PR Writing Class Blog

Thinkmodo Plays Superhero

2012-02-09T00:45:00.001-06:00

Thinkmodo, a viral marketing agency in New York City, looked to the sky for its newest campaign. Three R/C superheros were flown around designated areas of New York City and New Jersey in effort to promote Chronicle, the newest coming-of-age/science fiction movie on the block.

The custom-made aircraft toys were controlled from nearby locations and seemed to draw interest from those attempting to scrutinize the flying objects.

"Since the three main characters of the movie have the ability to fly, we came up with the idea of staging a few 'flying people' sightings around NYC," stated a Thinkmodo release.

My guess is that Thinkmodo will rely on news coverage, viral videos and word of mouth to link the flying people with Chronicle. Curiosity might just happen to be the best mode of communication since the gimmick seems to have sparked a lot of Internet activity.

Still, a part of me wonders if it's still too soon to have New Yorkers looking to the sky for anything but memories of the Twin Towers.

Original Article

I'm lovin' it! ...Not!

2012-02-03T16:45:00.000-06:00

A Twitter campaign by fast food giant, McDonald’s, backfiredlast week when hijackers took over one of their hashtags. The month longcampaign included this 24-hour Twitter promotion. It was established to allowusers to share their Mickey D’s memories with the Twitter world. Instead of receivinghappy-go-lucky messages from users, they only got horror stories of terriblefood and service.

Hijackersran amuck with the hashtag #McDStories. Users posted everything from the lackof nutrition in their food to disgusting experiences. One user wrote “McDStories…anice juicy Filet o’fish. With added worm. Still alive. Nice. Never again.”Another wrote “Found a dirty band aid in the bottom of take outbag..McDStories.” One user posted “I haven’t been to McDonald’s in years,because I’d rather eat my own diarrhea.” Umm, that’s just sick!

The companyended up having to pull the hashtag because of all the negative posts. Theyused a different hashtag which helped the #McDStories die down. I don’t knowabout you, but these horror stories make me never want to go back to anyMcDonald’s, ever again!

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2012/01/mcdialysis-im-loving-it-mcdonalds-twitter-promo-fail/

Breast cancer foundation nixes partnership with Planned Parenthood

2012-02-01T21:35:00.000-06:00

The Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation announced recently that they would be withdrawing funding to Planned Parenthood after years of financial support.

They have apparently received more negative reactions than they anticipated, since they allegedly expected to part ways peacefully and quietly. Komen’s public withdrawal has many women and women’s advocacy groups enraged. However, Komen had been losing support from many pro-life and conservative organizations for some time during their support of Planned Parenthood. You can’t please everyone.

Although Planned Parenthood performs more abortions than any other organization in America, only a small portion of their budget goes towards abortions. Some of that budget actually goes towards breast cancer screenings, something Komen would seem to be intent on financially supporting.

Some argue that Komen’s decision to withdraw funding is purely a political decision and had nothing to do with the financial standing of the foundation. This is based somewhat on Komen’s founder, Nancy Brinker. Brinker has donated considerable amounts to the GOP, which leads some to believe Komen’s move is strictly strategic and political. It doesn’t help their case that this is an election year.

However, Komen’s financial and emotional support for millions of women across the United States affected by breast cancer won’t be stopped by this temporary scandal. Time will tell what becomes of The Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation and its supporters over the next few months.

Facebook Readies IPO Filing

2012-01-30T22:49:00.001-06:00

Facebook Inc. has decided as early as this coming Wednesday to file papers for its initial public offering and is said to be one of the biggest debuts for a U.S. company. Facebook is close to sealing the deal with Morgan Stanley to lead the deal. This deal would put Facebook as the biggest U. S. Internet offering replacing Google Inc. at $1.9 billion in 2004.

"Mr. Zuckerberg decided it made more sense for Facebook to go public and reap some financial benefits from an IPO, rather than stay private but have to release its financial information, said people familiar with his thinking."

Facebook's revenue is made from big named advertising businesses that put their ads up on through display ads and fan pages which people like us, consumers, see everyday. Their revenue has increased world-wide from $738 million in 2009 to $3.8 billion in 2011. Facebook and other investors plan on making a lot more money off this deal.

"The deal, seen as defining moment for the latest Web investing boom, could raise as much as $10 billion and value the social network between $75 billion and $100 billion, said people familiar with the matter."

People are worried that pushing forward with an IPO could have effects on damaging the company's culture but Zuckerberg has made it clear that he wants employees not to focus on the stock price, but solemnly on making great products.

We shall see what happens!

-Nicole G.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204573704577187062821038498.html?mod=WSJ_Tech_LEFTTopNews

Crisis PR Gone Bad

2012-01-26T01:15:00.000-06:00

After a recent shipwreck, both popular cruise lines Carnival and Costa are under fire for killing 15 of the passengers during the accident and injuring others. What could be worse for the two companies? Apparently, their PR team.

The Italian cruise line Costa reportedly offered all 3,000 shipwreck survivors a 30 percent discount on their next cruise in response to the crisis. The real question is: who wants to book a cruise with the same company that almost killed them? As if the accident itself hasn’t created enough outrage from the public, their response certainly has.

The U.S. Carnival cruise line has reacted equally as awkward to the situation by not responding at all. CEO Micky Arison has yet to make any statements or take responsibility for the accident that happened almost two weeks ago. PR professionals are unsure why Arison has avoided the topic thus far.

“Micky Arison should come out, and take ownership, and get in front of the story,” said President of Boardroom Communications Julie Talenfeld.

In addition to the millions of dollars in clean-up costs and plummeting stock value, both companies now have to deal with a tainted reputation.

To read the full article visit: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/01/23/v-fullstory/2604320/carnival-faces-a-hostile-pr-tide.html

The best kept secret in Texas revealed-Texas State's new status recognized by the New York Times

2012-01-23T11:46:00.002-06:00

Our alma mater has recently received press nationally for what has been going on for years. As students who chose this university, we were prophets of what was to come in the near future. The university has changed dramatically since I arrived in august of 2008 and moved into Sterry Hall (which will soon be torn down); buildings are popping up all over the place, enrollment is higher than ever, and our athletic department is being promoted to a NCAA conference. The one area that has changed little but has recently received press is the academia students receive at Texas State and the research being done by the incredible professors here at Texas State.

Texas State being recognized and categorized as an emerging research institution could dramatically change the reputation of the university we as students love and respect. As a second generation Bobcat, I have been aware of Texas State, or Southwest Texas State as my parents still refer to it as, my entire life and what this university genuinely is, is so much more than its reputation gives it credit for.

My predictions of what this means include: many more applicants in the coming years, more money from proud alumni in order to bring Texas State to tier-one status, greater value to our degrees as soon-to-be Texas State grads, and saying goodbye to the best kept secret in Texas.

Many people look over Texas State quickly instead of giving it genuine consideration of a place to spend the next 4 or 5 or 6 years of their lives but as Texas State continues to improve in all areas, this will no longer be the case.

If you are unaware of the recent PR Texas State has received you can check out the video interview posted below by the Texas Tribune or read the article published in the New York Times a few days ago.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40gFuCxhO34&feature=youtu.be

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/us/texas-state-university-keeps-a-focus-on-the-future.html?_r=1

Using Social Media at Work??

2011-11-11T13:46:00.002-06:00

There is an article online I found about the use of social media in the workplace. Social media is a big topic of discussion in today's public relations world. There are many uses for it in the workplace, yet there is also a fine line that needs to be drawn regarding the appropriate way to use it.

Today, many companies are stuck in limbo over allowing social media to be used at work. Things such as twitter and facebook can be either a major help, or a major distraction. Employees can use these tools to promote the company, as well as awareness for a new idea or product. Certain times it can be more of a distraction, or even a way for employees do say negative things about their company or employer.

The article says there shouldn't really be a panic over the "ban" of social media in the workplace. Just keep an eye on the sites employees are on, and what they are doing on these sites. The article stated:

"While needs will vary based on the organization and its type of business, basic issues that should be addressed in a social media policy include:

Information that disparages competitors is not allowed;
Do not use social media in violation of company policy, such as to harass co-workers or make discriminatory statements about them;
In no instance should an employee share confidential or proprietary information about the company;
Communication regarding the company that state any opinions must have a disclaimer stating that any opinions expressed are the employee’s own and do not represent the company’s opinions, strategies or positions, unless appropriate business use is pre-authorized and the identity of the authorized poster is disclosed."

If businesses manage social media like other technology, they should be fine. The benefit could turn out to be great.

-Morgan

http://www.prnewsonline.com/prinsiders/Blocking-Employee-Use-of-Social-Media-Its-Time-to-Rethink-Why_15598.html

Diet Coke promotes a new image

2011-11-09T23:20:00.001-06:00

Since Diet Coke took the No. 2 spot as the most popular soda brand in 2010, the marketing strategy has revolved around the punch line “stay extraordinary”. The company will be using Fashion Week and the Academy awards to shape a new image of being confident and beautiful.

Some of the strategies that Diet Coke is using to reach their target audience are a limited-edition can design, booklets containing fashion and beauty tips and events coinciding with New York Fashion Week. In doing this, the company’s goal is to target a new generation of consumers who are 20-29 years old and who are on-the-go-getters.

The new 15 second commercials will be used to show “simple stories” of Diet Coke drinkers. Brand director William White says they will be a “reflection of the smart, self-assured and confident men and women who drink Diet Coke.”

Diet Coke is using the tactic of providing beauty and fashion tips to appeal to its audience. The public gets the satisfaction of drinking the low calorie soda while receiving free advice on how to better their physical image. This can be effective because people are most likely drinking diet coke to watch their weight. They are young professionals who care about their image, so fashion and beauty tips are relevant to their wants. Using Fashion Week and the Academy Awards is a smart strategy in reaching this type of audience.

Click here for the full story.

IBM names first female CEO

2011-11-08T08:04:00.003-06:00

IBM named Virginia Rometty as the company's first-ever female CEO after Sam Palmisano stepped down from position.

Rometty who is 54 is very well known in the technology industry. She joined IBM in 1981 as a systems engineer. Throughout her career she has worked from management positions, worked with clients in industries ranging from banking, insurance, telecommunications and even healthcare.

Having Rometty working for IBM which employs more than 6,000 people in Austin, will make her one of the highest-profile female executives in corporate America. Other women who are CEOs include Ursula Burns of Xerox, Indra Nooyi of PepsiCo, Ellen Kullman of DuPont and Meg Whitman of Hewlett-Packard.

Palmisano, former CEO, stated in an interview that Rometty got the job because she deserved it. He did not mention anything about gender, however, let her work and accomplishments speak for themselves. Rometty is very good at what she does and has led important strategic sectors of the company including sales and marketing, as IBM has made shifts to service and analytic software.

After reading this article it gives me hope that times are still continuously changing in the workforce. Seeing more women CEOs is not uncommon. This is a big step for females and maybe one day, one of us in this class will be given the opportunity to hold a prestigious position like this regardless of our gender.

You can find the article at: http://www.statesman.com/business/ibm-names-first-female-ceo-1934131.html

Study: More women, traditional media are blogging

2011-11-08T07:56:00.000-06:00

A study shows women are taking over the blogosphere, although men still are in the majority at 59%, down from 64% last year. It's healthy and it's mature," said Shani Higgins, CEO of Technorati Media, about the state of the blogosphere.

"It's becoming more and more blurred with traditional media: Every traditional media source has a blog and is using a blog to create communities around their topics and articles." It's a great way to get information and input out in the open between companies and consumers. "It cannot be stressed enough that blogs are still the center of the social-media universe," said Rick Calvert, co-founder and CEO of the expo.

Of course, Facebook and Twitter might disagree. Blogging remains largely a hobby for the vast majority of practitioners, as most can't afford to quit their day job. Only 4% of all bloggers say that online writing is their primary source of income. It doesn't surprise me that women are surpassing men on the blog stream, it's just one more thing to add to the list.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/04/tech/web/california-blogosphere/index.html

Yahoo! Launches Livestand app for iPad

2011-11-02T19:32:00.000-05:00

Yahoo!, one of the world’s most visitedhomepages, released Livestand, a personalized magazine app for the iPad.Livestand delivers the best content from Yahoo’swriters, editors, and video producers, as well as its partners.

Livestand,now available in the iTunes store, is a free iPad app that joins dozens of othersthat are created for specific publications or for aggregating content fromnumerous sources. Among Livestand’s more notable features is the inclusion ofYahoo’s proprietary technology forcustomizing content to an individual.

Thistechnology, called CORE (content optimization relevance engine), is used on theYahoo.com homepage, constantly running to deliver a personalized experiencebased on the user’s habits. If you play fantasy football, you’ll see more NFLstories. If you like cooking, you’ll getmore cooking videos.

Personalizationallows Livestand users to peruse a continuously updated list of publicationswith content that matches their tastes, a customized 24-hour news ticker, and anew “Yahoo! Today” module that contains frequently sought information such aslocal weather forecasts, stock prices, sports scores, and TV listings.

Atlaunch, Livestand will have original Yahoo! content from itsmarket-leading finance, news, sports, and entertainment Web properties.

Livestandis currently only available in the United States and for the iPad, but it willsoon be released internationally and on additional mobile devices.

Ibelieve this will be successful because consumers are always trying to findsearch engines that are more customizable to the person with less things theyare not interested in.

Link: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/technology-blog/yahoo--launches-livestand-app-for-ipad.html

YouTube to launch 100 new channels

2011-11-01T08:50:00.002-05:00

YouTube will launch 100 online channels featuring content from media organizations, TV production companies, and celebrities from the film, music, and sports sectors. The goal YouTube wants to achieve by doing this is to bring an even broader range of entertainment and to keep viewers coming back. On the advertising perspective, this will be a new way to reach global consumers. YouTube programming partners includes some notable brands so far, including, Slate, The Wall Street Journal, Bleacher Report and Hearst.

I think that this will attract many viewers who are interested to see what all of these channels have to offer. With 100 channels, there is bound to be something for everyone. YouTube has so many viewers each day and by adding these channels they will continue to be successful.

http://www.prweekus.com/youtube-to-launch-100-new-channels/article/215709/

Offensive Online ChapStick AD Pulled by Pfizer

2011-10-27T08:07:00.003-05:00

On Wednesday morning, Pfizer, Inc. pulled an online AD for ChapStick released just days before. The Ad which has been deemed offensive by critics, is an image of a woman hunched over a couch with her butt in the air and a caption that states, "WHERE DO LOST CHAPSTICKS GO?"

Under the caption, ChapStick tells viewers to "be heard" by posting any and all comments on their Facebook page. People instantly began calling the image sexist and flooded the Facebook page with criticism based on the risky Ad. Instead of responding, ChapStick immediately deleted all of the comments, which in turn only made things worse for the company. More people than before began to send nasty comments. So many in fact, that bloggers and mainstream media outlets are now writing about the image too.

Finally on Wednesday, Pfizer, Inc. decided to take the image off their Facebook page and released this apology:

“We see that not everyone likes our new ad, and please know that we certainly didn’t mean to offend anyone! Our fans and their voices are at the heart of our new advertising campaign, but we know we don’t always get it right. We’ve removed the image and will share a newer ad with our fans soon!

“We apologize that fans have felt like their posts are being deleted and while we never intend to pull anyone’s comments off our wall, we do comply with Facebook guidelines and remove posts that use foul language, have repetitive messaging, those that are considered spam-like (multiple posts from a person within a short period of time) and are menacing to fans and employees.”

Although I believe ChapStick did take too long to take down the image and issue and apology to their offended followers, at least they did so. I also believe a lot of the hype and media attention to this issue was created when ChapStick started deleting the negative comments off their Facebook page. Obviously, their PR department is paying for their mistakes.

Regardless, the company is letting the viewers voices be heard by removing something they didn't care for and will hopefully be replaced by a newer and more pleasant image to represent the company.

You can find the full article here: http://www.prdaily.com/Main/Articles/9886.aspx

The 99 percent are globally occupying

2011-10-23T21:12:00.007-05:00

The United States media have kept the Occupy movement pretty under wraps, at least as much as they possibly could. The revolutionaries are blowing up social media sites like Twitter and Facebook as well as photo and video uploading sites like Yfrog and Bambuser. Organizers are streaming live feeds of protests around the world. Sites such as Foursquare and Meetup.com are allowing users to set up meeting locations in order to begin protesting.

The protest has gone completely global to cities such as Brazil, Berlin, Sydney and Tokyo. A Facebook page named Occupy Together has more than 131,000 members and posts are shared and commented on hundreds of times a day.

“South Africa stands in Unity with all the people on this planet who have said: Enough is Enough,” wrote Lendyll Naicker, of Cape Town. “We have woken up in our masses and realized that we are being controlled by corruption and greed, and that something is wrong with this picture. The 1 percent of people who own and control everything and who are trying to keep the masses enslaved and asleep will now know that we see through their game. The Global Revolution begins NOW!”

Previous riots, revolutions and other protests took advantage of the media's help with broadcasting the events. Television, radio and newspapers let people know what was happening when and where. Now people are being forced to use alternative methods but this may have been a critical turn in the use of social media. Now it is not only a way to chat with people and catch up, it is a news outlet and revamps the use of Facebook and Twitter.

http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/15/social-media-gives-wall-street-protests-a-global-reach/

Sesame Street HACKED

2011-10-19T22:22:00.000-05:00

Earlier this week Sesame Street's YouTube channel was hacked and videos of the Muppets were replaced with sexually explicit videos that were not appropriate for YouTube. As soon as YouTube found out, the Sesame Street account was temporarily disabled and the original videos were replaced.

YouTube reacted quickly in this situation and went as far as to release a statement in regards to the hacking, unusual for the Google-based company. In the statement YouTube identified the two YouTube hackers, one of whom denied doing any such thing.

As of now, YouTube reacted quickly and between YouTube's apology statement, and that of Sesame Street, there are no immediate complaints, just concerns.

I feel that this is an interesting story for us because it shows how a company can so quickly react to a disaster. Obviously, Sesame Street did no wrong, and neither did YouTube, but both companies made sure to react quickly and to release statements of what was going on. It is this kind of clear communication that is pertinent to successful loyalty among viewers/guests/readers/etc.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/16/tech/sesame-street-hacking/index.html?hpt=hp_bn6

Japan Upgrades NASA Technology

2011-10-17T19:57:00.002-05:00

Recently Japan and released a new map of the earth. They captured these images by making improvements to NASA's Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emissions and Reflection Radiometer, or ASTER.
The new map of the world expands the coverage of the earth, adds 260,000 new images, improves spatial resolution, increases vertical and horizontal accuracy, and gives more realistic coverage of bodies of water.The map is still two-dimensional but is offset to give a three-dimensional effect. The map covers 99 percent of the earths landmass.
The updates were made to provide the average person with a tool to view the earth. The map is available online and is free of charge for users. The tool seems to be a more advanced concept of google earth and could be potentially marketed the same as the better version of google earth. It's amzing the tools available to new generations of students. It's good to see NASA continue to grow after the end of the 30 year misson of the space shuttle program Discovery.
NASA was a joint partner of the improvements made to ASTER.

For more of the story.

Controversy over Steve Jobs tribute

2011-10-13T08:15:00.004-05:00

Designers have to be extremely careful when it comes to creating original work. After Steve Job’s passing an image of the apple logo with the former CEO’s face indented in it became viral. The designer behind it all was Jonathon Mak, a Hong Kong university student.

Mak had been very careful about not copying any other design by doing internet research to not only cover his own back, but to gain inspiration. Sadly enough, he missed one. Chris Thornley produced a similar image earlier this year. The main difference between the 2 were the angle of Steve Jobs and the colors.

The image was designed by Mak in late August. He requested the public to alert him of similarities between his designs and others. It wasn’t until Steve Jobs passed that he received attention for the design. At first, the feedback was well received and Mak was satisfied with the responses, but it didn’t take more than a day for the public to notice the similarities between his and Thornley’s design.

As a result, Thornley would like to debate about the two images with Mak, and commented on Mak’s honesty and compliance with the situation.

I think it is a tough argument because Mak wasn’t aware of Thornley’s design. Mak’s design is cleaner and better embodies the spirit of the company and Steve Jobs. The battle would be one entirely over original idea.

For full story click here.

PR coverage plan

2011-10-12T22:06:00.003-05:00

As an attempt to help gain back some credibility and earn some money, AIG(American International Group, Inc) is offering a new service. After suffering a $130 billion government bailout due to bad publicity, AIG decided to devise a new type of coverage to help companies dodge a public relations crisis bullet.
Chartis, the subsidiary of AIG, is offering an insurance that will pay for policyholders to seek the counsel of two crisis-communications firms, Burson-Marsteller and Porter Novelli, before a possible crisis becomes public.
The whole idea of the coverage plan was devised after discussions with brokers and insurance clients thought there was a potential market for the product. The two crisis-communications firms were picked because of their expertise. This coverage could run a company about $10,000 a year and it is worth it, in my opinion.
I think this is a great idea because sometimes companies need that extra help beyond a PR firm and even with that, the firm might end up hurting the companies name. This coverage would protect the company from a bad press release or any bad publicity. These days, bad publicity can definitely ruin a company and this coverage just takes that burden off of the table.

http://global.factiva.com.libproxy.txstate.edu/ga/default.aspx?imt=2&ao=14&aod=1811683

Sesame Street presents new muppet to tackle hunger issue

2011-10-10T11:04:00.002-05:00

Sesame Street has always held its reputation as family-friendly and educational. The show has consistently stayed on top of social issues and mastered an ability to do it at a level that is understood by both children and adults. This past Sunday, the show introduced a new character with the goal of addressing the issue of hunger.

The muppet, Lily, is 7 years old. Her family is experiencing poverty and attends a food kitchen as well as works in it.

I feel this is a great way to help the younger generation to not grow up sheltered. I feel there are many children who always have, for instance, a meal on their table and have never known that there are others less fortunate. On the other side, I think introducing this character will give children who are less fortunate someone to relate to on the show. It is a great opportunity to show them that they are not alone.

I love this idea and I think it goes much deeper than other children's shows. I feel that a person’s morality and outlook on the world is formed quite early. Even though, in my opinion, parents should have the main role in this shaping, it helps when programming aids to teach children more than jokes and useless nonsense.

Read original article here

Peer-to-Peer Car Sharing with RelayRides

2011-10-06T16:11:00.003-05:00

Car sharing is an idea that most people are un-aware of. Giving your car to someone for a few hours a day (aka renting it out by the hour) seems like a crazy thing to do. But for some it doesn't look so bad. An article on fastcompany.com describes an organization called RelayRides, in which people can rent out their cars for the day and charge people to use it. RelayRides was founded in 2010, and is available in San Fransisco and Boston.

Now, RelayRides has partnered with car makers like GM, Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac. These vehicles can now be unlocked without using a key, courtesy of OnStar. Other vehicles have to install special hardware that allows users to get in without a key. This idea will make the idea of P2P carsharing seem less strange.

Stephen Girsky, GM vice chairman stated, "We’re using technology to make both our older and newest models carshare ready and available for those owners who choose to participate in carsharing. Our goal is to find ways to broaden our customer reach, reduce traffic congestion in America’s largest cities, and address urban mobility concerns."

In the end, GM is pairing up with RelayRides to promote their company. If people are in a GM car during the car sharing experience, they may go out and buy a GM in the longrun.

I think this is really interesting. The only time I would use it is if I was in the market for a new car and wanted to test drive it all day. But overall, driving someone's car around I didn't know would turn out to be creepy...

http://www.fastcompany.com/1785504/gm-teams-up-with-relayrides-to-make-peer-to-peer-carsharing-easier?partner=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+fastcompany%2Fheadlines+%28Fast+Company+Headlines%29

A one-stop information source for social media

2011-10-05T22:54:00.003-05:00

With constant creations of social media websites and the overwhelming amount of upgrades made to existing ones each year, it is difficult for the world to keep up with this trend. Many have found that a quick visit to Mashable can ease the worries.

At the age of 19, Pete Cashmore noticed the growing trend of social media and technology. He single handedly created Mashable as a source for social media users to easily access information on the new trends and developments to social networking sites. Viewers can find the top trending topics, information on how to use social media sites and news which covers technology developments, entertainment and much more.

Since its launch in 2005, Mashable has grown to about 40 employees who update the website minute-by-minute. In 2009, it became the most popular technology blog on the web and has now formed partnerships with big-brand companies such as CNN and USA Today.

Cashmore realizes the rapid growth of his audience can bring challenges. But like any growing website, his goal is to maintain its quality.

To read the full story, click here.

Yahoo Has a Crowd, Wants a Voice

2011-10-03T23:54:00.002-05:00

Yahoo dominates online news, sports and finance. With an audience of 686 million, it is hard to imagine it's future being doubted. For it's audience to continue to grow, executives are demanding a shift of priorities for the company. Original reporting will now be taking place from the Yahoo staff. The company was built for the most part by getting its news from various other sources, for its success to continue, the company is going to have to put in a little more effort.

Yahoo built its huge audience largely by aggregating news from other sources. The Associated Press, US Weekly, Politico and The New York Times are just some of the partners that feed it content around the clock. Now Yahoo executives are pushing for original reporting, covering special events like the Emmys and creating exclusive online video programs. This month, Yahoo will exclusively video-stream a charity concert that includes performances by Lady Gaga, Usher and Bono. They say they have made it a priority to hire reporters and editors who write and break news online.

Yahoo’s shortcomings in media can be traced back to top management’s indecision over whether the company should be a media or technology company, said Larry Kramer, the founder of the business news site MarketWatch and the former president of CBS Digital. Aggregating from other sources made it difficult to develop innovative ways to deliver that content through smartphones and tablet computers, Mr. Kramer said.

For more information on this topic: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/04/technology/yahoo-aims-to-produce-more-original-reporting.html?ref=media

Legal issues surrounding Social Media background checks

2011-10-03T21:18:00.002-05:00

Many of us will be graduating soon, which means we will also be on a job hunt. This article hit close to home in the fact that we all are active members in social media websites. Issues have arose on the legality of employers and companies using social media to research future job candidates.

In 2011, 54 percent of companies reported to doing background checks during pre-employment. It is believed that a higher percentage of companies than just that amount do background checks but they do so by hiring outside companies to do so. It is under review on ways of conducting these background checks in a way that is legal and also in a manner that one can communicate the procedure to those who are participating in the employment process.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is examining outside vendors who have been conducting these background checks for compliance with privacy and intellectual property laws. Even two democratic Senators sent a letter to an outside service with 13 different questions ensuring that information it is gathering from social media websites is accurate and that the company is respecting guidelines for how the websites and their users want the content used. Another issue addressed was whether the company is protecting consumers' right to online privacy.

Additional questions that arose were whether or not companies could access information from websites like Facebook that is restricted or if they were only allowed to see what the individual allowed to be displayed, whether the company could differentiate among people who had common names, and whether the company was violating the terms of agreement that each social media user had with the outlet they were using.

Basically, it boils down to protecting yourself and making sure that the company you are looking to get a job from is obeying the rules of accessing outside information about you from social media outlets.

For more information, check out the article which provides a list of additional questions that were brought up to the company "Social Intelligence." Just be aware that background checks are legal, however, make sure the checks are done in compliance with the FTC.

http://www.socialmedialawupdate.com/2011/10/articles/social-media/legal-issues-surrounding-social-media-background-checks/

Access1 Media's new Audience Measurement Platform (AMP1) is a Game Changer for Political Polling

2011-09-29T03:47:00.005-05:00

Access1 Media out of Fort Worth, Texas, launched a new political polling platform for its touch screen kiosk. The Audience Measurement Platform (AMP1) provides new and innovative ways to disseminate a candidate’s message as well as capture real time accurate poll results during political campaigns. This software can determine the poll participant’s age, gender, and dwell time as they answer the poll questions. This data is then sent to Access1 Media’s secure server on a minute by minute basis. The campaign managers can log in at any time to check the current data.

“Not only can Access1 Media’s powerful platform provide next generation campaign messaging displays in high traffic venues for a diverse range of markets, but data can be recorded and made instantly available in a secure client login area,” said Cameron Fowler, Access1 Media’s CEO.

AMP1 has many different features like the use of on-screen Facebook and Twitter feeds, provide the candidate with the ability to maintain contact with their target demographic. The candidates can also leave audio or visual recordings for the pollster to view while answering the questions.

I think this will be very successful in that it is a whole new way for the candidate and the audience to connect on a personal level.

Link to news story:

http://news.yahoo.com/access1-medias-audience-measurement-platform-amp1-game-changer-070357109.html

Live online bidding

2011-09-29T00:41:00.003-05:00

BrightRoll, the leading provider of digital video advertising services, is launching a program that allows live online bidding on its online video advertising marketplace, The BrightRoll Exchange (BRX). As technology continues to progress, advertisers are constantly taking advantage of online videos to connect to their audience. Since numerous advertisements are being shown, there has been a strong demand for real-time bidders.

The BRX conducts an online auction for each impression and then offers true market pricing so that buyers minimize their spend and pay for only the impressions they want.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/brightroll-enables-advertisers-to-optimize-campaign-performance-with-launch-of-real-time-bidding-for-the-brightroll-exchange-brx-2011-09-28

"Ink it Pink"

2011-09-27T06:51:00.002-05:00

"Ink it Pink" is a campaign sponsored by Sharpie to help fight breast cancer. Sharpie is pairing up with Draftfcb and Weber Shandwick to help with the digital advertising, public relations and the social media aspects of the campaign. In October, the campagin will be featured heavily on Facebook, Twitter and You Tube. Market place and story ads will be displayed on Facebook and Twitter will have promoted tweets on the campagin. The "Ink it Pink" campaign invites celebrities and fans to sign a pink autograph to help support the cause.

This is the second annual "Ink it Pink" campaign. Now that Sharpie is focusing more on promoting the campaign through social media, I think it will be even more successful than last year. The campaign will reach more audiences through social media who would have been less likely to hear about the campaign else where. Incorporating celebrities in scampagins such as "Ink it Pink" are almost always beneficial because of the impact they have on our society today. I think "Ink it Pink" will get the most publicity through social media and celebrities participation in the campaign.

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=159288

By: Lindsey O'Neal

Twitter Now Accepting Political Ads

2011-09-21T20:40:00.002-05:00

On Wednesday Twitter announced that they will now start accepting political ads on the social media site. With the 2012 election drawing nearer, potential candidates are already beginning advertisements and promotions for their presidential campaigns. While the popularity of Twitter has skyrocketed over the past few years, politicians too have realized the massive exposure available through the website. As of Wednesday, this means Twitter users will now be able to see political ads on the website through purchased accounts, tweets and trends. Social media is at an all-time high and with millions of people following Twitter, politicians can tweet their ads instead of making another political commercial.

Personally, I think it's only natural that with Twitters high popularity, politicians would use social media to get ahead in their own campaigns. Since many politicians already have Twitter accounts with countless followers, I believe it is a smart idea to Tweet political ads but I also believe after a certain amount of time (sooner rather than later) it will be annoying. If politicians use these political ads on Twitter to excess, like I believe they will, followers will soon grow tired of them.

http://technolog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/09/21/7883453-twitter-starts-accepting-political-ads

How to relate gas to the public

2011-09-18T14:20:00.009-05:00

Gas prices blew up this summer and many people are wondering why. The American Petroleum Institute has hired Omnicom's Fleishman- Hillard to create a public relations campaign to support the increase of knowledge about the oil and natural gas industries. API will be visiting the state Capitol on March 4 with an interactive display that will be able to answer questions about these industries.

" ‘I didn’t know that,’ is the most common thing I hear," Denise McCourt from the American Petroleum Institute said. "We try to help people better understand our industries."

The focus of Fleishman-Hillard will be a "strategic ad campaign" and they will be allowed a budget of near $20 million. API wants people to understand what they do and not just the stereotypes of the industry. One of their tasks is to extend an informational website Energy from Shale which was launched earlier this summer.

Understanding the oil and gas industries will help the public to relax about the increase of gas prices. If Fleishman pulls this campaign off, the ability to grasp what is going on in the oily aspect of our country.

http://www.redorbit.com/news/business/1298698/oil_industry_begins_public_relations_campaign

http://adage.com/article/agency-news/fleishman-hillard-s-pr-challenge-backing-fracking/229841/

9/11 Cartoons

2011-09-15T08:40:00.000-05:00

Nearly 100 cartoonists came together to take over the Sunday comics for the tenth anniversary of 9/11, paying tribute to those lost on that day. Brendan Burford, the comics editor for King Features Syndicate, said that the idea came from the artists, they wanted to be able to show that "it's okay to laugh again" but also tastefully show sympathy, respect, and thanks to those who saved people or lost their lives on that day.

Artists were told to stay true to their comic strip, not to do anything too different from what they already do, but not to keep their strip overly zany and controversial if it usually is. This tribute allowed for people to look back at the events of 9/11 and remember, but not have to feel intense loss or pain. By doing a comic tribute, we can remember and smile, because after ten years, we're allowed to smile and remember the good, not just the bad.

This was a great opportunity for the cartoonist community to come together and show how well they know and understand their craft and audience. From a public relations stand point, this tribute was perfect, not because it got a name or a brand "out there," but because it allowed for a message to be crafted in a concise, new way that was tailored specifically for its audience.

The cartoonists all know who reads their comic strip, what their tone is, and how to get a point across. For public relations professionals, we know our tone and our audience, but when it comes to getting a point across, sometimes we struggle. We can learn from the direct approach of the cartoonists and recognize that sometimes the best way to convey a message, is not necessarily the most conventional way.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/SHOWBIZ/09/09/cartoonists.remember.9.11/index.html?iref=allsearch

Car Sharing

2011-09-12T23:12:00.003-05:00

The rental car company Hertz is expanding the brand. The compnay is attempting to get into the business of car sharing.

The concept of car sharing is a new idea built for college students and people living in urban areas to help with travel while being environmentally friendly. Zipcar is a company has cornered the market of car sharing. Zipcar's plan is to reduce the number of cars on the road, the number of drivers, the amount of gas consumed and the amount money spent on car ownership.

The Hertz business plan is not identical to Zipcar but they are offering the same style service at a lower price. Although rates are cheaper the exact price listing can not bee seen until you get a membership.

This a good idea for Hertz to tap into this market because there are such a well known company. They are beating their other competitors to the punch. However, Zipcars are such a new concept that not many consumers know that they exist.

Hertz may hurt their chances of expanding this idea or even making a profit because they have no advertising. Rental cars market themselves but the concept of having access to a new form of public transportation is a little unheard of. If Hertz wants to make this business model work they have to do a better job of marketing this product than Zipcar did.
Original Article

It's not easy being popular

2011-09-07T22:45:00.007-05:00

It turns out popularity and attention are not on everyone’s bucket list. Google +, a new and exclusive social network, created a list of interesting people to follow. This is a diverse list of people ranging from celebrities like Ashton Kutcher to less known bloggers. Being on the list of interesting people has turned them into G+ stars whether they like it or not. While I would be ecstatic to be on said list, I agree that it takes away from the goal of social networks to function as a community. John Sutter said that if G+ were to continue on this path it would be “dominated by a few power users and celebrities, with normal people relegated to watch from the digital bleachers.” Robert Scoble, a blogger, even went as far as asking to be taken off this list.

In some sense it is nice being able to see what celebrities are talking about, but to be honest I’m not looking for another social network that marvels over celebrities. I happen to care more about what my friends and family are doing than what store Lady Gaga is shopping. I am actually interested in where Lady Gaga is shopping, though if you were wondering. While this does have its downfalls, I do love the opportunity it gives users to learn about new writers.

"There's actually quite a lot of diversity on the initial list, and I expect that very few of us had discovered all of these folks," said Bradley Horowitz, CEO of Google. I look forward to seeing where G+ finds its place in the social media world.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/TECH/social.media/09/05/google.plus.celebrities/index.html?iref=allsearch

Accepting 3D Technology

2011-09-05T14:47:00.002-05:00

In order to promote and persuade consumers to buy 3D TVs, Panasonic is turning to big sports events to help sway the opinions of people awaiting 3D content. The company was present at the recent U.S Open in Flushing, N.Y. where they also had a venue exhibiting Panasonic 3D TVs, IP TVs, and audio equipment. I think this was a strong, smart move for Panasonic allowing people to see for themselves how 3D TV really operates and also promote the other products Panasonic provides. The 3D content was aired on DirecTV, Verizon FiOS, Comcast, Time Warner and Cablevision which enabled people to get a preview of what buying a 3D TV could offer them.

I think that people need a sample of something before they spend money on a product which is what Panasonic is offering them. I also agree with the choice to broadcast sports events being that it only makes the game that more exciting. The company also just signed a deal with the Olympic Committee which makes Panasonic the Official Worldwide Olympic Partner in audiovisual equipment, enabling them to shoot over 200 hours of 3D content. In my opinion, this will only increase the credibility of Panasonic's name and be a great aspect for the company.

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=157764

Advertising through online games

2011-04-21T10:46:00.003-05:00

Many food companies like General Mills, Unilever and Post Foods have begun to advertise to young consumers through online games. From multimedia games and quizzes to cellphone applications, companies use these interactive advertisements to market sugar cereals and junk food to children who then send links to their friends through e-mail and Facebook. Nutrition experts and child advocates are concerned due to the companies fusing their food advertising with entertainment.

Many initiatives and pledges have been made to limit the advertising directed at children. Companies like McDonald's, Pepsi and Burger King have pledged to only advertise food to children that is "better for them." Other companies only advertise to adults. A former marketing professor from Texas A&M University estimates that children influence more than $100 billion in food and beverage purchases each year.

The Federal Trade Commission will release a study this summer exploring food marketing to children.

Story

Machines could potentially replace reporters

2011-04-19T09:28:00.002-05:00

A news-writing software, Narrative Science, has demonstrated its competency in producing a news article about a a baseball win for the University of Virginia.

The original news story from All Things Considered was written by a human reporter, and it didn't quite match up to the level of esteem that this computer program showed.

This program is just used for sports writing, but this could easily evolve to write articles in other beats. What's going to happen to reporters? Print news is already going away with the Internet. Will writers go away to, with reporters being just the information-gatherers?

http://www.npr.org/2011/04/17/135471975/robot-journalist-out-writes-human-sports-reporter?ft=1&f=1020

Gadhafi paid millions to U.S. firms to polish his global image

2011-04-07T07:38:00.002-05:00

A number of US firms have recently come under fire for involvement in a secret PR and lobbying campaign to polish up Ghadafi's global image. A Boston PR and consulting firm, the Monitor Group, made millions off the campaign between 2006 and 2008. The firm allegedly charged Libyan government $250,000 a month for their services. The Monitor Group sent academics from Harvard, Stanford and elsewhere to advise the government and create positive media coverage in the US with articles in publications such The Washington Post and Newsweek. The firm even helped to create a ph.D. thesis for Ghadafi's son, Saif. The Monitor Group may have skirted US law by hiring intellectuals to go to Libya with foreign policy ties to prominent US political figures, such as Dick Cheney, to lobby and influence policy in relation to Libya. The firm is currently undergoing an internal investigation.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/04/06/libya.gadhafi.image/index.html?iref=storysearch

Free Speech TV Partners with Al Jazeera

2011-04-04T20:10:00.004-05:00

Free Speech TV, an independently owned, publicly supported, nonprofit network is providing a voice to the voiceless by teaming up with Al Jazeera, an English language world news channel centralized in the Middle East. Free Speech TV will be using its regular programming schedule, 13.5 hours, to show Al Jazeera’s live coverage of the Middle East and Japan.

The ultimate goal is to provide well-rounded, objective and timely news coverage that offers all sides of the story, including an unbiased perspective of the United States' involvement in both the Middle East and Japan. Al Jazeera’s live feeds will be complemented by Free Speech TV’s regularly scheduled news commentary. By teaming up, these two networks will be able to reach a broader audience in the United States as well as other nations across the world.

After the programming initiative, Free Speech TV will continue to air Al Jazeera at regularly scheduled times. Al Jazeera’s feeds are available on DIRECTV channel 348, DISH Network channel 9415 an on www.freespeech.org.

Article can be found at:
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/free-speech-tv-to-broadcast-breaking-al-jazeera-english-coverage-of-middle-east-and-japan-118952449.html

Cellphone effects on the brain

2011-03-31T00:42:00.002-05:00

A recent study has shown that cellphones emit small amounts of radiation that increase glucose metabolism in the brain. The radiation affects brain activity and has been thought to be harmful but can't be proven as of yet.

Cellphones must pass a radiation test before they are put into mass production. The Federal Communications Commission, or F.C.C., conducts a test that detects the amount of radiation emitted by each phone under review. There are set rules and regulations for cellphone companies to meet so that the amount of radiation isn't detrimental to a person's health.

Doctors and physicians give these tips to prevent exposure to cellphone radiation: hold your phone away from your ear until the call is connected, try not to use your phone when you are in the car, on the move, or in a area with bad reception. The reason for all of these inclinations is the fact that cellphones must work harder to maintain their "digital handshake" with towers when on the move, or in areas of bad reception. Also, men should not store their cellphone in their front pants pocket and women should not hold their cellphone close to their chest. This is due to the radiation that may effect a man's fertility and a woman's chance of getting breast cancer.

Cellphones play a vital role in our society today - parents have been known to use their cellphones to calm their young children throughout the day. Experts say parents should limit exposing their children to cellphones at all cost. Once again, studies are continuing on this subject and the radiation emitted from cellphones has not been proven to be harmful, but as the old adage reads: "It's better to be safe, than sorry."

For more information please visit: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/31/technology/personaltech/31basics.html?hpw

MLB to aid UNICEF in Japan relief effort

2011-03-29T21:58:00.000-05:00

Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association have joined forces to donate $500,000 toward earthquake and tsunami relief efforts in Japan to UNICEF. Though baseball is widely considered to be one of America's greatest pastimes, Japan also has one of the best professional baseball programs in the world. I just think it's so cool how sports can put politics and cultural differences aside to build morale among the global community.

Since Friday is opening day for the sport, with likely some of the largest crowds of the season, the MLB is going to give fans the opportunity to contribute to the cause as well. There will be in-stadium fundraising drives, as well as televised calls to action. In addition, all 30 clubs will observe a moment of silence for Japan on Friday.

New platform empowers users to give with confidence

2011-03-28T23:53:00.000-05:00

WePay is bringing transparency to the forefront in the online giving realm. Users who hesitate to give because of distrust in charities can test WePay. The website provides organization for fundraisers and peace of mind for givers.

WePay, founded in August 2008 by Bill Clerico and Rich Aberman, allows users to collect and manage money online, and monitor the usage of donations.

The platform also enables users to set up accounts for bill paying and ticket sales for matters such as club dues or event tickets. WePay even handles payment reminders; users can make payments via bank account or credit card.

Wepay may restore the lost faith in some charities. On the other hand, it may also underline those that tarnish the charity world. Either way, it could bring simplicity.

Cell Phones Acting As Your Wallet

2011-03-24T10:17:00.002-05:00

The New York Times Published an article "Swiping is the Easy Part". The article is talking about the use of cell phones for credit cards. Instead of swiping a credit card, you would swipe your cell phone. AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, Visa and Discover are listed as major companies that are attempting to discover what they would need to do in order to make this idea a reality. Although the technology is being used in other countries, the article brought up two major concerns, the cost of transactions and the consumers awareness of spending. As of now, when you swipe your credit card, it is the store's responsibility to pay for each transaction, which is usually about 97 cents. The bank makes a small profit from each transaction, two cents, and the remainder is used to pay for the actual transaction. With the possibility of using cell phones instead of credit cards, it is still unclear who would be responsible for the transaction costs, or what those costs may be. Also, the companies are concerned that if you don't have to pull out your credit card in order to pay, you may forget exactly how much you're spending. They feel that it may be easier to just pay without thinking about it. Visa is in the process of testing the idea with several banks. Also, the stores wold need to change their credit card terminals to accept the mobile swipe. It is estimated that 5.9 percent of stores will accept mobile swiping by the year 2015. The mobile wallet maybe released by the end of the year.

BlackBerry eliminates DUI checkpoint applications

2011-03-24T10:14:00.005-05:00

The maker of BlackBerry, Research in Motion, has made the decision to pull out of its online application download store that allows its operating system to identify the locations of local police DUI checkpoints.

The issue came about when four senators grew concern of the poularity of the application and asked RIM to stop selling the apps to BlackBerry, Google, iPhone, Ipad and Android devices.

USA Today reported Monday on the growing popularity of apps that identify law inforcement tools such as DUI checkpoints, speed traps and red-light cameras through user-submitted information that connects with GPS data.

The Senators have thanked RIM for eliminating the applications all together and hopes this will stop some drunk driving.

Elizabeth Taylor Dies

2011-03-24T00:04:00.002-05:00

Elizabeth Taylor died at the age of 79 on Wednesday morning from complications of congestive heart failure. A New York Times article says Taylor first appeared in "National Velvet" at the age of 10, starting her nearly 70 year career in Hollywood. She won two Academy Awards for best actress. The article continued to describe Taylor as the epitome of beauty and her unbelievable acting skills.

NPR said, "She is not just a star, she is ... the star. She is what "star" means. She's how many of us learned to understand fame and famous people, particularly famous women."

Both articles wrote about Taylor's passionate efforts for AIDS-related causes. NPR wrote about how she used her celebrity status to get money and used the money to benefit the AIDS-related causes.

There is an app for that

2011-03-22T11:19:00.003-05:00

Exodus International is an iPhone app that was created by an anti-gay Christian organization and now more than 100,000 people are trying to get it removed. People are signing an online petition to remove the app from the iTunes store.

The app "provides support for individuals who want to recover from homosexuality."

The app has a calender of events, news and links to Exodus's social media sites and videos. Apple was in a similar situation last year where they shut down a different anti-gay app after only 7,000 people petitioned it. Apple has yet to shut down this app.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/TECH/mobile/03/22/gay.cure.app.mashable/index.html

Social media trends at South By Southwest 2011

2011-03-21T19:03:00.003-05:00

At South By Southwest this year, PR Daily's Becky Johns observed 4 social media trends that she believes will have an impact on the social media and communications worlds. These trends were group texting, the networking app Hashable, name your price deals and the concept of "smaller is better."

Group texting was the most popular of these phenomenons and used apps such as GroupMe and Beluga for group communication to coordinate meet-ups at meals and parties. The app Hashable was also a popular networking tool at the Austin event. The company describes it as a way to "exchange business cards, make easy intros, and 'check in' with people to track meetings and calls. Name your price deals are the third trend in social media with significant talk about the company Zaarly where buyers may list what they will pay for something and sellers seek out the business. Finally, the fourth trend is smaller is better where there appeared to be more focus on the smaller, more focused events and communities and less on the "big" stuff.

South By Southwest is clearly still an event that promotes change in social media and communications.

http://www.prdaily.com/socialmedia/Articles/7610.aspx

One Step Forward... Two Steps Back

2011-03-09T22:47:00.002-06:00

The car company Chrysler made a comeback with the new Super Bowl commercial, honoring the city of Detroit. Apparently, someone at the company thought it was better to criticize the city the company wanted to praise. An employee working the company's Twitter account wrote "I find it ironic that Detroit is known as the motorcity and yet no one here knows how to fu*king drive." (The actual tweet wrote the whole word) Before the company could take down the inappropriate tweet, more than 8,000 followers retweeted it.

As a company who wanted a more "family friendly" image and hometown support, offending the home city was a wrong way to go. Followers were outraged, putting Chrysler back to square one to try to build their new image. Chrysler quickly fired the employee behind the tweet, showing once again how a wrong step with social media can ruin a reputation and a job.

http://www.mediabistro.com/agencyspy/whoops-chrysler-drops-f-bomb-on-twitter_b15401

Online bill of rights?

2011-03-09T22:21:00.003-06:00

Sen. John McCain and John Kerry are proposing legislation to create an 'online privacy bill of rights'. The bill would require companies to have your permission to share data they have collected about you with outsiders and to for you to also have the right to view the data that has already been collected on you. As you are all aware we are being tracked and recorded more than ever before, thanks to the Internet, and that this information is easily accessible, again thanks to the Internet. There are tracking technologies installed on popular websites that gather and sell personal information on anything from your finances to your religious beliefs, and now the government is finally recognizing this as a problem. However, it seems this proposed legislation is more focused on letting you know what is being shared about you rather than stopping the invasion of privacy itself. So no worries your information will for now continue to be recorded but you might get to see the dirt these tracking companies collect on you...in a few years. Its amazing what bi-partisan support can do.

online bill of rights

Who knew tweets could be so costly?

2011-03-06T20:59:00.002-06:00

Courtney Love settled a lawsuit by agreeing to pay $430,000 to fashion designer Dawn Simorangkir on Friday. The lawsuit was filed in March 2009 after the designer accused Love of not paying for clothing. Love posted a number of defamatory statements about Simorangkir on Twitter and Myspace, calling her a prostitute and an “asswipe nasty lying hosebag thief.” Love has until 2014 to pay the damages.

Tweeters have dubbed trash talking on Twitter as ‘Twibel’. Get it?

http://www.mediabistro.com/prnewser/courtney-settles-twibel-lawsuit-out-of-court_b16510#more-16510

Gender divide-Unfair salaries in the PR world

2011-03-03T12:13:00.003-06:00

Men are still being paid more than women, particularly in public relations. According to Ragan.com, 73% of the 21,000 members of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) are female, and 85% in the PR industry are female. Despite women being the majority in this industry, an overwhelming 80% of upper management is male.

In addition to this, PRSA performed its most recent study on the issue in 2007 and found that men reported average annual salaries of $93,494, while on average women reported salaries of $66,467. So what is PRSA doing to address gender income concern? A spokesperson sent this response.

“Obviously, PRSA is concerned about this discrepancy, which is why we have published at least six industry salary surveys and reports since 1979 exploring the issue. Additionally, we have a Work Life and Gender Committee … [that] explores various issues concerning the industry's income discrepancy and how PRSA can address those issues and help all practitioners advance their careers.”

The 2007 study found that the difference in professional experience between men and women practitioners is narrowing. Considering the lopsided number of women in PR, the industry is one of the starkest reminders of the inequality in pay.

http://www.prdaily.com/Main/Articles/7411.aspx

Will virtual press rooms work?

2011-03-03T10:26:00.002-06:00

PressDoc offers interactive and unique online press releases and allows organizations to customize content in relation to a specific brand. PressDoc announced today a new feature called Premium PressRooms, which is essentially an online press room. This new online environment would enable companies to directly cater to different media representatives. PressRoom is an extension of PressDoc because it combines the message with a new forum through the use of custom branding, domain names and analytics. It will now be easier than ever for companies to tailor the intended message to the correct audience. However, is the media willing to do its part and reach out?

http://techcrunch.com/2011/03/03/pressdoc-premium-pressrooms/

New Owners of Honest Tea

2011-03-02T19:35:00.002-06:00

Coca-Cola announced Tuesday that they were buying the organic beverage maker Honest Tea. This completes a deal that began three years ago when Coca-Cola bought a 40 percent stake in the company. Coca-Cola plans to keep the "entrepreneurial culture" of Honest Tea by maintaining it as a stand-alone business and will keep the same Chief Executive, also co-founder, Seth Goldman. The company will remain based in Bethesda, Md., but will use Coke's manufacturing and distribution network. Goldman says they will continue with their "guerrilla" approach in marketing, since it has been very effective, but traditional campaigns will make more sense in the future with their growth.

Goldman has acknowledged that there is a risk in joining with a large corporation because fans think they will loose sight of their socially and environmentally friendly mission. The company believes their mission is best served now that the organic drink is more mainstream and consumers can access it more conveniently. Since Coca-Cola bought into Honest Tea in 2008, the drinks retail outlets have grown from 15,000 to 75,000.

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=145945

YouTube spoof of Qaddafi reaches over 1 million views

2011-02-28T19:32:00.003-06:00

A new YouTube video featuring a speech by Colonel Muammar el-Quaddafi has reached over 1 million views since it's creation on February 22, 2011.

Col. Quaddafi's speech was televised the same day as the release of the YouTube video. Noy Alooshe, creator of the video watched the speech and immediately decided to make a spoof. Col. Quaddafi's speech is remixed to "Hey Baby" by Pitbull featuring T-Pain. The video includes clips of the televised speech as well as two girls seen dancing to the words of his speech.

Alooshe's video gained popularity quickly through his promotion on Twitter and Facebook. He sent the links of these pages to young Arab revolutionaries. According to Alooshe, he has generally received positive feedback including a response stating that they would dance to the remix once the Quadaffi regime fell.

New York Times Article

Original Video by Alooshe

Gmail's super Delete button

2011-02-28T18:35:00.004-06:00

On Sunday, many Gmail users logged into their e-mail accounts only to find that hundreds and thousands of e-mails erased from their accounts. Reports indicated at least 160,000 users were affected by this massive delete epidemic.

Google claims only 0.08% of Gmail users were affected by it, but those were were affected reported they lost as much as 10 years in e-mails.

Google is moving quickly to repair the accounts that were wiped out, even suggesting storing data and applications in the Google cloud.

This has potential for crisis for Google. Many consumers may see this as a major weakness in the privacy and security level they can expect from Google products. Not only is personal and private e-mail in jeopardy, but private and identity-related information that could be transmitted over e-mail communication could be something consumers may fear to lose in the future.

"If, ultimately, Google does not make this right in a timely way and I lose the main record of the last 7 years of my life ... that will forever affect how I view trusting an anonymous server farm somewhere with my critical or even not-so-critical data," said a user in the help forum.

Google has made progress and reported its affect percentage is now 0.02%, but it's unclear as to how consumers feel about the security issue that plagues this catastrophe.

http://money.cnn.com/2011/02/28/technology/gmail_outage/index.htm

http://www.macworld.com/article/158186/2011/02/gmail.html

Strategy drives ticket sales for PGA Championship 2 years in advance

2011-02-24T10:36:00.004-06:00

The PR agency Rawle Murdy devised and executed a PR campaign for the 2012 PGA Championship tour that allowed them to sell its tickets 2 years in advance. The economy and size of the market definetly came into play for the campaign since the economy is facing such troubling times and the course in 2012 can accommodate fewer people than usual. Rawle Murdy's tactics included a press conference where the ticketing process was announced and to jump start the buzz Rawle Murdy had its message projected simultaneously on four building in both North Carolina and South Carolina. It also hosted a "PGA Experience" event. Social media was also used to keep consumers updated on the ticketing process. The campaign was a success. 94% of the tickets were sold in just six weeks and the all time one-day ticket sales record was set five different times.

Original Article: http://brainfeed.braverycorp.com/strategy-drives-record-2012-pga-ticket-sales

Goverment employer asks for Facebook login during interview

2011-02-24T03:11:00.004-06:00

During a job interview for the Maryland Department of Corrections, Officer Robert Collins was asked to give his Facebook username and password for a background check during an interview. It's not surprising that Social Networking sites are targets for background checks, but asking for the username and password seems a little over the top. On the job application for the Maryland Department of Corrections, it now asks you for your Facebook username and password as well as all social media site log-ins. I think this is a disturbing move by government employers as it now gives them access to a website that was supposed to be secure. It's not news that social media sites are now included in background checks, but for an employer to ask for a log-in is stepping over the line. It raises too many questions about privacy laws.

Here is the Article

Amazon launches unlimited streaming for Prime members

2011-02-22T10:44:00.002-06:00

This morning, Amazon.com officially announced that Prime members will be able to stream unlimited video for $79 per year. It's streaming library contains over 5,000 movie and television titles. The main service comparable to the new Prime streaming service is Netflix, with subscriptions starting $7.99 per month. Amazon.com also provides two-day shipping to Prime members. The Amazon.com streaming membership will likely cause a good number of consumers to leave Netflix and other sites, such as Hulu, since many of them already have accounts with Amazon.com. The combination of the company's new streaming service, its popular e-reader, the Amazon Kindle and its traditional online shopping services, I think Amazon.com could quickly put smaller streaming companies out of business.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/technologylive/post/2011/02/amazon-launches-unlimited-streaming-for-prime-members/1

Hispanicize.com; New social media site for Latinos in communications and PR

2011-02-20T20:59:00.001-06:00

Manny Ruiz, founder of the Hispanic PR Blog, PapiBlogger and the Annual Hispanic PR & Social Media Conference has established a new social media outlet for Hispanics and Latinos interested in the public relations and communications industries that will launch Monday.

Hispanicize.com was created as an online and interactive version of the Hispanicize conferences that are held annually to inform and educate Latinos in the PR industry about current and changing marketing strategies. This media also generates a unified, organized, one-stop resource for all Latino and Hispanic related news and content.

Features of the social media site will include:
• Webinar training
• Technology guides
• Online forums
• Comprehensive directory
• Networking service for brands and bloggers
• Updates on industry trends
• Professional opportunities
• Resources for non-profit organizations

Ruiz plans to promote his new site through other social media resources and Latino oriented programs created by him and his colleagues.

http://www.prweekus.com/hispanicizecom-to-launch-for-latino-social-media-industry/article/196526/

Positive weed-enforcements

2011-02-16T23:35:00.011-06:00

Is the "recreational" use of marijuana becoming more socially acceptable these days? Mary Elizabeth Williams, writer for in Salon magazine thinks so.

Celebrities have been more apt to admit their recreational use of the drug in their day-to-day activities. Lady Gaga admitted to 60 Minutes that she dibble dabbles with the stuff before she writes. Seth Rogen has been attributed by well-known Hollywood director Kevin Smith, for helping Smith become a "productive, creative stoner." Zach Galifianakis lit what is presumed to have been a joint on Bill Maher's HBO show. Jack Black, Woody Harrelson, Snoop Dogg, each of these celebrities have admitted smoking marijuana-from "an occasional celebratory jay," to daily use. This newfound "trend" of confessing to using drugs has spurred debate amongst Americans for and against the use of marijuana.

In the ages of the Charlie Sheens, Lindsay Lohans and Courtney Loves of the world, apparently pot doesn't have nearly the effects of alcohol. Many people believe the drug isn't habit-forming. After speaking with many people who use- I beg the differ. It may not be the chemical formula that the user is addicted to, but it's "the process of sitting around with your friends, rolling a joint and smoking it with your friends," an interviewee told me (I choose to keep the names anonymous as I gave my word).

The thought that legalizing marijuana would help cure the national debt by incurring a tax has been one of the main arguments for the legislation to pass. On the other hand, what about the side effects of the drug, the irresponsible things people have been known to do while under the influence? There are many pros and cons to the legalization of marijuana, but one thing sure is obvious-society seems to be leaning more and more to the left after each instance of a public figure admitting to smoking marijuana.

http://www.salon.com/entertainment/tv/grammys/index.html?story=/ent/tv/feature/2011/02/14/lady_gaga_seth_rogen_celebrity_stoners

Poorly planned promotional event lands two Dell executives in handcuffs

2011-02-16T10:58:00.001-06:00

On Monday in Round Rock, two Dell executives decided to round up the rest of the 400 employees of the corporate campus to celebrate the release of Dell's new Streak tablet. Bryan Chester, 48, dressed as a biker in dark clothing (supposedly because the new tablet can interface with Harley-Davidson motorcycles) and ran around the building shouting, "Go to the lobby!" The problem was that only his supervisor, Daniel Rawson, 36, knew Chester's motive for this strange in-house publicity stunt.

According to the article in the Austin-American Statesman that was released Monday morning following the incident, Chester was carrying small metallic objects, which frightened employees assumed to be weapons. Responding to several calls, 26 Round Rock police officers, including the SWAT team, arrived at the Dell campus and began evacuating the buildings, only to discover that it was a false alarm.

Police arrested Chester for deadly conduct, a Class A misdemeanor. Rawson was also arrested and charged with interfering with public duties, a Class B misdemeanor, because he refused to cooperate with police when they first arrived.

"One of our team members made an unfortunate choice and ... frightened other team members," said Dell spokesman David Frink. "But it shows our security protocols work, and we are grateful for the Round Rock police's quick reaction."

Nokia, Microsoft to join forces

2011-02-15T10:01:00.004-06:00

Nokia Corp. announced Friday that it will be teaming up with Microsoft to produce a new line of smart phones.

Nokia, the world's largest phone manufacturer, has fallen behind in the smart phone market and is looking to regain their footing in the coming years.

This move will likely phase out Nokia's Symbian operating system, but it will also give a boost to both Nokia and Microsoft's new Window's 7 operating system.

Stephen Elop, CEO of Nokia, defends his decision citing the billions of dollars in support Nokia will receive from Microsoft as well as cutting costs on software development.

With Nokia producing their phones, Microsoft should see a noticeable increase in presence in the smart phone market in the United States and globally.

It should be interesting to see how Nokia and Microsoft's teaming up affects the Android and Apple markets.

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory?id=12891100

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110214/ap_on_hi_te/wireless_show_nokia_microsoft

Austin's small-businesses to be "recommended by Google"

2011-02-15T00:30:00.000-06:00

With the rise of location-based networks and the desire for increased mobile accessibility, Google is joining the race and asking Austin's small-business community for help.

Google has launched a marketing campaign to promote its Places and Hotspot services, which incorporates ratings and recommendations into search results and information on Google Places and Google Maps according to an article in the Austin American-Statesman.

Interestingly, Austin is the second city targeted for the campaign following Portland, Oregon.

Google is encouraging Austin's small-businesses to promote the services to their consumers with stickers featuring the Google Maps pointer and logo. Google Places and Hotspot services will enable users to access information such as hours, contact information, and sales through phones or other mobile devices.

According to the article, Google is attracted to Austin's attention to small-businesses. What will Austin's small-businesses do with this opportunity?

Read the full article: Austin becomes an arena for Google's new small-business initiative

Is Verizon prepared for the iPhone?

2011-02-10T10:03:00.004-06:00

Since the iPhone was released to Verizon customers, sales have sky-rocketed for apple. However, Verizon still has a few kinks to work out. For example, many of AT&T customers enjoy the luxury of simultaneously talking and looking up directions on the web. This is a feature Verizon will not have.

It is no doubt that Verizon has better voice service but many consumers feel that data is just as important. Global Wireless Solutions AT&T's data service is at least 60% faster than Verizon.

Another thing Verizon customers might want to consider before buying the iPhone 4 is, the iPhone 5 will be hitting the stores in just a few months.

The good thing that Verizon does have over AT&T is their $30 unlimited data plan service, while AT&T only offers 2 gigabytes for $25 dollars. Best be sure, AT&T will have this option soon, if not a better one.

AT&T has struggled for more than 4 years now. Im curious to see how Verizon competes with one of the best providers in America.

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/columnist/kimkomando/2011-02-05-verizon-iphone_n.htm?csp=obinsite

Groupon Causes Controversy

2011-02-07T22:08:00.004-06:00

Many people watch the Super Bowl for the commercials, not just football. One company, Groupon, caused a lot of discussion with their commercials. They talked about Tibetan refugees, which many fans did not like. I googled Groupon today and this is all that popped up. Some people think the commercial was rude and degrading, while others didn't think anything of it. I saw the commercial and didn't think too much about it, but the degrading thought did pop into the back of my mind. This Tibetan ad, created a lot of talk for Groupon, but is that necessarily a bad thing? If you ask me it seems like they got want they wanted...advertisment.

News Story

Click here for the commercial

Super Bowl advertisers utilize social media

2011-02-06T19:49:00.003-06:00

At this year's Super Bowl, social media will play a major role in advertising. Companies are using sites such as Facebook and Twitter to reach the vast online audience in hopes of gaining followers, promoting products, boosting campaigns and enhancing online presence. Nearly 50% of 2011 Super Bowl advertisements are expected to be featured on at least one social networking site. A few among these are Mercedes-Benz, KIA, and Bud Light. These companies plan to use online challenges, puzzles and quizzes that will lead to free giveaways as an attempt to spark consumer interest through the web. Super Bowl advertiser's have begun to embrace this new media and are learning to use it to their advantage. This is a step in the right direction for advertising.

http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_17245076?source=rss

New Apps Make Online News Reading Easier

2011-02-02T18:02:00.006-06:00

New applications are now available that make online news reading even easier. The new app called Readability strips online news articles, and blogs, of their advertising and side bar quick links leaving only the bare minimum of text and photos. Other apps such as Pulse and Read It Later feature services that collect articles from various sources, depending on your preferences, and saving them to be read offline at your convenience. These apps have received criticism because it is argued that publishers are losing money from advertisers and promoters, and thus the creators of these apps have announced they will charge a monthly fee that in turn will be used to compensate publishers and bloggers.

So with publishers being compensated for there loss, it looks like the public relations industry as well as advertisers are going to have to find a new way to reach their target audience in online news and blogging. It is important to note, and fairly obvious, that newspapers are shifting to digital format from print. This transition brings the need for more creative ways to reach the target audience or consumer and these look like another hurdle for the public relations industry.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/01/technology/01read.html?src=me&ref=technology

Apple Fans Rejoice: The Daily is Coming to You

2011-02-02T14:55:00.004-06:00

Apple just debuted it's iPad-only newspaper, The Daily. The newest app has over 100 pages of content, along with videos, every day of the year. Photos, charts and graphs can now be viewed in a 360 mode. Users can purchase The Daily for 99 cents a week or for a $39.99 price for a full year.

The public relations world is waiting to see if users are really willing to pay a price for this exciting way of news. If people will pay, the doors are wide open for other companies to explore this new way to advertise and new opportunities to expand business. Companies can offer customers inside their business with easy to read stocks, news, up to date pictures and exclusive news.

The Daily website announces that "new times demands new journalism". In that case, maybe it is time for a new way for public relations practitioners.

http://www.prweekus.com/the-daily-makes-its-debut/article/195566/

Chick-Fil-A Causes Controversy in the Gay Community

2011-01-31T21:16:00.002-06:00

Chick-Fil-A caused an uproar in the gay community when they agreed to provide food at a marriage seminar put on by an organization that is openly against homosexuality. The donation has led to colleges trying to get the restaurant chain banned from campus and a growing petition to quit supporting groups “perceived as anti-gay”. Gay bloggers across the country are encouraging Chick-Fil-A consumers to spend their money elsewhere.

Chick-Fil-A lovers across the country are at a crossroads as they make the decision to continue to support the restaurant or not. Christians are showing their support, while people in the gay community boycott the chicken sandwich.

Dan T. Cathy, Chick-Fil-A president, posted a video on its Facebook fan page to address the issue.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/20110131/us_yblog_thelookout/popular-chicken-chain-under-fire-for-anti-gay-marriage-donations

You will need to create an account to view the original article.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/30/us/30chick.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&sq=chick%20fil%20a&st=cse&scp=1

Skinny Cow ice cream hosts a "Perfect Cup" tour

2011-01-30T14:22:00.009-06:00

Nestle's Skinny Cow ice cream brand will be going on a "Perfect Cup" tour where manicures, pillow fights, and bra fittings will take place. The six top voting U.S. cities will host the locations of the "Perfect Cup" tour. The purpose of this event is surprisingly not breast cancer related, but merely to ensure that women are wearing the right bra sizes.
Though it may seem surprising that an ice cream brand is pulling such a public maneuver, it is a great tactic for attracting the female audience with such a purpose. Skinny Cow will surely be breaking the mold as far as actions of their peers are concerned, and will be gaining publicity in the meantime. Votes are still taking place at http://perfectcups.skinnycow.com to register your town for the "Perfect Cup" tour.

http://www.prweekus.com/skinny-cow-connects-brand-to-boobs/article/195132/

MIT Media Lab Creates Interactive Consumer Tool

2011-01-26T23:51:00.004-06:00

The geniuses at the MIT Media Lab understand today's tech savvy public, and designed a product that will evolve the electronic consumer experience. LuminAR is an Intel powered lamp that projects product information onto any surface and creates an interactive shopping adventure. Consumers find the answers they need without surfing the web for hours. People engage LuminAR by selecting what they want to see, such as specifications, comparisions and reviews. It even plays video of an expert explaining details about the product. The LuminAR project is backed by Best Buy and Intel, two major sponsors of the Media Lab. This new technology is going to change the way companies brand their products, as well as how large retailers like Best Buy interact with their public.

http://www.fastcompany.com/1716203/mit-media-labs-intel-powered-desk-lamp-will-change-how-you-shop-at-best-buy

New Site Called "Hipster"

2011-01-25T23:49:00.006-06:00

A new, location based, social networking site called Hipster will be released in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, and Austin this February. User's are still unsure of what new services Hipster has to offer but the site states that "hipster is the best resource for anything and everything in your city." The site is confident it will be a big hit since it gained 10,000 user sign ups in two days without the purpose even being released. Its been leaked that it will resemble Quora, FourSquare, Yelp, and will look similar to Twitter. It functions based on location and informs users on local events, restaurants, and anything the users consider hip or cool. The site will also provide "a space for everything at once, plus a little social commentary". It's mysterious introduction as well as its name created mixed opinions but all the hype may give it the potential to succeed. You can sign up at www.usehipster.com and receive an invitation to what might be the next big thing in social networking.

http://blog.ogilvypr.com/2011/01/the-trendy-new-startup-called-hipster/#more-6549

Insider trading linked to electronic media

2010-11-22T21:22:00.004-06:00

Insider-trading has been a problem for the stock market, but now Federal Prosecutors in New York believe electronic devices, social media, financial newsletters and website blogs are part of the reason this illicit disclosure of material has been facilitated. They are currently investing alleged insider-trading on Wall Street, but are having difficulty finding, investigating and proving the trading rings taking place on the market. The reason they are having trouble finding proof is due to the wide range of electronic devices used by traders. Electronic devices make trading information for traders quicker, easier and by the time foul-play by is detected evidence is lost.
The prominent role the media has had in insider-trading is the focus in a recent Wall Street Journal story. The investigations by the U.S Attorney's Office in Manhattan, FBI and the Securities and Exchange Commissions are continuing. Insider-trading has existed for years and prestigious company traders from Goldman Sachs and many other big companies have been accused of exchanging confidential information.

http://www.mediabistro.com/prnewser/

The Public Isolation Project

2010-11-22T15:49:00.003-06:00

Cristine Norine, a TV and photography manager based in Los Angeles, has been isolating herself in a glass room of a museum for 22 days now in Portland, Oregon. The project's objective is to explore how social media has changed the way people communicate. With technology ever-changing and fancy gadgets being produced left and right, Norine has found great frustration in the way people can't have a normal conversation or interact with one another without updating Facebook, Twitter, texting or any of the social media tools interrupting.

The only communication Norine has with the outside world is through social media. She doesn't go outside, not even for fresh air, and has groceries delivered to her once a week, which she also orders from online. The only privacy she has during her 30 day project is a private bathroom and shower. Other than that, she is exposed to everyone on the street. She's sparked curiosity in the neighborhood and have people wondering if they're a victim of the anti-social side social media.

Norine's project is interesting and so is her blog. Her point is not to prove that social media is a negative thing, but to be aware of how much it can consume your daily life in which a way you might not notice. She hopes that people, especially the younger generation, can find a balance between conversation and social media tools. During the project thus far, Norine has discovered just how much she's addicted to social media as well, now that she is experiencing what absent conversation is doing to her every day life. The Public Isolation Project ends Dec. 1, but it has not been stated what she's going to do with her findings of the project.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/social.media/11/22/social.media.isolation.project/index.html?hpt=C1

Forget Black Friday, stores are offering great deals online on Thanksgiving Day

2010-11-22T12:40:00.003-06:00

Probably since Thanksgiving was made a holiday, stores and and shoppers have a mutual understanding that the day after Thanksgiving is the best (and craziest time) to go shopping to get all of the best deals before Christmas. "Black Friday" marks the beginning of the Christmas seasonal shopping rush.

Because of the economic downturn that has been affecting our nation for the past few years, companies are having to turn to new methods to attract shoppers. Many stores are offering the same great deals consumers have come to expect from day-after-Thanksgiving shopping on Thanksgiving day. Since most stores don't want to open their doors on Thanksgiving day, they are making these deals available through their online stores.

This is a great idea. Retailers have offered exclusive deals through their online stores for quite a while, and this is a great way to get the business of shoppers who are unwilling to venture out and deal with the traffic and crowds on Black Friday.

http://newsfeed.time.com/2010/11/22/skip-the-stampede-more-black-friday-deals-offered-online/

Apple pushing Beatles' iTunes debut hard

2010-11-18T09:24:00.002-06:00

With all of Apple's hype, you'd think one or more of the Beatles were marrying into the royal family.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs this week announced, at long last, the Fab Four's iTunes debut. The legendary British pop group's extensive catalogue is now available on the iTunes download service, marking the first time the group's music is available on a digital format.

The company's announcement was a major news item when it was revealed this week -- almost as if the band was rising to tour once again.

The Beatles brand has been making a comeback over the last year or so. The group's video-game title, "The Beatles: Rock Band," was pushed hard last year by Viacom (to slightly disappointing results), and this week's announcement was trumpeted across most major news networks.

So, don't be surprised if you see Ringo Starr glaring at you from the iTunes start page -- it's all part of Apple's marketing plan.

Web 2.0 Conference Brings Big Names

2010-11-18T00:17:00.003-06:00

The Web 2.0 conference brought founders and CEO's of Twitter, Netflix, LinkedIn and Facebook to discuss their company's current standing and where they felt they would go in the future. Co-founder of Twitter, Evan Williams was frustrated with Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg because Facebook has yet to enable users with a way to integrate their Facebook posts with Twitter, however on Twitter you are able to integrate the two.

Even without being able to integrate the two, Twitter has been very successful and is only going to grow from here. Twitter now runs campaigns with 40 advertisers and are expecting to reach up to 100 by the end of this year. With the success in social media, many companies are now turning to these sits for a cheaper, yet profitable way to advertise their companies. Williams stated that their demand has outreached their supply, but plan to work hard to meet it.

Julius Genachowski, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, was also at the conference and was clear that the FCC would not be taking on the online privacy battle anytime soon. Genachowski stated that, "his office was more focused on monitoring abuses of broadband and wireless spectra, not companies that market online."

Another important face at the conference was LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner. He discussed how well LinkedIn was doing and said that their company is adding a new member every second. If you've ever wondered how they make the money, it's by advertisements, paid services and hiring solutions that prove successful in landing job candidates. Even as Facebook grows, the CEO says he is not afraid that it will trump LinkedIn because he feels that people like to have "seperate worlds" and ended with these last two words, "keg stands".

http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/content_display/news/national-broadcast/e3i3b8c335aabd0637434d926227662be17?pn=1

Facebook Launches "Modern Messaging System"

2010-11-15T20:40:00.007-06:00

Facebook has launched it's "modern messaging system," which is an attempt to combine chat, email and texting into a single inbox. The central idea behind this is to simplify and unify communication.

This application will allow users to send emails from an @facebook.com email address. It also allows users to send their friends texts using the same interface.

The new Facebook Messages application is designed like a conversation, similar to text messaging. It doesn't have subject lines, a cc or bcc, and it tracks the full history of your conversation. The inbox is supposed to be spam free and only display messages from your Facebook friends. It allows users to block messages from untrusted people.

Right now, the new Facebook Messages can be accessed by invite-only to a small group of Facebook employees and beta testers. In the next few months, this feature will be open to all 500+ million Facebook users.

I am interested to see if this catches on. I wonder if will participate in the SMS capabilities of this new messaging system or if they will want to keep their different forms of communication separate.

In the video below, Facebook explains how the new system will work.

http://mashable.com/2010/11/15/facebook-messages-walkthrough-pics/

http://mashable.com/2010/11/15/facebook-messages-video/

Facebook Places a 'Game Changer,' Says Analyst

2010-11-10T20:13:00.002-06:00

Facebook is now more than ever trying to change the way people shop. Facebook's version of foursquare, Facebook Places is partnering up with with major companies to promote the new application. Companies like American Eagle Outfitters have already signed a deal with Facebook offering 20 percent off items when a person checks in. Other places participating are Chipolte, McDonalds, H&M and Gap. Facebook is calling this move a "game changer." They predict that Facebook will change the way people shop by “encouraging the adoption of check-in activities among people who previously saw no reason to do so."

I think this is a very smart idea. Everyone is so influenced by what Facebook is doing and where they are going next, that this new move will take off. I know that if I can get deals just by checking in, I will.

mediaweek.com

Amazon.com says "No" to censorship

2010-11-10T16:12:00.003-06:00

Amazon.com is currently selling a book called The Pedophile's guide to Love and Pleasure for their electronic reader Kindle for $4.79. The book is causing an uproar of enraged reviews but as of right now, Amazon has no intention of taking it off their website. They have not officially commented on the issue, but a Business Insider commenter receieved this response to their concerns:

"As a retailer, our goal is to provide customers with the broadest selection possible so they can find, discover, and buy any item they might be seeking. That selection includes some items which many people may find objectionable. Therefore, the items offered on our website represent a wide spectrum of opinions on a variety of topics.

Let me assure you that Amazon.com does not support or promote hatred or criminal acts; we do support the right of every individual to make their own purchasing decisions.

Amazon.com believes it is censorship not to sell certain titles because we believe their message is objectionable. Therefore, we'll continue to make controversial works available in the United States and everywhere else, except where they're prohibited by law. We also allow readers, authors, and publishers to express their views freely about these titles and other products we offer on our website. However, Amazon.com doesn't endorse opinions expressed by individual authors, musical artists, or filmmakers."

Personally I think it's disgusting. The author, as well as anyone who purchases the book, should be investigated. How would hebe able to write a "how-to" book on pedophilia if you weren't a pedophile himself?

Read more: http://jezebel.com/5686556/amazon-sells-guide-to-pedophilia#ixzz14v8HJ2vv

Manage Your Social Networks with Ping.fm

2010-11-08T21:24:00.005-06:00

Ping.fm is a free social-networking and micro-blogging web service that enables users to simultaneously update their profiles on different websites. It lets users update their statuses only once instead of attempting to do it on each and every site that they are involved with. It groups the different services into three categories. The three categories are status updates, blogs and micro-blogs. The idea came about when the creators were updating status messages through micro-blogging sites Twitter and Tumblr. They thought it was pretty redundant to be typing the same message on each and every site, so they created Ping.fm.

Ping.fm is a new website that helps you to manage all of your different social networking sites. When you get to the website, it lets you choose from over 30 different social networking sites to add. When you choose one of the networking sites, it has you enter in your log-in information, then it redirects you back to the setup page to choose more sites to link to ping.fm. Then, you basically just add a status whenever you want and it automatically posts to the different social networking sites that you've chosen to be on your dashboard. You can also choose to have some messages posted only to your micro-blogs or statuses. You can also be more specific and only have it posted to the sites that you choose, one by one.

Party with the Pope!

2010-11-08T13:07:00.003-06:00

In an effort to get Italian youth back into church, Rev. Maurizio Mirilli, head of youth ministry in Rome's Catholic Church, has converted a section of the crypt of the Basilica di San Carlo al Corso near St. Peter's Square into a nightclub. It goes by the name GP2 short for "Giovanni Paolo II" the late Polish pope and is quickly becoming a popular destination for mingling, dancing and "having a drink with the bishop," as Father Mirilli puts it. A recent poll by the Italian Instituto IARD found that 15% of Italian Catholics between the ages of 18 and 29 consider themselves "practicing Catholics," compared to 18% in 2004. Father Mirilli is working hard to bring back the youthful spirit that came with the church's Jubilee celebration in Rome ten years ago in which they celebrated the Vatican's World Youth Day, an event that became known as the "Catholic Woodstock." At GP2, there is no cover charge, patrons are expected to observe a two-drink maximum and hard spirits like vodka and gin are not served.

I think this is a great and interesting effort. It's nice to see that head's of the church are taking action in solving issues the Catholic church is facing today such as low attendance for mass with youths. This is an out-of-the-box idea to try and bridge the gap rather than only following tradition. I like that one person said it is the spot to "get to know" a girl rather than "pick her up." I imagine that people of other religions may frown upon the idea of a nightclub being affiliated with a church, but I say leave it to the Catholics to know how to have a good time among friends and drink wine responsibly.

http://global.factiva.com/ga/default.aspx?imt=2&ao=5&aod=0

The Power of Poo

2010-11-03T19:18:00.002-05:00

Cow wow is a company that makes a liquid compost product from cow waste. Leslie Hearne, owner or Cow Wow approached an agency about promoting her product. Her idea was to do something inexpensive and and really different. Her only guidelines were for the campaign to be fun and engaging.

The inspiration for the fun idea came from a well-known governor with good hair, Rick Perry. The idea was to create a mobile tour with 6-foot clay heads that had the likeness of Governor Perry and Bill White. Both heads would feature hair of ivy and would be nourished with Cow Wow. People at events would be able to interact with the clay heads and go online to pick their favorite hair.

After going back and forth with concerns between the ad agency and Hearne, the project was finally modified to make fewer campaign appearances, but reside in a very public space and include virtual components in addition to Facebook and Twitter pages, like a Web site where people could vote.

Ultimately, the heads spent a lot of time around Austin and Central Texas. They were seen by more than 200,000 attendees of Austin City Limits Music Festival. Through the use of social media and the interactive events the heads were a part of, Hearne has now been interviewed for print, radio, TV and blogs and has gotten product inquiries from around the country. Cow Wow now has a portfolio of national media write-ups to put in its sales kit, and it’s been a great door-opener for sales calls.

http://boss.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11/02/is-your-marketing-campaign-risky-enough/?src=sch&pagewanted=all

Foursquare Lays Down the Law on Fake Mayors

2010-11-02T21:22:00.003-05:00

Foursquare, a location based social network, has recently added a new feature that allows for venue owners to revoke mayorship for winners who they believe have won the title illegitimately. Mayorship is a title that a Foursquare user receives by checking in the most within a two month period in a particular location. This title is generally just a honor badge, but some times comes with real-world discounts, if the venues wishes.

This new feature was first reported on the company blog of MGH Marketing. MGH has the account of a restaurant in Baltimore called Miss Shirley's, where the mayor automatically gets bumped up to the beginning of the waiting list, even on the busiest nights. Miss Shirley's has not reported actually removing a mayor, but this new feature and the buzz about the reward has increased sales by 18%.

Some reasons for the removal of a mayor include: being an employee, not actually being at the venue just simply checking in down the street or as someone is just walking by. This is important, because now that there are rules, there can be commerce, participation, and meaningful investment.

http://www.nytimes.com/external/readwriteweb/2010/11/02/02readwriteweb-foursquare-lays-down-the-law-on-fake-mayors-69688.html?ref=technology

Movember

2010-11-01T20:12:00.002-05:00

Movember (the month formerly known as November) is a moustache growing charity event held during November each year that raises funds and awareness for men's health.

The 'Mo', slang for moustache, and November come together each year for Movember.

Each Movember we challenge men to change their appearance and the face of men's health by growing a moustache. The moustache is our ribbon, the means by which we raise awareness and funds for cancers that affect men. Much like the commitment to run or walk for charity, our commitment is to grow a moustache for 30 days. Funds raised benefit the Prostate Cancer Foundation and LIVESTRONG.

If you would like to join the global movement that is changing the face of men's health, sign up for Movember.

http://us.movember.com/get-involved/

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I think this is a neat campaign that will raise awareness and catch people's eyes. It's a unique "ribbon." I think it is similar to all of the women's random Facebook status updates in October that leave men wondering what we are talking about.

Sony's Google TV viewers have restricted access

2010-11-01T12:20:00.003-05:00

After Sony release the new Google TV earlier in October, major networks and Hulu began blocking access to view full-length episodes.Google TV seemed like the ultimate convergence of television viewing and web surfing, but there may be some issues that keep it from transforming television viewing.

With Google TV viewers can search the web and post on Twitter all while watching television. Networks such as ABC, NBC and CBS blocked the full-length episodes from their sites. Their sites are still available to search and read text. Networks are afraid to lose control of their television broadcasting and advertising. Originally these networks did not participate in teaming up with Google TV, but did offer small apps, like a CNBC stock ticker.

Now, network executives want Google to share revenues from ads shown on Google TV, block the illegal accesses to their shows on the internet and make sure their shows still stand out from the overflow of programs and videos available on the web.

Recently, Google was working with Hulu to offer Hulu Plus, a subscription service that will be available for Google TV viewers.

The New York Times article

PR & Social Media

2010-10-31T13:53:00.002-05:00

http://mashable.com/2010/08/16/pr-social-media-future/

The article just asks different professionals their different opinions on how PR has evolved because of social media. The overall tone is that this is an improvement in communication and a more efficient way to communicate with journalist. Our communication is more short, concise and available for journalist to receive.

The pr manager of Vistaprint believes there will be 3 kinds of press releases in the next five years: A video form, the social media kind we are seeing today and your typical boiler plate, stock quote kind of write up.

One trend I read is that the press release will become shorter with links to more in depth details.

Egypt Calls on Major PR Firm to Revamp Its Image

2010-10-28T09:39:00.004-05:00

Recently, a doctored picture was published by a local and national newspaper falsely illustrating Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak, leading a peace talk between Israel and Palestine in Washington.

The doctored photo highlighted some of Egypt's problems, such as the continuous human rights violations. Egypt put a direct spot light on itself and now the rest of the world is watching their every move. Most of the leaders have been in power for decades and know that democracy and the electoral process would most likely put an end to their reign.

In this case, I don't think PR is the answer. Instead of putting their money toward public policy and reform the government is spending money on it's image. I think the only thing that will help Egypt's image is to achieve real progress by legitimate political reforms.

http://www.worldpress.org/Mideast/3638.cfm

Caitlyn Pesl

Myspace makes a new name for itself

2010-10-28T03:23:00.001-05:00

Myspace recently released a beta website and suite of products that it hopes will redefine it as the primary social entertainment platform for "Generation Y". It's going to include music, celebrities, movies, television and games and will be available online, on mobile devices and at offline events.

Myspace says its new content speaks directly to young Hispanics, 16-25, who make up 20 percent of Myspace users and 18 percent of "Generation Y". The website recognized Hispanic youth as the fastest growing market segment in America and designed the site to cater to their entertainment interests.

A new logo was also introduced to support the brand's new identity. The logo will leave an empty bracket where users can personalize it to make it their own. The new website will be available worldwide by the end of November.

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/meet-the-new-myspace-105916558.html

Travel sites seek anti-trust review of Google by Justice Department

2010-10-26T08:49:00.003-05:00

Google Inc. is proposing a $700 million deal to buy ITA Software Inc., the leading provider of flight data. Multiple companies are working together to oppose this acquisition by Google by forming the coalition called FairSearch.org. These include Expedia Inc., Kayak.com, Sabre Holdings and Farelogix Inc.--which operate six of the leading online travel sites. They, in addition to Microsoft Corp., rely on ITA to power their travel searches, and are working together (with the exception of Microsoft) to persuade the Justice Department to block this latest deal. According to them, such an acquisition would give Google too much power to dominate the online air-travel market by giving it control of the software that many of it's would-be competitors use in the online travel business.

These opponents also point out Google's control over an expanding array of businesses as it aims into broadband internet and mobile telephones--to name a couple--and now the travel industry.

It is possible Google's business is expanding at a faster rate than its image can keep up with, because increasingly they tend to be referred to in the media and now in the legal realm as an unfair business behemoth, threatening to take over the internet and before we know it--the world. Although Google claims that this recent proposal to acquire ITA is only intended to help them more fully integrate the information and technology to benefit the consumer with better search results, opponents have questioned the legitimacy of this explanation and seem to believe that if Google were not interested in controlling this information--why not just become an ITA client?

Maybe after Google can make a better public example of how its plans for ITA will benefit consumers and the industry, without giving Google an unfair advantage--this image of the looming Google "machine" will die down. However, it certainly doesn't help its image to be dealing with an anti-trust review by the Justice Department.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304248704575574710753536950.html?mod=WSJ_hp_LEFTWhatsNewsCollection

Get even closer to your favorite artists via social media

2010-10-24T13:56:00.002-05:00

Lady Gaga recently tweeted that she has reached one million views on YouTube. If that sentence means nothing to you, then you have been living under a rock. Social media is taking the world by storm. You can now be as interactive as you like with your favorite artists, and know what is going on with them at every second of every day. I think her tweet is a testimony to the times. She tweeted about something happening on another new media, YouTube. This is a whole new realm for artists, and if used correctly can make you go viral.

By using new media like Twitter and YouTube, Lady Gaga is able to reach millions of fans in an instant. No longer is popularity measured only by your song going number one on the charts, or how many grammys you receive. Having an online presence is now just as important, if not more. Just by looking at this story, viewers can re-tweet to Twitter, like on Facebook, Digg or E-mail. We keep hearing about how there are no jobs out there because of the recession, but with social media and new media taking the world by storm like this, I say watch out world, here comes the new generation.
http://mashable.com/2010/10/24/gaga-youtube-billion/

2010-10-21T09:32:00.002-05:00

TripAdvisor.com, the world's largest travel site, announced the top ten ghost tours in the U.S., according to TripAdvisor travelers. These tours are said to offer "monstrous amounts of fun for daring travelers seeking a haunting history lesson or just jaw-dropping and spine-tingling thrills."

I thought that it was cool that they really took a lot of customer input in building this list of haunted houses. This isn't the editors and writers getting paid off by companies to give the haunted houses publicity, this is the users sending in their responses. This is pretty cool because customers reading this site should definitely get a better thrill for their buck. Below is the link to the article which has the list of the top ten haunted houses and why.

http://multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/tripadvisor/42931/

Facebook stops showing you pictures of your ex

2010-10-20T21:41:00.002-05:00

It seems that the folks at Facebook are taking a more sensitive turn. Facebook used to constantly show you photos of your ex, which might have reminded you just how great things were before he or she dumped you, but it has stopped that now.

Many have seen the photo memories in the top right hand corner of Facebook's main page. They show users friends tagged in photos from long ago, but the friends shown are picked using Facebook's algorithm for figuring out whose updates you're most interested in. This tends to show pictures of users' romantic interests, which is fine, until the break up.

Users created a group to protest Photo Memories, because of the painful memories it was bringing up. Facebook officials caught wind of this, and now Photo Memories does not include pictures of anyone the user has been in a previous relationship with. I think this is a really smart idea, and am glad Facebook has been so proactive in changing the app.

Critical Mention's New Broadcast Inteligence Platform

2010-10-19T10:29:00.003-05:00

Critical Mention is a division of Critical Media, that has launched a new version of their broadcast intelligence platform. The new platform is called CriticalTV 4.0. CriticalTV was designed to fulfill the desires of Critical Mention's customers. The platform is considered the most powerful and comprehensive broadcast network in the industry.

CriticalTV makes TV and radio broadcast news search easy to search in a real-time manner. The new platform allows users to search TV and radio for information that is important to them or the company that they work for.

The platform indexes more than 1,000 media sources, including 210 US television markets and select programming from Canada, The U.K. and the Middle East. CriticalTV basically adds 27 hours of media every 60 seconds.

Sounds like a great improvement from the latest platforms.

This Halloweens New Trend In Costumes.

2010-10-19T01:08:00.001-05:00

Dreamgirl International, a costume manufacturer, is coming out with a brand new set of designs that are selling well this Halloween. The new designs include characters from the story Alice in Wonderland, which are the Red Queen and Alice.

The costume incorporates the style that has always been depicted in the stories, but adds just a little more fun and sex. The innovative twist is that the costume of Alice and of the Red Queen are the same costume that is reversible.

This is a definite plus in terms of shopping for a good costume that can be used at multiple times. The new design has on-board lights and sharp, nice stitching that is supposed to be all the rage. As for me, I think I'll keep a look out for a costume that is reversible.

Facebook's Top Apps Cause More Privacy Problems For Users

2010-10-19T00:47:00.000-05:00

It seems that Facebook is back in the spotlight with more privacy issues. This time it's with their top apps giving out personal identifying information of users, and sometimes the user's friends, to advertising and internet tracking companies and data firms, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal.
With the privacy issues Facebook had dealt with this spring it appeared everything was in good shape, but it seems that outside sources are finding new ways of getting user information that goes around the new privacy settings on Facebook. They are going through applications on Facebook, some of which Facebook have created themselves, and others created by Zynga Game Network Inc. These top apps on Facebook include: FarmVille, Texas HoldEm Poker and FrontierVille.
A "Facebook ID" number is assigned to every user on the site. This ID is public of any Facebook profile and can be used to look up any user's name even if they set all their information to private. For Facebook users who do not have strict privacy settings this ID shows much more information to pretty much anyone who knows your Facebook ID.
Once the Wall Street Journal informed Facebook that these apps were transmitting personal information most of the apps became unavailable to Facebook users with their reasons being unclear.
So a friendly warning to all the Facebook users out there; Even if you think you've set up all your privacy settings to the max be careful of those fun game apps right now, because they could be secretly sending out your personal information without your knowledge or consent.

Mexico Hires PR Agency To Spin Its Image

2010-10-18T19:19:00.002-05:00

Many native Mexicans are worried the country's situation is getting worse than better. Over 23,000 people have died in drug related violence since 2006 and is resulting in tourist and citizens being scared to venture outside their homes.

So far violence has failed to decrease. Daily depictions of gruesome decapitation, burned and tortured bodies hanging from bridges in the daytime.

President Felipe Calderon believes Mexico is getting a bad rap and while he acknowledges the upsurge in violence, Calderon feels the country is a place where people should feel at home and safe to visit.

The biggest issue facing the country is the Cartel's interference with the public. Calderon believes the war against the Cartel is worth fighting even if some issues may arise. Many natives believe the Cartel is infiltrating every walk of life and there is no choice to fight.

Calderon wants a PR agency to be hired to convince the countrymen that their home is safe and improve the country's image by neutralizing coverage of the violent drug war.

Calderon believes hiring a conservative private advertising firm to launch their international image improvement campaign to show the rest of the world that Mexico can be a country where foreigners can visit.

Walmart Rolls Back Rollbacks: Food Prices at Two-Year High

2010-10-14T02:04:00.000-05:00

Walmart has rolled back its rollbacks. Earlier this year, the retailer tried to spark sluggish U.S. sales by lowering its prices - already bargains - even further. One analyst called it "an initiative that screams: Price! Price! Price!" These rollbacks, as they are known in Walmartspeak and in the company's advertising, were intended to overwhelm the shopper. In May, according to one shopping website, the price of a 40-oz. bottle of Heinz ketchup, which had been $2.42, was chopped to $1. Kraft mac and cheese, which had been going for $3.58, was reduced to $2.50. The rollback of a 50-oz. bottle of Tide laundry detergent, which was priced in the $7.48-$8.12 range, gave shoppers a $2.50 discount. Walmart expected a flood of customers to its stores, which would help lift the company's stock out of its rut and get Walmart rolling again.

Instead, cutting prices depressed sales, as shoppers took the bargains and ran. For the quarter ending July 31, Walmart's U.S. same-store sales fell 1.8%. The company's same-store sales have now fallen for five straight quarters. Of the rollback strategy, Bill Simon, the president and CEO of Walmart U.S., told investors at a September conference, "It did not do what we had hoped it would do. It did, however, drive price perception. It did not drive sales or traffic." As a result, Walmart rolled back the deeper discounts, and prices started inching upward this summer. According to a new report from J.P. Morgan, the price of a 31-item basket from a Walmart store in Virginia rose 2.7% in September alone. Walmart prices have jumped 5% since the start of the year and have been at their highest levels in the 21 months J.P. Morgan has tracked pricing data. (Read about Walmart's March 2010 slump.)

While Walmart may have stopped giving away the store, that doesn't mean customers will be facing sticker shock. "Walmart still stands for low prices," says David Strasser, equity analyst at Janney Montgomery Scott. Of the five retail-store chains J.P. Morgan studied (Walmart, Kroger, Safeway, Whole Foods and Harris Teeter, a 192-store chain in the Southeast), Walmart still had the lowest prices. (The Walmart basket cost $95.75 in September; Kroger, at second lowest, came in at $101.93.) (See the first Walmart in TIME's 50 authentic American experiences for 2009.)

Still, the move signals a shift in strategy. Since the rollbacks didn't spur enough additional sales volume, Walmart needs to squeeze more revenues out of existing shoppers in order to satisfy analysts, institutional investors, shareholders and employees who are hungry for domestic growth. "Walmart is under unprecedented profit pressure," says retail consultant Burt Flickinger III, managing director for Strategic Resources Group. Walmart stock, which traded at $53.57 as of the Oct. 4 market close, is essentially flat for the year and 15% off its high before the September 2008 market crash. With economic conditions not as dour as they were in late 2008 and early 2009, now could be a good time to pull off a price increase. (Comment on this story.)

The changes also reflect a shake-up in Walmart management. Under Project Impact, a strategy executed by former U.S. CEO Eduardo Castro-Wright, Walmart not only instituted more aggressive price-cutting but also moved to make its stores cleaner and better organized. Walmart's so-called Action Alleys, the often cluttered thoroughfares laden with promotional deals, were streamlined. But in order to make the aisles more breathable, Walmart reduced the number of items offered in the stores by about 15%. (See the top 10 toy crazes.)

It turned out, however, that shoppers really liked the many brand choices, so they went elsewhere for variety. In March, Walmart began restoring 300 brands and package sizes. In late June, Castro-Wright was transferred to global sourcing, and Simon, the chief operating officer for Walmart U.S., took over as CEO. Under Simon's direction, the price rollbacks were rescinded, even more items were stocked on the shelves and Action Alley was recluttered - though Simon insists the aisles will still be less cluttered than they were in the old days.

The company will meet with the investment community at its Bentonville, Ark., headquarters this week. There, executives might offer more hints about Walmart's direction. Overseas expansion remains robust. International sales rose 11% last quarter, Walmart added almost 5 million sq. ft. (465,000 sq m) of overseas retail space during that period and the company plans to keep expanding outside the U.S. Things are looking up in places like Brazil and China. Now Walmart hopes to see if higher prices will prop up America.

Social Media Trends

2010-10-13T23:22:00.003-05:00

Social media is one of the most important aspects of today. It is constantly evolving and with it bringing in more and more users. This article, called "The 10 next social media trends," is about the way new social media has influenced the world and what the next step it brings will be.

Facebook is by far the biggest name out on the web right now when it comes to social networks. Many companies like Best Buy and 1800 Flowers have put their entire website onto a Facebook page so that consumers can "like" the page and see everything about the company while chatting with friends in one place. The use of personal websites and even some business websites are becoming obsolete because Facebook makes it easier to get a name or brand out to a larger audience instead of having to direct consumers to other sites.

Other trends include location based applications, such as foursquare, and of course micro blogging using Twitter. Both of these trends are still fairly new, but have already seen a climb in participation that is sure to continue to increase. I think that one of the most interesting and absurd trends comes from looking at Farmville. I have to admit when the game was first introduced I was sucked into the fad, but after awhile, like most games, it became ridiculous and boring. Die-hard fans are actually spending real money to participate in features on farmville and other games created by Zynga. If we can get people to spend their own hard earned money on a virtual game who knows what we can get people to pay for next.

'Race for a Ride' and drive away in a new Cadillac

2010-10-12T17:12:00.004-05:00

“Race for a Ride Charity Drive” is the first Twitter contest to give away a 2011 Cadillac CTS and up to $700,000 in donations for five very worthy charities. “Race for a Ride Charity Drive” is sponsored by Brotherton Cadillac in Renton, Wash.

How to enter:
• Select your favorite charity out of these five -- Arthritis Foundation, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, The Moyer Foundation, Seattle Children's Hospital or Special Olympics Washington -- and send out a tweet, using this exact language:
o "I support @[NonprofitTwitterHandle] in @BroCadillac's #RaceForARide http://bit.ly/Race4Ride"
• You then can consider making a donation on the Race for a Ride website. You do not need to donate to be entered in the contest.

Once one of the five non-profit organizations reaches $140,000 in donations, the contest is over. The winner will be randomly selected among the pool of tweets mentioning the winning charity.

Using social media to bring awareness and participation to a charity is getting more common. It’s wonderful that we are able to use social media towards positive causes. I feel every company should utilize social media. It’s a great tool and can be beneficial for personalizing your company or cause. This is definitely a new media trend.

http://opensource.sys-con.com/node/1568017

2010-10-11T21:14:00.001-05:00

‘I like it’ hits Facebook

In case you haven’t noticed, October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The color pink is seen everywhere from the National Football League to our own Quad at Texas State. Even Panera Bread is baking Pink Ribbon Bagels benefiting a variety of breast cancer causes throughout the nation. Of course, signs of Breast Cancer Awareness Month are being seen on Facebook.

Many Facebook users may have noticed different Facebook status updates last week that started with ‘I like it on’. This viral campaign encouraged female Facebook users to update their statuses with ‘I like it on’ followed by where they leave their purse. The ‘I like it’ game was launched on Facebook on October 4 and was used to catch the attention of users to raise awareness for breast cancer. Naturally, you will read the status and comment asking what the point of the status is. The origin of the Internet meme is unknown.

The risqué campaign has received much criticism though. Many think the campaign is immature and insensitive to the fact that breast cancer is the number one killer of women between the ages of 15 and 54. Others agree that the meme is demeaning and undermines the efforts of various breast cancer awareness organizations. I think that the campaign is used to target a younger generation of females. The campaign through Facebook may intrigue teenage girls and cause them to seek more information on the cancer.

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/sexy-status-updates-sweep-facebook/story?id=11823883

Rebranding Gap

2010-10-11T18:34:00.007-05:00

Last Monday, Gap launched its new company logo created by Laird & Partners. The logo appeared on gap.com, but did not replace the old logo on Facebook.

Many people believed that Gap was merely trying to create buzz and not actually reworking it's branding. One thing is for sure, everyone was and still is talking about the logo, whether they love it or hate it.

Due to the high volumes of disapproval from consumers primarily from Facebook and Twitter, Marka Hansen, president of Gap Brand, North America has announced that the company will return to its original logo.

"Last week, we moved quickly to address the feedback and began exploring how we could tap into all of the passion. Ultimately, we've learned just how much energy there is around our brand. All roads were leading us back to the blue box, so we've made the decision not to use the new logo on gap.com any further," said Hansen.

As an employee of Gap, I was excited to watch as this story unfolded. I am glad that Gap will return to its original logo design, but still wonder if it was a public relations stunt. I also find it interesting that social media had such a large impact on the decision making process of Gap. The growing importance of this medium is astounding.

AdvertisingAge article

-Lauren Beaubien

Social Media Jitters

2010-10-11T11:04:00.009-05:00

Reporter Maribeth Kuzmeski published an article in the Senior Market Advisor magazine recently about how afraid businesses are to use social media. She uses the term "unsettling" when describing how people feel about their business being on internet hawk watch all the time.

Kuzmeski points out that advisors who do not want anything to do with social media need to be shown what valuable asset it can be. She explains that social media is not a replacement for in person meetings, but rather an extra tool to use in finding new clients and expanding.

This is an interesting concept because as public relations students we will deal with businesses and clients who do not want anything to do with social media simply because it is unfamiliar. We are expected to be the social media generation and understand all of its tools in helping a company or individual expand. As Pr professionals we must be able to show our cleints how these mediums work and how they will help their business expand in one way or another.