Obama Must Part With BlackBerry

I recently learned something very important about becoming the Commander-In Chief which I'm not sure how many people are aware of. According to a New York Times article, Mr. Obama might have to get rid of his coveted BlackBerry mobile device once he is sworn in. Apparently this is nothing new with former President Clinton not having used email and President Bush sending a farewell email to friends before he was sworn in. From what I understand, Presidents' communication is subject to public disclosure so they cannot use devices like cell phones to text or use email to communicate. "But before he arrives at the White House, he will probably be forced to sign off. In addition to concerns about e-mail security, he faces the Presidential Records Act, which puts his correspondence in the official record and ultimately up for public review, and the threat of subpoenas." Can you imagine giving up your phone and/or email? I know I would not be able to function without email. That's just too bad for the President-elect...the BlackBerry storm will be released on Friday.

Social Media Syndicate Podcast

I've been working on a group project to develop a podcast focused on social media. This is the first podcast I have ever done, but I think that overall it turned out fairly well. In our podcast we discuss some of the differences between the way members of Generation Y and members of Generation Z have incorporated social media into their lives. The show notes can be found below:

Social Media Syndicate Podcast - Episode 1

0:05 – Intro
0:26 – Welcome
0:41 – Panel Self Introductions
1:23 – The Hot Topic
1:33 – Shannon discusses generation definitions.
1:58 – Shannon asks panel: “What tools do you guys consider to be important in looking at the differences between how our generation, Gen Y, and the new generation, Gen Z/C, use the Internet tools?”
2:09 – Ceci discusses YouTube
3:42 – Wiltson discusses Facebook
5:21 – Christine discusses MySpace
6:04 – Shannon weighs in on Facebook and MySpace
6:22 – Wiltson responds
6:46 – Shannon discusses cell phones and SMS (text) messaging
8:16 – Wiltson weighs in on texting
8:49 – Ceci discusses Second Life
10:35 – Shannon responds
11:22 – Wiltson responds
12:09 – Closing
12:20 – Outro

MyFace vs. MySpace

In the world of the new Internet, social networking is key. There's much more at stake when various social networking sites are pitted against one another than a growing fan base. Social networking sites receive hefty dividends based on the amount of traffic their users generate, therefore it is in each sites best interest to have more active users. Apparently Facebook is gaining on the popularity of MySpace and in the battle for social media supremacy, there may soon be a new champion. Facebook has changed so much in the three years that I have been on the site to appeal to a broader audience as well as to become a more effective source of revenue. Facebook in just a few short years has been opened up to non-college students, business, advertisers, etc. and it has changed the ideology of the site tremendously. At times people have become upset with the way things have been handled since Google acquired Facebook. The Web 2.0 economy is changing the landscape of so many things that people once looked at as personal online communities and when the doors are opened to shareholders eager to get their hands on peoples' pocketbooks, it's usually not taken lightly. Facebook has become much more intrusive and the fact that underhanded information harvesting is done by using user submitted information, it's personally taken away some of the allure of the site for me.