August 27th 2009
What’s in the water in St. Charles County? You’ll recall that’s where Lori Drew was was indicted in a cyber bullying case related to the November 2006 suicide of teenager Megan Meier. The case, publicity and resulting legal responses have been a frequent topic here. Now, another grown-up is facing felony harassment charges for allegedly […]
August 14th 2009
We love and hate the Blackberries and iPhones that tether us to the world of work. I remember having just started my first lead-gen campaign, and receiving an auto-update of new business while riding a chair lift. Having grown up around farms, I’m comfortable with work and life having lots of overlap. That said, the […]
July 13th 2009
Funny and Unusual Punishment Before we had state identification, mug shots were used to establish identity. They still fill that role, but now they also punish, entertain, deter, and transfix a growing, voyeuristic audience in print and online. The Christian Science Monitor points out the popularity of a crop of sensationalist pulp magazines with names like […]
July 10th 2009
There is a growing disconnect between the legal staff who write terms of use for websites, those who operate the site, and site visitors. I’ve come to believe that each level of disconnection introduces new sets of legal risks, which this story only start to illustrate. Chris Soghoian observed in CNET that Google’s terms of […]
July 4th 2009
We’ve seen governments monitor private citizens through video surveillance and increased access to electronic records. Here’s a proposal for citizens, and their media, to use some of these same tools to follow the work of their representatives in government. Massachusetts’ Open Meeting Law and Public Record Law may be expanded by S1458 to provided better access […]
June 29th 2009
In May, St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa filed suit against Twitter in California Superior Court, essentially claiming that someone using his name was posting comments that damaged his reputation and caused emotional distress. The suit also claims damage to La Russa’s trademark rights. Ordinarily, I would have thought little about the case, believing […]
June 23rd 2009
Censorship it easy to spot when China or Iran simply turn off media channels. However, in the US, well-meaning local agencies are also advancing censorship. Want a job? Give us your social media passwords. The City of Bozeman, Montana, has a long-standing policy of requiring job applicants to provide usernames and passwords for “any and […]
June 16th 2009
Capgemini and the “Big Reveal” Professional services is a staple of airport advertising. But having seen this one at least one thousand times I still don’t understand how it sells Capgemini. Is the blue-suited lady the consultant, and is she inspiring her clients to disrobe? Or are the super hero-suited businessmen the consultants, and she’s […]
June 10th 2009
At the Quad Cities Ad Federation in Moline we discussed how sometimes related drivers combine to precipitate market trends, and ended up with a diagram that I’m calling a “bankshot.” The general pattern is that a predictable driver causes a predictable outcome, and a modifying outcome builds on that to create a second condition, which […]
May 22nd 2009
I’m digging out my high school letter jacket to return to Moline, Illinios, where I’ll be talking to the local advertising federation on June 9th. The topic, Digital Direct Marketing, is about how to assemble systems and practices to provide more personalized relevant online experiences. Details here. Retention is the New Acquisition I’m planning to […]
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