Bump. A social media for your license plate?

Has social media gone to far this time?
Wired magazine covers Bump.com, a new social media platform, uses license plate recognition technology to allow drivers to connect with each-other.

"The license plate has never given the consumer anything," said Mitchell Thrower, creator of Bump
What I would like to know, is why would I want to connect with people I share the road with?

Don't shake your POM Poms Just Yet

The, self-proclaimed, healthy beverage POM is now involved in a suit by the FTC. The beverage has been accused of misleading consumers with its ads making specific health claims.

Some of the ads claimed the beverage could help decrease arterial plaque by 30 percent and improve blood flow by 17 percent. It is noted in the "Marketers Wary Following FTC/POM Dispute" article that both the FTC and the FDA felt as though they gave POM ample opportunity to changer their ads or provide the research to support them. The beverage company is now required to cease in their advertising and have any further advertising material approved by the agencies before releasing to the public.

POM was warned and continued their marketing campaign. I think the company should head a warning next time instead of continuing. Contrary to many beliefs, not all publicity is good publicity.

Marketers Wary Following FTC/POM Dispute

POM Wonderful: Not So Wonderful After All, Says the FTC

Watch out Steve Jobs, you have a 'Frenemy'!

Chelsea Kate Issacs, a journalism major from Long Island University, got her fifteen minutes of fame, not to mention a good story for her class project. According to CNN.com, Issacs' repeatedly attempted to contact Apple's PR department for a comment to include in her project before she took it straight to Steve Jobs himself. She was able to find Jobs' email address online and sent him a complaint. To her surprise, he fired back.

This is what she had to say:

"Mr. Jobs, I humbly ask why Apple is so wonderfully attentive to the needs of students, whether it be with the latest, greatest invention or the company's helpful customer service line, and yet, ironically, the Media Relations Department fails to answer any of my questions, which are, as I have repeatedly told them, essential to my academic performance."

His response:

"Our goals do not include helping you get a good grade. Sorry."

There has been some skeptisism aboout this story and Apple has not confirmed or denied the email exchange. Issacs', the self-proclaimed "Frenemy" of Jobs, has received a lot of media attention and even a few internship offers as a result of her story.
Steve Jobs' 'Frenemy' Strikes Back

Facebook wants to stay friends

On Friday, Sept. 24, CEO and co-founder of Facebook Mark Zuckerberg appeared on Oprah to reveal a big announcement-- his plan to donate $100 million to the Newark, New Jersey school system.

While his philanthropic announcement was praised by many, Zuckerberg and Facebook have received criticism due to the timing of the announcement.

This week, the film "The Social Network" will open in theaters around the world. According to many film reviewers, the movie portrays Zuckerberg in a negative light. Because of this, New York Magazine calls Zuckerberg's announcement "the PR move of the month."

I believe that Facebook definitely planned the announcement of the donation to coincide with the release of the movie. In another article, Zuckerberg states that he has been planning the donation for months, and planned to donate anonymously, but said that he was later convinced to make his donation public.

You can find the articles here and here.

Twitter: A VERY inexpensive, real-time focus group

The Most Influential Consumers Online are on Twitter

Brian Solis, an influential social media author, writes on how big companies are using Twitter because of it's interaction infrastructure. They realize that people are getting online and using social media to connect and talk about things they like and use. Companies can use this information as real-time focus groups and why shouldn't they? Especially with statistics like this:

In April 2010, Performics and ROI Research found that 33% of Twitter users share opinions about companies or products at least once per week. More so, 32% make recommendations while 30% seek guidance and direction.

Personally, I think companies are kidding themselves if they think they don't need a social media presence.

How to compete with Apple.

Apple has made a name as an unstoppable force in technology, pop culture, advertising...well just innovation in general.

Wired.com recently published the ways Apple continuously dominates the media.

1. Never promise something you can't deliver
2. Make sure presentations/press conferences are well organized and engaging
3. Products are aesthetically pleasing
4. All products are cohesive in design/format

These reasons ensure consumers will bite at any media coverage concerning the Apple brand.

E-Bullying: Not Just for Kids

The Chicago Tribune recently covered what is essentially an e-bullying case. The Cook County Commissioners Office shot down an ordinance that would ban the use of Twitter and other social networking sites, by board members during meetings. The ban follows what some members of the board are calling “Erroneous Tweets” by several board members to target other members, to compromise their position. The board finally deemed the issue not worthy of discussion, but what is more interesting than the ban is the idea that e-bullying is going on politically. There are organizations that encourage children against it, but perhaps we need organizations to make our elected officials play nice.

http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/clout_st/2010/09/cook-county-commissioners-shoot-down-twitter-ban.html

Segway Company Owner Dies

The owner of Segway Company died Sunday after falling off a 30 foot cliff. James Heselden's body was found in the River Warfe with a "segway like vehicle" not far from him. Authorities are not suspecting false play but are still unsure of what caused him to plummet from the cliff. The British businessman is mourned by his wife, 5 children and 8 grandchildren.

I found it very ironic that this death occurred because the company was researching ways to make the segway safer. Segway, obviously, now has to do some crisis management in order to preserve the validity and safety of their product.

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/27/jimi-heselden-segway-boss_n_739983.html.

:)

The Death of Print Ads

New York Times came out with an article last Wednesday concerning a dramatic decline in advertising revenue. They are losing the biggest profit from print ads in their newspapers.

They believe that the loss is due not only to the recession, but to the shift of readers to the Internet and electronic devices to get their news. This movement to the Internet leads advertisers to spend more money on digital ads.

Times Co. has stayed optimistic and believe that print ads are not "dead" in our society. They think that people will continue to read and subscribe to their newspapers for years to come. The readers who subscribe to the traditional newspaper are of an older generation that enjoy the traditional means of getting their news.

I think that Times Co. should invest more in their Internet advertising and focus on building their Web site. Digital ads, in my opinion, are going to take over and replace print ads. The advancement in technology provides readers with interactive, flashy, high graphic digital ads that are hard to ignore. Digital ads seem to be more effective in getting their message to their intended audience. It is only a matter of time before people will get their news only from their phones and Internet.

Is the death of print ads upon us?

Futuristic living room becomes reality

A tech conference presented the idea of a movie theater entertainment area in our own homes. The CEDIA Expo in Atlanta, Georgia expects the futuristic living room to become a reality. The question is, is it worth it?

This must-have will cost roughly $500,000. The TV measures 4 yards in width and 61/2 feet in height. Imagine having 1,350 pounds of technology in your home, which equals the weight of a dairy cow. Delivery may serve a problem, considering the TV may not fit through the front door, let alone an elevator for business use.

The simulated chairs and 3D display help the viewer feel like they are inside the film. The chairs cost about $7,500, and $8,000 for a couch. These comfy devices shake, vibrate and tilt slightly for entertainment purposes and won't cause a headache.

In addition to the chairs and new big screen, it is essential the sound meets the same top quality. Speakers hooked up with microphones is the solution to premium surround sound. Steve Colburn, product developer at Triad Speakers, said the best speakers would be installed in a giant meadow, but if they're in a boxed living room, they don't sound so good. The speakers hooked up to microphones creates a cleaner sound, without noise bouncing around making a mess of noise.

It's up to you, is this futuristic living room worth the price?

http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/gaming.gadgets/09/27/living.room.future/index.html?hpt=Sbin

Google Music Store vs. iTunes

It has been reported that Google is in the works of creating a music download service by Christmas. Music labels are welcoming Google into the music industry since there has been concern about Apple's dominant position among music retailers. Currently, iTunes is the leading digital music seller in the U.S. and Apple accounted for 28% of all music purchased by U.S. consumers in the first quarter. Amazon.com and Wal-Mart have attempted to rival iTunes music store, but have remained far behind with 12% share each.

The first phase of Google's music service is expected to be a Web store where users can buy and download tracks. It will be tied directly to Google's search engine, so that people using Google.com to look for a particular group or song will be served a link to the company's music store.

Do you think Google music will be a threat iTunes?

Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704895204575321560516305040.html#ixzz10MVraGGT

http://mashable.com/2010/09/06/google-music-service-launch/

Universities Using Location Apps

Texas State launched the Texas State App for iPhone last year. I have downloaded the app and although it's OK, this article focuses on the benefits of using a location-based app.

A location-based app can bring in more visitors by using Gowalla, Four-Square or other location based apps. It seems the younger the generation, the more plugged into their phones they are. So why not make their first time visiting a college campus a unique experience? Universities can use location-based apps to enhance their visit by pointing out different historical landmarks or fun facts. Also, this would give those tired tour guides a break and a chance to study.

Having a location-based app is a great way to engage current students by setting up a reward system. For example, if the campus is hosting a special speech or presentation, students can receive points by attending. Not only would this be promoting the event but the more people who show up to an event, the better the university will look, especially if there is a special guest speaker.

"How Universities Can Win Big With Location-Based Apps" gives many more reasons why universities should be using location-based apps but appealing to future and current students are the topics that stick out the most. Hopefully Texas State can add a location-based app in addition to their already existing app.

Bastrop police chief charged with second DWI

The same officer to make alcohol-related arrests was charged in his own DWI arrest on Aug. 17. David Board, police chief, and 25 year veteran to the City's Police Department, was placed on leave after the arrest that occurred in Austin. Board's blood alcohol level test showed he had nearly three times over the legal limit. This goes to show that no one is perfect, and even a public official can make mistakes. Some might argue mistakes that are quite costly. If the loss of a career wasn't enough, Board's full-retirement was set for Oct. 31. This is Board's second DWI charge. I think it's safe to say someone didn't learn there lesson the first time.

http://www.statesman.com/news/local/bastrop-police-chief-resigns-after-dwi-arrest-890588.html

Has MTV's Jersey Shore and True Life, I'm Addicted to Meds reality show gone too far?

Have the FCC guidelines over what is censored on television been stretched too far? Explore the standards set on MTVs hit reality show, True Life, I'm Addicted to Meds. While I watched this on MTV yesterday, I watched as a camera crew captured the story of two young people struggling with the realities of being addicted to pills. One of the users snorted a line of a crushed up pill by using a rolled-up dollar bill. It showed exactly how the woman consumed the drug, even showing the way she rolled the dollar bill.
Is this the type of material suitable for potentially unmonitored children who may be tuning in? Have the guide lines gotten too flexible in what should and shouldn't be censored? Is MTV tarnishing their image by airing these reality shows? Is MTV basically laying out an instruction manual on the way to properly consume drugs? Or, is MTV attempting to raise awareness about an important and real issue by showing the harmful consequences of abusing prescription drugs?These are all questions that may arise from concerned parents wanting answers.

Another popular reality series, Jersey Shore, began in the summer of 2009 and reached 1.3 million viewers on its debut with the finale bringing in more than 4 million viewers. The show captures the wild lives of eight Italian "guidos" and "guidettes" as they party at the Jersey Shore. If one were to evaluate the reoccurring theme in Jersey Shore, one might conclude the main focus is sex.
On one episode, Snookie, a cast member of the show, hooks up with a random guy a couple nights after hooking up with, Vinny, her roommate. This is another example in determining whether MTV is crossing the line on what is appropriate and what is not. The concern may lie in whether this highly-watched channel is going too far on what is shown on their network. MTV may be sending the wrong message to young viewers who account for their main audience. Should MTV executives start reconsidering what image the channel is trying to condone? How desensitized has society become?

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/SHOWBIZ/TV/01/23/jersey.shore.business/
This is an article from CNN.com about Jersey Shore, and if you read some of the comments made, most of the input is negative against the show.

http://www.mtv.com/videos/true-life-im-addicted-to-meds/1602696/playlist.jhtml
This is the episode of MTVs True Life, I'm Addicted to Meds

Volkswagen Plants Audio Ad in Print Newspaper

When I first glanced at the headline to this article, I had to do a double take. I was surprised to read that Volkswagen placed an audio advertisement in a print newspaper in India. I'm sure readers felt the same way when they heard audio after unfolding The Times of India this morning.

The newspaper carried an advertisement for Volkswagen on the last page that looked just like a regular print ad, but as soon as people turned to the last page of the newspaper, the ad would start talking by itself.

Volkswagen paid the publication to fit an audio chip inside the pages that plays in an endless loop until you close the paper, according to tech blog Digital Inspiration. The chip is powered by a photo detector that converts light into current or voltage.

According to online reactions from twitter and facebook most people seem to have been left impressed by Volkswagen’s marketing. Although, the ad did create some confusion at one of the airports as Lakshmipathy Bhat points out. He tweeted that "Volkswagen ad with audio chip caused a minor scare among the trolley crew in Bangalore Airport. Unclaimed paper with noise -- staff were nervy."

Moulin Parikh tweeted, “One of those rare days when ppl in #mumbai will buy times of india to see (also hear) the Volkswagen advertisement and not for news.”

Volkswagon's marketing technique or rather publicity stunt has definitely made a buzz.

Check out the video showing the audio ad in the paper.

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/09/volkswagen-plants-audio-ad-in-print-newspaper/

Security Flaw Scares Twitter Users

A recent security malfunction on Twitter has created a new reason to be worried about personal information online. A bug has been going around the site, both the old and new versions, that will pop up potentially dangerous material on your computer screen. This can happen without clicking on the dangerous information. It has been reported that the information is being retweeted without instruction to do so.

It is undetermined as to how dangerous the malfunction is. It could simply be taking users to sites they don't want to visit. It has been said that the problem could also be gaining personal information from the users computer, such as financial records and personal information. Before it was officially declared to be fixed Tuesday morning, the problem had already reached several high profile people.

Twitter is still unsure of the origin of the security problem.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/social.media/09/21/twitter.security.flaw/index.html?hpt=T2

U.S. News Media Group Releases 2010 Ranking of World's Best Universities

U.S. News Media Group today released the third annual edition of the World's Best Universities rankings. The 2010 World's Best rankings include colleges and universities across the globe. They conducted this ranking because there seems to be a growing interest of students that want to attend institutions abroad. I think it's a great resource for prospective students. It also reminds students that there are many outstanding universities outside the U.S. that they may have not even thought about.

The way U.S. News ranked the world's institutions is different from the U.S. News Best College rankings, the World's Best Universities rates universities on factors such as the proportion of international faculty and the proportion of international students.

This helps students compare institutions and gives them useful information to compare the best schools worldwide. It is definitely useful for not only students, but also employers to have a comparison of the top universities. For an outstanding education there is always the option of studying internationally.

To determine the 2010 rankings, six distinct indicators of excellence were evaluated, including:

1. Academic Peer Review

2. Employer Review

3. Student-to-Faculty Ratio

4. Proportion of International Faculty

5. Proportion of International Students

6. and Citations per Faculty Member.

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/us-news-media-group-releases-2010-ranking-of-worlds-best-universities-103433999.html

Bane of BP's Twitter Existence Revealed

The identity of the man behind the popular BPGlobalPR Twitter account was revealed in an interview with "The Awl."

BPGlobalPR is a Twitter account that satirically pretends to be British Petroleum. It was created by comedian Josh Simpson and first gained notoriety after Roger Ebert retweeted a BPGlobalPR tweet. To give you a better idea of what this is all about, here is a personal favorite tweet from BPGlobalPR: "Reports of 79% of the oil remaining in the Gulf are false according to the pie chart we made ourselves."

Here is the link the article from PRNewser: http://bit.ly/aVuxMa

Interestingly enough, the fake BP account has over 190,000 followers, while the real BP Twitter has about 18,500 - or just under one tenth of the following.

Taking PR Hits on Social Media

There are so many different "fronts" these days when it comes to anyone's, or any businesses, reputation, that it makes sense to have an army looking out for you. This article in The Atlantic concisely rehashes the Nestle debacle from last spring. Although they quickly distanced themselves from the criticized palm oil distributor, the company's initial reaction and its responses on Facebook to its critics, caused some serious PR problems.

There are plenty of smart things to do when it comes to your Net presence, but the article takes five significant ones, and simplifies them. (To read the extended versions, catch it at: http://bit.ly/aPf3WL)

#1: DON'T get defensive. Duh!

#2: Always watch social networks for complaints (quick reaction can mean an upswing, instead of a downswing)

#3: Don't stalk your customers (they may get tired of you, or sue you)

#4: Watch how your employees use social media (are they using your sinks to take baths?)

#5: Be careful of who you're targeting (cohesive groups could create a cohesive backlash)

Social media allows everyone to be everywhere, if they want to be. This is good for companies, and this is bad for companies. They can be found. They can be blogged about. They can go viral. But, they can also be responsive, and effectively serve the customers they want to serve. Knowing what your reputation is, or your company's reputation is, online, can only serve you better.

Does Axe Need to Clean Up Its Act?

Axe recently released a commercial with two women posing in a talk show where they're selling a new product from Axe. It's designed to help you wash yourself in the shower, but has some not so subtle innuendos about male genitalia. Obviously this campaign is intended for an age range of probably 17 to 30 something year old men with a crude sense of humor, and I can see how it might be offensive to the general viewer. They're using sex to sell, though I'll admit it's in a clever way.

Axe's "Clean your balls" commercial

The Seattle Times talked about the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood has recently written letters of complaint to Unilever (who also owns Dove) to restrict this "sexism." Some people who look at Unilever as a company say that the way the women are treated in Dove commercial and the way they are treated in Axe commercials needs to be addressed because it is somewhat hypocritical in the messages they both send out. Click here to read more about this article.

I am personally not very conservative but I can see how people would be disgusted. It's not discreet in it's message and it's very targeted to one specific audience and doesn't seem to care that it might offend others. In this day and age it's hard to not use humor in advertising because it's a very strong way to get your message across to the masses. It's a powerful tool in marketing and advertising and they made a smart move by making it viral as soon as possible. I'm not a huge fan of this commercial personally, but I can't help but laugh. I'm sure the PR people at Axe have their hands full right now making sure the image of Axe isn't tainted too badly. After a company uses campaigns like this I'm sure they're glad they have someone to protect their image.

Rumor has it that the Axe commercial had an original commercial that was longer and more "ballsy." Apparently it got canned after one day of airing, but this still provided Axe with plenty of advertising after people's curiosity.

Original "banned" commercial

Previous Axe campaigns

Apps and Adults

The cell phone app craze is in full swing, but according to CNN.com, while the number of adults with app enabled cell phones is growing, their actual usage of the applications is not. 35% of adults have phones with app ability, however only 25% actual use the apps. The Pew Internet Project survey showed that more than 1 of 10 adults doesn't even know if their cell phone is app friendly.

I have not joined the app craze, but I do know if my cell phone is app friendly. I am sad to say that I have not fully embraced the constantly changing, fast-paced world of iPhone, apps and the social media obsession. Yes, i know its time to jump in, but I like my simple phone with no apps. My phone makes and receives calls, text messages and I can get on the internet and pretty much do whatever. Don't worry, I am on Facebook and Twitter, but I'm not constantly checking it or updating. I would consider being more involved, but my excuse for now is my lack of free time.

Shoe Ads for... Women?

The Reebok EasyTone fitness shoe came out with a series of advertisements geared toward... Well- I am still trying to figure that one out.

The ads feature women's body parts, never focusing on the actual woman wearing the shoes. The single commercial that features a woman talking about the specified shoe does little better to remedy this, and in fact the commercial's vantage point is from the camera"man" and "he" doesn't seem to be able to focus on what the woman is saying. The camera ends up on the woman's backside more than a few times during the commercial.

Online women's blogs have taken the story and, no pun intended, ran with it. Our Bodies, Our Blog wrote a piece about the EasyTone shoe, and were not in favor of the marketing. Women's blog Jezebel also condemns Reebok's commercials. The Jezebel link above gives a much better description of how women felt about the commercials than I can.

New Balance took a slightly different approach to targeting women for women's shoes. The truebalance collection commercial features a woman jogging through a park when she meets a man. The man is so distracted by her "fitness" shoes that he can't look up at her face. The next jogger, sporting New Balance's truebalance shoe, catches the man's attention, and he fully "checks her out." Women are still being objectified, but in a way that would make us actually go out and buy the shoe.

Advertising has taken a new level when it comes to women objectification. I am very interested to see the results from Reebok's EasyTone advertising venture.

It was Twitter with the Revolver in the Library.

Advertising Age writer, Simon Dumenco, has announced the death of the press release. In his article, Dumenco states that we have reached a point in time where press releases are becoming obsolete. Who is at the other end of the smoking gun, you ask? Well, none other than our good friend Twitter. Dumenco claims that Twitter has taken over the announcement of entertainment news. For example, Kanye West's public apology to Taylor Swift, that in the past would have been taken care of with a good old fashion press release, is now released in 140 characters or less with a simple "I'm sorry Taylor."
Dumenco still believes that the press release will still vaguely be around for a few years, due to the PR pros being so partial to them. However, he claims that they will pay the price for ignoring the deadly Twitter just as BP has.

In my opinion, as much as I hate to admit it, I think he's right. BP has been brutally punished for ignoring Twitter. They literally have been made fools of across the Twitter screen and are now just a common punch line. Social media is revolutionizing the business, yet its sad that in a little over a hundred years what first revolutionized the industry is now becoming a second choice. It makes me wonder what will replace Twitter in the next hundred years?

Handle Social Networking with Care: Facebook Updates Lead to Series of Burglaries

Social media networking has become one of the leading causes of burglaries. When people "tweet" or update their status' it becomes public domain to people who are looking for an easy target. Thieves are now using peoples updates and "tweets" to find out when the people are going out of town,how long they are going and even how far, with the detail people can put on their face book information and twitter, they are able to access the "tweeters" phone numbers and even addresses. In one city alone, there were up to 50 robberies totaling about $100,000 in stolen goods. One of the advices this articles offered was to not go into details when you go on vacation and not to reveal the details of your personal property.

http://www.pamil-visions.net/facebook-updates-burglaries/218680/

'The Media Is the Enemy,' and Other Dangerous Notions to Disavow

This article is about changing a spokesperson’s way of thinking about the media. The article covers different approaches and tactics that can be used to create credibility. Judy Erkanat teaches spokespeople how to establish rapport during the first minutes of the interview. She reminds spokespeople to speak on behalf of the compnay/organization and not from personal opinion. Judy Erkanat says thinking like a billboard helps spokespeople keep in mind the headline they would like to see.

Here are a few DONT'S:
repeate negatives
nod "yes" or saying "uh-huh" to indicate you understand the question
say "no comment" or speak from personal opinion
lose your temper or mention previous negative coverage
ask which parts of the interview will be used
ask if you can see the article before it goes to print

http://www.prnewsonline.com/prinsiders/The-Media-Is-the-Enemy-and-Other-Dangerous-Notions-to-Disavow_14125.html

2010 MTV VMA Twitter Tracker App

MTV launched an app, "MTV VMA Twitter Tracker" to keep track of all of the major tweets going on during the 2010 MTV VMAs. It is a web-based visual app that displays topics and tweets related to the awards. MTV has used something similar to this during their 2010 movie awards. They were successful using it then and decided to do something similar again, however this time it has a cleaner look and is easier to navigate. When you load it up you see the total count of VMA related tweets of top 4 topics: #vma, #ladygaga, #justinbieber, and #kanyewest. Vma had 535 tweets per minute, Lady Gaga had 133 tweets per minute, Justin Bieber had 108 tweets per minute, and Paramore had 93 tweets per minute. MTV is currently the most popular music website and use social media wisely to help users interact. I think it's great they did this app tracker so people can see what is going on and interact with MTV and other users. There were 1,304,357 tweets since 12:00 pm on 9/10.

PR+Social Media

As PR and Mass Comm students we are taught to utilize and embrace social media. This article on Mashable talks about how PR practitioners were among the first to embrace social media and are often leading the way in social spaces. The article goes into what the future of PR will and does look like with the influence of social media. From a the digital press release to niche social media platforms that cover more specific topics than Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn social media is making connecting to news sources quicker and personalized. It also gives good sources in the PR industry to follow and talk to on Twitter (#SoloPR and #pr20chat).

This article gives really good insight from about 14 PR pros in the industry. They talk about what is good about social media and what has limited PR in the social media world. Definitely a good resource for future PR pros to read.

The Future of Public Relations and Social Media

I HIGHLY recommend students read this article even if it's just to get good sources to follow on Twitter :)

You're Too Old to Play

Apple introduced its social-gaming network, which like any other social network depends on the public to be successful. The lauch of Game Center went along with the release of iOS 4.1, which was released the same day. The new iOS update is necessary to run Game Center. Apple released a list of compatible devices including the iPhone 4 and 3GS and the last three generations of the iPod Touch. The iPhone 3G and the first versions of the iPod Touch were left off the list without explanation.

I believe Apple left the older generations off on purpose so that the Apple consumers would have no option but to get buy the new devices. I think it will be interesting to see if more people purchase the an updated version of their device to be able to access Game Center. Honestly, I don't see that happening.

Article

Smoking Hot Controversy Over Scientific Study

Ok, so we have all heard about the need for PR professionals to be directly involved in executive decision making, lest very bad things happen. Philip Morris’ recent king-sized blunder is a perfect example of what NOT to do. Faced with the possibility of a high sin tax on cigarettes in the Czech Republic, Philip Morris responded with a scientific analysis of smoking on the Czechoslovakian economy. In this study, funded by Philip Morris, there is concrete evidence provided that smoking kills people. Further, it presents smoking-related deaths as a positive side-effect on the grounds that it will save the government money, because it will not have to pay out elderly-related benefits for each smoker that dies young. It actually analyzes the costs and determines that the government will save $1,277 per premature death. Can we say PR nightmare?

For information follow the link below:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/2727666/Philip-Morris-is-extremely-sorry-for-Czech-study.html

The Web Is Dead.

Wired Magazine may be my favorite print media right now. In a recent issue, Chris Anderson wrote an article titled "The Web Is Dead."
After reading the story, I really started to think about it. In this age of technology the web is taken for granted. Being able to open a browser and surf around is considered old news. Over the last few years the integration of single-platform apps have taken a strong foot-hold in our daily lives.
Anderson says " You wake up and check your email on your bedside iPad — that’s one app. During breakfast you browse Facebook, Twitter, and The New York Times — three more apps...You’ve spent the day on the Internet — but not on the Web. And you are not alone."

If this is a change that will keep occurring, I wonder how the internet will be in 5 more years.

"Man, PR looks cooler on TV"

In the age of reality television, everyday people are shown an array of different occupations. While interesting and sometimes informative, they don't show the whole story, of course. Culinary shows, such as Bravo's Top Chef and Fox's Hell's Kitchen, keep views on the edge of their seat while simply watching water boil while shows like E!'s The Spin Crowd glamorize the PR world and make it seem very exciting (not that it isn't, it just takes a lot more work than what is shown on TV.)

While I do enjoy reality television, sometimes it's frustrating to have others look at your profession as nothing more than lip injections and on-screen cat fights. Hopefully, the American public would be able to tell the difference between reality and actuality.

http://www.prnewsonline.com/prinsiders/Reality-TV-vs-Real-PR-Professionals_14121.html

Critics Skeptical About Apple's Ping

On Sep. 1, Steve Jobs announced Apple’s new music-based social network, Ping, at Apple’s fall keynote. While this news might seem like a good idea to most music artists and fans, some people are skeptical of Ping’s ability to succeed in today’s saturated world of social networks.

Although Ping has already reached over 1 million users -- within 48 hours following its launch -- critics say that one of Ping’s toughest obstacles will be competing with Facebook. Many online users have already chosen Facebook and Twitter as their go-to site to spend their time. Ping has a long way to go to catch up to Facebook’s 500 million users.

eWeek.com, an online technology publication, listed 10 reasons why Apple’s Ping network won’t work. Here is a summary:

1. It’s one of many

2. Buzz should be a lesson

3. Full Facebook integration would be nice

4. Speaking of Facebook – it’s a titan

5. Specialized services rarely do well

6. Growing pains

7. Success is a relative term

8. Artists will need to buy into it

9. The future isn’t in iTunes as users know it

10. It will get lost in the mobile noise

I think that a music-based social network is a great idea, even though it has already been attempted (MySpace Music, Last.fm, Zune Social). Apple does have a bigger advantage, however, because of its large iTunes user base.

Click here for the full article.

James Cisneros

Product Placed, Viewer Found

With the ability to fast forward through commercials, or all together miss them online, companies had to get creative. Product placement is becoming and ever-more popular way for companies to advertise their products. The question is: "how does this affect the viewers?"

The Federal Communications Commission is reviewing how television programs report their use of product placement. The FCC wants to assess the vulnerability of viewers, especially children, and then evaluate the appropriate ways to let viewers know what they are seeing is an advertisement. Regulations under consideration are those similar to what is required of political advertisements; "require sponsorship messages to be in a print at least four percent the height of a screen and displayed for at least 4 seconds."

For the trained eye, it is easy to tell the difference between a product placement and a brand coincidentally being filmed. However, I would not give this same credit to children and adolescents. I am in favor of the regulations.

Product Placement on TV Targeted

College PR Gone Wrong.

Looking on yahoo.com I came across this story and had to see what it was about. This college did a PR campaign that lead people to essentially misunderstand the message. The campaign was based on this logo that shows a D+ making people believe it was a grade. When evaluating it further you see that it was just a misfortunate choice of design. The font makes it look like the D is a grade written on an assignment when it really is meant to be an abbreviation of the college name.

I think that this misunderstanding could have been avoided if more research had been done on the campaign. If they had done something as basic as a focus group they could have gotten feedback that would have prevented them from having this miscommunication. They now have to do remedial PR to fix the perception that the university is striving for grades to just get by.

To read the story go to the link: http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot/20100903/od_yblog_upshot/great-moments-in-collegiate-marketing-drake-universitys-d-campaign