For several years, many music fans and critics alike have speculated that Kelly Rowland was/is jealous of her more successful band mate Beyoncé Knowles. On May 15, Rowland confirmed this in the first verse of her new single, “Dirty Laundry,” that there was a time that she envied Beyoncé’s solo success. She sings, “when my sister was on stage, killin’ it like a (expletive)/ I was enraged, feelin’ it like a (expletive)/ Bird in a cage, you would never know what I was dealing with/ Went our separate ways, but I was happy she was killin’ it/ Bittersweet, she was up, I was down…”

While there may have been a time that critics would have reveled in such a confession, a much more harrowing revelation came as the song played out. In the second and third verses Rowland revealed a dark secret that she had been holding onto: she had been in an abusive relationship for many years.

Rowland sings, “this (expletive) puttin’ his hands on me…I was battered, he hit in a window like it was me until it shattered/ He pulled me out, he said ‘Don’t nobody love you but me / Not your mama, not your daddy and especially not Bey.’”

While Rowland and Knowles have since rekindled and strengthened the bond between them, the abuse is still a sensitive subject for the former. “It was very emotional. It took me days to record,” Rowland said in an exclusive interview with Billboard. “I had to get past being so upset and actually sing the song, not sob through it. I always hope that my music can inspire someone, the same way other artists inspire me.”

Since the song’s premiere, many fans of Destiny’s Child have made a connection to one of DC3’s last songs as a group, “Girl.” In this song the trio sings to a friend who has been going through a hard time in a relationship. In the first verse Beyonce sings, “in your face I can see the pain, don’t you try to convince us that you’re happy./ We’ve seen this all before, But he’s taking advantage of the passion/Because we’ve come too far for you to feel alone, you don’t let him walk over your heart.” In the accompanying video, the member that was being sang to was none other than Rowland. Fans flocked to YouTube and other social media outlets to express shock and sadness as well as admiration for Rowland’s willingness to share her traumatic ordeal with them.

While no one knows for sure who the man that Rowland was referring to is, her ex-fiance, NFL player Roy Williams, assured her fans and his as well that he was not the abuser. “So Kelly has a new song. Called #DirtyLaundry.. & what ever she’s saying in it ppl thinks it’s me. #wow #imnottheonlypersonshedated #wasntme,” he tweeted.

While the speculation of which ex is guilty of abusing the songstress continues, fans can focus their attention on “Talk a Good Game,” Rowland’s fourth studio album led by “Kisses Down Low,” which will arrive in stores on June 18.

Image credit: Kelly Rowland on Instagram

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Through the smoke billowing out from the two explosions and amidst the screams of those injured and scared, a modern tool stepped up in the chaos to bring needed information and a semblance of order during the horrific attack Monday, April 15 on the Boston Marathon. Twitter, the modern-day ally who aided so much in the reporting of Tunisia and the Middle East rebellions, once again provided a forum for all those seeking to find and put out information in second-by-second updates.

The bombs went off at 3 p.m. along Boylston Street, Boston, as seen here on this graphic created by The New York Times, about an hour and a half after the first runners of the Boston Marathon crossed the finish line. Pictures, videos, and tweets were almost immediately posted online as Boston Police and other officials directed the uninjured to evacuation routes, and medical personnel rushed into the smoke, broken glass, and blood.

Photographers, news stations, and friends and family members of the runners all held cell phone cameras to record what should have been a wonderful moment of accomplishment, with many snapping photos in the otherwise clear afternoon light. Though the pictures and videos rapidly turned grim, reporters and authorities were quick to utilize the advantage these recordings provided. The Boston Police department’s twitter page put up a tweets such as that an explosion did indeed occur, and kept updating the page with information on what citizens of Boston were expected to do.

As more and more images went up, police were able to have before and after pictures of the finish line and of at least one of the bomb sites. Any possible way investigators can piece together what happened is crucial.

The ability to use Twitter also allowed civilians, both those caught in the attack and those with friends or family in the area, to reassure one another of their locations and safety, even though authorities, to prevent any remote detonations, shut down cell phone service in the Boston area. Through texting, Twitter, and Facebook, people were able to find their loved ones, and find information on where to go or how to help.

Many other sites and organizations used Twitter as a posting board, putting up links to other sources of information and aid. Google put up a reminder about their Google Person Finder program, a system that allows you to enter in a person’s name or information and uses it much like a status, searching their database and others like it for matching or related information. This allows people to help one another find their loved ones during times when phones are disabled.

The Red Cross used Twitter to inform the public that they, at that time, did have enough donated blood to meet the demand. This was important to get out, as some of the runners who were not injured by the blasts headed towards the nearest hospital with the goal to give blood. The extra people milling about the emergency rooms and lobbies were an unneeded distraction with the hundreds of victims being rushed in.

News reporters and even the White House used the social media to update the American people on what was being done and when to expect more information. At 6:00 p.m. that day, three hours after the first explosion, the official White House twitter page announced when President Obama would address the nation. 

What all this boils down to is that in our age of the Internet, information can be updated again and again as new facts and new events are happening, even in the middle of a confusing and shocking crisis. In this way, officials can get out necessary information, can utilize the eyes and experiences of witnesses, and people can find their loved ones in an amazingly short time. For all the bad talk that this generation of technology gets, its uses in times of trouble are many and, as this event shows, are rapidly becoming invaluable.

Image credit: R.I.P. Boston Bombing

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Causes often depend on donations to support its good initiative. These sometimes come in the form of food or water, other times money or clothing, or even volunteers and the capabilities of infra-structure. But what about words?

Believing in the power of words, the Doe Palavras Project, ‘Donate Words’ in English, was conceived to change the notion that helping other people through donation does not necessarily have to be in measurable assets. The Mário Pena Institute in Minas Gerais, Brazil, is a hospital center focused on cancer treatment. They developed the idea of combining the need to support people going through hard times with the opportunities of social networks to develop something through the transformational power of the words.

Screens distributed in the rooms where patients receive their chemotherapy show messages sent by strangers who wish to encourage another human being struggling with life-threatening cancer. These messages are sent using Twitter.

The words can help motivate one person to the long path of a healthy treatment. The project goes beyond the traditional way to help and develops a simple and effective way to “donate.” The project explains that what the patients need the most are positive messages of love, hope and strength. They need to believe that the treatment will make them better.

The idea is really simple: people from around the world send heart-warming and encouraging messages using the project’s website or through Twitter, by adding the hashtag #doepalavras or #donatewords.

Messages such as “Strength and courage I send to you today for you are braver than you think and stronger than you feel” and “While there is a will to fight, there is hope of winning” will reach those who do not need food or water, but support on the road to recovery.

Doe Palavras also has an English version, Donate Words, and is available for free to any hospital that wants to use the system.

In seven months, the project has garnered 1,306,710 messages from 128 countries around the world and brought smiles to people who may have had to overcome the hardest challenge of their lives.

It has been an applauded initiative and has already received many awards, such as the Big Idea Chair of Yahoo and the Top of Marketing 2010. There is also a plan to make a book that compiles the best messages, which will then be distributed to hospitals.

Image courtesy: Instituto Mario Penna

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VH1 is known for music programming and reality television; however, that will soon change as the network makes its bold, first attempt at a scripted film,”Crazy Sexy Cool: The TLC Story.” The long awaited film will take viewers on a ride from the group members’ beginnings, to their meteoric rise to the top of the music charts in the 1990s and beyond.

Hip-hop artist and television personality Lil Mama will have the honor of portraying the late Lisa “Left Eye” Lopez. Lil Mama emerged onto the scene in 2007 with her infectious hit single “Lip Gloss” from her “VYP: Voice of the Young People” album. The song attained a Gold certification from the RIAA in 2008, while the album went on to sell 19, 000 copies in its first week and 66,000 copies thereafter. Lil Mama then began serving as a judge on MTV’s “America’s Best Dance Crew“ in 2008 at the age of 19. This will be her first film.

Keke Palmer has been chosen to portray Rozunda “Chili” Thomas. Unlike Lil Mama, Palmer is not new to the film industry. The 19-year-old has appeared in films alongside Laurence Fishburne (‘Akeelah and the Bee’), Tyler Perry (‘Madea’s Family Reunion’), Ice Cube (‘The Longshots’) and Dolly Parton (‘Joyful Noise’), among others. Of her new role, Palmer tells the Daily News, “I’m excited to be a part of this amazing project portraying one of the members of such an iconic group that inspired my passion for music.”

Drew Sidora will round out the cast as Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins. Sidora’s most notable roles are as Lucy Avila in ‘Step Up’, alongside Channing Tatum, and as herself on “The Game”, a television series. When the news first broke of her involvement in the biopic, Sidora took to her twitter account to thank her fans and share a few encouraging words. “Be sure to always believe in yourself. Never give up! Stay optimistic and persistent and amazing things will come into play!”

Though some TLC fans have expressed doubts that the ladies will be able to pull off their portrayals, VH1’s Executive Vice President of Original Programming and Production is confident that the project will be a success. “With this cast, we are thrilled with the talent assembled both in front of and behind the cameras,” he said. “TLC are truly music pioneers and this movie is a fantastic way to expand our scripted push by combining our audience’s passion for music with their love of story. We know our viewers will be eager to go beyond the headlines and into the surprisingly personal, never before told stories of these groundbreaking women.”

TLC’s surviving members, Thomas and Watkins, will serve as the film’s executive producers.

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A budding artist has recently been thrust into the limelight all due to a single Instagram re-post by megastar Beyoncé.

A couple weeks ago, 20-year-old Baltimore artist, Briah Neale posted her painting of Beyoncé on her Instagram and it was re-posted by Beyoncé, which has since garnered immense attention towards Neale and her art work. The recognition which Neale has received by Beyoncé is something that she is humbled by and still in awe of.

“I was honored to have her recognize my artwork, I appreciate any and everyone who loves my artwork but it is amazing to have the person you created for to feel the same as well, sort of like an affirmation of a job well done. Beyoncé is very influential, not just in the music industry but in the world…right now it still hasn’t sunken it yet,” Neale said.

Neale has always dreamed of becoming an artist but she did not think that her dream would manifest so suddenly.

“I can remember being that kid in second when asked what I wanted to be saying an artist, or sitting on the curb at recess with my best friend drawing. I never wanted anything more; I couldn’t imagine myself doing anything else. However, I didn’t expect the recognition to come at all I never thought my art would have this affect. I just create because it’s what I love and I still would without any accolades or praise,” Neale said.

Neale has been painting in her animation style for about four years now and she first learned how to manipulate oil paints in the summer of 2009 during a portfolio building course taken at the Maryland Institute College of Art.

“The skills I learned there were traditional stylings but I have recently come into my own style, giving each of my pieces a sort of pop art feel,” Neale said.

The Beyoncé piece is 14 x 17″ and it is mixed media on a Bristol board. She used everything from a sharpie marker, to Speedball inks, acrylic paint, oil paints and gouache. She wanted it to be fun and playful like the image but she chose a more pastel palette because it seemed softer. Neale imagined Beyoncé being “very dainty, very feminine and I wanted to play on that.”

The enormous attention surrounding Neale and her work has become a whirlwind with her receiving countless emails, inquiries and comments through email Twitter, Tumblr and Instagram regarding the prints of the Beyoncé piece. She did not realize how many people saw the painting until requests started pouring in. She has heard from Singapore, Japan, France, Thailand, Australia, Canada, Germany, and London and all over the UK.

“Beyoncé has diehard fans who just want to feel like they have a piece of her and knowing she approves makes it that much more special,” Neale said.

Having such a strong demand for prints, Neale has decided to sell 99 exclusive prints that will be autographed for authenticity. She is building a website and will be releasing them and have her other artwork showcased at the top of this year.

“I chose to do 99 copies because to me the piece was special so I wanted it to be a rarity, a treasure. That much more exclusive knowing that only 99 in the world have been made and once they are gone they are gone. I will not do a reprint, each one of them will be number 1 of 99, 2 of 99 and so forth,” Neale said. She also plans to get the original piece sent to Beyoncé in the near future.

For Neale, having Instagram as the media outlet that got her noticed was a shock but it was not completely unexpected.

“I know the influence that social media has on my generation and the world as a whole in today’s society. I knew very well that it could be a gateway to get my artwork exposure, but I never imagine it would happen so quickly and on a scale of this magnitude,” Neale said.

She is grateful for the rise in recognition and as far as what it will do for the future it has definitely gotten her name out there and even better on a global platform.

“I am so excited for what is next for me, I can’t wait to see what God has in store for me, and I can’t wait to show the world my full potential.”

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It’s the business of engagement, of interpretation, of reaching people before they reach the product or service they love. Social media from an instrumental perspective has helped evolve a sub-class of new society based on their participation in online activities. It has changed the way we look around us.

Earlier it was considered a platform for socializing, a window that connects people, an auxiliary for leisure, a corner to share emotions and share ideas. Over a period of time it transformed into a major marketing pillar. From start-ups to local business and multinational corporations, all businesses recognized the need to expand their presence online using sites that connect and involve direct human participation.

Days of traditional marketing through newspapers, magazine advertisements, posters and television commercials seem to be fading. The size of human engagement online is greater than conventional marketing mediums.

Marketing, no matter conventional or technocratic, blows away barriers and distance between potential customers and the product. A real-time analogy tells us that online marketing through social media sites makes far-reaching interactions with millions of people at the same time easy.

Simple Facebook or LinkedIn user statistics are enough to support the view that, in comparison of conventional marketing, digital marketing through social media is powerful tool because it engages an unthinkably large number of people.

It all takes places beyond fun, games, status updates and tweets; an unimaginably vast playground filled with digitized thinking.

According to the Digital Marketing Ramblings‘ website release of statistics of the number of people using the most popular social media sites, Facebook is on the top slot with 1 billion users, followed by YouTube with 800 million users and 4 billion views per day, QQ with 700 million users, and the Micro-blogging platform Twitter has 500 million users.

Further, Sina Weibo has 400 million users and LinkedIn has 175 million users. According to Media bistro, in their social media marketing industry report, 83 percent of marketers believe that social media is important, and about 94 percent of marketers use social media tools such as Facebook and Twitter for business purposes.

A tally among the tools reveals that Facebook is in the top slot on the preference list of marketers, followed by Twitter and LinkedIn. This is testimonial information with an indication that social connectivity will be helpful for businesses based on customers’ presence.

However, some critics argue that as users gradually move to mobile phones from the computer, advertisements need to undergo technical renovation to keep the communication line alive, or else days are numbered for online marketers.

According to Mashable, Kleiner Perkins’ partner Mary Meeker illustrated the financial gap in her annual trend report that says mobile phones occupy 10 percent of people’s media consumption time and commands only 1 percent of advertising budgets.

It’s an indication that marketing will undergo change following consumer decisions; it means that as screen size expands or contracts (from personal computer to laptops, from tablets to mobile phones), advertisements will change to fit them.

But perhaps, no matter to what platform on-line marketing may divert, it is for sure days of digital marketing are greatly radiant.

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‘Twitter’ is a place where users can communicate with other people by posting what they think in a short sentence. To express what you think or to talk to other people, you should be ‘following’ someone, or you need to collect your own ‘followers.’

It is generally thought that someone who has many followers is popular amongst followers or influential online. This is why there are some people trying to create more followers in unconventional ways. Two weeks ago a friend e-mailed me, claiming that he could demonstrate how to create 5,000 followers in two weeks. Two weeks later, he got over 5,000 followers, just as he had said. How was that possible?

The method he revealed was quite easy. Write ‘how to collect followers easily,’ on a search site, such as Naver, a Korea’s biggest portal site, and it shows a series of websites which can help you  increase your number of followers. Among those, the most popular one was ‘twitaddon.’

Twitaddon shows people a list of twitter users who have 100 percent rate of following. It means when you follow someone on this list, the chances of he or she following you back is 100 percent. In that regard, if you want to increase the number of your followers, it is better for you to follow someone who is on the top of the list shown by twitaddon. Twitaddon also has a place in which people can promote their twitter account. Twitaddon allows people to follow only 100 people an hour, which means that if you try this every hour, you can follow up to 2,400 people a day.

It is quite easy to spot people who have over 1,000 followers on this website; however, most of them have not posted anything on their twitter accounts.

It cannot be said someone who has 5,000 followers is influential or popular, because it is quite easy to see those who have over one hundred thousand followers nowadays. The unusual manner with which to collect followers that mt friend showed  questions whether having many followers is really that important.

The problem with people doing this, is that they are not interested in what other people are saying. The only purpose of these people is to increase their number of followers. It seems that Twitter’s original purpose of communicating with other users has vanished among those people.

However, since a lot of people still believe that someone with many followers is influential online, it is likely that the number of people trying to increase their followers, in any way, will rise.

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Klout has been in existence for about three years, but so far hasn’t reached the popularity of some social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, even though these ones are used inside of Klout’s program. It utilizes one number to measure a user’s influence across the amount of social networks that this user may be a member of.

As soon as you open a profile in Klout and connect all of your data through the personal social networks, one number called a Klout score will instantly pop up on the screen. The company explains this number as your influence of power across your network and it is calculated based on algorithms that are able to check the size of your network, the amount of content created and how the others are interacting with that content through sharing possibilities and likes, for instance.

The algorithm that is used to calculate the influence level of a user based on the ability to drive action on social networks is being constantly improved. The actual Klout website connects social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, Google+, YouTube, Tumblr, Foursquare, LinkedIn, Intagram, Blogger, LastFm, and Flickr and it is also trying to increase to include other ones.

The constant updates are also intended to show the user’s influence on the web. In the beginning it was possible to find metrics as True Reach, Amplification and Network Impact, but these scores have been removed to give space to Moments. According with the company’s explanation, this section will work as a report of the user’s activity from the past 90 days and how each activity has impacted a user’s Klout. This new feature is going to come in the next few weeks.

The Klout score has received attention mainly in the job recruiting processes. It came out that few companies had been hiring the candidates with higher “influence power” according to Klout, but the discussion has started to show that one number related to one’s virtual influence may not be a strong argument for such definitions.

Many candidates with work experience have been declined for companies that choose by Klout score. The job recruiters must give the right weight for such score, and a few professionals are actually saying that this weight should be zero. It is possible that one’s influence on social media could mean that a person actually doesn’t do so much besides posting and updating his or her social profiles.

Many companies have been discussing what the best way to use Klout score is. Airlines, the hospitality industry,  and big retailers are trying to develop one way to reach those with the best influence, and through this method drive actions through the social network. Offering special gifts, VIP areas, or cards to develop a premium experience for those with higher Klout scores can be on the plan for such companies, but so far, there aren’t any real public actions that correlate.

Many strongly divergent opinions have risen debating if Klout is good or bad. The best solution for the user is to be aware about the functionality and goals of the Klout score and how this can impact their security and privacy, and from the companies’ point of view, there are always chances to reach key people to increase influence.

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The microblogging service credited with helping free speech flourish goofed this past weekend. After suspending the Twitter account of journalist Guy Adams for a tweet that supposedly violated Twitter’s privacy rules, the service was besieged with media requests and outraged users over the dubious nature of the suspension.

Adams, a Los Angeles correspondent for UK-based publication The Independent, lost his account over a July 27 tweet that included the NBCUniversal corporate email of Gary Zenkel, president of NBC Olympics. On July 29, NBC Sports filed a support ticket with Twitter to suspend the account, which it did.

The Comcast Corporation subsidiary and Twitter entered a non-financial partnership for the duration of the London 2012 Olympics, which led to skepticism about the service’s quick response to its business partner.

There were also questions about the accuracy of Twitter’s privacy rules to ban the posting of “private and confidential information” with regards to Zenkel’s corporate email address, which follows the same format as all NBCUniversal employees: FirstName.LastName@nbcuni.com.

The situation became murkier on July 31, when UK-based publication the Telegraph broke news that the Twitter Olympics team assisted NBC in making the report, according to correspondence with Christopher McCloskey, vice-president of communications for NBC Sports.

Despite silence from the social networking website all weekend, Twitter unsuspended the Independent correspondent’s account on July 31 and issued an apology on its blog:

“The team working closely with NBC around our Olympics partnership did proactively identify a Tweet that was in violation of the Twitter Rules and encouraged them to file a support ticket with our Trust and Safety team to report the violation, as has now been reported publicly. Our Trust and Safety team did not know that part of the story and acted on the report as they would any other.”

Posted by Twitter’s general counsel, Alex Macgillivray, the statement went out of its way to explain the service’s objectivity as a whole, separate from the actions of individual employees, “As I stated earlier, we do not proactively report or remove content on behalf of other users no matter who they are. This behavior is not acceptable and undermines the trust our users have in us. We should not and cannot be in the business of proactively monitoring and flagging content, no matter who the user is— whether a business partner, celebrity or friend.”

In response to the quandary surrounding whether Zenkel’s corporate email address fell into the realm of personal email addresses as defined by Twitter Rules, Twitter responded: “There are many individuals who may use their work email address for a variety of personal reasons— and some may not.” Therefore, the site’s response stemmed from the policy, which, as the post says, “That we can implement across all of our users in every instance.”

However, it had been determined that Zenkel’s corporate email had previously been revealed by a blog protesting NBC’s coverage of this year’s U.S. Open.

A report from Wired states that the Guy Adams incident has its own place in debates about Twitter’s future, and whether it has a place as a technology company or as a media entity.

A tweet from the reinstated account of Guy Adams suggested that his account was unsuspended because NBC rescinded its complaint.

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Under The Twitter Rules, it is stated that “You may not publish or post other people’s private and confidential information, such as credit card numbers, street address or Social Security/National Identity numbers, without their express authorization and permission.”

The San Francisco-based microblogging service offered this reasoning to journalist Guy Adams for his account’s suspension on July 29. Adams, the Los Angeles correspondent for UK publication The Independent, had tweeted on July 27:

“The man responsible for NBC pretending the Olympics haven’t started yet is Gary Zenkel. Tell him what u think! Email: Gary.zenkel@nbcuni.com.”  The corporate email account belongs to Gary Zenkel, president of NBC Olympics for NBCUniversal (a Comcast Corporation subsidiary), the American broadcaster with exclusive US media rights to the airing of the London 2012 Olympics.

As part of his email to Twitter’s European public relations executive Rachel Bremer, Adams wrote, “I’m of course happy to abide by Twitter’s rules, now and forever,” it reads. “But I don’t see how I broke them in this case: I didn’t publish a private email address. Just a corporate one, which is widely available to anyone with access to Google, and is identical [in form] to one that all of the tens of thousands of NBC Universal employees share.”

Although Zenkel’s email is not readily available on NBCUniversal’s website, the email accounts of executives at American cable channel Bravo – which is owned by NBCUniversal – follow the same format. Since his suspension, Twitter users have been reposting Zenkel’s email in a show of solidarity. Regarding the dubious “non-public” status of the account, New York Magazine wrote, “If it was ever private, it’s not now.” The hashtags #NBCFail and #TwitterFail are also trending in relation to the incident.

In a twist that had Adams writing about “various ethical issues relevant to journalism in the online era,” NBC Sports issued a statement yesterday regarding its role in bringing the message to Twitter’s attention. Matthew Keys of Reuters tweeted part of the statement, “”We filed a complaint with Twitter because a user tweeted the personal information of one of our executives.”

The service entered into a partnership with NBC to tweet exclusive Olympic content through its website. According to the Wall Street Journal, the broadcaster will not be paying Twitter or sharing any advertising revenue.

Twitter has not responded publicly regarding the incident.

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iPakistan is a new social media initiative set up by a group of Pakistani university students to change the global perception of Pakistan. Reaching out to others via the web, their aim is to re-brand Pakistan and break the stereotypes that often result in discrimination and prejudice towards its people.

Type out ‘Pakistan’ in the Google Images search bar and scroll down the first few pages: one would find pictures of maps,  the Pakistani flag and images that spell out a country torn between poverty and war. Although this may be the harsh reality in some parts of Pakistan, it is not the only reality of this South Asian country, as some are prone to believe.  With the kind of news surfacing daily regarding the conflicts, bomb blasts and political issues of not only the country, but also its neighbors’ it’s not hard to see why most people have a negative outlook on Pakistan. Rehman Ilyas aims to change this by replacing the post 9/11 images of terrorism, extremism and war zone to that of extremely talented youths, scenic landscapes and rich culture.

As a Lahori studying at the University of Hong Kong, Ilyas found himself subject to questions about Pakistan ranging from relatively normal ones such as “Do you have any malls there?” to more ridiculous ones like “Is there Taliban in your family?” He was always aware of the injustice done by the world media news in regards to their portrayal of his country but he was unaware of the severity of it until he arrived in Hong Kong.

“People only got to see that 1% of Pakistan in which the War on Terror is going on, in the media, and take that to be representative of the entire Pakistan,” he said.

Instead of merely complaining, he took action and decided to play his part in correcting the wrongly propagated image of his country. He started with doing his own online research on the subject and pitching the idea to his friends, followed by doing pilot tests on Facebook and a trial website. A survey was even conducted to realistically depict what the world thinks of Pakistan. Tackling the issues from there, what initially started out as a personal contribution to his country has now expanded to a website and a Facebook page with contents from over 80 team members, a diversified group of youths spread over 10 countries all intent on introducing the real Pakistan to the world.

Ilyas also intends to reach out to the world for a greater purpose that could help Pakistan in a myriad of other ways. According to him, “The 2011 floods in Pakistan were worse than the Asian Tsunami and the Haiti Earthquake combined, and an area the size of England was inundated in water. Despite all this, the media coverage and global aid intervention received wasn’t even close as compared to these other recent natural calamities, simply because people around the world were not interested in helping out a country which in their minds, harbors terrorist groups and is a base camp for terrorist activities around the world.”

Setting the global views straight, even one person at a time, could slowly prove to be beneficial for 180 million Pakistanis. With Pakistani businessman and traders at exhibitions around the world facing difficulties when questioned about bringing in supplies reliably to and from a war zone, Ilyas’ project could have a positive effect on his country economically as well.

Along with changing the way others perceive his country, Ilyas would also like to see a few changes within the nation itself. Speaking for a majority of the population, he said, “Most Pakistanis crave for a change of leadership. We are done with having the same corrupt leaders elected again and again, and this needs to end now. Pakistan is blessed with both vast natural resources and human capital, and given the right leadership we have the potential to develop into a regional superpower.”

Another sub-project that Ilyas has been working on is ‘Romancing the Border’ and is aimed at another issue spread across the nation: the social gap between Indians and Pakistanis. With most youths having been raised with a mindset bearing hatred for the other side, the stereotypical views separate the youths despite the fact both sides may be similar to each other in a lot of aspects. Backed by Stanford University’s Peace Innovation Lab, this cross-border initiative provides an online platform for youth from both sides of the border to interact with each other and to encourage pro-social behaviors between Pakistanis and Indians.

Having received positive responses so far regarding iPakistan from both Pakistanis and foreigners, Ilyas hopes to reach out to the masses and in the foreseeable future, instead of us receiving war torn images of Pakistan as soon as we Google the word, iPakistan will appear on the top search results and bring about a positive first impression of the country.

Perhaps it is a sign of change in the world when youths stand up to defend their country, and not in the traditional means of violence or crude words, but by showing the rest of us what their nation is capable of, what makes it beautiful, and most importantly, what makes it their home and source of pride. With that, Ilyas leaves us with one last statement on his beloved homeland, “We are not a country supporting terrorism. In fact, we are the country which has sacrificed the most in the war against terrorism.”

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

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Political blogging experts and social media activists in Thailand face frustration against their lack of liberty to express themselves at will. Thailand´s government uses two ways to censor and control the net. Firstly, by setting up an online roadblock –which already has stopped 32,500 pages- and secondly, through a government body that monitors the websites.

The increase of internet usage across the country has caused some concerns between political leaders. Thailand focuses their internet censorship energies on social issues, especially those related to online pornography, political separatists, and gambling. But their priorities are those cyber opinions that threaten the regime’s stability.

The Thailand government has invested millions of dollars for an internet gateway that will prevent any harsh comments on the country’s supreme monarch. The same system crosses out sites owned by terrorists. The Thailand Ministry of Information and Communication Technology works closely with the companies that provide internet in the country. If the companies do not block websites which have been asked to by the government body, these businesses could lose their licenses or have their networking area limited.

Local internet providers, fearing sanctions, follow the Thai internet censorship. In more than four years, the country’s communication ministry has blocked about 15,000 websites. Today, the number of websites blocked is unknown and the reasons remain hidden to the public. This year, the Thailand government has officially endorsed Twitter’s ‘country-by-country’ censorship policy. Twitter’s new policy allows for restrictions of ‘certain types of content’ for various ‘cultural reasons.’

By reading some scholarly articles and journals, I found that Thailand is one of the most engaged countries in the world to practice internet filtering. Thailand is also listed as “Not Free” by Freedom on the Net 2011 report by Freedom house which works on censorship and freedom on the internet (read report here). Moreover, Thailand is listed in Internet Enemies Under Surveillance by Reporters Without Borders as of March 2011 (read report here). By restricting the freedom to use the net, the Thai government is converting political, social and religious subjects into a taboo.

The future of global internet freedom looks dark in spite of the growth of Thai net users. Private companies respond with more innovation to cyber security instead of promoting news ways to implement a democracy,due to fear.

Future Thai generations will see their political and social knowledge being dwindled, in spite of the new ways that modern technologies offer citizens to build a democracy. Despite the Thai government’s wish to control Thai residents’ online activities, the internet is too vital in this new era, where foreign companies look at these kind of issues in order to decide whether to invest in a country or not.

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Australian satirist and comedian Chris Lilley has received a thirty day ban from Facebook after an indecent picture was posted on his wall by an unnamed fan.

The image, which is available on Lilley’s Twitter page, is of three teenagers sitting on a fence, one of whose testicles are exposed. It is believed that the image was a screen-shot from Lilley’s 2011 Mockumentary “Angry Boys,” in which he plays Nathan Sims, a deaf, rural Australian adolescent who surreptitiously exposes his testicles in photographs to create what his twin brother, Daniel, dubs “a sneaky nuts pic.”

Earlier this week, via Twitter, Lilley informed his fans of the suspension of his account claiming that someone had reported him to the networking site:

“Banned from Facebook cause someone reported a nuts pic. Catch me on here, instagram @chrislilley and tumblr (nuts allowed) -chrislilley.com”

In response, supporters of Lilley have begun to circulate the tag-line #freechislilleysnuts across a number of social media cites, including Facebook, in the hopes that the ban will be lifted.

Lilley, who is best known for his work on the critically acclaimed TV mini-series “Summer Heights High,” is no stranger to controversy. The actor, writer, director and producer’s form of social satire often involves the breaking of certain taboos. Most recently, Lilley was criticized for his use of black-face to portray an African American hip-hop icon, S.Mouse, in “Angry Boys.”

In the same show, Lilley also depicts a Japanese “tiger mother” with a gay son, a member of a violent surf-gang from Sydney, a sixty-five year old grandmother who works as a prison guard, as well as the delinquent and destructive South Australian twins and S. Mouse.

When asked in a 2011 interview if there was any subject that he would not broach in his comedic pursuits, Lilley had this to say: “If I thought it was funny, I don’t think I would be scared to do it. I think I’m pretty brave with putting myself out there and looking stupid and doing things that are potentially offensive, but I don’t know. I only like to write about things I know about and am interested in. Religious humor is not really my area, so I probably wouldn’t do anything about that, or politics or something. But, no, there’s no real sort of taboo thing.”

While it appears that the blame for this particular Facebook scandal cannot be placed at Lilley’s boundary-pushing doorstep, the comedian had reportedly already received several warnings in response to behavior that violated Facebook’s terms and agreements.

Image Courtesy of   Chris Lilley

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Social Media is everywhere; it’s all over the world. There are blogs, social networking sites, podcasts, discussion forums, photo sharing and microblogs. China even has its very own microblog. It is so popular and rapidly growing that, in fact, an anonymous group of individuals in China have created their own version of Twitter. This is China’s largest microblogging service, and “critics are saying this is the latest attempt of the Chinese Government to censor social media,” according to Chinese Correspondent, Angus Walker. This microblog is known as Sina Weibo and has an estimated 300 million users.

Speculation of censorship of the website began earlier this year after people began spreading false rumors of senior politician and former Governor of Chongqing, Bo Xilai. The government had warned users to stop, but users continued to post photographs of tanks in the streets of Beijing, “claiming a military coup was underway in the wake of the sacking of Xilai,” according to ITV News.

As a result, the government has created a rule system for all users of the microblogging system to abide by. Under this system, every user of the site will start with 80 points. A convention for the rules has been created known as the “community convention” and if a user breaks any of the rules, they will receive a deduction in points. If enough points are deducted, they will be banned from the site. Thus far, the rules are as follows:

As stated by Walker, “the company that runs the site, Sina, has not come up with the idea itself and it remains to be seen whether the regulations will be imposed and policed. Using social media to criticize government policies or chat about political events has become a new way for “netizens”, as they are called, to voice their opinions.” And, “with a half a billion people online in China, around 300 million are using microblogging sites – that is roughly the population of the United States all making comments on a regular basis.”

China has some of the strictest social media censorship regulations in the world, with Facebook still being banned in the country to this day. According to Clifford Coonan, a Beijing Reporter with ‘The Independent,’ even though micro-blogging in China started less than three years go, it has become enormously popular, with growth quadrupling last year. Nearly half of all Chinese internet users now use micro-blogs.”

Thus far, Sina has been incredibly cooperative with the rules and regulations proposed in order to avoid further censorship and clashes with the Chinese government in the future

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New York, U.S.A - Viacom unveiled the results of its new “Social TV: Viewers C’s The Moment” study exploring the social TV phenomenon through the lens of the viewer. While fairly nascent, social TV and co-viewing trends are growing rapidly, representing a shift in TV viewing from a lean-back to a lean-forward experience.

Viewers engage in an average of seven different types of social TV activities – online or offline – on at least a weekly basis. The most common activities include watching TV with others (85%), searching for supplemental content (61%) and viewing TV show clips on social networks (58%). The new research reveals that consumers engaging in social TV activities “C’s the moment” primarily by communicating, consuming content and checking comments.

The two-phase study involved 24 ethnographies in Boston and San Diego with VMN viewers aged 13-52 that engage in social TV activities on at least a weekly basis. National online surveys were conducted with over 1,500 VMN viewers aged 13-54. When asked what social TV means to them, the most commonly reported words were “interactive,” “friends” and “Facebook “or “Twitter.” The leading source of discovery of social TV services is through search (38%), followed by social networks (26%) and ads run on shows (22%).

“One of the main goals of this research was to understand how to inspire social TV activity among our audiences,” said Colleen Fahey Rush, Executive Vice President and Chief Research Officer, Viacom Media Networks.  “At VMN, we’re focused on leveraging our fans’ attachment to their favorite shows by developing compelling social TV services and apps that deepen those connections and unlock the value of social chatter.”

Communication

Communicating is a top priority for social TV users. Many respondents described cobbling together unique communication systems to interact with different social circles while watching a show. “When I’m watching Jersey Shore, I have Facebook chats with 10 friends and I’m texting a dozen people, and I can be on the phone to my best friend,” said one participant.

There is no one-size-fits-all in terms of chat options. Of those interested in chat features, 56% prefer communicating through the social TV app/service, 53% through Facebook, 50% through individual or group texts and 38% through Skype or Apple FaceTime.  For those that use check-in services, 71% check in to a show to let their friends know and 64% check in to let other fans of the show know. Check-in services are a unique way of communicating viewing activities while simultaneously encouraging others to tune-in and join a shared experience.

Smartphones dominate the use of social TV apps at 82%, trailed by tablets at 18%. For services that are delivered via HTML websites and associated apps, 52% of usage occurs on smartphones or tablets, followed closely by desktop or laptops at 48%.

Content

Content is king for social TV users. Viewers want something special from their social TV services rather than commoditized content that can be found through online searches. The number one request for content is full-length episodes (88%), followed by sneak peeks of new episodes (75%), and behind-the-scenes extras (71%) and highlight clips (71%).

The majority of TV socializers is interested in rewards with real value, like free merchandise or signed cast photos. When putting aside the material aspect, virtual rewards offer an emotional pay-off, described as being similar to the feeling when ‘liked’ on Facebook. Trivia and casual games related to a show are of greater interest if they offer some kind of reward. Real fans want to have their knowledge and skills tested, and expect the game to be challenging.

Comments

Social TV users check comments about their favorite shows for a variety of reasons. Comments provide a different point of view, can pick up on something a viewer may have missed on their own and most importantly, create a direct connection between fan and show. “I love reading Daniel Tosh’s tweets while watching Tosh.0. It gives the show a whole other dimension,” said one survey respondent.

Not all sources of comments are equally valued. The number one source viewers want to hear from is a show’s cast and crew, followed by the people they know. Audiences are sensitive to the quality of comments from a show’s cast and crew – they look for authenticity and prefer the star(s) to be in character.

Social TV Users “C’s the Moment” During Live Viewing

“Viewers C’s the Moment” reveals that live TV show viewing unlocks the real value of social TV services and co-viewing activities. Features relating to communication, content and comments are twice as likely to be used during live than time-shifted viewing. Social TV enthusiasts reported feeling “left out” of the conversation if they missed a live airing.

One respondent said, “I’m most likely to engage with Social TV networking when it’s live. So when a new show comes on, I’m very likely to check-in just before the show, see comments from other people, [and] make my own comments during the show as well.”

Social TV activities also increase directly after a live show, when viewers can access exclusive content like sneak peeks without interrupting the live viewing experience. “I go to the website and watch the director’s cut…after it airs as I like the extra scenes. I like to feel that I am getting something extra and it extends the show,” said a participant.

Social TV can also help foster show discovery. Features like check-ins, viewer comments and shared video clips help viewers discover shows incentivize them to watch and encourage them to join the live conversations.

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Facebook has added more than 200 million users in the last year, Twitter now boasts 100 million active users and Linkedln has 64 million users in North America alone.

Social media networks have become more popular with getting to know everything about a person but now Facebook is taking it another step further. Facebook now has an organ donor status that users can choose to post on their profile in the United States and the United Kingdom.

Facebook’s main objective in issuing this new addition to its vast network is not so your friends can know you more on a personal level, but to lower the total number of people that die in the U.S. and the UK due to waiting for an organ transplant. According to the U.S. Department of Health, nearly 7,000 people in the US alone die each year due to waiting for a donor.

The company announced a plan to encourage everyone on Facebook to start advertising their donor status on their pages.

Under the Facebook plan, members will be able to declare and update their organ donation status. The status will appear with other biographical information in a section called Health and Wellness, which includes, for example, updates on whether a person has recently lost weight or ever broken a bone.

But some representatives that encourage organ donations explain that people need to understand that posting their organ donation statues on Facebook does not close the deal. People need to also go to their state registry.

The ‘New York Times’ explained in an article that “people declaring on Facebook that they are organ donors could spur others to sign up at motor vehicle departments or online registries however, experts say Facebook could create an informal alternative to such registries that could, even though it carries less legal weight, lead to more organ donations. That is because a disclosure on Facebook could provide the evidence of consent that family members need when deciding whether to donate the organs of a loved one,” said Dr. Andrew M. Cameron, the surgical director of liver transplantation at Johns Hopkins Hospital.

This is not the first time Facebook has tried to use its network to address a social issue. Late last year it launched a service called “lifeline” that allows people to make contact with a suicide-prevention counselor or report someone through Facebook who they fear might be suicidal. That year, the company also introduced tools to discourage bullying and allow people to report episodes of bullying.

Overall, donation rates in the United States have been increasing steadily, with 43 percent of those 18 or older designating themselves as organ donors last year, according to Donate Life America. The median wait for a kidney nationally is about four years, according to data collected for the government by the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients. However, waiting lists are maintained on a regional basis, and in areas with high rates of organ failure and low rates of organ donation, the wait can extend much longer.

BJ Fogg, who studies how technology can change attitudes as director of the Persuasive Technology Lab at Stanford University, explains that Facebook might persuade more people to become organ donors by simple “peer pressure”. If people see more of their friends and family members becoming donors they most likely will want to become one as well.

23-year-old Borough of Manhattan Community College student Luis Mendez said, “I think this will increase the number of donors and decrease the waiting list time because Facebook is pretty much at an all time high and most people follow it. It will be a way to persuade people to become organ donors versus years back.”

Most experts hope that this trend will happen so that being an organ donor will become a norm and more lives can be saved.

Image Courtesy of  withGod / Shutterstock.com

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Chicago and Glasgow – Sword Ciboodle, a global provider of customer solutions, and customer experience advisory thinkJar, released the results of a research survey targeting US and UK companies with medium- to large-sized contact centers on their use of social media specifically for customer service.

With nearly 400 responses from around the globe, and representation from more than 10 industry verticals, the research helped to reveal insights into how organizations are leveraging social channels for customer service. The analysis covers topics such as the longevity and maturity of the social customer service practice, the integration of social channels with traditional channels, and the decision and selection criteria used to determine social customer service programs.

Survey results indicated that social channels have been strongly embraced, with 59 percent of organizations having adopted Twitter and 60% adopting Facebook, and almost 85 percent of those who have adopted one, have adopted both together. However, while social channels are widely used, participants showed that justification and validation of social customer service is proving to be a challenge.

There are a variety of differences in how social channels are used, and factors such as an organization’s size, industry and geography also play an important role. Integration of data, as well as finding the right balance between social customer service and more “traditional” channels, is an important part of what companies are wrestling with.

The size of the company is an additional factor in the maturity of its social customer program. For example, 40 percent of respondents in companies with 1000 or more contact center agents say that their social customer service initiatives have been in place for at least two years. In contrast, 53 percent of companies with smaller contact centers say that current programs were implemented within the past year to two years.

The reasons behind the move of all companies, regardless of size, to social customer service is customer driven, with 56 percent of respondents implementing social customer service due to customer request, compared with 40 percent that put the programs in place to keep up with competitors.

“The direction social channels is headed when it comes to customer service is fascinating and a true ‘game-changer’ for businesses,” said Esteban Kolsky, principal and founder of thinkJar. “The trick is to truly understand how to navigate this hyped-up, yet semi-mysterious ‘customer service frontier.’ This research report is a must-have for all organizations who want to really know where to go with social in customer service.”

“What’s important for every organization to realize is, while social channels are constantly evolving, they are not new anymore,” said Mitch Lieberman, Vice President of Market Strategy at Sword Ciboodle. “The most successful customer service program will happen for businesses who incorporate social into their overall customer engagement practices, and really keep pace with the way their customers are communicating with them in all areas.”

To download a full copy of the research “We Are Social: The State of Social Customer Service”, which includes full survey research findings and conclusions, visit: www.sword-ciboodle.com/socialcustomerservice.

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Amsterdam, Netherlands – AVG Technologies, the provider of Internet and mobile security to approximately 108 million active users, has released its Q1 2012 Community Powered Threat Report. The report highlights the growing use of mobile devices to connect with social networks and how this is fast becoming a preferred method for cyber criminals to spread malware, particularly on those devices running Android.

Yuval Ben-Itzhak, Chief Technology Officer at AVG, said: “We detected a big increase in the use of social networks such as Facebook and Twitter to target Android users. Cyber criminals are finding it very convenient to distribute their malware straight to a mobile device via these networks.

The growth of the Android platform has been phenomenal, which has not gone unnoticed with cyber criminals who have discovered it to be a lucrative target for their malware. In 2011, Google had to remove over 100 malicious apps from the official Android market, Google Play.”

Social networks have become a key source of information and communication. Twitter now has more than 140 million active users^[1]; and Facebook has over 845 million users^[2], with some analysts expecting that figure to reach 1 billion this year^[3]. The result: targeting those who use Facebook is like targeting around 14 per cent of world’s population or approximately 43 per cent of global internet users.

Consider also that there are over 300 million Android phones already activated, with over 850,000 Android phones and tablets added to that number each day^[4], and it is clear these two trends combined result in a new threat: infecting Android devices using social networks.

Most mobile devices are tied into operator billing systems making monetization of malware a lot more effective than on traditional computer systems. All the attackers need to do is trick users to install a malicious app on their device through which they can then gather cash using the phone companies’ billing systems by utilizing premium SMS services. In many cases, this is done by charging low amounts on an infrequent basis so users don’t even notice.

The Q1 2012 Community Powered Threat Report includes examples of this:

• On Facebook, all it takes for a cyber criminal to attack is to set up a fake profile which downloads malware to a device and randomly invite Facebook users.
• On Twitter, a cyber criminal creates a spam profile and then posts tweets containing shortened hyperlinks to malware using trending hashtags. The way in which Twitter works makes sure the tweet appears on the top of many people’s Twitter feed.

About the report

The AVG Community Protection Network is an online neighborhood watch, where community members work to protect each other. Information about the latest threats is collected from customers who participate in the product improvement program and shared with the community to make sure everyone receives the best possible protection.

The AVG Community Powered Threat Report is based on the Community Protection Network traffic and data collected from participating AVG users over a three-month period, followed by analysis by AVG. It provides an overview of web, mobile devices, spam risks and threats. All statistics referenced are obtained from the AVG Community Protection Network.

AVG has focused on building communities that help millions of online participants support each other on computer security issues and actively contribute to AVG’s research efforts.

To download the summary of the Q1 2012 Community Powered Threat Report:http://www.avg.com/filedir/news/AVG_Community_Powered_Threat_Report_Q1_2012_summary.pdf

To download the full Q1 2012 Community Powered Threat Report:http://www.avg.com/filedir/news/AVG_Community_Powered_Threat_Report_Q1_2012.pdf

Visit the AVG Newsroom at: http://www.avg.com/press-releases-news

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Entertainment legend Betty White has joined Twitter, but was initially thought to have been the victim of a Twitter hoax after an account claiming to be her was opened by White’s people, without White herself being informed.

The profile was first revealed to be a fake by White through her ‘Hot in Cleveland’ co-stars Jane Leeves and Valerie Bertinelli when they each took to their own profiles to advise users to unfollow the person claiming to be White.

While fake Twitter profiles are commonplace on the social networking site, this alleged hoax was even more surprising due to the fact that White’s alleged profile had a verification checkmark, a feature which only Twitter itself is able to give when it has confirmed that profiles are indeed legitimate.

The profile, under the Twitter handle @BettyMWhite, went up on April 10 and amassed over 140,000 followers by the time of this writing. Only three tweets had been posted before Jane Leeves and Valerie Bertinelli, with whom Betty currently co-stars on the TV Land sitcom ‘Hot in Cleveland’, reported that it was in fact an impostor running the profile. Bertinelli wrote:

Just spoke with Betty and she is VERY upset! @BettyMWhite is NOT her. Don’t know how they got verified, but it is not Betty. Please RT!

Leeves followed with:

@BettyMWhite is a fake and has upset the real Betty White! Please unfollow!

However, just minutes later Bertinelli took to her Twitter profile again, this time writing:

Stop the presses! Betty just got a call. An account was opened on her behalf by her people. More to come…

The evident confusion will likely become a source of amusement for fans of the 90-year old screen icon, who are no doubt looking forward to seeing her attempt to grapple with a popular form of modern technology.

A hoax, however, would have been embarrassing for more than just as her fans as television network NBC was already using it to help promote their new series ‘Betty White’s Off Their Rockers’, while the TV Line website earlier today crafted a ‘@BettyMWhite Twitter Bingo Card‘ for users to play along with as they watched the Emmy winner’s foray into social media.

While it seems that White’s people will be doing all of the tweeting, her official presence on Twitter makes her one of the oldest verified celebrities on the site.

Image Courtesy of   Joe Seer / Shutterstock.com

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On April 9, The Weinstein Company (TWC) announced that Justin Bieber continues to lend his support to the fight against bullying with use of his song “Born To Be Somebody” in BULLY’s newest TV spot.

The spot premiered on Fandango Monday, April 9, just days before the film is released wide with a PG-13 rating in cities all over the country, and will begin airing on TV as well: http://bit.ly/IbqeJE

“My fans are always up for supporting a great cause. It’s one of the things I’m most proud of as an entertainer,” said Bieber. “I hope they see BULLY with their friends and help start the conversation so we can end bullying.”

“We’re honored that Justin has decided to support this film and the movement that surrounds it,” said TWC President of Marketing Stephen Bruno.

Bieber joins a long list of celebrities who have graciously supported the film’s mission and was one of the dozens of stars who helped #BullyMovie trend on Twitter recently raising further awareness as the film approached its release in theaters.

Other celebrities have stepped out in their own ways to help get the word out including: Ellen DeGeneres featuring the families from the film on her show; Meryl Streep and attorneys David Boies and Ted Olson hosting an NYC screening; Victoria Justice, Giuliana Rancic and Joel McHale hosting the LA premiere; Anderson Cooper and Kelly Ripa hosting an NYC screening;Anderson Cooper hosting a town hall special on CNN to discuss bullying with Dr. Phil, Kelly Ripa and BULLY director Lee Hirsch; Tommy Hilfiger designing t-shirts; and many other supporters shooting PSAs.

Companies including Bing and Twitter have partnered to help in the quest to reach as many parents, teachers and children as possible. And, in a move that inspired and rallied hundreds of thousands of supporters, Michigan high school student Katy Butler garnered more than half a million signatures on her petition to the MPAA on Change.org to lower BULLY’s R rating, which subsequently happened last week.

Efforts to pass the Safe Schools Improvement Act are also in the works after TWC Co-Chairman Harvey Weinstein’s recent meeting with Senator Bob Casey. This bill will amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to address and take action to prevent bullying and harassment of students.

BULLY leads all non-fiction films so far for 2012 with its strong opening weekend attendance.

Image Courtesy of  Featureflash / Shutterstock.com

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When Taylor Swift made her grand appearance at the Country Music Awards Sunday night, she received the biggest award of the night, and took home her second consecutive “Entertainer of the Year” award. What Swift was not anticipating was the on-going  joke between hosts Blake Shelton and Reba McEntire about her dating Tim Tebow, leaving Swift shocked and baffled.

As the hosts mentioned the NFL quarterback they quickly brought up Swift, and McEntire said, “Well, how about the rumor that Tim Tebow went on a date with Taylor Swift?” Shelton added in, “Now we know what he has been praying for.” As the cameras zoomed in on Swift, she gave a startled reaction that practically confirmed the two were an item. Swift, with a shocked look on her face, merely shrugged her shoulders, and remarked, “What?” then put her head down as she attempted to laugh at the joke.

Rumors and gossip have been swirling about the two stars dating ever since they went on a date in February.

Viewers that tuned in to watch the Country Music Awards quickly turned to their Twitter accounts to remark on Swift’s reaction. One individual tweeted, “Taylor Swift looked extra salty after that Tim Tebow joke, ha,” while another Twitter fan wrote, “Oh T-Swift you’re just too cute.

And you so just confirmed that date with Tebow.” Another fan was not so fond of Shelton and McEntire’s wise-cracks stating, “He was making fun of Tim Tebow and Taylor Swift. It was just rude.”

Overall, Swift, a country music superstar, seemed to handle the situation as best to her ability and kept her head up. Later in the evening she presented Shelton with the award for ‘Male Vocalist of the Year.’

Yet the real question remains: are Tebow and Swift dating? Or is Hollywood sensationalizing a single date into a full-blown romance? Several relationship experts speak out about why the two young stars could be the next “it” couple. Experts tuned in to the two regarding several aspects including their levels of fame, personality, attractiveness and religion.

Cooper Lawrence, radio personality and author of “Been There, Done That, Kept the Jewelry,” believes that “Swift and Tebow have found untold amounts of fame at incredibly young ages.”

Which is a factor that could bring the two closer together. Andrea Syrtash, relationship expert and author of “He’s Just Not Your Type (And That’s a Good Thing)” says, ”Tebow and Swift were raised with Christian and strong family values. The fact that they are around the same age and both came into the public eye as teenagers also makes it more likely that they understand each other.”

As of now the two are not yet confirmed as a couple, and it seems that many fans of the beloved stars are rooting for them.

Image Courtesy of   Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com

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Spike Lee’s negligent tweet to his 240,000 followers has caused an elderly couple in Sanford, Florida to live in fear. The director retweeted an incorrect address that allegedly was the house that Trayvon Martin’s killer George Zimmerman resided at.

The tweet spawned from twitter account holder @MACCAPONE, according to The Smoking Gun. Marcus Davonne Higgins, 33, a Los Angeles resident tweeted the wrong address to several celebrities such as rapper 50 cent and actor Will Smith. Higgins tweet stated “EVERBODY REPOST THIS.” Lee was the only celebrity to retweet the false information. Higgins also took to his facebook page “FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT & TOUCH HIM.”

The address belongs to David McClain, 72 and wife Elaine, 70 who reportedly suffers from a heart condition. Higgins mixed up George Michael Zimmerman 41, for Trayvon’s killer George W. Zimmerman, 28. The recent headline news surrounding the Trayvon Martin’s case has brought attention all around the country due to the injustice felt by the African American community.

The McClain’s have received threatening mail and random visitors to their household. Because of this the McClain’s have been forced to stay at a hotel. Attorney Matt Morgan representing the McClain’s have reached a settlement for the trouble that the couple has had to deal with.

“At this point in time, we have come to an agreement with Spike Lee and his attorneys, and at this point, the matter is fully resolved,” Morgan said. “Spike has agreed to compensate the McClain’s for their loss and for the disruption into their lives. He’s taken full responsibility.”

According to yahoo news. Lee also tweeted late Wednesday: “I Deeply Apologize To The McClain Family For Retweeting Their Address. It Was A Mistake. Please Leave The McClain’s In Peace.”

Lee isn’t the only celebrity to start an uproar through twitter. Pop singer Justin Beiber earlier last month tweeted, “Call me right now.” Beiber used a Dallas phone number and left the last digit a as question mark. Dallas residents were then subjected to phone calls at all times of the night by excited Bieiber fans.

Singer Courtney Love is another rogue celebrity tweeter, tweeting erratically about a fashion designer in 2011. She paid out $430,000 to fashion designer Dawn Simorangkir after making statements that she had a criminal past.

The outlandish behavior amongst celebrities on twitter has a cause and effect not only to themselves but to others as well whom they may not even know. Celebrities are placed on a pedestal once they reach a certain stature and whatever move they make can affect them positively or negatively as far as their image and credibility goes.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.flickr.com/photos/youthradio/

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Leaders from business, political and religious life are falling desperately short of expectations around the world – with Europeans and Americans the most disillusioned according to a 12-country survey by global communications firm Ketchum. More people globally believe leadership will actually get worse in 2012. Quite startling the report found a 28% gap between expectations of leaders and their delivery against those expectations

The study reveals leadership credibility in 2012 and beyond requires a combination of decisive action and honest, transparent communication – most effectively achieved through a leader’s personal presence and involvement.

“Our study reveals for the first time the full extent of the world’s disappointment with its leaders across every category of human endeavor,” said Rod Cartwright, Director of Ketchum’s Global Corporate Practice. “What is clear is that effective leadership and effective communication are inextricably linked

Perhaps unexpectedly, the Ketchum Leadership Communication Monitor found that business leaders were seen as the most effective over the past year – beating politicians, not-for-profit bosses and even religious leaders. More than a third of respondents said they were more confident in business leaders than a year ago, with 36% viewing business as providing effective leadership (receiving an “excellent” rating of 8 or above on a scale of 0-10) and 48% seeing them as effective communicators.

This compared with just 25% of politicians and religious leaders, who achieved the same “excellent” rating. Although expectations of politicians to provide effective leadership in difficult times were higher than any other group (63%), they suffered the lowest vote of confidence, with 47% expecting worse political leadership in 2012.

Within the business community, knowledge-based industries were perceived as having the most effective bosses. Ranked highest on leadership effectiveness was technology, with a 44% approval rating, followed by media (39%) and telecommunications (36%). Banking chiefs came in fourth overall in the poll worldwide with 32%. The energy sector and financial services leaders were ranked fifth (31%) and sixth (30%) respectively. Consumer business leaders lagged far behind on leadership, with consumer packaged goods placed lowest at 20%.

Perhaps most significant for the business community, the research underlines a direct link between positive perceptions of leadership and business-critical decisions such as a willingness to buy stock, goods and services or recommend working at a company. This explains crisis response being seen as the most important area for business leaders to communicate personally (53%), followed by financial results (48%) and the state of the business (40%).

Clear, transparent communication topped the table of key leadership behaviors. For 84%, effective communication is extremely important to strong leadership, while 48% rated it as the number one factor. However, action matters – with tough decision-making, leading by example and calm crisis-handling following immediately behind.

The study also revealed that globally, the number one action leaders should take to restore confidence in 2012 is to be open and honest about the nature and scale of the challenge ahead (57% US; 52% Europe vs. 43% China). By contrast, only 17% indicated a preference for leaders to spare them the full picture to avoid panic.

Trustworthiness was seen as the number one source of leadership credibility for corporations, placed above quality of management and financial strength. In order to win that trust, the report found that the personal “presence” and involvement of a leader in communicating was vital. As a result, communication via face-to-face and traditional media left social media trailing. Face-to-face contact provided the greatest source of leadership credibility (50%), followed by televised speeches (43%), broadcast media (41%) and print media (38%). Digital platforms and social media were well off pace, with blogs at 20%, Facebook at 16%, advertising at 13% and Twitter at just 8%.

Cartwright said: “It is clear that mainstream media still carries a great deal of credibility. When it comes to digital and social media, the message is that most people don’t believe that the leader is actually involved. This doesn’t mean we should conclude that these channels are redundant as a vehicle for establishing credible leadership – quite the contrary. Rather, it underlines the absolute imperative of making the ‘presence’ of the leader shine through.”

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‘The Good Wife’ broke the CBS mould when it debuted in September 2009. Airing on a network which thrives on formulaic, franchise-friendly procedurals such as ‘CSI’, ‘Criminal Minds’, and ‘NCIS’, ‘The Good Wife’ represented a more hybridised type of drama than CBS was used to, with the series’ weekly, self-contained legal cases operating as a counter-balance to ongoing, character-driven storylines.

However, despite its departure from the CBS norm, ‘The Good Wife’ has developed into network television’s most critically lauded show while attracting a consistently high calibre of well-respected guest stars, ranging from Michael. J Fox and Mamie Gummer to recent additions Lisa Edelstein and Matthew Perry. The series has received multiple award nominations, including a Peabody Award for Excellence in 2010, and Emmy, Golden Globe, and consecutive Screen Actors Guild wins for its star Julianna Margulies.

Now in its third season, ‘The Good Wife’, which is set in Chicago but shot in New York, has delved deeper into the personal lives of several of its characters while still interweaving numerous social and political contexts in a manner not seen in any other network or cable drama.

Initially centred around Alicia Florrick, the humiliated wife of Illinois’ disgraced State’s Attorney, ‘The Good Wife’ has since evolved into an ensemble offering, exploring such issues as: political campaigning, inter-office power struggles, judicial bribery, economic woes, and technology’s growing impact in every facet of the professional and domestic spheres.

This season began with Alicia (Margulies) having separated from her husband Peter (Chris Noth) following his re-election as State’s Attorney and the discovery that he had had a sexual encounter with Kalinda Sharma (Emmy Award winner Archie Panjabi), the in-house investigator at Alicia’s law firm and Alicia’s closest friend.

In turn, Alicia embarked on a relationship with Will Gardner (Josh Charles), a senior partner at the firm, and was forced to work directly with her husband’s political campaigner Eli Gold (Alan Cumming) after she had used him as a political contact to beat out fellow attorney Cary Agos (Matt Czuchry) for a job.

Agos later defected to the State’s Attorney’s Office, where he now works alongside Alicia’s husband and has been promoted to the position of Deputy State’s Attorney. Observing all of this is Diane Lockhart (Christine Baranski), the firm’s other senior partner and a staunch Democrat, whose Liberal convictions often clash with the needs and requirements of surviving in the legal field.

Reflecting on all of this, it is quite clear that ‘The Good Wife’ has moved far away from its original premise of a scorned ex-wife returning to the workplace. Now, it juggles multiple story arcs and long-simmering narrative tensions which could very well be overwhelming to the casual viewer accustomed to the plethora of modern day procedurals.

The series’ producers – led by husband/wife duo Robert and Michelle King, and supported by feature film heavyweights Ridley and Tony Scott – have stayed so committed to making ‘The Good Wife’ a multi-layered saga that it is now typically the only network drama to receive recognition at the major television award ceremonies.

Ironically, it is also one of CBS’ lowest-rated series and has yet to secure a syndication deal, despite it approaching its fourth year of production.

This divide between its critical reception and commercial performance is perhaps indicative of television’s growing trend towards targeting niche audiences in an effort to combat all-encompasing audience declines, with a series such as ‘NCIS’ regularly attracting 20 million viewers and zero critical acclaim, while a series such as ‘Mad Men’ rarely attracts 3 million viewers yet has won the Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series four years in a row. Thus, with a season-to-date average of 10.35 million viewers, ‘The Good Wife’ finds itself in something of a middle-ground position.

On-screen, however, the series is not concerning itself with the business side of television productions. Just eight episodes remain this season, and in that run of episodes audiences are expected to see: Alicia’s decision about whether to persevere with a divorce from her husband, and the personal and professional fallout which that would in turn trigger; Eli’s plans to have Peter run for governorship; and most interestingly the inter-office power struggles which are now certain to arise following Will’s six-month disbarment for stealing money from a client’s account.

In recent episodes, the writers have explored the current civil unrest in Syria, potential prejudices in military law, institutional manipulation in the United States Treasury Department, and prosecutorial complications arising from Chinese diplomatic immunity. As a result of engaging in such socially-volatile debates, it seems appropriate for ‘The Good Wife’ to step back and explore more insular conflicts of greater personal importance to the characters.

Yet, with its fearlessness over broaching so many hot-button issues on a mainstream network landscape, ‘The Good Wife’ seems certain to join the likes of ‘The Wire’ and ‘The West Wing’ as one of America’s most culturally resonant television dramas of the twenty-first century.

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According to a new 30 Hour Famine study, conducted online in January by Harris Interactive, more than half of teens (55%) say social media sites like Facebook and Twitter have made them more aware of the needs of others. This is a huge increase from 2011 when a little more 4 in 10 (44%) said their use of social media made them more aware. The study also says 2 in 3 teens (68%) agree that the benefits of social media outweigh the risks.

According to the study, more than nine out of ten (91%) agree that it’s important to volunteer locally. At the end of this month, some 200,000 teens will go hungry as part of World Vision’s 30 Hour Famine to raise funds and hunger awareness. Since 1992, 30 Hour Famine has raised more than $150 million to fight world hunger. This is the fourth year World Vision has surveyed American youth to get a better idea of what they’re thinking. 30 Hour Famine has close to 30,000 Facebook friends.

“The jump in the number of teens who say social media sites make them more socially aware is a sign of the times,” says Regina Corson, Senior Vice President, Harris Poll, Public Relations and Youth Research at Harris Interactive. Michele Tvedt, World Vision’s 30 Hour Famine Manager says, “It’s exciting to see our youth using the tools at their fingertips like social media to have a direct impact on the world.” Tvedt has personally done The Famine for 13 years, adding up to more than 390 hours over the years.

While many teens will do 30 Hour Famine in late February, others will participate April 27th, 28th^. Teens forsake food for 30 hours to get a taste of what the world’s poorest children face. Prior to the event, teens raise funds by explaining that $1 can help feed and care for a child a day. Teens consume only water and juice as they participate in local community service projects (food banks, soup kitchens and homeless shelters). Last year’s 30 Hour Famine raised $9.5 million to fight hunger. This year’s goal is $10 million.

Tonight, almost 1 billion people worldwide will go to bed hungry. Almost 22,000 children die each day from hunger and preventable diseases. Chronic poverty, affecting half the people on earth, is the cause. Nearly 3 billion people live on less than $2 a day. Funds raised this year for 30 Hour Famine will be sent to 10 countries including Haiti, the Horn of Africa, Burundi, Malawi, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Some 30 Hour Famine funds also address poverty here in the U.S.

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Socialbakers, the world’s most cited source and fastest growing social media analytics company, on February 09, 2012 announced the launch of its U.S. headquarters in San Francisco.

The company also announced its new U.S. leadership team based in San Francisco, which includes veteran technology executive Martin Huml as President and Chief Operating Officer, and Katrina Wong as Vice President of Marketing. Socialbakers’ global expansion follows rapid demand from many of America’s most recognized brands.

Socialbakers social analytics platform measures the effectiveness of social marketing campaigns across all major social networks, including Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn and Google+.

With more than 750 customers and 275,000 registered marketing users, Socialbakers is the leading source for Facebook and social analytics throughout Europe. More than 60 U.S. brands are already using the technology, with an accelerated U.S. demand from brands, consumers and even politicians.

“Companies can no longer expect or assume that online users will engage with their Facebook or Twitter content. Our clients increase social media relevance and build their social community faster because we show what is working, what doesn’t work and how they compare against competitors. Companies can build tremendous communities by using our technology to understand which content is most and least engaging and viral,” said Jan Rezab, Socialbakers CEO.

Technology veteran and investor Martin Huml has joined as Socialbakers’ President and COO, and will lead U.S. operations from San Francisco. Huml, who has been serving as company Chairman, is an accomplished entrepreneur, executive, and investor. Huml built and sold his first company in the mid nineties – an exclusive distributor for Apple Computer in Central and Eastern Europe, including Russia and several other former Eastern Blok countries.

He also worked for several years in private equity at Credit Suisse First Boston in London and New York. Most recently, he ran his own San Francisco-based investment consulting firm, Runway Capital. He has chaired and served on several boards, and has also served as interim CEO and COO for various technology firms.

“Socialbakers is an exciting company on the brink of becoming the global leader in this fast growing social analytics space,” said Huml.  “Jan is a brilliant entrepreneur, visionary, and business leader. The team is exceptional and Socialbakers is positioned as one of the top analytics companies in the world. The U.S. is home to many of the world’s most savvy companies, and it’s time we expanded in order to provide them a technology that will change the way they run their entire social marketing programs.”

Katrina Wong has been hired as vice president of marketing to lead the company’s global go-to-market strategy, with focus on the U.S., UK, France and Germany. Prior to Socialbakers, Wong led corporate marketing for subscription billing company, Zuora. Wong developed marketing strategies for SAP’s entry into the SaaS market, and worked at Salesforce.com deploying CRM solutions for global Fortune 500 companies.

“We have the most aggressive go-to-market strategy in the industry, and have big plans for 2012 – while the U.S. has a fragmented analytics market, Socialbakers is positioned to become the standard for social media intelligence,” said Wong.

Socialbakers, a European technology company, launched in 2008 and is now the social analytics provider of choice for customers in more than 75 countries.

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ABC’s hit sitcom will return for its third season on February 14, following an unprecedented, nationwide promotional campaign. Cougar Town, a half-hour comedy starring Courteney Cox (Friends, Scream), follows Jules Cobb (Cox) and her close circle of friends as they attempt to navigate their way through parenthood, marriage, dating and work.

The series has been off the air in the U.S. since last May after ABC opted against giving the show a spot on its fall schedule, offering only vague assertions that it would return at some point at ‘midseason‘. However, the series’ cast and crew have turned to social media in an effort to maintain public interest and to engage with their fan base in a face-to-face manner.

The main feature of their promotional campaign has been Cougar Town viewing parties, which have been in operation across the U.S. for several weeks now as cast and crew members travelled to various cities to interact with fans, offer special screenings of new episodes, take part in Q&A sessions, and to counteract any waning interest as a result of ABC’s delay in confirming a return date for the series, which had previously been airing alongside the network’s Emmy award-winning series Modern Family.

In a further effort to reignite the old and spark some new interest, series star Courteney Cox joined Twitter in January of this year and has since amassed over 90,000 followers. Cox has sent out over 1,000 tweets, the majority of which have sought to publicise the show and to offer Cougar Town fans exclusive behind-the-scenes footage.

As recently as Wednesday February 8, Cox was overseeing a competition to reward 50 fans with bottles of wine – in partnership with THECULTWINE.COM - provided that fans show proof of their age and make a pledge to watch Cougar Town on Tuesday February 14 at 8:30pm.

This is not the first time that cast-members involved with the series have reached out as a way of rewarding and strengthening their audience’s support. In an April 2011 episode, one character read out a telephone number which viewers could in turn call. If they got through, they could speak to actors, writers, and various others involved with the series.

These tactics have all been designed to keep Cougar Town on the public radar in spite of its middling ratings, with several fans going so far as to display billboards in support of the show during television coverage of this year’s Super Bowl, in the hopes of winning a walk-on role from the producers.

Show-runner Bill Lawrence recently expressed his frustration over the ‘flawed system‘ which monitors television ratings and which will ultimately determine the future of his series beyond this season, explaining that the primary hope of his self-funded campaigning is for:

a Nielsen family [to] … want to keep show alive. Ruining it for the masses or encouraging them to watch on their computer doesn’t matter until the system changes.

While there have been instances in the past of grass-roots campaigns being organised to combat network decisions – for example when Jericho fans persuaded CBS to reverse the series’ cancellation in 2007 – the involvement of the Cougar Town cast in this campaign has been particularly note-worthy, as has the fact the majority of their events have been planned entirely through the use of social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook.

The true impact of Lawrence’s, Cox’s, the audience’s and others’ efforts to promote Cougar Town will be made apparent in the coming weeks when the series returns to ABC’s schedule and everyone involved attempts to lure, and hopefully increase, their 7.3 million weekly viewers from last season.

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Living out your dreams can have some limits in a town with 300 people and no stoplights. For Michael Hollinger, Bodie Hope, and Dylan “Rocky” Riley, three young men from Arkansas, the chance to live out one of their dreams became reality and they received the opportunity to meet their long-time hero, Storm Chaser Reed Timmer.

Passion for storm chasing came at a young age for Michael, who enjoys going out and chasing storms with his dad. That enjoyment spurred an immediate draw to the television program in which meteorologist Reed Timmer leads one of three storm-chasing teams, and Bosch is a sponsor.

Bosch held a Twitter “retweet” contest, which Michael entered and won. He later tweeted to Bosch that he works at an auto parts store and has sold Bosch ICON Wiper Blades because he showed customers the Reed Timmer television spot. In the midst of a conversation with Bosch, Michael mentioned, “Me and my friends even advertised Bosch Wiper Blades at a community function when we built the Mini Dominator. We worked hard on it!”

The “Mini-Dom” video became an instant hit with Bosch. The idea was a natural and Bosch worked to create a new video and to introduce Michael and his friends to their idol, Reed Timmer. The idea was for the boys and Bosch to pull a “Switcheroo” where Timmer’s storm chasing vehicle the Dominator would switch with their “Mini-Dom” while Timmer was inside a local convenience store, all scripted, caught on tape, and looking like the ultimate prank.

The “Mini-Dom” was a fun project the boys worked on around Halloween, built with cardboard, PVC pipe, chicken wire, and a 4-wheeler. After Timmer saw the pint-sized Dominator, he was amazed saying, “It has the anemometer and everything, it’s all decked out. You guys really are big fans.”

Michael, Bodie, and Dylan received the opportunity of a lifetime. Two of the boys had never even been on a plane before and now they can say they flew out to Chicago and shot a video with their idol, Reed Timmer. Michael mentions, “This has been a dream come true.”

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For anyone who’s ever wanted to live the life of a celebrity, now’s your chance. The new Lean Pockets brand “Live Famously sweepstakes” is offering consumers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to live famously in the new year, experiencing Hollywood the way that today’s A-list stars do.

The grand prize winner and a friend will spend the day in and around Los Angeles, and receive a luxury hotel stay, chauffeured car service, a $1,000 shopping spree, a $250 spa experience, and a special concert experience with well-known celebrity blogger Perez Hilton.

Hilton, who gives millions of fans a daily peek into how the famous live through his prominent blog, www.perezhilton.com, will host the sweepstakes, helping the grand prize winner get a taste of what celebrity life is all about. Fans can follow Hilton on Twitter and Facebook during the promotional period to receive additional details about the grand prize experience.

“Perez is the perfect fit for the Lean Pockets brand ‘Live Famously sweepstakes,’” said Daniel Jhung, Lean Pockets Marketing Director. “He’s become a household name by giving his fans a behind-the-scenes look at what it’s like to be part of the celebrity scene.

Plus, we’re inspired by his commitment to a healthier lifestyle and the approach he’s taken to maintain his recent weight loss – exercising and eating better-for-you foods. His approach is realistic and not radical, and we think that’s something our Lean Pockets fans can appreciate.

They like Lean Pockets brand sandwiches because they’re quick, have 340 calories or less, and still taste great.”

The Lean Pockets brand “Live Famously sweepstakes” will be live January 1 through March 31, 2012. In addition to the grand prize, there’s also a chance to win thousands of daily prizes, such as retail gift cards of varying amounts.

To enter the sweepstakes, users must enter a code, available two ways: 1) During the promotion period, visit a Lean Pockets brand retailer and purchase a specially marked package of Lean Pockets brand sandwiches, or 2) To enter without making a purchase, obtain a code on the “Live Famously sweepstakes” Tab on the Lean Pockets brand Facebook Page.

After obtaining a code during the promotion period, users must visit the Lean Pockets Facebook Page, and complete and submit the registration form. Users will automatically receive one entry into the sweepstakes and advance to the “Instant Win Game” Page, receiving one instant play for that day.

Dooley Productions / Shutterstock.com

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FiOS TV subscribers in the Northeast woke up Tuesday morning (Jan. 10) to a new way of interacting and enjoying their TV experience. The new benefits are the result of Verizon’s continued transformation of FiOS TV viewing by bringing the next generation of its FiOS TV Interactive Media Guide to subscribers in the company’s New York, Massachusetts and Rhode Island service areas.

More than 4.2 million households in these states can now take advantage of award-winning FiOS TV and the advanced IMG. Introduced in 2007, the FiOS TV IMG was the first broadband platform to pull together content from broadcast TV, the Internet and users’ own personal media into one media-management system.

It has since evolved into an in-depth, interactive TV experience, with applications for advanced/intuitive search, social networking, Internet video, personal media streaming, high-definition music, remote DVR controls, account management and billing functions, multi-screen/mobile viewing and much more.

The company used customer feedback taken in through its product development labs, field trials and online consumer forums to create many of the more than 25 new upgrades to FiOS TV’s advanced IMG that are now available to subscribers in the tri-state area. The enhancements include greater personalization and customization, easier navigation, deeper search, bigger storage options and optimization for new 3D technology.

“Customers are at the center of everything we do, and that includes how we develop our products and services,” said Susan Retta, vice president of marketing for Verizon’s Northeast area.

“FiOS TV isn’t about passive video watching – it has evolved into an entertainment and information destination. Our new generation of FiOS TV is all about simplicity of design, increased user interactivity and ease of use. It’s yet another way we want our customers to get the most out of their FiOS services.”

Highlights include:

• Improved search capabilities, which provide a smarter search function that predicts what the customer is looking for and automatically provides potential matches. FiOS TV customers also can filter and sort by channel, and more easily locate favorite programs.
• DVR enhancements, which give FiOS TV customers more control with the following:
• DVR chaptering, giving viewers DVD-like capabilities to jump ahead or resume viewing at a particular moment of recorded programming by using on-screen thumbnails in 10-minute increments, providing more visual navigation.
• Multi-hub DVR, which turns any DVR or HD set-top box in the home into a “hub,” allowing customers to record and manage DVR settings from any room in the home, provided one of the DVRs is a multi-room DVR.
• eSATA external storage device compatibility, available with most FiOS TV DVRs, allowing for increased overall storage capacity. The eSATA hard drives can be purchased at most consumer electronics stores and will automatically record customer selections once plugged into the DVR.
• New ”play all” and “delete all” options, allowing customers to play episodes back-to-back and automatically delete all episodes of a show with the push of a button.

• Personalization features, which let FiOS TV customers enjoy entertainment on their own terms, including:
• New parental control options that make monitoring children’s viewing even easier, with the ability to block out portions of programming by rating during key hours of the day, like homework time, and schedule certain times for Parental Controls to be automatically turned on and off for greater flexibility.
• Guide customization, enabling a variety of settings, with a mini guide on the bottom of the screen, a half guide on the right side of the screen, and a full guide with a look at more hours of scheduled programming.

• 3D content software, which automatically detects when a customer tunes to a 3D program or channel and instantly changes the necessary settings for watching those programs on a 3D television set.

Verizon’s FiOS TV Interactive Media Guide can be accessed with the FiOS TV remote control or by using Verizon’s FiOS Mobile application, which turns an iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad or Android device into a remote control for a FiOS HD set-top box, making parental controls, customized interactive applications and program recording options easy to access.

The next-generation FiOS TV is built upon a long series of innovations, including Flex View and FiOS TV Online, which extend FiOS TV beyond the home to the Internet and a range of mobile devices; free interactive applications including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Yelp, HSN Shop By Remote, TMZ and others;

Media Manager, which allows customers to access on their TVs personal photos, music and videos from their computers; and In-Home Agent, which frees customers to use simple online tools to diagnose and resolve a range of service issues.

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