Twitterific text talk

 

*I promise that my next post won’t be about Twitter, I just had to get this off my chest*

I am a fan of writing, which, in my opinion, means that I am a fan of writing correctly.

Now, I’m also a fan of twitter, and of telling anyone who’s interested what I’m up to (as I’ve recently stated). Which ultimately means writing a lot.

But, I don’t think that the two mix. After a little twitter about a dream I had about finding a twitter bird in my flat and getting excited, I’ve tried to limit my Twittering to only a few times a day. Which means, that writing everything I need to write in just 140 characters is kind of hard. Enter shortening words.

I really hate text talk. I think it looks immature, and just REALLY stupid. To be honest, I don’t like it when campaigns use text talk in order to “relate” to a younger audience. Seriously, give them some credit that they have developed enough English in order to understand a written language other than that of “text”.

What I hate most is when people use “woz” or “wos” instead of “was”….it’s the same amount of letters, isn’t text talk supposed to be about speeding the process up. Argh!

I know that I’m not alone in this, but is it just me or does Twitter actually promote text talk? It’s not exactly a promotion for correct English now.

Personally, call me a geek but I think it looks much nicer when something is written entirely in the correct spelling. But Twitter doesn’t really give us a chance, it’s hard to write something interesting in 140 characters!

#Backlashton

 

 

As my Twitter education continutes, the recently VERY well publicised battle between Ashton Kutcher and CNN, made me raise my eyebrows. It looked like a complete and utter PR stunt, and not a very subtle one.

And as this post proves, a PR stunt it was – one devised by Twitter themselves!

Well, Twitter certainly achieved their objective, the story was plastered all over the online news, and even ventured into the print media. But did it not completely defy the point of Twitter? Is it not about the quality of followers, in opposition to quantity. I’m very wary of people who follow me who have a larger number of followers/vice versa – are they really interested in what I have to say? I’m not saying that there aren’t a few celebrities that I follow that I am unlikely to hear back from, but I’ve always thought that it should be a two way communication tool, but Mr Kutcher has made a joke of the social media site if you ask me.

Does Ashton Kutcher intend to follow the 1million plus people who took the time to follow him so he could win this completely pointless time waste?

Although this is a free service, the users who logged on to follow Ashton were completely fooled into thinking that they were supporting an actor of choice. Little did they know they were supporting his next advertising strategy.

Twitter is a great tool for those trying to get their messages across, and I don’t think exploiting their own site, is really going to do the Twitter bosses reputation (I like to think they’re actually birds) any good.

The #backlashton, as it has been quite cleverly named, has already began. A simple # search proves that Twitter users are NOT happy with this little stunt. His current follow number is 1,050,374 – but I’m guessing that by Monday this may have reduced slightly.

PR for the sake of PR is exactly what gives the industry a bad name – and I feel that this is an example of a PR stunt gone ary.

Has your opinion of Twitter been affected by this?

Oh, and just so you know, I didn’t follow him. I have no desire to read to what him or his wife has to say. It’s probably not true anyway.

Leave Facebook alone.

 

*Disclaimer: I swear I’m not moaning in this one*

 

As a student, I get sick of a couple of things;

 

• Being called a tax dodger – I have worked for the entire time I have spent at university, and paid taxes. Unlike some students I have spent no time in A&E due to drinking related activities and have never wasted police time. I’m a very good citizen thank you.
• Statements like – “10am, what are you doing up at this hour, aren’t you a student?” – honestly, it gets tiring just responding to that you know.
• ..and many more.

 

But one thing that has recently caught my eye, was an article in The Times. Another sly way of picking at students and their lack of concentration if you ask me. The shift in blame for lower grades is constantly changing, I suppose it was only a matter of time before they started to blame Facebook (anything but the teaching itself).

Well, I thought I’d leap to Facebook’s defence. Maybe not in a crazed Britney fan style “leave Facebook alonnneeee” way, but the positives are often overlooked.

Yes, yes, it is a very big distraction, but there have ALWAYS been distractions to getting on with your work, it’s just that the internet is the newest one. Procrastination is the key to any good piece of work if you ask me, gives you time to gather your thoughts.

My second defence is this – it is a social networking site, and networking is exactly what a university course is about. I’m working on a piece of work at the moment, for which the assignment brief is quite..well, brief. If it wasn’t for Facebook and the mediums it allows users to communicate with each other, my phone bill would be huge.

I can communicate with so many more people, and gain a wider perspective, rather than listening to random pieces of information that have been passed through the masses on the course. Though my peers, I’m now much more confident with the work that I am doing, and have also been able to pass on ‘advice’ (I use the term loosely) to others too.

It’s a support network, as well as socialising and I feel strongly that this is one of its important perks.

 

So, come on, leave Facebook alone. It has its bonuses!

 

Does anyone else have any thoughts? Am I maybe a bit blinded for my love of the ‘book?

It’s a tweally big world (of twitterers) out there

I’m getting bored of the music in my itunes, so put out a message on twitter to see if anyone had any recommendations for new music.

Within a matter of minutes, I had 2 new followers, and an @ reply from a band called Spicy Jane telling me to give them a listen.

Now, i’ll admit, I’m not a Twitter expert, I literally will use it to update people on my interesting life. I only learnt what RT meant last night. I’m aware that there are mental Twitter search engines, but, aside from the job searches, do they really serve a purpose?! Well, apparently I’ve been put in my place! I would have never expected Twitter to be a place to promote a band, but apparently it can work!

The fact that there are people watching you, that aren’t even followers left me wondering. Wonder what else I can get from this?!  I’m looking for a graduate job. I’m following a couple of job scouts, but nothing has caught my eye as the levels are too high for me. Wonder if I could twit my way into a new job? Might even start a little test to see.

Any other ideas of what I can do?

As for Spicy Jane, I gave them a listen, and they’re alright, certainly were new to me. Not replacing anyone in my itunes just yet though.

Facebook; Where’s the social etiquette gone?!

 

My friend, Amy Johnston, recently wrote a blog post about being invited to a wedding via Facebook. Ridiculous, eh?

 

Well, it got me thinking, technology is taking over every aspect of our lives. Recently, my computer, internet and mobile phone have all stopped working one after the other, and every time I felt like I’d lost a limb. I, and when I say I, I mean we, have become so dependent on technology its mental (that’s a technical term). I don’t think we “rely” on them, so much as they are a big a part of our lives as food is. And it’s not just the tools we use, it’s what we do with them; Enter Facebook. A global phenomenon bla bla, and now it’s just becoming a taken for granted aspect of our lives, people are even giving it up for lent?! Even going out  and being leered at is part of the package now.

Enter the following message I received from some complete random;

 

“I do fancy you”

 

Now, some people might think of this as a compliment. But personally, I think it’s somewhat creepy. The fact that this guy has trawled through girls on the book to send comments to, makes me feel a little uneasy. I have my settings set to private, but obviously this isn’t enough. I like using Facebook for social reasons, and this is just silly.

This isn’t acceptable in the “real world”, so why is it acceptable in cyberspace?! Social etiquette has just disappeared from all aspects of our lives. Not that it would have made much of a difference, but what’s wrong with a simple “Hello”. In the right context, it works, you know.

There was one more thing that annoyed me about this. I felt the need to reply with a simple “who the hell are you?” (to which he actually got offended!) – but in doing so he was then able to see a select few parts of my profile, with or without my consent. Where’s the sense in that?!

 

Back to my original point – erm…yeah. I like technology, I like Facebook, they make things easy. But don’t try to chat me up over Facebook. It won’t work.

Off on vocation?

As part of the process of procrastination I’ve been working on alongside my Dissertation, I’ve been thinking recently about how important vocational degrees are, especially as there are plenty of bloggers around offering their tips on making the most. As I’m on one myself, it can sometimes be seen as a bit of a blag having to fit in work placements (and the time trying to find one), around the piles of work we already find time to put off doing anyway.

However, I’m starting to realise that without placements, your chances of getting the job you want once you leave university are substantially reduced if you don’t have the experience to back up your degree. I believe that the best form of learning, is through doing, rather than learning the theory and having to imagine how it would work in practice. I have a couple of friends that graduated from non-vocational degrees recently who, despite their best efforts, are still searching for a job, and stuck either temping, or working in a job they would rather not be doing.

As part of gaining experience for my degree, I spent last week on a work placement at Wolfstar. I think that the last week was perhaps as influential as my year working at Morrisons. It was such a different environment, and whilst I learnt and gained a hell of a lot from Mozza’s, it’s learning that each agency/company is different that is just as important as gaining the experience itself. 

There are a few good blog tips about making the most out of your placement around. Becca Caddy gives some good tips (I fully agree with the making the tea/coffee, it fuels organisations), and I’d like to add a couple of my own.

• Listen. As a placement student, you can’t expect to be given the jobs of a full time exec, you have to earn the trust.  However, by simply taking in the environment around you, the information you can digest by listening to what people tell you, and conversations /discussions (well, not private ones), can be considerably influential. I learnt a packet through working at Wolfstar, it has helped me with my dissertation, and also for a reflective module too. Although I can’t slap them in my portfolio, I also learnt some great tips for a pitch I have coming up too. You MUST respect the company’s privacy and wishes, and if anything you deal with is confidential, it must stay that way. 
• Get involved. It’s important for both you, and the company you work for, that you get on with the people that are giving you a chance. I was fortunate that a friend (and ex-colleague) was my contact at Wolfstar, and I think that this really helped me to relax a bit more. I have undertaken a couple of placements before where I didn’t know anyone, but it didn’t stop me ensuring I got on with the staff (I even got invited ice-skating after a couple of days).
• Represent. You are a representative of your university, so act like it. You are an adult, and whilst you may not be paid for your work, be professional at all times, in your dress, work and attitude. It can only benefit you.

Something nice.

I’ve been working for Wolfstar this week, and yesterday Amy Johnston made a comment about how everything I’d written so far has been really ‘angry’.

Last night, this negative thought process continued continued, as I went to bed pretty angry, and generally just annoyed, having had an argument debate about Northern Rock and the recession. One thing that irritates me is my flatmate telling me that “I need to learn to form an opinon” (which is what happened last night). It’s not that I can’t form an opinion, I just like to have my say, and it gets on my nerves when my opinion is considered irrelevant in a debate, because my ‘opponent’ considers their ‘opinions’ to be fact, and therefore not to be reasoned with.

And so, this morning Amy’s comment got me thinking, and I realised I should maybe write something positive.

Here it is..

Last night (before our arguement debate), I watched the Comic Relief Mt Kilamanjaro Climb documentary yesterday, and it left me feeling really happy. The fact that these celebrities had given up their time and put in a hell of a lot of effort (6 months worth of training) is pretty inspirational. I was really happy that they made it to the summit all in one piece, and what made me even happier, was that they beat the sceptics.

Apparently challenging yourself to raise money for charity is subject to some amount of criticism. It was a challenge for all of them, and for those who said that Cheryl wouldn’t do it, are you kidding – she’s from Newcastle, shes made of tougher stuff than you think! Chris Moyles (who I love anyway), was also my particular hero – he trained his backside off and it paid off.

And from a PR perspective, the £1.5million (of which £1 is mine) is a pretty good result from simple WOM and twittering (the climb was twittered direct from the mountain to report on the groups progress).

Well done guys.

Someone pass me a razor.

On checking my e-mail this morning, these little terrors graced the banner at the top of the screen.

It continues to amaze me that this is an advert. I was all for the gorilla, can’t beat a bit of Phil Collins, but this?. Irritating! But that bloody song is everywhere! And it gets in your head something rotten.

However, as much as I hate the advert, I’ve got to agree that this use of social media is pretty nice. I was automatically drawn to the banner at the top, recognising the little brats immediately, and couldn’t help but click. Even hundreds of video’s have been submitted to “Jivebrow 09″, attracting a bunch of complete idiots making fools out of themselves.

To be honest though, as much as that song sticks in my head as a constant reminder, it’s not made me want to buy Cadbury’s, I’d still rather have six packs of Malteasers and a razor to shave off their eyebrows. I’ll never understand the logic behind some advertising.

Wonders will never cease ey?

Free speech gone way too far?

So I was angered this morning as I ate my Special K, to see this on gmtv. I actually shouted at the TV (forgetting that my flatmate was in bed), because I just couldn’t believe that this was actually allowed to happen!

In contrast, I then walked past the Yorkshire Post and Yorkshire Evening Post employees protesting outside to save their jobs. Now, I have mixed opinions on striking, but this I fully support (as do the Wolfstar team who I am currently working with). They’re fighting for their jobs, and have good reason too.

The former, are actually protesting hatred of British Soldiers. One fella on gmtv actually said that they were succeeding in creating hatred in Afghanistan and Iraq against the soldiers. Now, call me patriotic, but I hardly think this is the type of attitude our country needs. Although the country is divided when it comes to opinions on the war, I’m pretty sure that no-one hates the our soldiers. I know people are entitled to their free speech, but this is ridiculous. I have one word. Extradite.

Sensationalising sensitive stories – the media gone too far?

So I found an article on BBC online last night about Gerry McCann’s opinions on how the media treated the disappearance of his daughter. He called it a “commodity”.

Now although he made this point to MP’s, I’m presuming he knew fine well that it would end up in the media. And the story of Madeleine McCann hasn’t really been featured much in the past few months.

Now excuse my sceptism, and whilst I’m sure that the McCanns are grateful for the awareness the media coverage caused, I’m also sure they’re not stupid and they’ve realised that the story has died down a bit.

Mr McCann also states that he believes the media were more interested in writing about him and his wife rather than the search for Madeleine.

Now although the media did help on mass to increase awareness of the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, once the story had lost weight, other stories began to appear, which included putting the mother in the frame for her murder, and therefore suggesting she was dead, which Gerry McCann claims could have made people less aware. This is following a media pattern, the need to search for a scapegoat for almost everything.

When it comes to the media, you have to take the good with the bad. When making a plea to the media, you have to understand that you cannot control it. Unfortunately for the McCanns, there were too many “what if’s” and “maybes” that remained unanswered surrounding the disappearance of their daughter, and this was just fuel for journalists eager to find a new angle on old story. Simply reporting that the girl is still missing is not going to sell newspapers.

On the one hand, I can see his point, the story’s focus should have always been on Madeleine, a four year old’s girl is missing, she needs to be found. But on the other hand, if it weren’t for the press coverage that they received (both good and bad), the search for Madeleine would not have even been on half the scale it was.

So, yes, the media may have speculated and therefore sensationalised stories surrounding the search for the little girl, but the work they did for the good of their cause surely out weighs this?