Three Ways to Impress Me With Your Final Project (COM 130)

First, let me say how excited I am about your final project ideas! I cannot wait to read your blogs! They will actually make grading fun, to say the least. Since we only have one more day together, :( I wanted to write a post that gives you a little more advice and information about your project, in particular, what will impress me.

Use Your Voice - the YOU Factor

The hardest part for any media creators like you is to find your own voice. There is no shortage of information available to you online about your given topic, but what do YOU have to say? What can YOU contribute? What knowledge do YOU have to give your classmates? And don't say, "none", because we all are experts on something! Don't sell yourself short.

Many of you wanted to do a fan-type blog, and that is fine too, tons of people have chosen that route in the blogosphere today. I'd like to reiterate that if you do make a fan site, be sure to add a disclaimer somewhere, and be very careful about using copyrighted content. But most importantly, what can YOU add to the conversation? What about YOU makes you the right person to provide commentary on the television show or musician you have chosen?

Using Lists in Your Posts

One way to jazz up a blog entry is to include a list. For example, "Seven Ways to Impress Professor Falk" could be a title of a post, followed by numbered examples and information in your blog. This does two things for you. First, it makes your content easy for your readers to quickly digest. Second, it helps you organize and hone in on your blog topic for that day. Of course, while this is a great idea for some posts, be careful not to overdo it. Your readers may get annoyed. Here are a few other examples off the top of my head:

"Ten Ways to Avoid the Freshman 15"

"Five Things I Learned My First Semester in College"

"Six Ways to Help You Wake Up for 8:00 Classes"

You get the idea...

Multimedia Elements

You've heard me rant about these all semester...audio, photographs and video!  Anytime  you can incorporate these elements and add to your discussion, it only enhances what you are trying to say.  It shows me you have done research on your topic to see what else is out there.  I can always tell who is going to earn an "A" on a blog post--I typically end up spending forever checking out their links!

Just a reminder, on Friday (our last class day), I will explain how to add a LinkedIn badge to your page, as well as how to use Google Analytics.  There will also be some time to work on any technical issues you may be having.  See you then!

"Smurf It Up"

COM 130 students,

I hope you were able to take something away from today's discussion. Here are the links to the videos I showed you in class.

Vision of Students Today by Dr. Michael Wesch
Gary Vaynerchuck's Web 2.0 Keynote - click here for Gary's actual website.

Anything else you'd like to add to this conversation?

"Is YouTube the Next Google?"

As we often study how people use media in our courses, I thought I'd share this post with you from a website called ReadWriteWeb.  The article discusses the idea that one day, we may use YouTube as our primary search engine.  Essentially, we would prefer video information over text.  Anything relevant we would need to search, surely there's a video or two on YouTube about it!  

You are the experts, you tell me.  When you want information, do you go to Google first, or to YouTube?  Can you see the progression the author is talking about?  With the lure of rich media, will we begin to prefer video over text?  

The article got me thinking of recent examples where I've used YouTube, instead of Google, and I immediately began to understand.  Just last week I was curious about a treacherous ski run in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.  Well if the ski run is that infamous, certainly there are YouTube videos for it!  And sure enough a few seconds later, I find Corbet's Coulior is chillin', just waiting for me to click, like the 11,575 times it's been watched before.  

Not only did I learn from this video that there's no way on God's green earth I will EVER ski down this thing, but I also picked up a phrase that I have already repeated at least 15 times just to be funny..."he just did yard sale".  Modeling would be the academic phrase for mimicking, right?  (don't act like you haven't picked up lingo from YouTube videos)

And almost immediately, I'm reminded of the truly fascinating media world we live in.  Isn't it crazy, that somehow, after watching this video, I feel as if I have experienced this mountain and feel compelled to repeat phrases from it?

These are the things that keep me up at night and so excited to be teaching media courses at this stage in the game.  

Speaking of YouTube, did anyone notice the change in video player size?

Yet, Another Name for Gen Y

Check out this video from an organization called, "Generation-We". After the video, leave your thoughts. Is this you? What do you agree or disagree with? Do you want to be part of this movement?


Generation WE: The Movement Begins... from Generation We on Vimeo.

Web Bytes: Phelps, Flacks and Chickens

Here is another installment of Web Bytes, where I attempt to bring you informative, entertaining, and relevant news items that relate to issues discussed in class this week (both COM 130 & COM 327). So, here's what's up for discussion this time:

Recently, my student bloggers analyzed that word Rift hates called, "convergence". Particularly, in the case of television. Text-messaging may not be the only problem for teachers in the future, but MTV's The Hills could be. What I'm getting at is the future of mobile television. Check out this link and let me know what you think. Is this something you see yourself using or demanding?

Also, we talked about Subway's Jared this week, but he may be taking a back seat to Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps, as discussed in this AdAge article. What does Michael Phelps' celebrity status mean for Subway?

In COM 130 this week, we discussed the public relations industry and the term, "flacks". Just to prove it's regularly used, check out who won these coveted "flack/flak awards".

Many political operatives were honored in the above link, but let's talk Obama now. Specifically, his use of new media to communicate a message. His campaign has pundits talking about whether or not he'll be a Web 2.0 president, just like he was in his run for office. If so, he would be the first president to utilize social media. What do you think? How would this benefit/hurt him?

Like Subway, it's no surprise to anyone that companies hope to capitalize by using celebrities to sell products. The latest to get buzz? Gucci and Rihanna...not a lot going on in this ad, but in reference to "image advertising", what's the message here?

And finally, for no reason at all...because a few of my students said this was funny.

YouTube Embed

Here's my video:
Isn't that funny?

Moms Take on Motrin and Win

Since we discuss advertising and new media so heavily in class, I thought I'd share with you a very interesting article I read on David Armano's blog, Logic + Emotion.

He tracks a "groundswell" of tech-savvy moms upset and offended by a recent advertisement from the pain reliever, Motrin. It's an interesting example of how quickly an event can grow online and force change. Check it out and leave your reactions below. My guess is Motrin's sales will take a hit from this one...

Oh, and just for fun...for my Matrix-loving-PC-haters, I found this video today I think you'll enjoy.

Expect More Ads at the Movies...That Is, If You Still GO to the Movies...

There's no doubt that advertisers are trying to find us, wherever we make be lurking. But this article from AdAge surprised me a little. It talks about how retailers like Gap are placing more targeted spots in movie theaters, hoping to reach consumers there. Do you think this is a good idea on their part? My first thought is, aren't movie sales shrinking as Gen Y occupies itself with other sources of entertainment?

As we've discussed in class, there are two things that happen with movie advertisements: 1) if you show up on time you are a captive audience 2) you know you can be an extra 15 minutes late and don't see the ads at all.

To me, I find ads before movies incredibly annoying. I mean, I just PAID money for a movie ticket and these media companies are still trying to profit? Irritating. I will say, they do a good job of at least making the ads entertaining. (On a media literacy front, I guess it's better to see the clearly labeled ads at the beginning, as opposed to keeping an eye out for hidden product placement.)

So what do you think? With today's economy and a bleak holiday shopping forecast, are more targeted ads in movie theaters the answer retailers are hoping for?

What Made Gen Y Get Out the Vote?

Four years ago I remember a certain few celebrities, like Paris Hilton, stumping for the youth vote with Diddy's "Vote or Die" campaign. Everyone thought young people (you know who you are) would answer the call and prove to their elders they were not slackers at the ballot box.

Paris Hilton didn't even vote.

That was 2004.

What I gathered from the news coverage last night is that this year, things were different. Gen Y proved the once-apathetic young voting block does care and tipped the scales in Obama's favor. As a relatively new Facebook user, I was surprised how vocal my friends were when it came to stumping for their favorite candidate in their status updates...so the buzz certainly was out there. I see it in my classrooms too...students seem to care this time around.

I want to know, what made the difference for you this year, Gen Y?

A Web 2.0 Video

Today in COM 130 we talked about the buzz phrase "Web 2.0". Perhaps, I should have not said word and shown this video instead...



The end is my favorite part!

As a professor, I'm definitely envious of Dr. Wesch!

Also, here's a link to the "talking search engine lady" I referenced today but could not remember. Ms. Dewey is her name, and I suspect my male students will want to see more of her.

Just Because I Think You'd Enjoy These...

Social Networking Wars, from Current:

You Can Vote However You Liiiiiike (click here for lyrics)