What's in a logo? O a lot...

Interesting article on what this little red lines at the bottom of Obama's O might just mean...

Death To The Embargo

Interesting post today from Michael Arrington and TechCrunch on their embargo policy. I wouldn't have trusted them to hold an embargo anyway, but good to know their new official policy.

I tend to agree with Arrington's commentary for the most part. We've seen broken embargo's on a lot of announcements in the past year, often by news sites looking to get an edge on their competition. A broken embargo can often favor the client though and help drive interest in the news/products being announced.

We've been talking about the challenges to the traditional media embargo in the new media environment for a while now and can't say this is a big surprise. In the future, I think we'll see less "embargos" and more exclusives in targeted sites/outlets where we have the strongest relationships and the news will have the greatest impact.

If you could change your name to a movie character what would it be?

So NFL player Greg White who plays for the Buccaneers just changed his name to Stylez G. White. For what reason - he liked the character Rupert "Stiles" Stilinski in Teen Wolf. http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shutdown_corner/post/I-nominate-Stylez-G-White-for-best-NFL-name-cha?urn=nfl,129376

So that makes me wonder what movie character name would you like for yourself?

I think I would go with Joshua after the supercomputer in War Games. "Would you like to play a game of chess?"

Chime in. Let me know what movie character name you want.

Promote the Cause, Promote Yourself!

This foundation's site is radical...And they're a PN client!

www.stoppovertynow.org - It's an innovative twist for Grameen Foundation donations.

The site displays a gray-scale, multi-grid photo of monetary recipients. Donors are encouraged to select a grid(s) for $10 each and when their donation is made the gray-scale turns to color and begins revealing the entire photo. In addition, the donor can upload a personal photo and brief statement so other visitors can see who made the donation to fill each grid! As you scroll across the photo, donor pictures pop up with a brief message. Some folks have used it to post a link for related sites and/or offer a message of hope.

Check it out and throw down a 10-$pot!!!

More bleak media news

Despite having a near-record weekly audience, NPR today announded plans to cut 64 jobs and cancel two weekday programs, “Day to Day” and “News & Notes” after an unexpected revenue shortfall. Interesting article about it in NYT today: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/11/business/media/11npr.html?ref=television

Wanna be YouTube Famous?

Some people have been wanting to watch the Lip Dub that made its debut at the office holiday party.

A quick update on the status of our Lip Dub; As your may or may not remember, the purpose of this project was to make an arbitrary video that we would then promote using the most ruthless and cutthroat tactics we felt comfortable with as outlined in the infamous TechCrunch article.

Well now that the video portion is done, we are in the process of hammering out tactics for distribution and "views" accumulation. This will involve some minor edits to the video, splitting it up into a few chunks and then playing with tags, titles and thumbnails to make it perfect. Once its ready, we will have about 48-72 hours to try and make the videos take off. It will be an interesting challenge considering that Lib Dubs were already so last year by the time Julia Alyson uttered her first self-indulgent word. We hope to start tackling this project early next week.

In the interim, we will leave a copy of the video as is on the G drive for those times in the day when you need to see Brent sing Nirvana or Martin channel some smooth jazz.

Twitter a Journo

@ericasmith, who runs the graphicdesignr blog, has posted an amazing list of 793 reporters, editors and newspapers who are using Twitter. Following these folks will not only help you get a better perspective on what they are writing but also could lead to a valuable reporter relationship.

Is this the end of the newspaper?

The Tribune Co., owner of prominent dailies such as The Los Angeles Times and The Chicago Tribune filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy today reporting $13 billion in debt. Although much of the blame can be placed on the organization's decision to go private last year, how many of you think the internet might have something to do with it?

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gNDAWajvnGvxJuuFKhrXzcCGU30QD94URM5G0

Remeber ElfYourself.com?

Of course you do! You were probably one of those who elfed themselves. :) You'll be happy to hear that it's back this year with improved dance moves and more including a facebook app - who woulda thunk it?!?

Check out this adage article that gives some insight into what is and isn't a real viral campaign.

http://adage.com/digitalnext/article?article_id=133058

Top 11 Lamest Blogs

If I created a blog called, The Dullest Blog in the World, and was featured on MSN in an article titled, "Top 11 Lamest Blogs" I think I'd be breaking out the bubbly right about now.

Another Reason to Love Seth Godin...

Don't go to business school. Probably the best advice ever.

Wonder if the action figure I have of him could curry extra favor?

Anderson Cooper Taking on The AP?

"CNN, in the afterglow of an election season of record ratings for cable news, is elbowing in on a new line of business: catering to financially strained newspapers looking for an alternative to The Associated Press."

Finally You Can Post All Your Pictures Online Without Worrying About HR

Meet Friendbo, created right here at the UW.

NY Times Rolls Out Holiday Technology Section

The Pogue-o-matic seems to be more of a directory of products than actual shopping advice from David so I'm not sure how helpful this is going to be for those who are in search for gadgets this season. I wonder if this is going to come down after the Holiday's or transition into a permanent page for the Times?

NYTimes.com announced this week its new "Holiday Technology" section with three features in time for the upcoming holiday season that are designed to provide consumers with expert guidance on the vast array of electronic products available on the market.

The Pogue-o-matic (http://www.nytimes.com/pogueomatic) is an interactive product finder with video of David Pogue, the Times's personal technology columnist, offering insights on an array of cameras, camcorders, smart phones and TVs. The Pogue-o-matic guides a gadget shopper through the key feature choices in each category, then generates product recommendations based on the shopper's preferences. The results can be printed, sent by email or relayed by text to a mobile phone.

Gadgetwise (http://www.nytimes.com/gadgetwise) is a new blog devoted to helping readers get smarter about buying and using personal electronics in their daily lives. Gadgetwise bloggers include Rik Fairlie (digital photography), Roy Furchgott (mobile technology), Eric Taub (home entertainment) and Stephen Williams (personal computing) who have each covered technology products and trends for numerous websites and publications. After the holidays, the Gadgetwise blog will continue as a consumer-oriented complement to The Times's Bits blog.

The Technology Gift Guide (http://www.nytimes.com/holidaytech) is an interactive slide show offering gift recommendations from Times editors and reporters for four distinct groups: road warriors; home entertainment aficionados; outdoor and athletic enthusiasts; and preteens. There will be five to 10 gift suggestions for each category accompanied by product details and slideshows.

"Our 'Holiday Technology' section will make it easier for consumers to make the best decisions about their electronic purchases at a time when there is an increasing number of choices," said Damon Darlin, Times technology editor. "The Pogue-o-matic combines David's expertise with his unique sense of humor making the gift giving process accessible, informative and extremely entertaining."

Tech Media's Most Influential Web Sites

Rob forwarded this on to me last week and I'd thought I'd post it here for those that hadn't seen it yet. This list comes from Techmeme's Leaderboard. The biggest shocker for me was to see Engadget drop from 2nd place to 19th. Are there any sites that you often reference that you don't see on here?

"Since the Techmeme Leaderboard reflects the reality that both blog-driven sites and traditional sites define today's news, use it to discover new sources, recommend sites to others, or illustrate where tech news breaks."

1. TechCrunch (still at the top)
2. CNET News (up from 5th)
3. Silicon Alley Insider (up from 13th)
4. VentureBeat (up from 25th)
5. New York Times (down from 3rd)
6. Ars Technica (down from 4th)
7. AppleInsider (up from 49th)
8. Gizmodo (up from 15th)
9. Wall Street Journal (up from 10th)
10. ReadWriteWeb (down from 6th)
11. Reuters (up from 12th)
12. ZDNet Between the Lines (up from 14th)
13. Techdirt (up from 30th)
14. GigaOm (down from 7th)
15. Webware (up from 23rd)
16. The Register (down from 9th)
17. NYT Bits (up from 34th)
18. Boy Genius Report (up from 38th)
19. Engadget (down from 2nd)
20. The Official Google Blog (up from 67th)
21. PC World (up from 42nd)
22. paidContent.org (down from 17th)
23. Boom Town (up from 51st)
24. BBC (down from 8th)
25. Valleywag (up from 99th)
26. TorrentFreak (down from 24th)
27. CNET's Beyond Binary (NEW TO LIST)
28. All about Microsoft (up from 39th)
29. MediaMemo (NEW TO LIST)
30. IntoMobile (NEW TO LIST)
31. Washington Post (up from 56th)
32. Tech Trader Daily (up from 50th)
33. Infinite Loop (NEW TO LIST)
34. Computerworld (down from 20th)
35. Electronista (up from 64th)
36. InfoWorld (down from 11th)
37. Microsoft (down from 32nd)
38. MacRumors (NEW TO LIST)
39. Bloomberg (up from 53rd)
40. BusinessWeek (down from 28th)
41. Search Engine Land (down from 19th)
42. NewTeeVee (up from 69th)
43. Business Wire (down from 29th)
44. eWeek.com (down from 16th)
45. WSJ's Business Technology (NEW TO LIST)
46. CNET's The Social (NEW TO LIST)
47. Laptop Magazine (NEW TO LIST)
48. TechFlash (up from 80th)
49. Epicenter (down from 48th)
50. Gadget Lab (NEW TO LIST)