Media Mistrust

There seems to be those entities that people have an inherent mistrust of attorneys, government, and now apparently, the media.

A recent story on NPR discusses how viewers are becoming less trusting of news organizations. The NPR story quotes a study performed by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press.

The survey was conducted with 1,506 people in July 2009. In that sampling just 29% of Americans say that news organizations generally get the facts straight, while 63% say that news stories are often inaccurate.

Conversely,  he poll finds that television remains the dominant news source for the public, with 71% saying they get most of their national and international news from television. More than four-in-ten (42%) say they get most of their news on these subjects from the internet, compared with 33% who cite newspapers.

Last December, for the first time in a Pew Research Center survey, more people said they got most of their national and international news from the internet than said newspapers were their main source.

Those who identified themselves as Fox News viewers were more critical of what they considered a media bias.

Though the public is increasingly critical of news media organizations, most people think it would be an important loss if major news sources shut down.

As we've discussed in the COMM 630 class, people tend to gravitate toward those outlets that share their views. 

Don't be a twit-tweet!

I believe I’m a convert to Twitter.  When I first heard of Twitter about two years ago I didn’t get it.

“140 characters?”, I said to myself. What can you do with that? Months went by and I gravitated toward Facebook and currently have 350+ friends who discuss various topics.

What really started me rethinking my Facebook use were the games. “Farmville”, “Mafia Wars”. Buy someone a virtual drink. The gimmick-ness of the pages was getting to me, and still does.

Once I used Twitter more and more I found myself liking the short posts and would go to some of the links. Also-good tweeters have developed a skill to inform the reader and intrigue them. I find Twitter to be somewhat of a news aggregator and a way to supply information quickly to followers.

Admittedly, you can do as much on Twitter in comparison to Facebook but Twitter feels more basic and not so much “cute” stuff.

I imagine in a few months the possibility of “wearing out” on Twitter and finding something else to try.

We’ll see.

Buying an Election?

Billionaire Meg Whitman is running for Governor of California and has taken an interesting approach to garnering media coverage.

Whitman's campaign is receiving harsh criticism for supplying the media with video and recorded soundbites from her campaign stops in an effort, they say, to make it "easier" for the media to cover her campaign.

The Democratic nominee, Jerry Brown, calls it "campaign propaganda", while a San Francisco television station, KPIX refuses to run the video:



Smaller television stations with smaller staffs could find the provided video as assistance as they wouldn't be able to staff the political races.

It is an interesting discussion, however. As media (especially local) outlets experience declining revenues with shrinking staffs, would the they look to use material from sources that supply content? To be safe, they could lean toward using supplied material in regard to topics that are more informational in nature.

There would be an argument that if a media outlet were to use such material a disclaimer may have to be used to alert viewers, listeners, or readers where the content originated.

Times are tough and media outlets sometimes need material to fill newscasts.

Content is king, at times.

Conan Goes Cable

Conan O’Brien’s recent decision to sign with TBS is a telling statement about the growing influence of cable television and the deceasing power of network television.

Not to long ago(a few years), cable television was the lower tier of television, routinely showing repeats of network shows. More and more, cable television is producing original programming that is directly competing with network television for viewers, topping network television and winning Emmy’s. 

Are Leno and Letterman becoming the dinosaurs?

Conan’s move to TBS, John Stewart on Comedy Central, both shows draw a younger demographic. There is an entire generation of viewers who can’t/won’t discern between cable and network television.  For network television, which continues to see its audience eroding, the shift is crucial to their success, and younger viewers are turning more and more to cable television.

Apparently-the head of TBS approached Conan to bring his show to the cable channel. 

With a average viewership age of 35, Conan’s key demographic of fans age 18-35 fits the station well. 

O’Brien himself utilizes some of the same technology younger fans appreciate, continually tweeting about his career and move  to TBS.  His announcement comes in monologues style: “The good news: I will be doing a show on TBS starting in November! The bad news: I'll be playing Rudy on the all new Cosby Show.”

It will be interesting to see how this all plays out. The feeling is Conan will draw a large majority of younger viewers, the key demographic that advertisers covet. Are we seeing network television’s lose one of its last strongholds-Late night television?

Time will tell.

What is the next Facebook or Twitter?

What is coming down the social media road? Who or what will knock Facebook and Twitter off the top of the social media hill? As it stands, there isn't a legitimate contender. When you consider that the percentage of users of both Facebook and Twitter has skyrocketed over the past year, double or triple digits increase in some demographics.

Grandmothers are now becoming friends with their grandchildren. David Letterman talked about "tweeting" on one of his recent shows.


Consider the dinosaur that is MySpace, which has developed its own niche as the place for bands to invite their fans. 

One blogger discusses what's next on the social media horizon.

 Even the Harvard Business Review is weighing in on the subject of the future in social media. Google Buzz is catching some attention.

Some of the best sites discussing social media is Mashable.com, Socialexaminer.com, techcrunch.com

The social media landscape is ever-evolving. Hold on tight!

Paper or Plastic

The use of plastic is engrained in our society. Water bottles, yogurt containers, carpet cleaner bottles, automobile parts, etc.are all made of plastic. Many of us know that plastic isn't biodegradable, so what happens to the plastic we throw away nearly every day?

A recent guest on David Letterman gives a chilling answer.

See For Yourself

I have a confession, I’m addicted. There, I said it. Of course, like millions of others around the world I find myself “glued” to my laptop or I-Phone looking at videos on YouTube for hours at times.

YouTube provides me with access to my own television station, figuratively, 24 hours a day.  I am a t.v. person, I grew watching a considerable amount of television. Do I allow my 5 year old to watch as much I as did? No. But its ingrained in me and I cannot shake it.

Imagine what’s at your fingertips:

•         Music Videos 
•          Television show highlights
•      Complete movies (occasionally)

And, yes. What you will find on YouTube isn’t always the best quality production. There are several clips of those individuals (men) being hit in the nether regions.


*ahem*


.

Social media, I feel, is the great equalizer. No longer does a big corporation control what is produced. The “average Joe” can produce his own video and deliver it to an audience around the world.

3 things are needed:

• Video Camera or Video phone
• Computer
• Internet Access

·        That’s it! (By the way, if you feel the use of bullet points is excessive. I point to Jonathan Groves and his suggestion.)

O.K. I’ve touted the greatness of YouTube and given you my take on its attributes.

Is there a downside, a negative, to this site? Some belief it has absolutely.

The negative comments lament how anyone can post an inane video on nearly any topic and be as goofy, stupid, disrespectful as they want to be.

So-what’s the problem? I would argue the negatives are what make it a positive. It provides an inexpensive communication tool for an individual to a corporation. And the consumer can choose what he or she would like to view.

In regard to the marketing aspects for corporations, Toyota recently ran a commercial  and directed viewers to its YouTube channel to see and hear more about a new hybrid vehicle.

What strikes me is that the automaker is directing people toward a 3^rd party website and not its corporate site. Is there a feeling that YouTube is the “people’s” site? Will the popularity of YouTube aid corporations in providing its message to customers?

Stay Tuned.