Ayn Rand
Remember my post about all the s**t Lululemon was getting about using an Ayn Rand quote on their reusable bags? (Refresh your memory by clicking here.) Well, Women’s Health Magazine posted this tweet the other day:
The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me.
-Ayn Rand
While it is inspirational, I’m curious to see if Women’s Health Magazine gets the same sort of backlash from its readers (excluding me) for quoting such a controversial author. I guess we wait and see…
February 21, 2012 | Categories: Branding | Tags: Ayn Rand, backlash, branding, community, inspiration, Lululemon, tweet, Twitter, Women's Health Magazine | Leave A Comment »
It’s official now! http://m.techvibes.com/blog/twitter-has-just-changed-canadian-politics-forever-2012-01-13
As I was flipping through this week’s issue of Maclean’s magazine yesterday morning, I came upon a paragraph in the “Good News” section that the Feds plan to repeal a section of our Elections Act that makes the transmission of election results before all polls close illegal.
I think this is great. No more worrying if the tweet you send on election day will get you thrown in jail or if your Facebook post will net you a fine. Maybe this will encourage people out West to get out and vote! Oh, the PCs are winning in the east? I still have an hour until my poll closes, I better go vote for the other guy! Maybe if we know we can actually make a real change to a stagnant and stale governing body (as they all eventually become), we can finally break through the wall of voter turnout that is continually in the mid-60% range.
What do you think? Do you believe that announcing results as they come in will make for higher voter turnout?
January 26, 2012 | Categories: Social Media | Tags: election, Facebook, government, Maclean's, social media, Twitter, vote | 1 Comment »
Every year, starting on Boxing Day, Canada rests its hopes and dreams on 23 teenagers, to defend our pride and our country in the World Junior Hockey Championships. When the tournament is held in Canada, we seem to have even bigger expectations of these kids.
Tonight, Team Canada lost in the semi-finals to Russia. The team that beat us last year in the final game, destroying our hopes, once again, of being the best of the best in Junior-level hockey around the globe.
All across Twitter and Facebook, posts were flying about how we couldn’t have won after the crappy second period and all the penalties Canada took. But these boys pulled their shit together in the third period to come back from a 6-1 deficit, scoring 4 goals in the third, eventually losing 6-5. It was a nailbiter of a game. My heart was racing, and at times, it was difficult to watch. But what surprised me the most is the lack of support fellow Canadians were giving these kids when the going got tough, only to jump on the bandwagon again once that third goal was scored.
It’s easy to be tough and to know everything when you’re watching the game from your couch, tweeting advice and displaying your coaching skills on Facebook. But what were you doing when you were 17? Worrying about your diploma exam at the end of the month, and who you were going to go to prom with.
These boys put everything they had on the line for our Canadian pride, and we need to support them. Sure, we won’t be playing Sweden for gold on Thursday, but what’s so bad about playing Finland for bronze? These kids have done what the majority of Canadians will never do or experience – they have held the hopes, dreams, pride, and patriotism of all Canadians on their shoulders since December 26. It’s our responsibility to support them all the way, no matter what the outcome.
As Washington Capitals star (and former Russian Junior team member) Alex Ovechkin said in a tweet after the game “it’s just hockey.”
courtesty www.thestar.com
January 3, 2012 | Categories: Hockey, Reality TV | Tags: Canada, Facebook, hockey, Ovechkin, patriotism, pride, Twitter, World Junior Championship | 1 Comment »
Part 4 of the Globe & Mail’s review of the #yearinhashtags. Today, an examination of the Canadians who started the whole #Occupy fad (I’ll bet you didn’t know it was started by Canadians!).
Click here to read the article.
December 22, 2011 | Categories: Community, Engagement, Social Media | Tags: change, community, engagement, Globe and Mail, Occupy, participate, protests, social media, Twitter | Leave A Comment »
Part 2 in the Globe & Mail’s review of #theyearinhashtags. Today they examine Charlie Sheen. From #winning to #tigerblood, even McDonalds and American Red Cross tried to ride his wave of social media stardom.
Read the article here.
December 20, 2011 | Categories: Social Media | Tags: branding, Charlie Sheen, engagement, Globe and Mail, social media, Twitter, winning | Leave A Comment »
A review of the power of social media from around the world in 2011, courtesy The Globe & Mail.
Part 1: After one man’s protest, a global torrent of message saw dictators fall
December 19, 2011 | Categories: Community, Social Causes, Social Media | Tags: Arab Spring, community, engagement, Globe and Mail, participate, protest, social media, Twitter | Leave A Comment »
I’m at the Hilton hotel in Whistler, wearing my pj’s and watching 13 going on 30, and preparing myself for my first professional conference tomorrow. I’m here for the IABC Canada West “Best of the Best” conference.
I’m thankful my boss agreed to send me, so I can learn how to make our social media strategy even better, among other things. I’ve been looking forward to it since I registered and bought my flight and booked my hotel. But at the same time, I have a bit of the “first day at a new school” jitters. I’ve never been to a conference like this before. Seriously. I know, it’s a little sad, but I’ve never really had the opportunity until now. I’m the only one from my work attending, but I know, thanks to Twitter, that there are many people from Calgary attending. But, I still have the nervous feelings of “what if no one talks to me?” and “what if no one wants to eat lunch with me?” I mean, I’m here for 2 days, amongst a bunch of PR pros and professional networkers, and often in those situations, I tend to revert to my shy-5-year-old-self, wanting to hide behind my mum’s leg. You’d think after 31 years of life, a person would get over that…
Anyway, I’m just happy I’m here in Whistler. The Sea to Sky Highway is pretty spooky on a bus in the dark…especially when the driver almost stalls the bus on a 2-lane highway. When all you can see out any window is the silhouette of mountains on either side of you. But you can only see what the high-beams of the bus are showing you. But I made it..I even ate dinner in the hotel bar by myself. I saw a girl who was on the bus with me in the bar, but again, that shy kid inside of me came out again. And so we sat, at separate tables, alone. Knowing that we had seen each other checking in to the hotel, but neither person willing to make the first move.
So, here’s hoping my first day at a real, professional conference goes well. I have my notebook and pen all ready to go. I probably won’t sleep tonight with all the excitement (regardless of the fact that I’ve been up since 7:30am, thanks to the end of Daylight Savings Time). In the end, I just hope I learn something and that I have a good time. And if that doesn’t happen at the conference itself, I’m sure the brewery tour tomorrow night will be fun!
November 6, 2011 | Categories: Communication | Tags: communication, conference, IABC, public relations, social media, Twitter, Whistler, work | Leave A Comment »
Steve Jobs passed away today, succumbing to a rare form of pancreatic cancer. I saw the news on my Facebook news feed first, and thought “oh well.” He is currently trending on Twitter (and probably will for the next 24 hours, at least), and I’m still not interested.
You see, I never got absorbed in the Apple/iXXXX world. I had an iPod Nano for about a year. Then the battery crapped out and I never went back. I never found a good reason to switch to an operating system that wasn’t always compatible with businesses I was dealing with, I couldn’t use the music in other programs easily (if at all)…and then there’s the whole not-compatible-with-Flash thing. I mean, really? Really. I never did, and never will, understand the hype.
I know millions of people think Steve Jobs was a genius, and yes he was. He made millions of dollars by sucking people in to a cult-like following, revolving around words following the letter “i”. But as I sit here, writing out this post on my BlackBerry, I still don’t see what the big deal is.
So Steve Jobs has passed. It’s sad, sure. But the world will still spin, the sun will still rise tomorrow, and some new genius will come along and brainwash people with the next big thing very soon.
October 5, 2011 | Categories: Branding, Technology | Tags: Apple, BlackBerry, Facebook, iPod, Steve Jobs, technology, trending, Twitter | Leave A Comment »
For the past couple of weeks, I’ve been nagging myself to write another post for my faithful followers. And every day, as bedtime draws near, I think to myself “oh well, maybe tomorrow.” But then the same thing would happen the next day, and the day after that…
I’m not here to apologize for being absent from my blog. The thing is, I haven’t had anything worthwhile to stay. And if I want you, my faithful followers, to keep coming back, I want to be able to provide something interesting and meaningful for you to read!
That’s the great thing about social media - it’s organic. Living by an editorial calendar for your blog posts, tweets or Facebook updates isn’t productive. You won’t create great content if you are forcing yourself to do it. And lately I haven’t had anything to write about, so why force myself to do it? So you can read a mediocre post and think “man, this chick is losing her touch…”
So here I am with no apologies. Reminding myself that social media needs to grow on it’s own. There may be droughts (seen my Twitter feed lately? Not saying much there either), and there may be periods of abundant growth. Just don’t force yourself to do it because you should. Do it because you want to.
July 5, 2011 | Categories: Communication | Tags: blog, desire, Facebook, growth, need, organic, social media, Twitter | 1 Comment »
My sister Jen posted this on Facebook following the Vancouver riots which took place last Wednesday. It sort of makes you think about why it all happened. Thanks Jen for letting me post this here and sharing it with all my readers!
Some thoughts on last night, and why.
Why?
Because the Canucks lost.
Because it would have happened if the Canucks won anyway, to some degree.
Because June is too late to be playing hockey.
Because the success of the Olympics made us complacent.
Because nothing had mattered in this city for weeks except hockey.
Because professional sports foster an us-and-them mentality.
Because 100,000 people is just a little more than a party.
Because the Granville “Entertainment District” is sketchy, at best.
Because the media kept asking “will there be riots?”
Because the media keeps calling them protesters and anarchists.
Because the cops couldn’t have won, no matter what happened.
Because the cops are young men too.
Because security gave up on confiscating alcohol.
Because of flimsy blue fences.
Because drinking yourself stupid is really Canada’s national pastime.
Because of advertising.
Because of the myth of youth.
Because you need a cool Facebook pic.
Because of the Internet.
Because of cellphones.
Because of social media.
Because all your friends were doing it.
Because there are so many luxury cars in this town.
Because having everything doesn’t mean having everything.
Because of nannies.
Because of strollers until you’re 5.
Because of playdates.
Because there’s no more playing until the streetlights come on.
Because we have no true coming-of-age rituals.
Because we have no true public festivals.
Because we have no true public institutions.
Because phys. ed. isn’t mandatory.
Because the future is more of the same.
Because your vote doesn’t matter.
Because of suburbia.
Because there’s no connection with nature.
Because there’s no connection with the world.
Because this is a city of contradictions.
Because life’s a beach, and then you die.
Because adolescence starts at 8.
Because adolescence ends at…
Because spectacle overrules real experience.
Because.
June 20, 2011 | Categories: Community, Politics, Social Causes | Tags: advertising, because, community, engagement, Facebook, hockey, riots, thoughts, Twitter, Vancouver, why? | 3 Comments »
Did you see the Vancouver Canucks win the Stanley Cup last night?…
Wait, that didn’t happen. The Boston Bruins won (congrats Boston! You played a great series), and Vancouver fans, as good Canadian hockey fans, were not happy at all.
The booing started inside Rogers Arena, and when the 18,000+ fans spilled onto the streets after the Cup was hoisted by the boys in black and gold, the trouble began.
According to my Twitter feed, it started with a car that was flipped and then caught on fire. Then another one. I don’t have a huge following on Twitter, so my Timeline isn’t all that extensive, but the tweets, retweets, photos and comments started pouring in.
The funny part – the news outlets were the slowest to report anything. It seemed like at least 15 minutes after the first car was on fire that a news outlet was finally posting about it. Sure, they need to check their sources, but do they not have anyone reliable on their social media feeds that they can trust in a situation like that?
It still amazes me the speed at which news flies around the social media world. 17 years ago (the last time there were riots in Vancouver because they didn’t win the Cup), I’m sure everyone’s TVs were tuned to CBC for full coverage, which was probable very delayed. Heck, last night the CBC were still playing a bit of catch up, and their studio looks out over the main area where the car fires and idiocy started!
So, as the Vancouver Police Department scour Facebook pages today of people stupid enough to post photos of themselves and their friends taking part in the riots, I am somewhat thankful for the instant news feed social media has provided to us. And I am not so proud to call myself Canadian after the classless acts of a few Vancouverites last night.
June 16, 2011 | Categories: Social Media | Tags: CBC, Facebook, hockey, riots, social media, Twitter, Vancouver | 2 Comments »
The Society for New Communication and Middleberg Communications announced the results of their 3rd annual “Survey of Media in the Wired World” today, and some of their findings may cause PR practitioners to stop and think (and possibly) reevaluate how we are communicating with the media. The survey (you can read the full press release here) found that while 75% of reporters use Facebook as a tool to assist them with reporting, along with 69% using Twitter for the same reason, 54% of journalists still prefer to receive information via email, and 34% prefer a phone call.
I’m not sure if I’m really surprised by these findings. Many people are still skeptical about the accuracy and truthfulness of social media, and when your job is to report on the facts, you want to ensure that your information is correct. Social media can be an effective way for journalists to track stories and issues, but a large portion still want to get the basic information straight from the horse’s mouth.
So, with this information, will you change how you communicate with reporters?
May 10, 2011 | Categories: Media | Tags: Facebook, journalists, Middleberg Communications, public relations, reporters, social media, Society for New Communication, strategy, survey, Twitter | Leave A Comment »
The US Government is playing with the idea of using Facebook and Twitter to keep its citizens informed of terrorism threats. They also say that if posting the warnings will further enhance those threats, or risk exposing security intelligence or investigations, they won’t do it.
So why bother at all? Are they going to restrict the postings to only their friends or followers? Until you’re screened by the account keeper for Twitter and FB, you won’t be able to see the threats? And really, is it that important for Average American Joe to know what the current threat level? If he doesn’t find out about it until the 11pm news, will he be worse off? Wouldn’t all increases in the threat level compromise “top-secret” investigations the Department of Homeland Security is undertaking? Why do I feel like there will be one post, a huge security breach of leaked information, and then the accounts go quiet?..
April 7, 2011 | Categories: Communication, Social Media | Tags: Facebook, Globe and Mail, social media, terrorism, Twitter, US Government | 3 Comments »
Today, I caved under pressure. I joined Twitter. I’ve been thinking about it for awhile…I mean c’mon, who wouldn’t want to follow Charlie Sheen or Justin Bieber? But after a conversation over beer with a couple of co-workers last night, I was finally convinced. Especially after the feedback “You’re in communications and you’re not on Twitter?!?” I’m still not sure I get the point, but I did it. I’m sure something great will come out of it…or I just have another distraction for me on my BlackBerry.
If you want to follow me, I am A2_AliAbel.
Tweet tweet!
March 11, 2011 | Categories: Social Media | Tags: communications, Twitter, work | Leave A Comment »
While I was drinking my coffee this morning, waiting for my partner to get out of bed so we could go to work, I flipped open my newest issue of Maclean’s magazine. This week’s letter from the editors is commenting on our federal government’s use of Twitter (specifically, our Prime Minister), to make a decision on a very controversial issue in Canada – usage based billing for the internet.
To give you some context, the CRTC, our regulatory group for all things radio, television, and I guess, internet, agreed with some of our major internet providers that people should start being billed for going over their monthly bandwidth allowance on their internet services, and that “unlimited” packages (mostly offered by the smaller players) should no longer be allowed.
You can probably understand why so many Canadians were upset about this. With Netflix finally coming north of the border, and online television watching growing in popularity, people could only imagine what this would do to our internet bills!
Prime Minister Stephen Harper agreed with the dissenters, tweeting “We’re very concerned about CRTC’s decision on usage-based billing and its impact on consumers. I’ve asked for a review of the decision.”
So why are the editors of Maclean’s so up in arms about the tweet? They think it’s wrong that there was no formal press release, Harper didn’t stand up in parliament and state that the CRTC ruling is unacceptable, he didn’t give a speech.
Sure, it does seem a little odd. But given the subject (usage-based billing for the internet), I think it’s totally appropriate.
What are your thoughts?
February 16, 2011 | Categories: Media, Politics, Technology | Tags: CRTC, government, internet, Maclean's, Twitter, usage-based billing | 2 Comments »
Now I really wonder when our “text” language will end up in the Oxford Dictionary and accepted as the social norm…
Reuters January 11, 2011
Twitter users tweet messages with regional dialects, using “suttin” for “something” if they are New Yorkers and “sumthin” if they are not, a new study found.
The social media site is displaying new dialects because it is such a conversational form of writing, according to the Carnegie Mellon University study to be presented on Tuesday to the Linguistic Society of America meeting in Pittsburgh.
On Twitter, users send or tweet messages no more than 140 characters long and often abbreviate to accommodate the short, quick format.
“Written communication often is less reflective of regional influences because writing, even in blogs, tends to be formal, and thus homogenized,” the study team said in a statement.
The study found Twitter users in southern California might tweet “coo” for “cool,” while those in northern California are more likely to write “koo,” it found.
The word “very” is often expressed as “OD” in New York and “hella” in northern California, the study found.
The word “you” is often “uu” in New York but a single ‘u’ elsewhere, it said. Twitter users in large cities are more likely to use ‘yu’ than those in rural or suburban areas.
The study looked at 380,000 tweets by 9,500 users who wrote at least 20 messages via cell phone over a week in March 2010.
Regional dialects may be present on Facebook and other social media, but those are more private and less easily studied, said Jacob Eisenstein, who led the study.
The differences in regional expression allowed researchers to predict the location of a user in the United States within about 300 miles, Eisenstein said.
January 11, 2011 | Categories: Social Media | Tags: Calgary Herald, social media, Twitter | 5 Comments »
I stumbled across this story while browsing my Time magazine app on my BlackBerry the other day. It’s about the question of whether Twitter should have a place in the court room. My thoughts – yes, but it needs to be monitored somehow. I figure if they can allow Facebook posts and status updates as evidence in a court room, reporters should be allowed to tweet the proceeding, as long as they are still following the same laws/rules/regulations that are in place today (hence the need for monitoring it).
As our world becomes more “social” and plugged in, our institutions need to stay up to speed with the technology and how society is using it. The average citizen doesn’t just walk in to a court room on a random day to follow proceeding anymore; we need to be open and accessible to the people, and adapt to all the ways people are accessing that information.
So yes, allow social media in courts, but there needs to be a monitoring system set up before it gets out of hand.
December 24, 2010 | Categories: Media, Social Media | Tags: accessible, BlackBerry, court, Facebook, monitor, regulations, reporter, social media, Time Magazine, Twitter | Leave A Comment »
I just saw an article in the Calgary Herald from this morning, talking about whether or not teachers should be using Facebook and Twitter to communicate with their students outside of school hours. After I had a good chuckle about the girl who said all her teachers are awesome, so she wouldn’t mind being friends with them on Facebook, I had another thought.
I think this is a brilliant idea! I’m not saying that teachers should be using these sites to “spy” on their students, but to set up a Facebook group for your class, or a class stream on Twitter, where students can collaborate on assignments, and teachers are able to mediate the conversation.
There is no point in denying that social media is the way people are communicating with each other, so why not embrace the technologies and use them to help educate students? Why not educate students on the benefits and drawbacks of social media, and help them to use it in the best and most effective ways possible? Teachers should be using all tools available to them, going where their students are going, because we know that these kids are spending hundreds of hours each year on social media sites. If we can help educate them at the same time, why wouldn’t we do it??
December 6, 2010 | Categories: Social Media | Tags: Calgary Herald, communicate, education, Facebook, participate, social, student, teacher, Twitter | Leave A Comment »
