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16
May 13

I Don’t Like (The Digital Version Of) You

fb

To That One Facebook User All Of Us Know:

I know too much about you. And it is causing me to draw some conclusions about you that, while unfair, are hard to avoid when I read what you post to your Facebook page on a regular basis.

Here’s what I’ve gathered in the past week:

  • You are smart. We are dumb.
  • You just checked in at church and are, thus, holier than thou.
  • Your one-year-old daughter regularly eats an organic quinoa-avocado-red pepper relish with her oatmeal. My daughter eats cheese sticks for breakfast. You win.

I could go on, but I’ll stop there.

What bothers me about those First World Problems status updates is that you are not like this in real life.

The organic life form who I go to the bar with, and mill around the coffee machine with, is a normal person. But put you behind a keyboard, and suddenly you turn into a braggart.

Is a “like” worth so much to you that you feel like even the most meaningless moments in your life are worthy of publication? As if we actually care?

Perhaps I need to step back. Maybe I’m getting mad at the wrong entity. It might just be Mark Zuckerberg’s fault for inventing this stupid network.

Or, it might just be the next step in our evolution as humans.

This era of humanity is marked by a laziness that is unsurpassed in the entirety of human civilization. (I’m pretty sure that’s an accurate statement.)

I mean, we use Facebook as a substitute to wish family members a happy birthday, instead of calling them on the phone or visiting them in person.

And we think that’s okay.

Five people give us a thumbs up for sharing daily entries about how amazing our husband is (when, really, you should just thank him in private).

And we think that’s okay.

We yell at strangers who we think are stupid, in the privacy of our Facebook page, so that we don’t have to reap what we sow.

And we think that’s okay.

Technology is a marvelous thing. But, like most things that make our lives easier, it can turn us into something that we despise.

I’ve thought long and hard about deleting my Facebook account. But I still see it as a valuable way to communicate.

Maybe we just need to have patience with how the other 1.1 billion users use Facebook. Like a movie or a book, we all have different tastes and thoughts about what is right and what is wrong.

Maybe Facebook just needs some time to grow up.

Or maybe you do.

Either way, I don’t like the digital version of you.

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08
Feb 13

That’s What He Read – February 8, 2013

heread

I was in Philadelphia earlier this week for work. It didn’t dawn on me until yesterday evening that I was mere blocks from The Liberty Bell. But a quick Internet search told me that the exhibit was already closed, so the Instagrammer in me died just a little bit.

Oh, well. Maybe next time.

Since you’re likely snowed in today, here are some articles to read.

Better Than Human: Why Robots Will — And Must — Take Our Jobs (WIRED) – “It may be hard to believe, but before the end of this century, 70 percent of today’s occupations will likewise be replaced by automation. Yes, dear reader, even you will have your job taken away by machines. In other words, robot replacement is just a matter of time.”

“Facebook Fatigue” Could Throw Monkey Wrench in Social Marketing and PR Strategy (Bulldog Reporter) – “Moreover, Pew paints Facebook as a place of growing irrelevancy and tedium for an increasing percentage of adults. Family member and friend connections may keep people attached to the site, which means they won’t quit Facebook, but they’re not visiting as often, nor are they experiencing the same type of enjoyment as they once did, the article reports.”

Inside Patagonia’s Content Machine (Digiday) – “Many brands feel like they are faced with a dilemma: They can either make great content or try to sell products. Boland doesn’t see it that way. He sees great content and conversations around products as something that naturally occurs, without the need for marketers to be so heavy-handed.”

Watching the Super Bowl From Coca-Cola’s War Room(s) – (AdAge) – “There was a pause and then applause to acknowledge Coke’s first ad, “Security Camera,” which was unrelated to the “Mirage” campaign. There was another pause as Pepsi Next’s “Party” ad aired. The Coke team quickly posted a response to Pepsi Next that it had prepared earlier, a message from a Coke showgirl saying a house party was nothing compared to Reno. Otherwise, eyes remained glued to computer screens.”

Bang With Friends: The Beginning of a Sexual Revolution on Facebook? (Fast Co.Design) – “The premise is so obvious, you’ll kick yourself for not thinking of it first. You install the app, then the app lists your Facebook friends of the opposite sex. You click if you’d like to “bang” them, and no one ever knows . . . that is, unless one of those friends installed the app and elected to bang you, too. Bang With Friends makes finding a mate as easy as window shopping on Pinterest.”

social media — 2 Comments
19
Dec 12

In Morgan Freeman We Trust

morgan

If you had to choose one person to narrate the movie of your life, it would have to be Morgan Freeman, right?

The man could give to you the play-by-play of a cock fight over a telephone with a bad connection and it would sound like he was describing two gentlemen quarreling over the latest Jonathan Franzen novel.

When it comes to verbal eloquence, there is nobody better.

Unfortunately Freeman’s verbal eloquence doesn’t parlay into the world of online diatribes. This might come as a shock to the thousands of people who have shared this on Facebook, but Freeman didn’t pen that statement about the Sandy Hook shootings that you have undoubtedly seen by now. That honor goes to a guy from Vancouver who correctly predicted his stance against the media’s handling of the tragedy would go viral once it was attributed to somebody more famous, like Betty White or Morgan Freeman.

But we have never let facts get in the way of the message we want to share. Sometimes we even eliminate the pesky “facts” that block our intent.

You’ve probably seen this comic strip on Facebook:

strip

It’s obvious what your Facebook friends are trying to convey by sharing this comic strip, but did you know it is missing a panel?

The two panels you see above were clipped out of the full strip, seen here:

fullstrip

It was created for a website called Chainsawsuit.com. The third panel certainly changes the message your Facebook friend intended when they shared it, eh?

The guy who drew the comic is named Kris Straub. When he found out his work was being shared without his consent or giving him credit, he explained why it hurts his livelihood.

Somewhere along the way, somebody thought it wouldn’t be that big of a deal to crop this down to something that suited what they wanted to express. That last frame just got in the way of the message. And after all, it’s the Internet; it’s not like anybody is going to notice.

But as Straub writes, there can be real consequences to sharing false information.

Like Gini Dietrich talked about yesterday on her blog, all of us who use social media have a responsibility to be sure that the information we are disseminating is accurate. And because it’s just on Facebook doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter.

During last week’s tragedy, we jumped on the media for reporting information that later turned out to be false. We claimed we were never going to turn on FOX News and CNN again. But we are just as reckless when we click on a Facebook ad that promises two free tickets on Southwest Airlines.

By falling for the ruse, we expose it to everybody else in our network. It soon becomes a vicious cycle, taking up space in our minds as truth.

Maybe we need to take the same tact with those on Facebook that we took with the national media: shutting them out entirely.

It’s one way to start.

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30
Nov 12

That’s What He Read – November 30, 2012

Tomorrow is December, which means many of us will bemoan the fact that it’s already DECEMBER. You can pretty much set your clock to this happening. So when you’re done freaking out about the fact that 2012 is nearly over, scroll down and read what I read this week that’s worth sharing.

Airport Car Rentals: The Next $10 Billion Industry Ready For Disruption (TechCrunch) – Just when you think every industry has been disrupted (except the greeting card industry, which needs to be) somebody comes along with an idea to disrupt an industry that leads you to smack your head in a Why-didn’t-I-think-of-that? kind of way. Check out Flightcar.

GE Buys 3D Printing Company, They’re Using It To Make Parts For Jet Engines (BusinessInsider) – It’s pretty clear by now that 3D printing is The Next Big Thing. Staples is going to offer it in some European stores soon. But if you thought it was only used to print out tools and Yoda, think again. GE is going to start printing out parts for jet engines. Yeah. Jet engines.

Parents Name Their Newborn Daughter ‘Hashtag’ (Mashable) – In what is certainly not a Why-didn’t-I-think-of-that? moment, two people just had a baby and named her Hashtag. The announcement from her mother on her Facebook page says it all: “Hashtag Jameson was born at 10 oclock last nite. She weys 8pounds and i luv her so much!!!!!!” Yep.

‘I Pretty Much Wanted To Die’ (Grantland.com) – Earlier this week I came across an article on the origins of Lost, which just so happens to be one of the greatest stories ever told. However, I wasn’t surprised to learn that they were winging it for a while. If you were a fan of this show, you’ll like this read.

Old Media, New Tricks (Adweek) – On the 28th floor of the Times Building in New York City exists an R&D Lab that is seeking to develop tech innovations and new business models to help the struggling newspaper. Whether anything worthwhile comes out of this lab remains to be seen, but it’s a good sign when a newspaper is willing to invest money to at least try to adapt to an uncertain world full of news-hungry consumers.

Monday’s fake press release debacle redeems PR (PRDaily) – A fake press release announcing a Google acquisition of a Wi-Fi hotspot provider was issued earlier this week, and major outlets like TechCrunch and the Associated Press began reporting the news before it was learned to be a fake. The release, however, was issued by a stock promoter in Aruba. In their rush to break the news, TechCrunch and the Associated Press were almost duped, leading some PR people to celebrate their redemption. I hate to break it to you, but the only way to improve our reputation is by continuing to work hard and establish those hard-fought media relationships.

The Ghost in the Machine: Technology Begets Insanity (Justice Mitchell) – In part two of his look at how technology has affected our brains (here’s part one), Mitchell lays out his media digestion schedule, and bets most of ours look the same. And he’s right. Our brains are bombarded with stimulation in the form of reading e-mail while in bed, surfing our iPad while watching television, etc. It’s something a lot of us do on a regular basis, but at what cost? It’s worth thinking about.

That’s all for me. What did you read?

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05
Nov 12

If The Truth Hurts, Get Your Facts Straight

This is a counter-point post to something I wrote last week.

Before this year’s World Series began, somebody I follow on Instagram posted a picture of an old sports page from the Detroit News that featured a picture of former Detroit Tigers slugger, Cecil Fielder. The user’s caption stated that her Grandma had saved the paper from 1984 — the last year the Tigers won the World Series — so she was posting it for good luck. [Editor's note: A lot of good that did!]

It was a great idea. But anybody with a shred of Tigers’ baseball knowledge knows that Fielder didn’t play for the Tigers in 1984. The paper was from 1990, the year Fielder hit 51 home runs.

Being the helpful baseball fan that I am, I left a comment alerting her that it was from 1990, not ’84.

To which she responded later: “1990* for all you annoying fucks.”

I guess I wasn’t the only one who wanted to set the record straight.

Then, last week, my friend posted to Facebook the image of the soldiers standing guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns in the middle of a downpour; the same image that the Washington Post originally reported was taken during Hurricane Sandy.

Again, being the helpful friend that I am, I commented that the picture was from September, not the hurricane.

And, again, I was put in my place (although not as harshly) for trying to set the record straight.

Based on these two incidents, I get the sense that a certain percentage of social media users are more concerned with what they want the picture to portray than how accurate it is. And what’s even more troubling is that the general population (read: the large portion of the population that still views Facebook and Twitter as fun time-wasters) is okay with this.

I wrote last week that perhaps what we are sharing on social media doesn’t matter if the majority knows the intent behind it. But at what point do we approach a dangerous line?

When Hurricane Sandy was making landfall, one Twitter user knowingly spread false information. He was quickly outed, but not before he scared some people. On the flip side, Con Edison took to Twitter to keep customers apprised of the situation, providing valuable information to people who had limited ways of getting it.

In both situations, Twitter played a noticeable role during and after Hurricane Sandy.

If we let inaccurate information spread unchecked, we eventually lose the trust in the users and, eventually,  in these social media channels that have become so important during emergencies. Oftentimes, these channels become a person’s only way of communicating, which is why I believe it’s important to correct people when you have the right information at your disposal. I’m not doing it to be a dick.

Twitter (and, in a way, Facebook) is growing up before our eyes. It is no longer just a service that we use to tell the world what we’re doing but, rather, a way to help people in the most dire of circumstances.

We cannot afford to sit idle and watch falsities and inaccurate information spread. If you have the knowledge, use it. After all, knowledge is power.

It might involve just baseball and soldiers standing guard now, but in the days following Hurricane Sandy’s landfall, we’ve seen firsthand why it’s important to leave these channels open to share accurate information. In extreme circumstances, it can save lives.

Sometimes, the truth hurts. And if you don’t like it, get your facts straight.

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