of knowledge and feeling that so many of us, you know, our friends and our strangers who have these extraordinary stories happening in their lives all the time. Stories of heroism and humor and frailty that are invisible and although we don’t get a chance to see these except sometimes through these artistic postcards. So for me, that makes my life and people in general. Just riding the subway is a little more interesting everyday.
David Studinski: Thanks for the question Carl. Again, the floor is open if anybody else wants to add their input. Go ahead and speak up.
Barbara: Hi, my name is Barbara. I’m from Boston University and I was wondering if you were planning on publishing anymore books and if you would have sort of a collection of the best of or what people’s favorites are or anything like…
Frank: Thanks for your question. I don’t have any plans right now for another book. The books sell very well and I think the publisher would like me to write more books and maybe we will at some point in the future, but I find more satisfaction with this project right now; traveling and sharing the inspiring and funny stories behind the secrets --
Barbara: Mm-hmm.
Frank: -- and college campuses and universities are also projecting on the screen some of the secrets that were band from the books by the publisher. That’s always fun to expose those more and more. I feel like to these events I’m able to bring that feeling or relationship that people have with the web site and to a real place, where hundreds and sometimes over 1000 of students can come together and share their own secrets and their own stories, sometimes in a very empowering and emotional way. In fact, on the 15th just a few days, I will be flying to Boston University for --
Barbara: Yes, we’re going to be there.
Frank: Oh, that’s exciting.
Barbara: Yeah, we’re excited. Thank you.
Frank: You’re welcome.
David Studinski: Frank, you said a few of these secrets have been banned or prohibited by the publisher. What can you tell us about what it is like to have, you know, this free realm on the internet to publish whatever you like and then when it comes down to put out a book, you’re suddenly restricted.
Frank: That’s a good question because there is kind of a double reality because on the web it’s wild because I can publish anything, but as far as the books go, there are lot of factors that go into restricting artistic content. I think it’s truly in film and in music, and publishing. One of the insidious factors that people don’t talk about too often is the impact that the large retail source in the country have on artistic content. Retailers like Target and K-Mart and Wallmart. Wallmart is the number one retailer of music in this country and because they have crazy power when it comes to impacting what artist produce on their albums. Artist vary as snoop dogg, nirvana, Cheryl Crow, they’ve all been sanitized by Wallmart. Wallmart effects also the films that you see sold there. Oliver stone has had some of the films restricted for sale at Wallmart and Wallmart also puts pressure on the publisher. So, there were some postcards that we keep out of the books because the publisher was afraid that Wallmart might not sell it, but I’m happy to say that this new book is not available in Wallmart and none of the post secret books have been available for sale in Wallmart.
David Studinski: Given that restriction, how does that make you feel as an author and even as an individual?
Frank: Well, I see how we still have censorship in this country, but it’s less overt and more insidious. It’s was like 50 years ago when Lenny Bruce got hauled off to prison in the middle of a stand up routine but try and finding a Chris Rock album at Wallmart…it works in different ways. But also, I think we have shed light on the idea of secrets and the power that they have. Some secrets can be politically incorrect, offensive, obscene and usually there is a reason why secrets are kept secret. It doesn’t surprise me that there are some resistance in sharing these previously dark or hidden secrets.
David Studinski: Right. How do you determine what secrets will be posted on your web site on Sundays?
Frank: I try and post secrets on Sunday that I received that week. So probably 80% to 90% of the postcards you will see just came in the mail. I do that because on the web site I like to show the immediacy of our secrets, you know, like living secrets. So, when you read it you know somebody is caring it in real time. Then I always try and arrange the secrets in a composition so that there are more than just independent voices being heard. There is almost a dialogue or conversation between the secrets themselves and I think that makes the secrets every Sunday more compelling.
Victoria: Hi Frank, it’s Victoria. My question is, What’s the difference between confessions and your previous books?
Frank: Hey Victoria, that’s a good question. There are five post secret books in total and with every book I’ve tried to tell a different story about us with our secrets. So, the second book for example was called “My Secret” and I made that book with the intention of it being the book in which I had when I was in high school and college, with the feeling of loneliness and lack of direction. So, “My Secret” is really the kind of book I wish I had when I was growing up. The latest book, “Post Secret Confessions on Life, Death and God” is a collection of never before seen secrets that can be funny, sexual, shocking with a filled with anguish, but more than the others, this collection also has secrets that are soulful or spiritual that talk about our deepest feelings, hopes and fears about the greater mysteries of life, so for that reason I think this post secret book has more gravity.
Victoria: And which book would you say if your favorite?
Frank: Oh, I would say really this one is. I paged through it about a week ago, and kind of remember some secrets that are shared with impressive ends. It may be very emotional to go through the book so that’s how I judge a book. For me, my favorite book will make me laugh and maybe other pages I’ll have difficulty even reading it out loud, because I will get so emotional. And this one book also has secrets that are kind of unusual in different ways. I think you’ll get that feeling when you page through. For example, this is the first book that has a secret that was mailed to me by my mail carrier Kathy which was kind of cool. In every book I have one of my own secrets. In this book there are two secrets that are mine and they are both on page 103, so that’s kind of fun too.
Victoria: OK.
David Studinski: Frank, when it comes to getting all these postcards, you obviously have an idea where some of them come from and other times you don’t. What brings me to ask this question is some of the tweets you had in the last few days from your Saturday secrets. This one is referenced in your book actually in masturbation rainbow, if you know which one I’m talking about off the top of your head here.
Frank: Right.
David Studinski: Do you ever, you know, when you see post cards like this, do you ever feel like people might just be duping you for the sake of seeing what they can get down in your book and does that bother you?
Frank: When I think of the postcards as works of art and I think when you’re talking about self revelation, you know, sharing your own secrets, you’re talking about different levels of what’s true and what you accept about yourself. It’s not unusual actually for me to receive emails from people who describe the process they went through when they wrote down a secret. They might say they thought they were making it up or they just imagine something that make up a funny post secret, but they go on to say in some cases when they mail it in and feed on the web site they realize that in the deeper sense it was true for them and just the opposite can take place also. Somebody can write a secret and believe them to be true, but as soon as they let it go they understand that through that process it’s made up false. So I think at some times the most revealing secrets are the ones that you think you’re completely making up because it’s anonymous and you can say anything you want. However, if you look at it in a deeper level, the idea or that secret came from some core or kernel of truth. If you really explore it, it can just kind of enlighten you, and maybe enlighten others too when they recognize the same thing in their life.
David Studinski: Open the floor back up for our questions.
Carl: Frank it’s Carl again. How do you maintain kind of a balance between your personal life as Frank Warne versus your personal life as the post secret guy?
Frank: Hey Carl, I really like that question. I was on a radio show today, a morning radio show called “Elliot in the Morning” here in DC and in some ways I feel like these morning radio shows kind of do the work of post secret as well. They are kind of voicing these feeling and fears and sometimes outrageous ideas that people think but don’t necessarily say all the time. And so, the host of the show is Elliott. He was asking me a very personal question and you know, me as the post secret guy feel like, you know, I’m asking other people to share those secrets with me and kind of maybe show my secret to and a walk the walk. So, I was telling a lot of personal information this morning and afterwards I was thinking, oh boy I’ve to go back to my neighborhood and my wife is going to think about all the stuff I was saying. They can be a little conflict here, but ultimately I always feel good about kind of airing my own secrets and I of cathartic.
David Studinski: Yeah, Frank just a quick question we were just curious is there any part of your work that you dislike?
Frank: Oh, what a great question. You know, some of the frustration dealing with publishing can be difficult. You would think that I would get tired of going through all the postcards, day after day after day, secrets and more secrets and more secrets, but I never do. That part is always a joy. Walking up to the mail box and coming back to a handful of gifts. I guess, but of the business element of the project, you know, dealing with publishers I’m really particular about how the project is expressed, like on the web for example. I’ve never had a pay out on the web site and I am just particular about the books too. I want them to be a certain way, in a certain order, of a certain quality, you know, we want probably 10 cover designs.
David Studinski: OK.
Frank: We actually hired, world class cover designers and ended using this design eventually just because I was so particular about it. That can be frustrating but at the same time, when you see the final result you feel so good to know that you got it right, but getting there can be difficult.
David Studinski: Sure. Thank you. Again the floor is open for any question that’s so it’s an open line, we had couple of people here it sounds like come in. The floor is open. There is a completely open conference line here, so if you would like to ask Frank a question feel free and just speak up. We have a fair amount of people on the call here. It seems like we just have a few people who are more into hearing than talking. Maybe they have some secrets of their own Frank. Go ahead and give us a few second here for anyone to jump in.
Ariel: I’m Ariel. I’m from the University of Cincinnati in Ohio. Why do you think post secret touches college students in generally. Why is it so effective for that?
Frank: That’s a good question Ariel. I think that at first noticed the same thing. The project really resonates strongly with young people like people in high school, people in college, people who are in their 20s and early 30s. I think probably it has to do with technology. The web site is so compelling and if you experience what I think young people are more adapt to sharing that excitement and enthusiasm with their friends on line, so words are expressed pretty quick. But also too, I think young people are at that point where they are really searching for what’s authentic and what’s bullshit, so for that sense I think young people are also more interested in finding out the truth rather than trying to project this image of who they think they are to people at work, people at the church or to the children. Older people feel that pressure and so for me, I always look forward to speaking on college on campuses and universities compared to museums or bookstores just because I feel like young people are more vital and more interesting and more alive.
David Studinski: Frank, would you sort of say that you’ve seen a change in the issues that the college students are facing just by the secrets that you get in? And what do you perceive? What would you say that changed it all from what you can remember from times ago?
Frank: Look, I’ll tell you one of the realizations I had pretty early on about the project and it’s still is something that is expressed. I get asked a lot by reporters, especially newspaper reporters, what do I do with the postcards or the secrets that have to do would say crimes or murder? How do I handle that and do I get very few secrets like that. But I rarely get ask by reporters about the secrets that have to do with eating disorders or self harm, cutting, suicide, academic pressure. I get a lot of those secrets from young people and so in some ways I feel like sharing these concerns that we need to be aware of and address. That part is well known and my hope is that by sharing these secrets and stories we can draw more awareness for some of these issues that are affecting, what I believe, more people than we know.
David Studinski: Keep the floor open for questions if any one else wants to jump in. It sounds like we are getting a little bit of line noise by the way. This is a reminder that you can mute your line by using the system just by hitting *6, then to unmute your line press $6. We would appreciate that as we’re recording this afternoons call and that will help us ensure that there is a clear line and clear recording later on. Frank, has the post secret project affected any of your relationships or how you interacted to people close to you.
Frank: Oh, that’s a great question. Yeah, one of the things I’ve noticed is that I feel strangely closer to the stranger who mailed me the secret then to some of my own neighbors and friends. And in fact when the new book came out, I decided to share it with my family and friends. We contacted my mom and asked her if she liked to receive a copy of the new book and she said sure. Then I guess she went to the book store, saw the book and paged through it. She didn’t have a very good reaction to the book and she called my wife back on her cellphone and left a message. I have my wife’s cellphone right here and I’ll play for you if you want to hear, I guess it is funny and bad at the same time. I’ll play you the message my mom left on my wife’s cellphone in regards to the latest post secret book, but just bare with me as I try and bring it up on my I-phone here.
David Studinski: OK. Great.
Female Speaker: [Inaudible].
David Studinski: You guys able to hear that.
Female Speaker: Not really.
David Studinski: OK, hold on, right.
Female Speaker: [Inaudible].
David Studinski: I’m sorry.
Female Speaker: I just wanted to let you know that I do not really want one of my sons book I want you to look right here and look at it, even I’m not too happy with it. So, forget about mailing
David Studinski: Ouch, ouch.
Frank: OK. That’s pretty harsh. So, you know sometimes when you share secrets and if you share the deep ones they can offend some people including, the people whom are very close to you. That’s one example in response to that good question.
David Studinski: So, Frank, how do you deal with criticisms like that and those people who are very open about their dislike about your work? How do you respond to that, and how do you sort of go forward in trying to produce good products.
Frank: Oh, anytime you put something together that’s kind of novel, and that is kind of new and that has reached a lot of people to come aware of it. You have to develop the scan especially if you’re on the web. I received emails from people who are not aware of the project and they are offended by it content. If something that I have offends them then that’s usually more personal. But I think I have for the most part, gotten pretty good at not letting the negativity affect me and reallu instead just understanding the deeper value of a project.
David Studinski: You know, Frank when you look at some of the secrets that you’re getting in and hearing things that are affecting college students, you mentioned eating disorders and suicide, is sexuality something that you see come up a lot? And through the secrets that you get have you noticed a change the message that’s being said within those secrets since you started doing this compared to now?
Frank: Yeah, I do see a lot of secrets that have to do with sex including: sexual identity, sexual behavior, and sexual relations. They know the idea of rape and how complicated that can be on both parties, so yes, that’s strong subsection of what I see everyday and I think, it stands for a reason. Sex, our sexual feelings and actions are some things that we don’t necessarily talk that much about.
Female Speaker: Do you think that reading secrets it changed your beliefs, let me say like different issues, for example suicide or rape, has it changed the way you feel about things?
Frank: Mm-hmm. I think one of the things I belief is that you don’t have to fear strangers. I think in this culture, your taught when you’re very young that you have to fear strangers and do not talk to strangers, but I get so many postcards from people and a lot of them have to do with issues of abuse or assault or victimization and almost each time I read about secret of the perpetrator, the person who caused the harm is not a complete stranger. It’s a family member. It’s an uncle. It’s that guy you’re dating for the first time and even though my home address is on the cover and all the books and all over the web, I haven’t had a negative experience at my home from a stranger. So, truly one of the things that I’ve learned is to trust strangers and to appreciate their kindness.
Female Speaker: All right.
David Studinski: Frank, how often do you have people come by your house in person as suppose to in their postcard form?
Frank: Not very often, I would say maybe once a month. People want to come by and take proposed secret mailbox, secret book sign.
David Studinski: Not necessarily anything that’s encouraged, but not…
Frank: Well, it upsets the dog a little bit, but that’s the greatest harm.
Female Speaker: Frank, I have a question.
Frank: Sure.
Female Speaker: First of all I just want to say it is very inspiring on your book and your website you know, gets to be 3 am in the college dorms and you can’t sleep and check out on the postcards and you don’t feel alone. You feel so connected to people over a nation and you don’t feel like you’re the only one. Sometimes that makes me feel sleep a little better. So, thank you. I’m wondering if you feel that later there might be a movie in the future or are you strictly on the books that I know.
Frank: Oh, first of all, thanks for your comment. The postcards make me feel less alone with my secrets and my loneliness too and it has brought me a great deal of solis. With the project, I try and follow where it leads and actually one of the places where I feel like it is leading right now is trying to find a way to tell these longer stories behind the secrets. It leads to how they kind of tie into my life as well and then lie out of the millions of people on this planet, why it happened to be me to find this project. I’m talking to some people and we’re trying to figure out the right way to maybe bring some of the stories to film or television. I’ve said no to a lot of opportunities to do this because I certainly don’t want to do it the wrong way, but when I see --
Female Speaker: You want to downplay any of that or take away from how secret some of the postcards really are?
Frank: Yeah and when I see examples of this American life with Ira glass how he was able to bring his program to show time that the cable television, cable network, and so the great way they are going to preserve what was so special about his radio program. It gives me hope that it’s possible to do something similar with post secret.
Female Speaker: Thank you.
David Studinski: Thanks for the question and again line is open if anyone would like to jump in?
Female Speaker: Any plans to do a tour in Cincinnati Ohio anytime soon?
Frank: Well, I pretty much go where I’m invited. So, I work with the group here in the Washington DC area called Kepler speakers. Kepler with K and usually student groups will contact Kepler and see if my schedule is free and then I’m happy to come to any school for a post secret event.
Female Speaker: OK, great Thanks.
Frank: You bet.
Female Speaker: A lot of communities are down for post secret like live journal secret There are online groups that are similar to post secret, but virtual and run by online bloggers or posters. How do you feel about that? Are you happy whether it’s such as phenomenon or do you feel a little bit like it takes away from the post secret web site itself.
Frank: Oh, there are some of web sites that do things very, very similar to post secret. I don’t think they really can match the relationship that I’ve been able to earn with strangers. When they trust me with their deepest secrets? I think that’s really what makes post secret so special, those artistic postcards that are so vulnerable. Some of the web sites or most of them will have ads and things like that, so that discourages me a little bit, but at the same time, some of the projects are just wonderful and I think underlying the idea that these new communication tools are available to all of us. Blogger and twitter can allow us to have new kinds of conversations that can dynamically develop into online communities and really do good work in the world. I mentioned on twitter I think this morning, a web site that I just discovered called. I’m going to bring it up right now and share it with you guys because I think it’s really cool. It’s a web site where a person has collected postcards written by children who have gone through divorce. If postcard projects dedicated to the children of divorce and you confined it to postcards from SplitsVille and I think it’s an amazing site. I shared it on twitter and I mean, dozens and dozens of followers on twitter are now retreating it and it is getting all kinds of hits, but I think that’s great because I think it deserves it. I think there are a lot of sites out there like that. It just takes a creative idea to run with and sometimes they really the catch fire in the meaningful way.
Female Speaker: Great, thank you.
Frank: Thank you.
David Studinski: Frank, we get to enjoy reading the secrets that people submit, what do you enjoy reading?
Frank: I enjoy the secrets that much though I don’t feel like I’m left out, in fact I smile sometimes because some postcards from people say I wish I was married to Frank so I could see the secrets before anyone else. Because I seem to kind of relate to that I enjoy seeing the secrets too. I feel very privilege that I get to curate them and share them with the world in a way that sometimes I think I deserve credit that I don’t deserve. I get it unjustly you know, people sometimes think I have the special position and I guess it is special, but really what is special about it is the content that others create, not what I create. So, I think I’m pretty lucky.
David Studinski: But when you’re reading a book or when you’re relaxing, what you like to read?
Frank: I was asked that question a couple of hours ago on TV PBS book show and I kind of struggled to come up with something. Let see, I really like Baby Rock or the web site of books called Found. I think that’s really cool. I don’t have time to read a lot. There are few books I would like to get around to reading, but really what I read everyday are a couple of newspapers. I read the New York Times and Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal. I have some web sites that I go to every day and read web sites like Washington Post, Boost Recollective and stuff on television like I got this great Stanley Cupric DVD collection which is awesome and my guilty pleasures are probably world series of poker on ESPN and I think martial arts.
David Studinski: Right. Frank, you mentioned the New York Times and The Washington Post, almost two extremes of journalism. In a sense you’re site, you are collecting millions of hits and you added still advertising free and you know, you’re on the line with a group of college students who are starting to really focus on making money off of their college news sites and then preferred to head out to the professional realm or that’s really the top of the list? What’s the concept behind keeping the site add free if you have and, do you have any thoughts as to wear online news might be headed as someone who is really pioneered one of the most memorable sites in this decade.
Frank: Mm-hmm. Well, for me I feel like post secret has, at least the web site has, a different purpose than just generating revenue. I feel like it may be a higher purpose and I like the idea of web site teams dedicated to ideas and communities in a way that goes beyond just trying to get enough hits so you can fill adds for it. I think we’re really at a cross road of journalism right now. I see a lot of exciting things happening out there and I see some scary things happening too. I love the New York Times and I hate to see it struggling now in a way that it’s losing resources and becoming a little bit different. At the same time, there are some of the exciting new opportunities happening online. The Washington Post is sponsoring some aggressive journalism that I think we need, but at the same time recently, journalism has take some blows too and has had some black eyes in terms of the financial crisis that didn’t get a lot of reporting in advance The was in Iraq that could have been covered very different during the Bush administration. So, maybe it’s time that we try some of the new ideas. I’m not sure exactly how that’s going to be supported through revenue, but I would think that micropayments should be in the future of journalism in one way or another. I think if you are in journalism right now it’s a great opportunity and especially if you’re learning right now and you’re involved online. I think it’s a really exciting time to be involved in journalism even though it seems a little bit scary. I think it’s really going to bring some opportunities that allow people to exercise journalism in a way that hasn’t been possible before.
David Studinski: You’ve really found a way to take a print product like a postcard and make a digital master piece out of that. In regard to the last question you said you were a fan of the Washington Post on the online realm of journalism. Do you think prince journalism can survive as it is right now?
Frank: I think it can. I truly think it can and if you think about post secret, it isn’t just text me your secrets. Post secret makes you take the time to write your secret down on a document, put some hard work in it and mail it. You know one of the most traditionally oldest communication forms we have is mail or postcard. I think there is something very valuable about their fans ability. But at the deeper level I think one of the things that post secret does, and I think one of the things that the best kind of journalism does is it gives voice to those who aren’t being heard. It finds the untold stories and struggles to share them and I think that’s the heart of the best journalism and that is what post secret is all about.
David Studinski: OK. I do open up the floor one more time, last question if anyone wants to speak up for here? Maybe not. Well, Frank, many thanks for your time this afternoon. I know you are in the middle of a very busy tour and on behalf of the entire College Media Network, we really thank you for taking the time for us this afternoon.
Frank: Oh, it’s been a great pleasure talking with all of you and responding to your great questions. If you need some higher resolution images to go along with some of the words feel free to take it of the web or I guess send me an email or contact Harper Collins because I really think it’s the amazing hard work Secrets on the postcards can tell the story of post secret better than I can. So, I hope you get some of those as well.
David Studinski: Thanks Frank. For those of you are on the call, if you are looking to obtain some of those postcards, Harper Collins and Frank have provided a couple of those higher images to us. If you would like to obtain some of those for your use just, email us info at collegemeetingnetwork.com and we will be happy to send those out to you. Again Frank, thanks to your time. I look forwards to speaking with you again in the future and hopefully we can get you back sometime for another call or even in the greater project.
Frank: I would like that and keep in mind that you can mail me a secret, I’ll collect that.
David Studinski: Great, thanks everyone for being on this call this afternoon and this concludes our interface call. Have a great afternoon.
Frank: Thank you.
Male Speaker: Bye.
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