The Super Stars of New Social Media 48
sanspeak writes "The Wall Street Journal profiles the Moguls of New Media. It's not about the entrepreneurs who have created these new media islands like MySpace, YouTube and such, but people who participate in it and make it successful." From the article: "As videos, blogs and Web pages created by amateurs remake the entertainment landscape, unknown directors, writers and producers are being catapulted into positions of enormous influence. Each week, about a half-million people download a comedic video podcast featuring a former paralegal. A video by a 30-year-old comedian from Cleveland has now been watched by almost 30 million people, roughly the audience for an average "American Idol" episode. The most popular contributor to the photo site Flickr.com just got a contract to shoot a Toyota ad campaign."
Of course (Score:5, Insightful)
Oh, and while I'm posting, I was thinking about social sites and privacy. If people are worried about people posting too much info on the net, and they're also worried about big brother style data mining of their details, why don't the sites respond by turning the typed text into graphics, displaying it as bitmaps, so that it can't be cut and pasted etc. You could use a subtle form of CAPCHA (or whatever it's called) encryption perhaps - nothing too hard to read - but even without it it would thwart casual searchability.
Re:Of course (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Of course (Score:2)
Re:Of course (Score:2)
Re:Of course (Score:2, Insightful)
Turning the typed text into graphics is not a solution.
Re:Of course (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Of course (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Do this mean (Score:1)
Considering how Roland is the person everybody seems to hate yet is one of the most active posters on slash I thought it was quite ontopic.
I probably am trolling though, but only gently.
I have another question (Score:5, Funny)
Re:I have another question (Score:3, Interesting)
This is off in left field but... (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:This is off in left field but... (Score:1)
Does anyone remember that snickers commercial where the hunters pelt a deer with candy bars, then look dumbfound when it just runs away?.. then a caption "it's only sastifying if you eat it"..
I just wish I used my VCR more often =/
Misleading statistics... (Score:2)
Re:Misleading statistics... (Score:2)
Re:Misleading statistics... (Score:2)
Lowest Common Denominator (Score:2)
If I watch 3 seconds of a dancing comedian from Cleveland before hitting my attention span limit for wacky online videos, do I still count as one of those 30 million?
Many thousands of people rated that video 3 stars or higher (out of 5). I watched the video and it is not funny. At all. The comedian is somewhat talented and he provokes quite a bit of nostalgia but I don't think I even giggled once. He's a no one rehashing has-beens.
What struck me was the audience whose reaction can be heard in the vide
good luck ! (Score:3, Funny)
I hope that those ad campaigns aren't as tough as at Toyota car. Those are nearly indestructible. Would be hard to shoot them....
Hollywood (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Hollywood (Score:2)
Ah, I love that site, I actually knew about them because a local laundry shop had posted cartoons of luke and leia buying a father's day card with darth vader on it (something like: you're an evil bastard, but you're still our father) on their windows, and I accidentally found these later on the joyoftech site.
Sites (Score:1)
Re:Sites (Score:1)
Re:Sites (Score:1)
Re:Sites (Score:1)
Re:Sites (Score:1)
Open letter to Myspace Tom (Score:3, Funny)
No, you are not my "friend."
You're not even in my "extended network."
Get bent, you creepy mutant.
Sincerely,
Random Myspace User.
Re:Open letter to Myspace Tom (Score:2)
No, you are not my "friend."
Posting on
Try wearing appropriate shirt [jinx.com]?
Game Over (Score:2, Interesting)
... for free speech, amongst other things.
Apparently, one US Congressman wants public access to social networking sites banned, all under the guise of protecting kiddies from molesters. If you're not sure what I'm wittering on about, then read about the "Deleting Online Predators Act" [bbc.co.uk]. Banning access to these sites in public places is only the start of further restrictions to your rights online or otherwise. Act now, or pay later. You choose, whilst you've still got freedom of choice anyway.
A soap box is all you need - for now (Score:2)
A long time coming... (Score:3, Insightful)
In college, which is now between 3.5 and 8 years ago for me, my computer itself was far more popular than I was. I hosted all kinds of fun stuff (some legal, some illegal) but the popular things were videos I made with my laptop and webcam of amusing college exploits. I had microwave tricks with eggs blowing the door open, and stable plasmoids, as well as videos of driving an electric go-kart through the halls and up the elevator of the engineering building.
They were popular videos, and I had thousands of hits, but I was behind the camera.
Point is, when everyone has the ability to connect directly to one another through computers, the new "word of mouth" popularity is replaced and amplified by the email forward with a URL in it. The problem is that you can become famous in a matter of a week or 2, but you can be forgotten just as quickly if you don't keep it rolling.
They're on the way... (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
Re:What did anyone expect? (Score:2)
No, that wouldn't be a headline, because it happens every day. Even big budget TV shows get cancelled because they're not politically correct [collegiatetimes.com].
Flickr user (Score:1)
famous for five minutes in Internet time ... (Score:3, Interesting)
I wonder how many of these people of enormous influence will be around in a year never mind six months. A quick perusal of Forbidden [myspace.com] illustrates exactly what it is famous for. Nothing wrong in viewing tottie [britishcouncil.org] but does everything have to be reduced to the level of the Sun's tit page [page3.com].
Re:famous for five minutes in Internet time ... (Score:2)
Me? (Score:2)
And Brookers, too!!! Go Brookers.
+1 off topic (Score:1)
In the future... (Score:2)