REST IN TWEETS: The New RIP

Recently there was a death in the Hip hop world, cali swag district member MBooone was killed and everyone is sending their respect via Online. To me this is kind of silly, being that he is dead, but I understand. If you dont know who "Cali swag district" is, they are the kids who can teach you how to Dougie

So the web has been cranking out stories as to what has unfortunately happen but they keep including his Twitter Page >>twitter.com/MbOoONe and his Last Tweet. His last tweet was >>“@NewNew_Monroe: @MbOoONe smh plz tell yo gf nvr do dat again!”yea right<< Now with all the fame that has surrounded him its very sad to see something like this happen only to have your last words be a "side conversation"

Which got me thinking, when you die, what will your last tweet be? The internet in my opinion is becoming the new "Museum of Self". Now I know you may not care much of what happens to your fb or twitter after death but one guy programmed his website to keep updating and publishing new posts for a long time after his death. It's kind of a wild site, www.akumaprime.com. Now I'm not saying to do that but do make sure that your online self is in good hands in the worse case senerio because even though you may be resting in peace, you want to keep it that way. digitally.


We dont all have Fans, but Fans of the rap group immediately responded to the tragic news of M-Bone's passing on Twitter:

"R.I.P M-Bone of Cali Swag District! Got the homie and his family in my prayers!! To the whole crew keep y'all heads up! #luv" Young Money's Lil Twist wrote

SMH We gota stop this yall! Too many brothers in hip-hop, and just too many brothers in general die because of some BS.

"Omg im really sad now waking up hearing that @MbOoONe died...no more nice goodmorning texts such a sweetheart" tweeted NicoleSaldua


What do you think, should there be something for the online accounts of the deceased? Because it would be kind of odd to think your tweeting a "dead" acct. if you had no idea of the incident.

Age Limits Online

New Teens: " now that my mom knows about us, i quess i can unblock her from the old albums"

Are the privacy settings online too good? Should there be an age limit to those who wishes to use them?

Im not sure why or how young kids (13 and under) are signing online to social networks but what i do know is that they shouldnt be allowed certain privacy settings that can block their parents out. I do believe in personal space but I was raised in the "My House. My Rules" setting. I think I turned out pretty well, but with digital world its very hard to say " My Computer. My Rules" because accessibility for teen is a given and they use it like its a right. Not to say that the internet is or isnt a right but we should understand that is really is a privilege.

Osama: The Man, The Myth, The Hashtag

If life ever felt like a Soap Opera it would be now. After the Trump made it his personal business to get the President to show his birth certificate, the question became: “Seriously??? This is the news?”. I personally don’t watch the news but there is a quote that says “If you dont watch the news you’re uninformed but if you watch the news you’re misinformed”. You can say I’m selectively uninformed because I only read my news via twitter and news subscriptions via email. So how did I find out about the death of Osama? Facebook.

I was on facebook when I noticed my whole entire newsfeed was talking about about Osama is Dead. I went on twitter to confirm this and within 10 minutes @CCN confirmed that this was true. Unfortunately, celebrity deaths on twitter trend fairly quickly and are jokes/pranks, but this “Osama is Dead” hashtag opened the floodgates. Every joke and smart remark you could think of came out. I then started thinking about how convenient this death happened to be. That Obama’s rating goes down and bam! He’s a hero. I been hearing that bin laden has been dead for awhile now and I don’t see why I should believe this hype. You interrupt the apprentice to say he’s dead, cant confirm, but now what? Bury him, in the ocean. I cant believe it either.

Now, while I'm not going to discuss my discontent with the ignorant reactions to the situation. We, the people, have as much proof that Osama is dead as we do the "Area 51" stories. This is more about the internet being the ultimate game of Telephone. In fact, imagine reading a book and having someone interrupt your reading to switch books without you noticing or rip whole pages out.

This is the beginning to something new and not in a good way. I fear that we are being fed content that confuses more than clarifies. For example, the photo above is supposedly the reaction shot of when the White House got the word of Osama's Death ( or "Usama" according to Fox News). I just find so many things wrong with this picture. Hilary's off- reaction, eager happy onlookers, confused bench players, turned off open laptops and a Blurred picture on the desk. Im no conspiracy theorist but the signs that something is "missing" is as clear as day. I'm not saying don't find closure in this, I'm just asking to have a little decency. Plus to all you religious folks know that even David mourned Sauls death. Lets use this as evidence to bring the troops back, evidence to low gas prices, evidence to give back TRUE Fourth Amendment rights to the Airports and maybe just maybe I've believe that this wasn't let out the bag to smack Trump in the face before re-election.

What do you think? How did you find out?

Turn it up!!! But will People tune in

May 5th 2011 will be the 25th Anniversary Celebration of the choice radio station and "Voice of Harlem" WHCR 90.3fm. Now WHCR has a low listenership rating but is hoping to hold several events at City College in hopes of raising awareness and driving listenership up on that day. Although this is perfect timing and very thoughtfully planned, social media will be one of the work horse tools being used here.

Now blogging, tweeting and facebooking has done its share of promotion in the past for other organization, but this is Radio. Turning it up for one day doesn't guarantee that the people will stay tuned in. The Real problem is Access vs Content. If its the lack of access or awareness of the access that is the problem, then the event will be effective and all the digital media will pay off 100%.

%. On the other hand, if the problem is content, then you don't have a advertising problem, you need quality control.

For any business and/or public figures, that last thing a poor brand needs is good Advertising, because then we'll know it sucks but that it has failed to deliver on whatever that brand promise was. So here are 3 ways to fix it:

1. Fix your content- make it relevant, consistent and readily available

2. Get online and connect- the internet should really be used to share and enrich what you have. not to create it.

3. Critic and Go- make the changes needed in order to remain on top of what makes you different. Sometimes you need to know when to listen to your critics, they may be right.

%. On the other hand, if the problem is content, then you don't have a advertising problem, you need quality control.

For any business and/or public figures, that last thing a poor brand needs is good Advertising, because then we'll know it sucks but that it has failed to deliver on whatever that brand promise was. So here are 3 ways to fix it:

1. Fix your content- make it relevant, consistent and readily available

2. Get online and connect- the internet should really be used to share and enrich what you have. not to create it.

3. Critic and Go- make the changes needed in order to remain on top of what makes you different. Sometimes you need to know when to listen to your critics, they may be right.

Online Dating, Seriously?

Being single in the greatest city is gift...and a Curse. but online dating well that's the punch line of the joke. Since the social activities has become exclusive to small social circles and lack of funds, dating offline has become strained and harder to do in the city that never sleeps. Which can only lead to one thing, boredom.

Over the recent years, online went from a popular place to find love quickly to a cheap "look at me" fling site. Now alot of people have flooded into the online world to only write on their profile "just passing through" or "not looking for a relationship". I mean, why are you there then? Just another way to look at each other in glass closets if you ask me.

One girl said " I put myself out there, but not really..." its like an "in case of emergency, break glass". What do you think? Is it a serious thing or does a cute pic and nice ice breaker really work online?

Pressure to be Cool Online

Unfortunately the internet has made life REALLY simple, in fact so simple that people feel that are being Boring. With the recent development of "check-in" apps like "FourSquare" and "Food spotter" and having the option to share this information with your friends on Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, etc... some may notice that aren't doing enough. With millions of people rushing to a pc, laptop and pda to access the internet its clear that there is more going on online than off it.

While at Starbucks I overheard two men conversing about the pressure that some people feel to be interesting because of the internet. One guy said "they say they never get invited out" but do you really need an invitation? Is there such a thing as internet peer pressure? That sort of thing is self imposed and a little insecure in my opinion. In addition there are those folks who don't in go online to certain sites because they fear what people might assume. Even to say they dont want to go on Twitter and "be a Follower".

I personally can admit to having checked-in, shared and tweeted an experience more than a few times. Offline I feel like a lonely loner so I keep myself busy but online it must look like I'm having a grand ole time. Looks can be deceiving, especially online. Do not feel pressured to be "interesting" if you dont have an active online social life. However, you should enrich the relationships and expand your network with the internet, not replace it. So log-on , plan a meet up, and practice those active engaging skills or put your self in a mindset that is open to meet new people. Then tweet about it. What do you think, is it all mental or are people not going far enough to be a "cool" as they truly?

Facebook...what is it?

I remember all the imaginary perks of going to College like dating sexy girls, crazy hookey adventures and Toga Parties. Surprisingly enough, the toga party is the only thing that held true, because the sexy girls were the nerdy girls from high school (they were in my Friend Zone, ha!)Then I found Facebook, the ultimate bragging right for a high school grad. A chance to say what you over the summer without saying anything at all. That exclusivity no longer exists because now its open to everyone. But what is it now?

Companies have fan pages, cliques and causes have groups, there are even game applications for the average facebooker to play. Still, what is it? Social Networking only works when you are networking. Look at Myspace, on the East Coast, thats dying if it isnt already dead. In my opinion, advertising killed myspace. Too much to look at, very little content and information, in fact, when there was alot of words outside of "Bio" and "Blog" section it wasnt very attractive. So When Facebook came to be and gave details without gimmicks everyone wanted to be apart of the "country club" of the internet. Now it feels more like the local sports bar, where everyone knows your name. But where does someone with no friends get to fit-in in a place like this? This is a problem for new business and performers with the "Fan page" feature.

Here's a joke I read online : "The Facebook news feed is my only source for news... Forget Libya, have you heard that my friend Eric Kemp is in a relationship? " Some folks barely care for the news, much less, your failed attempt at a viral video of you doing an awesome Drum cover to a Beetles Song. People will now only what comes on the news feed that has their friends attached to it. Solution...Get a friend to tell a friend. But how do you find an online influencer without becoming a Stalker? News Feed Optimization!!!! Kinda like Search Engine Optimization.

Facebook always was a place for me to say every and anything without saying anything at all. Only way people knew what I did was either via News Feed or they went on my page. News feed Optimisation is the only choice you have if no one want to go to your page ( maybe because there isnt a relationship status) and engage.

So here are 4 easy to use strategies that can help your posts be seen in the News Feed that I read:

1. Ask Questions! Make them fun, topical, relevant, and easy to answer. Remember, your fans want to be entertained and talk about themselves, so give them what they want!

2. Create a Poll! I love this strategy as it’s so easy for fans to answer. Ask them to pick from a, b, c, or d. Fans will be interested in finding out other peoples preferences are too!

3. Photo’s! Add interesting photos and videos to your posts and ask your fans to comment on them.

4. Manual Posts! Facebook actually gives better Edge Rank to manual posts, rather than prescheduled posts, in tools such as Hoote Suit. This can be more time consuming throughout the day if you are posting often, but well worth the effort. This is not to say that you should never preschedule, but using a combination of both would be a better strategy for News Feed Optimisation.

>>Sidenote: there was a 5th step, "Hit the Like button"...but thats like high-fiving yourself in public. Only the REALLY Creepily Cool kids got away with that. but Fans are more likely to hit the “like” button if others have already done so.<<

So now what is facebook? It's a playground and the best way to make friends is to make a scene. It's the world we live in. I wonder what world we'll live in next?