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[VIDEO] Tweets in Realtime. Social media, new technology and breaking global news.

/ John Ayers / Leave a comment

With the news that Osama Bin Laden is dead, comes with it emotions from one side of the spectrum to the other. There is also the news media, the talking heads, the political jockeying, and there is also the ‘real time’ world of dialogue seen in social media.

Although at times it is one-way communication more than two way or group discussion… the entire earth is slowly becoming part of the conversation.
As more and more developing countries and cultures move into the digital age… this will only continue.

I found this event and the hashtag #osamabinladen and others – as noted in the screenshot to be rather amazing.
The social in social media is growing. The world is becoming flatter as we moving into cloud computing, mobile technology and instant global communications.

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Just captured this video using Jing and posted it to screencast…
Check it out… to follow these tweets in real time is difficult as you will see in the video.


View on screencast.com »

If you are interested in what is being said and who is saying it… you can tap the pause button on lower left.

#Social #Media and #Barack #Obama Dot Com. Are You In?

/ John Ayers / Leave a comment

I generally stay away from two things in large scale conversation. Religion and Politics.

Meaning I only have these discussions usually just with people who I know quite well and our differences in opinion on the subject matter doesn’t jeopardize the relationship or friendship we have.

But with the recent visit from President Obama to Facebook and then to Los Angeles (where I am) I was intrigued to hear and see some of the dialogue, so much so that while on-line… I clicked from one site to another and ended up at BarackObama.com… which simply asked one question.

ARE YOU IN?

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Without getting into my personal political leanings, or who I voted for in the past 20 years or who I will vote for in the next… I asked myself… well AM I IN?

Couple things came to  mind.
What if I’m not?
Who else is “IN”?
If I say I’m in… have I just committed to something that I wish I wouldn’t have.
The questions continued… and I exited the site.
You can opt to click thru by simply hitting the small italic type underneath that reads “Continue to the website…

But see our on-line experience is more that a web-site.
It was a web-site 3-4 years ago perhaps when the 2008 Presidential campaign was taking place.
But our User Experience expectations, our on-line appetite and internet savvy has evolved.

Mr Obama was the first Presidential candidate to utilize social media… really the first one who had access to it to the degree that it became available and it appears he is going after a social media run for pres in 2012 in a similar fassion.

But is this entrance into the site… working? Is it inviting? Is it what he should be asking? Is it a turn-off?
If the country were humming along with record low unemployment.
With honest Wall Street back on track and some who were serving time for wrong doings.
With gas prices at a reasonable place.
With the educational system on a solid trajectory.
With the conflict we’ve been involved with coming to some conclusions.
With Washington insiders that are no-longer insiders on both the left and right.

If all of this were better than the American people believe it to be currently…

Well then maybe “ARE YOU IN?” would be a good question to ask.  Yes, you might be “IN” then – perhaps most would say they are “IN”.

But I was watching CNN and they cited a recent NY Times CBS Poll and what it indicated… hmm the stats don’t look good… and the use of social media in his 2008 run, though very successful, may not work going forward. START AT PAGE 12 “President Obama and the Economy” and you may thing that the BarackObama.com site may want to re-think their home page.

For me, I am kinda bitter about politicians on both sides of the aisle… so I’ll just recommend the UX consideration.
Cheers,
John

Has #social #media found its true potential in the uprising of countries as we are witnessing in #egypt ?

/ John Ayers / Leave a comment
When Twitter co-founders @ev  and  @BIZ developed the 140 character communication, did they or anyone else for that matter – have any sense that it could be a critical tool for those looking to reach out to the world for peace?

Did Facebook founder Matt Z know what his dorm-room idea may be in the realm of the historic global issues unfolding before us?

Social media as powerful as it is in business and commerce – is nothing compared to the sharing of information that is happening.

The gravity that comes with the communication occurring via youtube, twitter, facebook, blogs, and internet news sources is powerful to say the least.

When a mobile phone held by a supporter of a movement can report from their personal perspective, and their image, or ‘voice’ is multiplied many times over, across the globe, it is revolutionary on many levels.

To the degree that communication was shut down… and has become part of the story.

Social media in some ways is leading the story, not by bringing the origin of the thought or emotion, but by spreading those thoughts and emotions. And by its very nature, it is social, it is media, it is real time and it is global.

Has social media made it easier or more difficult for some organizations to help?
Will governments around the globe utilize social media tools in the communications?
Will further unrest build because of the communication flow occurring?
and will there be new tools developed because of the events we are witnessing?

One thing is for certain, social media or the tools that have become synonymous with it has roared onto the western landscape and is making its way across the globe in these very tense times.

I am a strong believer of shared information, and the activists who are putting their lives on the line are changing the way communication, political policy, internet use, news cycles and life itself is unfolding. And in the process are finding a voice they may never otherwise had and are changing the course of history.

#Kids play 10,000 hours of #video #games. A look at Pro social games and why #parents should know about them.

/ John Ayers / Leave a comment

There are (at times) videos such as those found at TED talks that inspire me, concern me, motivate me and I will share them.

This video (not from TED) came in to my in-box this morning and I had to share it. 

fora.tv – (the world is thinking) offers up a discussion that has been bouncing around for years… what is the effect of video games on our children’s development?  First person shooters have been one of the focuses… if a child plays violent games for 10,000 hours there is reasonable concern this may have a negative impact on the child’s behavior. 

Researchers are flipping this upside down and asking … Can games be positive to your child? Can games have a social impact to benefit your child’s behavior? If so, what games, how, how much, how often, to what degree?

I suggest, that if you are a young gamer, have kids that are playing, you should be informed. This talk will help you start at the tip of the ice berg on this discussion.   

These are just a few of the many, many articles, studies and finding on this subject.
What is a ProSocial Video Game? Learn here. or see complete research pdf
This is a great article worth reading; PsycologyToday
Amazing research if you have interest can be found here. 
And have a look at this from Education.com