Monday, August 31, 2009
Study says Web-capable TV sets will nearly triple next year
Dealerscope reports: The number of Internet-connected TVs will increase from 2.4 million this year to 7 million by the end of 2010, according to a new study from Parks Associates. If that rate of growth bears out, it would be nearly a tripling of Web-capable television sets.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Why Issue and Advocacy Advertising Has Become Such a Growth Business
Jon Fine of Business Week reports: Political advertising has never been particularly affected by gravity. Unlike other categories, political ad spending has gone up from election cycle to election cycle. Anyone who thinks off-year, issue-related advertising will wither once the current controversies have faded is betting against reality.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
How to use chalk and a sidewalk to advocacte
Here is an idea for your next street protest - a chalk poll - check out how the ChicagoTransit Authority is using this idea - http://bit.ly/ZUo7r
Tewspaper drops reporters for tweets
Netimperative reports: Tewspaper, an online news venture, has replaced reporters with algorithms in its virtual newsroom. The site has no writers on staff and mines news from social-media sites like Twitter instead, pulling in local content from five launch cities, including Chicago, New York and Los Angeles. The company says it relies on tweets from "trusted authorities."
http://tewspaper.com/
http://tewspaper.com/
Pimp your tweets with this new Twitter app
Gareth Jones of revolutionmagazine.com reports: RichTweets is a new Twitter app that lets users enhance their tweets by adding a range of colours, images, videos and even widgets.
http://richtweets.com/
http://richtweets.com/
Study: By 2018, e-paper displays will be a $9.6B market
CNET/Digital Media reports: The market for electronic-paper displays, which this year is expected to reach $431 million in sales on 22 million units, will explode to $9.6 billion in sales on 1.8 billion units by 2018, according to a study from DisplaySearch. The e-paper market currently is dominated by electronic books from companies such as Amazon, Sony and Fujitsu.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Hollywood's new target: Twitter critics
The Sun (Baltimore) reports: Hollywood is catching on to the influence wielded by Twitter critics and trying to stay ahead of the curve with initiatives such as Twitter meet-ups and previews. "I think Twitter can't be stopped," said Stephen Bruno, Weinstein Co. senior director of marketing.
Twitter to let users broadcast their location
PaidContent.org reports: Twitter is working on a feature that would allow users to let others know their location when they send a tweet. By offering their locations, users could coordinate during local events, as well as during emergencies. But the location data could also be a precursor to geo-targeted ads, Tameka Kee notes. Twitter has said that the service will be an opt-in feature and that the data won't be stored for a long time.
A Conversation With Twitter's Jack Dorsey
NYFI speaks with Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey - click here to read it
News Corp Seeks Online Payments
LATimes reports: Plan is building to get people to pay for news.News Corp executives have been meeting in recent weeks with publishers about forming a consortium that would charge for news distributed online and on portable devices. The move is an attempt to stem the rising tide of red ink for news organizations.
Twitter To Add Real-Time Location Feature
SAI reports: Twitter is paying much more attention to location as a feature, as we first reported in June.
Twitter cofounder Biz Stone announced today that the company is preparing to launch a new feature that allows developers to tag each tweet with a person's latitude and longitude. This will be an opt-in feature, off by default, and exact location data will not be stored for extended periods.
This could be useful for any number of features, such as reading nearby tweets, reading tweets near a specific location, or adding location context to a tweet's text -- like knowing which Starbucks in Manhattan someone is tweeting about. Presumably, Twitter could also use this information for location-based advertising, if that market ever becomes significant.
Twitter cofounder Biz Stone announced today that the company is preparing to launch a new feature that allows developers to tag each tweet with a person's latitude and longitude. This will be an opt-in feature, off by default, and exact location data will not be stored for extended periods.
This could be useful for any number of features, such as reading nearby tweets, reading tweets near a specific location, or adding location context to a tweet's text -- like knowing which Starbucks in Manhattan someone is tweeting about. Presumably, Twitter could also use this information for location-based advertising, if that market ever becomes significant.
More Local Heat: MSNBC.com Buys EveryBlock for Several Million Dollars
Kara Swisher from WSJ's BoomTown reports: It looks like the local market is heating up even more, with MSNBC.com announcing the acquisition of Chicago-based EveryBlock.
Sources said MSNBC.com–a joint venture of Microsoft and NBC Universal–paid several million dollars for the “hyper-local” information site, which is up and running in 15 cities, including New York, San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago and Boston.
In June, Time Warner online unit AOL paid about $10 million to buy Patch Media, a platform that does deeply localized coverage of communities on a range of topics.
Sources said MSNBC.com–a joint venture of Microsoft and NBC Universal–paid several million dollars for the “hyper-local” information site, which is up and running in 15 cities, including New York, San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago and Boston.
In June, Time Warner online unit AOL paid about $10 million to buy Patch Media, a platform that does deeply localized coverage of communities on a range of topics.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
China’s Defense Ministry Goes Online
WSJ's China Journal reports: China’s normally secretive Ministry of Defense launched its first Web site for trial operation on Thursday, in Chinese and English versions, as part of an effort to promote the transparency and improve perceptions of the world’s largest military force.
In an introductory announcement, the site says it aims to provide “authoritative information of China’s national defense and army building” and “display before the world the fine image of the PLA as a mighty, civilized and peaceful force.”
The site provides a variety of official information on the activities of the Chinese military, such as press briefings, and reports on military exercises, military exchanges and peacekeeping operations. It also features photos, video and a section on military history. The English version of the site will take a slightly different approach, pledging “to give more consideration to the concerns of overseas netizens on Chinese national defense information and their reading habits and better accord with the characteristics and rules of foreign publicity.”
During its trial operation phase, opinions and proposals for the site’s improvement are welcomed and can be sent to mod@chinamil.com.cn.
In an introductory announcement, the site says it aims to provide “authoritative information of China’s national defense and army building” and “display before the world the fine image of the PLA as a mighty, civilized and peaceful force.”
The site provides a variety of official information on the activities of the Chinese military, such as press briefings, and reports on military exercises, military exchanges and peacekeeping operations. It also features photos, video and a section on military history. The English version of the site will take a slightly different approach, pledging “to give more consideration to the concerns of overseas netizens on Chinese national defense information and their reading habits and better accord with the characteristics and rules of foreign publicity.”
During its trial operation phase, opinions and proposals for the site’s improvement are welcomed and can be sent to mod@chinamil.com.cn.
Facebook Buying Into E-commerce
Inside Facebook reports: Hold onto you hats, virtual or otherwise. Facebook has confirmed plans to expand its Gift Shop to include items from third-party developers and physical goods.
Now, virtual goods -- which uses can presently buy using "Facebook Credits" -- are nothing to snicker at. Indeed, the virtual goods and currency market will reach an estimated $1.8 billion this year, according to a recent study by analyst firm Frank N. Magid Associates and commissioned by virtual currency provider PlaySpan. What's more, nearly 12% of Americans -- divided evenly between males and females -- report having bought a virtual item at some point over the last 12 months.
But, while in its earliest stages, Facebook's entrée into the world of physical goods has the potential to change the face of e-commerce as we know it.
Now, virtual goods -- which uses can presently buy using "Facebook Credits" -- are nothing to snicker at. Indeed, the virtual goods and currency market will reach an estimated $1.8 billion this year, according to a recent study by analyst firm Frank N. Magid Associates and commissioned by virtual currency provider PlaySpan. What's more, nearly 12% of Americans -- divided evenly between males and females -- report having bought a virtual item at some point over the last 12 months.
But, while in its earliest stages, Facebook's entrée into the world of physical goods has the potential to change the face of e-commerce as we know it.
Sports Leagues Seek To Kill Live Web
New York Times reports: Sports leagues ask fans to kindly leave broadcasting to the professionals, and respect their stadiums as Twitter-free zones. - Read the whole story...
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Patch Continues to Expand
Hyper-local media outlet expands to Summitt, NJ and Darien, CT.
From a press release: Each site has its own editor—a full-time professional journalist dedicated to the community. Darien Patch will be overseen by Cecelia Smith, a lifetime Darien resident who graduated from New York University with a degree in journalism. Summit Patch will be lead by Heather Collura, a New Jersey native who has worked as a reporter for a number of community newspapers in the state. Both editors will be aided by and manage a team of contributors that will provide everything from reports on high school sports and city government to coverage of events and interviews with members of the community.
Like all Patch sites, those in Summit and Darien are free to use and offer a comprehensive events calendar, restaurant reviews and a rich directory of all of their respective community’s important places. The Patch sites serve as a town resource for everything a resident would need, from finding a dentist or an activity for the kids to the name of the official to call for a building permit.
Interesting to watch - especially as theY pick some of most affluent communities in Metro NYC.
Is anyone doing something similar in the LA Metropolis?
With a population of Michigan, I am sure LA County must have a few ideal locations to launch a hyper-local news site.
From a press release: Each site has its own editor—a full-time professional journalist dedicated to the community. Darien Patch will be overseen by Cecelia Smith, a lifetime Darien resident who graduated from New York University with a degree in journalism. Summit Patch will be lead by Heather Collura, a New Jersey native who has worked as a reporter for a number of community newspapers in the state. Both editors will be aided by and manage a team of contributors that will provide everything from reports on high school sports and city government to coverage of events and interviews with members of the community.
Like all Patch sites, those in Summit and Darien are free to use and offer a comprehensive events calendar, restaurant reviews and a rich directory of all of their respective community’s important places. The Patch sites serve as a town resource for everything a resident would need, from finding a dentist or an activity for the kids to the name of the official to call for a building permit.
Interesting to watch - especially as theY pick some of most affluent communities in Metro NYC.
Is anyone doing something similar in the LA Metropolis?
With a population of Michigan, I am sure LA County must have a few ideal locations to launch a hyper-local news site.
Jim Collins + Charlie Rose Tonight
Tonight on Charlie Rose, Jim Collins discusses his book "How The Mighty Fall: And Why Some Companies Never Give In."
Check your local PBS affiliate to see when Charlie Rose airs in your city.
Check your local PBS affiliate to see when Charlie Rose airs in your city.
Learning from Obama: Lessons for Online Communicators in 2009 and Beyond
Courtesy of K Street Cafe - “Learning from Obama: Lessons for Online Communicators in 2009 and Beyond” article series has finally edited into convenient e-book (PDF) format - http://www.epolitics.com/learning-from-obama.pdf
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
SEC fans can't tweet at games
The Charlotte Observer (N.C.) reoprts: The Southeastern Conference doesn't allow college football fans to use social media during games, though the conference says it may rethink the policy. The SEC says it's really trying to keep fans from posting videos of the games online, but for now fans can't even tweet or post photos to Facebook.
#fail
#fail
msnbc.com Walks Down EveryBlock
WebNewser reports: msnbc.com announced Monday that it acquired Chicago-based Web site EveryBlock, which provides news and information "down to the neighborhood level" in 15 cities. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. msnbc.com said EveryBlock will continue as an independent brand.
Hyper-Local in the new black.
Hyper-Local in the new black.
OneNewsPage offers customised news feeds for firms
revolutionmagazine.com reports: OneNewsPage.com, an international news portal, is offering a tailored, syndicated news widget for bloggers and webmasters to include on their websites.
Need a pothole filled? There's an app for that
Monday, August 17, 2009
Gap scraps TV ads for social media campaign
Labour MP Kerry McCarthy appointed as Twitter tsar
Brand Republic reports: The Labour party has named Kerry McCarthy, who was recently named the most influential MP on Twitter, as its official new media campaigns spokesperson.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Facebook Cornering Market on E-Friends
Facebook just bought the rights to nearly everything you do online. And it cost them only $47.5 million.
Read more.
Read more.
Digital Interns
Hurley does it again - super smart internship.
Hurley gave two kids two cameras to capture behind the scenes at US Open Surf Championship.
Video is on FB only - why not have it posted elsewhere? or make it sharable? - still I great idea.
I am pitching this concept to my clients next week.
Hurley gave two kids two cameras to capture behind the scenes at US Open Surf Championship.
Video is on FB only - why not have it posted elsewhere? or make it sharable? - still I great idea.
I am pitching this concept to my clients next week.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Facebook could be a hit with shoppers
FT reports:
A new wave of sophisticated e-commerce applications is appearing on Facebook, a sign that the world's largest social network could rapidly emerge as a big destination for online shopping.
1-800-Flowers, the US floral gift retailer and distributor, week opened its "Facebook storefront", an application running on Facebook's fast-growing platform where users can purchase and send flowers.
At least 20 more such storefronts will appear on Facebook in the next two months, according to Wade Gerten, chief executive of Alvenda, the software developer that built the 1-800-Flowers storefront. "You'll see a lot more coming out in the next couple of months," he said.
Mr Gerten said he had contracts to develop eight storefronts, but that since the 1-800-Flowers application launched, he had secured 12 more. He said the applications would be for "very large general merchandise retailers, and very large electronics retailers".
The storefronts represent the beginning of a transformation that could turn Facebook into a retail destination, said Sucharita Mulpuru, an e-commerce analyst for Forrester Research (NASDAQ: FORR - news) . "It's an enormous platform," she said. "That means the ability to reach more consumers and make money."
Facebook has more than 250m users and is growing fast. However, it has no current plans to organise the storefronts into an online mall, or to make money from them by either taxing the transactions that take place on its site, or by offering its own virtual currency.
At least two other companies already have limited e-commerce functionality in their Facebook applications. Sears, the department store, and Threadless, the T-shirt seller, both let users add items to their shopping cart on Facebook. But to complete the transaction users must go to the company's own website. Allowing users to remain on Facebook while they complete their transactions is important in increasing the site's "stickiness". More than 120m people log on to Facebook each day, spending a combined 5bn minutes a day on the site.
Companies are turning to social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook to help them boost business. Many big retailers have a fan page on Facebook, while retailers large and small are offering exclusive deals to their Twitter followers.
But neither site has been able to make money from the increased business activity. Instead, Facebook is focusing on advertising, and is expected to bring in at least $500m (€347m) in revenue this year.
Click here for more from FT.com
A new wave of sophisticated e-commerce applications is appearing on Facebook, a sign that the world's largest social network could rapidly emerge as a big destination for online shopping.
1-800-Flowers, the US floral gift retailer and distributor, week opened its "Facebook storefront", an application running on Facebook's fast-growing platform where users can purchase and send flowers.
At least 20 more such storefronts will appear on Facebook in the next two months, according to Wade Gerten, chief executive of Alvenda, the software developer that built the 1-800-Flowers storefront. "You'll see a lot more coming out in the next couple of months," he said.
Mr Gerten said he had contracts to develop eight storefronts, but that since the 1-800-Flowers application launched, he had secured 12 more. He said the applications would be for "very large general merchandise retailers, and very large electronics retailers".
The storefronts represent the beginning of a transformation that could turn Facebook into a retail destination, said Sucharita Mulpuru, an e-commerce analyst for Forrester Research (NASDAQ: FORR - news) . "It's an enormous platform," she said. "That means the ability to reach more consumers and make money."
Facebook has more than 250m users and is growing fast. However, it has no current plans to organise the storefronts into an online mall, or to make money from them by either taxing the transactions that take place on its site, or by offering its own virtual currency.
At least two other companies already have limited e-commerce functionality in their Facebook applications. Sears, the department store, and Threadless, the T-shirt seller, both let users add items to their shopping cart on Facebook. But to complete the transaction users must go to the company's own website. Allowing users to remain on Facebook while they complete their transactions is important in increasing the site's "stickiness". More than 120m people log on to Facebook each day, spending a combined 5bn minutes a day on the site.
Companies are turning to social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook to help them boost business. Many big retailers have a fan page on Facebook, while retailers large and small are offering exclusive deals to their Twitter followers.
But neither site has been able to make money from the increased business activity. Instead, Facebook is focusing on advertising, and is expected to bring in at least $500m (€347m) in revenue this year.
Click here for more from FT.com
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Why Twitter is Great – Human Powered News
Consider this timeline:
12:13pm E
@marcambinder tweet: Breaking: Small plane and helicopter collide over Hudson River in Manhattan. 10-60 (major emergency) declared. Numerous victims.
12:27pm E
ABC News - abcnewsnow-editor@mail.abcnews.go.com email: Tour Helicopter Collides With Small Plane Over New York City's Hudson River
12:52pm E
NYTimes.com News Alert - nytdirect@nytimes.com email: Helicopter and Small Plane Collide Over Hudson River. A small aircraft and a helicopter collided in midair over the Hudson River in Lower Manhattan on Saturday, the authorities said.
12:55pm E
@LATimes tweet: Breaking: [AP] Small plane, helicopter collide over Hudson River, between Manhattan and Hoboken, New Jersey. More soon http://latimes.com
12:59pm E
@msnbc_tv tweet: Video: Plane, chopper collide in NYC http://bit.ly/TuXmP
1:02pm E
Los Angeles Times - news@e-mail.latimes.com email: Plane, helicopter collide over Hudson River. The Coast Guard says a small plane has collided with a helicopter over the Hudson River. Witnesses say the accident happened just after noon between Manhattan and Hoboken, N.J. Both aircraft crashed into the water.
1:07pm E
@ladyreporter tweet: Helicopter and Small Plane Collide Over Hudson River http://ff.im/-6kvfu
1:09pm E
@LATimes tweet: Breaking news: Plane, helicopter collide over Hudson River. The Coast Guard says one person has been rescued. http://bit.ly/LJr3w
1:10pm E
@mercnews tweet: Plane and helicopter collide and plunge into the Hudson River: NEW YORK; The Coast Guard says a small pla.. http://bit.ly/JjzIi
One guys beats hundreds of guys.
12:13pm E
@marcambinder tweet: Breaking: Small plane and helicopter collide over Hudson River in Manhattan. 10-60 (major emergency) declared. Numerous victims.
12:27pm E
ABC News - abcnewsnow-editor@mail.abcnews.go.com email: Tour Helicopter Collides With Small Plane Over New York City's Hudson River
12:52pm E
NYTimes.com News Alert - nytdirect@nytimes.com email: Helicopter and Small Plane Collide Over Hudson River. A small aircraft and a helicopter collided in midair over the Hudson River in Lower Manhattan on Saturday, the authorities said.
12:55pm E
@LATimes tweet: Breaking: [AP] Small plane, helicopter collide over Hudson River, between Manhattan and Hoboken, New Jersey. More soon http://latimes.com
12:59pm E
@msnbc_tv tweet: Video: Plane, chopper collide in NYC http://bit.ly/TuXmP
1:02pm E
Los Angeles Times - news@e-mail.latimes.com email: Plane, helicopter collide over Hudson River. The Coast Guard says a small plane has collided with a helicopter over the Hudson River. Witnesses say the accident happened just after noon between Manhattan and Hoboken, N.J. Both aircraft crashed into the water.
1:07pm E
@ladyreporter tweet: Helicopter and Small Plane Collide Over Hudson River http://ff.im/-6kvfu
1:09pm E
@LATimes tweet: Breaking news: Plane, helicopter collide over Hudson River. The Coast Guard says one person has been rescued. http://bit.ly/LJr3w
1:10pm E
@mercnews tweet: Plane and helicopter collide and plunge into the Hudson River: NEW YORK; The Coast Guard says a small pla.. http://bit.ly/JjzIi
One guys beats hundreds of guys.
Friday, August 7, 2009
London is number one Twitter city says founder
Digg launches ads users can vote on (will they be Dugg?)
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Yellow Pages Book
A copy of the new yellow pages arrived at my home today.
It went promptly in the recycle bin.
It went promptly in the recycle bin.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Ever Get the Feeling the Newspaper/Web War Was Fought Before?
Jack Shafer of Slate reports: A review of the war between newspapers and radio provides something just this side of enlightenment and helps frame the underlying issues in the current fight for advertising dollars. The newspaper industry was as shameless in the 1930s as it is today.
The Message Is the Message: Team Obama - A New Media Presidency
New York Mag reports: Barack Obama’s ubiquitous appearances as professor-in-chief, preacher-in-chief, father-in-chief, may turn out to be the most salient feature of his presidency.
Since occupying the White House, Barack Obama has hosted fifteen town-hall meetings; appeared in more than 800 images on the White House Flickr photo-stream; and held four prime-time press conferences, the same number held by George W. Bush in his entire presidency. He’s sent a video message to the people of Iran. He’s given an address in Cairo that was translated into fourteen languages. He’s sat on Jay Leno’s couch, where he riffed about the supreme strangeness of having his own motorcade ("You know, we’ve got the ambulance and then the caboose and then the dogsled"), and he’s walked Brian Williams through the White House, where he introduced the anchor to Bo the dog.
Two weeks ago, when he made a controversial comment at a press conference (that the Cambridge police had "acted stupidly" toward Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr.), he followed up with yet another press appearance in the White House briefing room and an exclusive interview on Nightline. And that was before he sat down for a well-publicized beer with Gates and the offending officer
Such are the president’s media habits. It’s gotten to the point where one expects to see and hear from him every day. He’s in the information business almost as much as the policy business. "This is president as content provider," says Ed Gillespie, the former Republican National Committee chairman and adviser to George W. Bush. "It’s like when Rosie O’Donnell had a show and a magazine and a blog."
The president has taken a fair amount of heat for this full-saturation approach. Friends and critics alike have complained it cheapens his words, erodes his mystique, and, worst of all, smacks of desperation. "You don’t have to be on television every minute of every day," cracked Bill Maher recently. "You’re the president, not a rerun of Law & Order."
Yet it’s also clear that the public has a near-insatiable appetite for Obama-related content, from the trivial to the serious. Dreams From My Father is now in its 156th week on the New York Times’ best-seller list. Bill Burton, a White House deputy press secretary, tells me that he fields almost as many phone calls from the celebrity press as from the Washington Post, as if the president were George Clooney. "And they call about things that might surprise you," he adds. "Like when Tom Daschle withdrew his nomination." (You know your president’s a headliner when E! is interested in cabinet resignations.)
Full article - click here
Since occupying the White House, Barack Obama has hosted fifteen town-hall meetings; appeared in more than 800 images on the White House Flickr photo-stream; and held four prime-time press conferences, the same number held by George W. Bush in his entire presidency. He’s sent a video message to the people of Iran. He’s given an address in Cairo that was translated into fourteen languages. He’s sat on Jay Leno’s couch, where he riffed about the supreme strangeness of having his own motorcade ("You know, we’ve got the ambulance and then the caboose and then the dogsled"), and he’s walked Brian Williams through the White House, where he introduced the anchor to Bo the dog.
Two weeks ago, when he made a controversial comment at a press conference (that the Cambridge police had "acted stupidly" toward Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr.), he followed up with yet another press appearance in the White House briefing room and an exclusive interview on Nightline. And that was before he sat down for a well-publicized beer with Gates and the offending officer
Such are the president’s media habits. It’s gotten to the point where one expects to see and hear from him every day. He’s in the information business almost as much as the policy business. "This is president as content provider," says Ed Gillespie, the former Republican National Committee chairman and adviser to George W. Bush. "It’s like when Rosie O’Donnell had a show and a magazine and a blog."
The president has taken a fair amount of heat for this full-saturation approach. Friends and critics alike have complained it cheapens his words, erodes his mystique, and, worst of all, smacks of desperation. "You don’t have to be on television every minute of every day," cracked Bill Maher recently. "You’re the president, not a rerun of Law & Order."
Yet it’s also clear that the public has a near-insatiable appetite for Obama-related content, from the trivial to the serious. Dreams From My Father is now in its 156th week on the New York Times’ best-seller list. Bill Burton, a White House deputy press secretary, tells me that he fields almost as many phone calls from the celebrity press as from the Washington Post, as if the president were George Clooney. "And they call about things that might surprise you," he adds. "Like when Tom Daschle withdrew his nomination." (You know your president’s a headliner when E! is interested in cabinet resignations.)
Full article - click here
Guardian May Shut Sunday Observer After 218 Years
Newser Summary reports: The British media group that publishes the Guardian is considering closing its sister Sunday paper, the Observer, which has been in print since 1791. The Guardian Media Group reported a pre-tax annual loss of nearly $150 million. Possible futures for the Observer include an Observer-branded magazine. It's "50/50 whether we are headed for the magazine, or for cuts but keeping the paper," said a source.
Online Political Ads: Subject to Regulation, or Just a Link?
WSJ reports: If online ads are the future of political campaigning, then a legal snafu in the St. Petersburg mayoral race bears watching. Florida election officials have ruled that one candidate’s Google and Facebook ads violate state election laws because they don’t clearly state who paid for the ad, the Wall Street Journal reports. But the campaign argues that they aren’t ads—they’re links to ads, and the page they link to contains the disclosures.
Federal law provides exemptions from the disclosure rule on small items like bumper stickers where it is deemed impractical. That could, for example, apply to search ads. But Florida and several other states have less flexible rules. “It becomes a de facto restriction on political speech on search engines and things like Twitter and Facebook,” says a VP for an online advertising industry group. “It really becomes a scary precedent.”
Federal law provides exemptions from the disclosure rule on small items like bumper stickers where it is deemed impractical. That could, for example, apply to search ads. But Florida and several other states have less flexible rules. “It becomes a de facto restriction on political speech on search engines and things like Twitter and Facebook,” says a VP for an online advertising industry group. “It really becomes a scary precedent.”
Google Launches Official Facebook Page
From AllFacebook.com: Weeks after announcing a list of their official Twitter accounts, Google has officially launched their Facebook Page and has attracted over a quarter million fans so far.
The page, which has already been updated five times this week, and appears to be growing in popularity. So what type of content is Google posting to their Facebook Page? Right now they only appear to be reposting most of the content from the Official Google Blog.
Read the rest of this entry »
The page, which has already been updated five times this week, and appears to be growing in popularity. So what type of content is Google posting to their Facebook Page? Right now they only appear to be reposting most of the content from the Official Google Blog.
Read the rest of this entry »
The N.F.L. Has Identified the Enemy and It Is Twitter
NYT reports: To the list of universal threats to football success — injury and indiscretion, a Tom Brady-led offense marching against your defense — the N.F.L. has added another: Twitter.
As training camps opened last week, players were told that the same standard — read: paranoia — that applied to the flow of information to reporters also applied to Twitter. In Green Bay, players were told they would be fined if they texted or tweeted from team meetings or coaching sessions.
When Coach Tony Sparano met with the Miami Dolphins before Sunday’s first practice, he effectively outlawed Twitter, nose tackle Jason Ferguson said.
“I don’t have an account,” Ferguson said. “I was thinking about getting one until I got the information. O.K., won’t get it now. Can’t do it. I don’t want to get fined, not yet.”
Football coaches are a password-protected lot, preferring to dispense so little information that most days, they would struggle to fill 140 characters. They worry that the casual nature of Twitter could inspire the budding bloggers in their locker rooms to inadvertently disclose more than they should about injuries, game plans and what is said behind closed doors.
As training camps opened last week, players were told that the same standard — read: paranoia — that applied to the flow of information to reporters also applied to Twitter. In Green Bay, players were told they would be fined if they texted or tweeted from team meetings or coaching sessions.
When Coach Tony Sparano met with the Miami Dolphins before Sunday’s first practice, he effectively outlawed Twitter, nose tackle Jason Ferguson said.
“I don’t have an account,” Ferguson said. “I was thinking about getting one until I got the information. O.K., won’t get it now. Can’t do it. I don’t want to get fined, not yet.”
Football coaches are a password-protected lot, preferring to dispense so little information that most days, they would struggle to fill 140 characters. They worry that the casual nature of Twitter could inspire the budding bloggers in their locker rooms to inadvertently disclose more than they should about injuries, game plans and what is said behind closed doors.
Marines Ban Twitter, MySpace, Facebook
From Wired's DangerRoom blog: The U.S. Marine Corps has banned Twitter, Facebook, MySpace and other social media sites from its networks, effective immediately.
“These internet sites in general are a proven haven for malicious actors and content and are particularly high risk due to information exposure, user generated content and targeting by adversaries,” reads a Marine Corps order, issued Monday. “The very nature of SNS [social network sites] creates a larger attack and exploitation window, exposes unnecessary information to adversaries and provides an easy conduit for information leakage that puts OPSEC [operational security], COMSEC [communications security], [and] personnel… at an elevated risk of compromise.”
The Marines’ ban will last a year. It was drawn up in response to a late July warning from U.S. Strategic Command, which told the rest of the military it was considering a Defense Department-wide ban on the Web 2.0 sites, due to network security concerns. Scams, worms, and Trojans often spread unchecked throughout social media sites, passed along from one online friend to the next. “The mechanisms for social networking were never designed for security and filtering. They make it way too easy for people with bad intentions to push malicious code to unsuspecting users,” a Stratcom source told Danger Room.
Yet many within the Pentagon’s highest ranks find value in the Web 2.0 tools. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff has 4,000 followers on Twitter. The Department of Defense is getting ready to unveil a new home page, packed with social media tools. The Army recently ordered all U.S. bases to provide access to Facebook. Top generals now blog from the battlefield.
Continue Reading “Marines Ban Twitter, MySpace, Facebook” »
“These internet sites in general are a proven haven for malicious actors and content and are particularly high risk due to information exposure, user generated content and targeting by adversaries,” reads a Marine Corps order, issued Monday. “The very nature of SNS [social network sites] creates a larger attack and exploitation window, exposes unnecessary information to adversaries and provides an easy conduit for information leakage that puts OPSEC [operational security], COMSEC [communications security], [and] personnel… at an elevated risk of compromise.”
The Marines’ ban will last a year. It was drawn up in response to a late July warning from U.S. Strategic Command, which told the rest of the military it was considering a Defense Department-wide ban on the Web 2.0 sites, due to network security concerns. Scams, worms, and Trojans often spread unchecked throughout social media sites, passed along from one online friend to the next. “The mechanisms for social networking were never designed for security and filtering. They make it way too easy for people with bad intentions to push malicious code to unsuspecting users,” a Stratcom source told Danger Room.
Yet many within the Pentagon’s highest ranks find value in the Web 2.0 tools. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff has 4,000 followers on Twitter. The Department of Defense is getting ready to unveil a new home page, packed with social media tools. The Army recently ordered all U.S. bases to provide access to Facebook. Top generals now blog from the battlefield.
Continue Reading “Marines Ban Twitter, MySpace, Facebook” »
Lobbying Tactics Changing But Not Going Away
Business Week reports: This week that while some lobbying tactics have changed in Washington after Obama's stigmatization of traditional lobbyists during his campaign, the influence game is still on.
To make their interests heard as Congress considers impactful legislation, like health care reform and a climate change bill, companies have hired more strategists instead of lobbyists, used more contact between executives and lawmakers and employed grassroots campaigns, the article says.
For example, rather than registering as a lobbyist, former Senate majority leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D. works as a "special policy adviser" at Alston & Bird, where "he doesn't lobby directly but lends others insight into legislative terrain and the tendencies of lawmakers he knows well."
"Appearing cooperative is the new name of the game," the article concludes.
To make their interests heard as Congress considers impactful legislation, like health care reform and a climate change bill, companies have hired more strategists instead of lobbyists, used more contact between executives and lawmakers and employed grassroots campaigns, the article says.
For example, rather than registering as a lobbyist, former Senate majority leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D. works as a "special policy adviser" at Alston & Bird, where "he doesn't lobby directly but lends others insight into legislative terrain and the tendencies of lawmakers he knows well."
"Appearing cooperative is the new name of the game," the article concludes.
"The Battle for America 2008"
WaPo's The Fix had a chance to sit down recently with the Post's senior political reporter Dan Balz and Pulitzer Prize winner Haynes Johnson to discuss their new book: " The Battle for America 2008: The Story of an Extraordinary Election".
Our discussion -- a must-watch for those who followed the ups and downs of the 2008 campaign -- is broken down into four parts: the rise of President Barack Obama, the Democratic primary campaign, the Republican primary and a broader look at the state of the country during the contest.
You can also read an extended excerpt here.
The book comes out on Tuesday. We'll have a fuller review of it in this space next week but do yourself a favor and pick up a copy.
Monday, August 3, 2009
CA GOP gubernatorial debate confirmed - by Twitter
Martin Wisckol, Politics reporter, OC Register's Total Buzz reports: This fall, Chapman University’s new Irvine, CA offspring - Brandman University - will host at least one debate among gubernatorial candidates. Twitter invitations to the Republican candidates went out at noon today and confirmations from two are already in.
Click here to see Steve Poizner’s confirmation and click here to see Tom Campbell’s. Click here to see Meg Whitman’s response that she’d consider participating.
Michael Moodian, the Brandman assistant professor coordinating the debate, said that invitations for a Democratic debate would go out once the field become clear - that is, once Gavin Newsom has come competition. Attorney General Jerry Brown is expected to enter the race, but has not yet done so.
Read the rest of this entry »
Click here to see Steve Poizner’s confirmation and click here to see Tom Campbell’s. Click here to see Meg Whitman’s response that she’d consider participating.
Michael Moodian, the Brandman assistant professor coordinating the debate, said that invitations for a Democratic debate would go out once the field become clear - that is, once Gavin Newsom has come competition. Attorney General Jerry Brown is expected to enter the race, but has not yet done so.
Read the rest of this entry »
Ever Wonder Which Ads Are Converting? Wonder No More
From AdRants.com: Because sometimes serious news can be useful, we're happy to inform you search ad network Looksmart, is out with SmartRotation, a cost-per-action (CPA) tool that automatically serves the best-performing ad creative in an ad group based on conversion data from a tracking pixel. The new tool, part of LookSmart's ad rotation, allows advertisers to optimize campaigns by conversion events like sales, sign-ups, downloads, and registrations to drive higher performance.
"It doesn't matter how many clicks you have if it doesn't convert", said Michael Schoen, Vice President and General Manager of Advertising Platforms at LookSmart. "While other platforms only offer even ad rotation or optimization by click-through rate (CTR), LookSmart's SmartRotation analyzes conversion rates and serves the best-converting ad creative, giving advertisers a better rate of return on their search investment."
See? Now don't you think that will make your job a lot easier when your boss asks you which ads are converting the best?
Why Campaign Advance Matters
Toledo mayoral candidate Ben Konop has his news conference disrupted by a single heckler.
Bit.ly plans paid-for real time news service
Sunday Times to launch dedicated website
Now on YouTube, Local News
NYT reports: Nearly 200 news outlets have agreed to post videos on the Web site and split the revenue from ads alongside them.
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