Thu
Aug
19
Talk Dirty (Laundry) to Me: Kenmore released a series of washer/dryers that come equipped with pretty fresh technology – when you have a service issue, you press some buttons on the machine, then hold your cell phone up to the unit (the service number will have already been dialed) and the machine will transmit data through the phone to the company and pinpoint exactly what is wrong.
What Would You Do For a Cool Mil?: Yesterday, we saw some pretty bizarre offerings – British billionaire Alki David will give a million dollars to the first person to flash President Obama – the one condition: “Battlecam” must be written across that person’s chest. Check out the explanation for that one here. The second – Anderson Cooper was offered a sweet mil by a company promoting Go Away Gray – a pill that will apparently turn gray hair back to it’s original color. Don’t do it, Andy!
A Dollar Is What I Need: The Dollar ReDe$ign Project hopes by rebranding US bills, we can rebuild our economy, and their latest entry by graphic design firm Dowling Duncan is making waves.
Save the English Language: In an attempt to take back the English language from our LOL-laden society, the Oxford University Press developed a new website, Save The Words. Along with simply browsing words that are almost extinct (most don’t even come up on Dictionary.com, gasp!), the site gives you humorous tips on how to revitalize these words, extends a “word-a-day” email offering (not to be confused with yours truly, “word. daily.”) and allows you to “adopt a word.” My foster word is “traboccant” – meaning SUPER abundant. Used in a sentence: I have a traboccant yearning for a Red Robin Whiskey River BBQ Burger.
Click here to let us know that you’d like to be added to the mailing list for the monthly edition of “word.”
—Lauren M.
Tags
- andrew - lauren - word. - technology - politics - celebrities - design
Mon
Nov
16
He’s the leader of the free world and an unabashed Crackberry addict, but he can’t figure out…Twitter?!
U.S. President Barack Obama admitted to being Twitter-shy because he’s too clumsy to type on the phone, during a conversation with a group of students in Shanghai.
Some of our most beloved social media networks, including Facebook, MySpace and Twitter are blocked or censored by the Chinese government, which sparked an inquiry from one of the students about whether they should be able to use Twitter freely.
Obama’s reply? “Well, first of all, let me say that I have never used Twitter. My thumbs are too clumsy to type in things on the phone.”
Funny, for a president who was so widely lauded for his integration of social media in last year’s campaign.
-Jessica
Tags
- Twitter - jessica - politics - mobile
Fri
Oct
16
Broadband Internet is Now a Legal Right in Finland
Finland, which I realized I know absolutely nothing about, has become the first country to declare that high-speed broadband Internet access is a legal right, just like water or electricity. About 95 percent of Finland’s 5.2 million citizens already have some kind of Internet access, but telecom companies will soon be required to provide everyone with a connection of at least 1 Mbps.
Meanwhile, our country is the only industrialized nation without a national policy to promote high-speed broadband and many Americans in rural areas struggle to get online. About 57% of urban households, 60% of suburban households and only 38% of rural households subscribe to broadband. At this point, I can’t even comprehend how someone could survive in American without Internet access. Maybe those Nordic folk have the right idea.
—Alyssa
Tags
- Alyssa - internet - politics
Wed
Sep
9
Ben & Jerry’s popular “Chubby Hubby” flavored ice cream announced via its Twitter account and Facebook fan page last week that the delectable treat will be renamed “Hubby Hubby” through the month of September in efforts to throw the company’s support behind same-sex marriages in its home state of Vermont.
Talk about using social media to make a social statement! Very cute, yet profound marketing tactic – I love it. I truly appreciate brands that stand behind a good cause, regardless of how it might impact their image and sales among those who don’t support their platform. It’s these kinds of bold moves that incite brand loyalty among do-gooders like myself!
-Andréa S.
Tags
- marketing - andreas - branding - Twitter - Facebook - politics
Tue
Sep
8
“ I want everybody here to be careful about what you post on Facebook because in the YouTube age, whatever you do will be pulled up again later somewhere in your life.
President Barack Obama
Tags
- Alyssa - politics - Facebook - YouTube - privacy
Tue
Aug
4
The Marines have banned personnel from using social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and YouTube on its network. They argue that social networks expose them to unnecessary risk. Part of the risk is exposing sensitive information to adversaries and the other concerns revolve around network security. While I understand the risks, I wonder if they couldn’t be mitigated with strong filters and usage codes for Marines. Facebook and other social web technologies can be great ways for service people overseas to stay in touch. This move could have an impact on morale. (Mashable and Wired both reported on the story.)
-Tom
Tags
- Tom - security - politics
Mon
Aug
3
Tags
- maria - twitter - politics
Wed
Jun
17
Brian Stelter’s article on the front page of The New York Times foregrounds the integral role social media site Twitter is playing for Iranians during the current election aftermath.
Amidst a tumultuous political atmosphere, where authorities have blocked text-messaging on cell phones and journalistic websites, Twitter has emerged as an invaluable way for Iranian citizens to swap information about protests and demonstrations. In a remarkable move, recognizing Twitter’s invaluable role, the US State Department asked the site to postpone its scheduled maitenance in order to maintain this conduit of information for those in Iran.
This entire chain of events is fascinating to me, from the politics itself to the foregrounding of social media, and is a powerful example of how the Internet frontier—with the democritization of information and access that many seem to decry—can be an incredibly powerful venue, one that may even enable social and political movements.
In addition, Twitter has become a funnel for videos of protests and information about the elections, information otherwise banned from leaving the country. At a time when many feel the decline of print newspapers will degrade the quality of journalism, the internet—Twitter and YouTube, specifically—have filled the gaps in news-gathering that bans on traditional journalism have created. Revolutions every which way.
-Elise
Tags
- Elise - Twitter - newspapers - politics - youtube - journalism
Mon
May
11
Is Google Under Scrutiny for Antitrust Violation?
TechCrunch is reporting that Christine Varney, Obama’s antitrust boss at the Department of Justice, is looking to make a big case - potentially against Google.
I think the article’s author, Erick Schonfeld, hits the nail on the head with his analysis arguing against Department of Justice action: “The problem with antitrust lawsuits, particularly in fast-moving industries such as technology, is they take so long to go through the courts that by the time a ruling is handed down the market has moved on (see Microsoft). The market will always do a better job undermining monopolies than the Justice department will.”
-Tom
Tags
- Tom - Google - security - government - politics
Wed
Mar
25
Tags
- Rebecca - Twitter - politics
Mon
Mar
2
When will Twitter be mainstream? When did Twitter turn mainstream? Was it when brands started using the platform – I think not. Or was it when my mom opened an account – no, because she never posted an update. Or was it at 4:31 p.m. on February 12, when Newt Gingrich posted his first update? I just don’t know. My four years of undergraduate philosophy training did not prepare me for this.
-Tom
P.S. Is he winking at me in this picture or am I crazy?
Tags
- Tom - Twitter - politics
Mon
Jan
26
Obama announced in his weekly address that the federal government will soon launch Recovery.gov, a Web site that will track the economic recovery and how tax dollars are spent.
-Tom
Tags
- Tom - politics
Wed
Jan
21
People have to be mindful of what they do and say online – an irreverent comment taken out of context can come back to haunt someone. People also need to be sure that they have “friends” they can trust not to post incriminating pictures or offensive comments. John Favreau, President Obama’s speechwriter, learned this lesson the hard way and was forced into an awkward apology to Hillary Clinton.
Perhaps no one has to be more sensitive to these issues than journalists. It is critical that reporters not editorialize in social media spaces or profess political opinions that undermine their impartiality. For example, what if a reporter covering the Israeli-Palestinian conflict donated their Facebook status to the Qassam Rocket Count? Or, if someone covering the election was a Facebook fan of Barack Obama but not John McCain?
Here is the social media policy of the New York Times, courtesy of Poytner Online. Portions of it are useful even if you’re not a reporter.
-Tom
Tags
- Tom - politics - journalism - social networks - Facebook
Tue
Jan
20
At the stroke of noon, before President Obama took his oath of office, his new official Web site went live. Whitehouse.gov is chock-full of great information and will be updated very regularly.
A blog post from Macon Phillips, the Director of New Media for the White House, assures us that Obama will deliver on his campaign promise to use the Web to guarantee transparency and get input from the public.
-Tom
Tags
- Tom - politics - social media
