Day 94 - Are we all "Citizen Journalists" today?

Watch out world! YouTube just made it even easier for anyone with a camera phone to turn anyone's behavior -- be it mundane or sensational -- into news.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, the world's top provider of Internet video has now launched YouTube Direct, where TV and online news editors can obtain video from the so-called "citizen journalists" -- even requesting that specific video be shot by amateur attention seekers.

Part of this effort may be aimed at gaining celebrity footage, but not entirely, of course. Many news outlets will be seeking disaster footage, for example, or maybe a snippet of some rowdy behavior at the next political town hall.

Any news organization seeking footage can announce it in a variety of ways, including the use of call-out videos posted at YouTube. When a YouTube user has video he or she thinks will interest the mainstream media, YouTube Direct will make it easier for professional editors, producers and paid journalists to contact them.

The head of news and politics at YouTube says that reputable news organizations will want to verify any content they use, so this is not an invitation for everyone to grab their camera phones and catch friends and neighbors in embarrassing moments.

YouTube Direct isn't a play for greater earnings -- for YouTube or its users, according to an official spokesperson. There is no payment for video provided by citizens. The incentive for people to upload great video (hopefully) is the recognition the citizen reporters may receive through airtime on legitimate news. Currently testing the service are: the Huffington Post, NPR, Politico, the San Francisco Chronicle and at least two Boston TV stations.

In a YouTube blog post, links are provided to examples of newsworthy user-generated video: presidential candidate George Allen's "Macaca" reference, video of a 7.8 magnitude earthquake in China, and a teacher screaming then slapping an autistic student.

With print (newspapers) continuing to falter and online media rising to the forefront, everyone appears to be a journalist these days. As a journalism and mass communications grad student, I hope I can remain open minded. There is a big difference between capturing a moment on video for upload to YouTube, and investigating, researching and writing genuinely informative news for publication. The professional journalist is still viable in the modern world, and perhaps more valuable than ever. We are simply experiencing growing pains as our industry changes. It appears the Information Era is turning into the "Always On" Era.

Is your camera phone ready? Lights, camera....action!

Source: The Hollywood Reporter, YouTube.

Day 75 - Have you noticed what's new about Facebook?

Just over a week ago, Facebook rolled out more changes to its home page that they feel will simplify the Facebook experience by giving you two different ways to view your Home Page News Feed. You’re now able to switch between a summary view (News Feed) and a real-time view (Live Feed). The links show up just above the “What’s on your mind?” box in the center of your screen.

News Feed
When you log into Facebook, you see the most interesting things that happened in the last day in the “News Feed” view. News Feed picks stories that FB thinks you’ll enjoy based on a variety of factors including how many friends have liked and commented on them and how likely you are to interact with that story.

Live Feed
Once you’ve caught up on what you missed, you can then click over to the “Live Feed” to see what’s happening in the moment. As long as you remain logged into Facebook, you continue to see posts and activity from all your friends in real-time. You can edit what appears to you in this view by clicking on “Edit Options” at the bottom of the home page.

Facebook decided to make these changes after receiving feedback about all the home page changes they made back in March. With this latest change, Facebook is moving what you used to see in the Highlights section on the right hand side of your screen back into the News Feed. As a refresher, here’s what you’ll find noted in your News Feed:

• anytime your friends are tagged in photos
• when a friend becomes a Fan of a Page
• when one RSVPs to an event
• or joins a group
• when your friends make new friends
  

Facebook has also made birthdays and events a little easier to see in the right column of the home page. Facebook says it put a lot of thought into these changes to the site and did a lot of testing before releasing anything. They gather feedback by reading emails from users and testing new ideas with small groups of users. After every change, they continue to gather feedback and refine.

I am inclined to think that these recent changes have much more to do with e-commerce than our convenience. When someone sees that a friend has become a Fan of a Page, RSVP’d for an event or joined a group, they are also more likely to click on that page/event/group link and check it out. The goal is clearly to increase the viral growth of these items, many of which are corporate sponsored. In other words, this will be good for businesses that have Fan Pages and Groups. The one thing marketers need to remember is that if they want their content classified as ‘most interesting’ and placed into our News Feed, then they need to provide great content that engages us and makes us want to click the comment or “like” buttons.

Here’s to change - again! What do you think about the Facebook re-design?

Day 48 - Halfway home

Wow! Yesterday marked the halfway point in the fall semester. This means that I am a mere 47 days (and 47 blog posts) away from earning this Masters degree. It doesn't seem possible that I can write two major papers along with several shorter writing assignments, a number of exams, 2 major presentations and 6 quizzes in such a short time, and yet, I am confident that I will do that successfully - blogging all the while. The reading and assignments thus far have really kept me hopping, but now the end is in sight.

Along with the fall breeze which blew in today, I am feeling a little more stress in the wind. Of course, it's just me putting way too much pressure on myself. Is is just me or don't we all have this tendency? I'm worried about my two major research assignments, especially the Comprehensive Project. For over a week now, I've been sending out survey invitations to staff, faculty and students on campus - but have received nowhere near the level of response I hoped for - yet. I've encountered a major glitch in the survey distribution ...but I will not give up! I know I can find some way to collect enough relevant data and generate a publishable journal article (my first, and hopefully not my last).

The highlight of the week was my successful presentation to an undergraduate journalism class about the software and the processes I am using in my research. It went well...I think. Standing in front of that class was definitely a new (scary) experience. Another professor from the JMC department who attended said afterwards that I looked remarkably comfortable and sounded like I knew my stuff. That was a surprise. In reality, I could not have been more nervous. My faculty advisor supported the effort and I owe her some thanks for making it possible. After all, my goal is to ultimately teach, so this was a good time to start getting my feet wet. Now, however, I am back to concentrating on the projects themselves.

How much praise do you really need?
I've been thinking a lot this week about whether I seem to need too much outside approval. I realize this is one of my main flaws. The only legitimate approval comes from within - for every one of us. Someone else’s opinion of you says a LOT more about THEM than it does about you. It's true! A common concept in Buddhism is that of “emptiness” - knowing (understanding) that the world is empty of meaning except that which we give it. Think of it as a Rorschach ink test—you know, the one where you look at an ink blot and tell the therapist what you see. Well, what you see has NOTHING to do with the blob on the paper and EVERYTHING to do with you.

It's the same when we lend credence to what others think of us, our work, our performance or personality. It doesn't matter. How someone sees anyone has to do with THEM. Not us. (The same goes for how anyone sees ANYTHING. Rain can make one person dance naked with joy while anther will always curse the terrible weather. It is empty. You get to pick your meaning.)

So, the next time someone appears to be acting mean or hyper-critical of you, just remember, they’re telling you more about their issues than they are you or yours. A more self-actualized person is not shaken by EITHER praise OR blame.

A thought to ponder over the beautiful fall weekend: "It's easy to see the faults of others...it is harder to see our own."

Day 47 - What's the buzz? News for college students

"The times they are a changing." It seems I've been hearing that refrain throughout my life. Of course, time is always marching forward. But for those of us with a career stake in the business of mass communications (and advertising), the times they have never been quite this chaotic.

IBM released a new study recently confirming the sea change currently taking place in the world of advertising, and it's directly attributable to the increasing popularity of Social Media.

"Imagine a world where ... spending on interactive, one-to-one advertising formats surpasses traditional, one-to-many advertising vehicles, and a significant share of ad space is sold through auctions and exchanges. Advertisers know who viewed and acted on any ad, and pay for it based on real impact rather than estimated “impressions.” Consumers self-select which ads they watch and share preferred ads with peers. User-generated advertising is as prevalent (and appealing) as agency-created spots."*

Based on the IBM global survey, there are four "change drivers" shifting control within the ad industry:
1) Attention – Consumers are increasingly in control of how they view, interact with, and filter advertising in the multichannel world.
2) Creativity – The rising popularity of user-generated and peer-delivered content, and new ad revenue-sharing models (e.g., YouTube, Crackle, Current TV), amateurs and semi-professionals are creating lower-cost advertising content.
3) Measurement – Advertisers are demanding more individual and involvement-based measurements, putting pressure on the traditional mass-market model.
4) Advertising Inventories – They are on their way to being bought-sold through more efficient exchanges, bypassing traditional intermediaries.

There is no question that the future of advertising will look radically different from its past. The push for control in these four key areas is quickly reshaping the value chain and shifting the balance of power. Where are you in all this change? Devotees of advertising and marketing who are ready (and able) to adapt to the changing times and accompanying creative challenges will rise quickly within the industry.

At Exam Time, Students May Face
a New Test -- for 'Smart Drugs'
After years of bringing shame to professional athletes, performance-enhancing drugs may soon do the same for college students. Vince Cakic, a psychologist at the University of Sydney in Australia reports in an article in the Journal of Medical Ethics that the increasing use of "smart drugs" or "nootropics" by students—a phenomenon already being witnessed by professors—could mean that college students taking exams will one day face routine drug tests. In the article, Mr. Cakic says that psychostimulants like Dexedrine, Ritalin and Adderall are already used by about a quarter of students at some American colleges.

Google introduces a new level of consumer control - Sidewiki
Google invited 200,000 people to download its latest feature this week. Were you on the super special invite list? Sidewiki is similar to StumbleUpon and De.licio.us, but because it's from Google and more visible, it's a much bigger deal. Sidewiki (where users/readers donate content on the side of any web page, a la Wikipedia) is sure to catch on. It may take a few years just like Twitter, but it's spot on the Google Toolbar, seductive interface, and the ability to become viral as users spread it, means this is definitely something to watch.

That's all the news that's fit to print this Thursday. For those embarking on the Fall Break - enjoy!

(Source: SocialMediaToday)