class #2

In class number two, I can remember one of the slides that we viewed that had the logos and names of different social media sites. I found it amazing that some of those sites I had not even heard of, or exist anymore today! The video that we viewed about how much and how often social media is used was also mind-blowing! The video, along with the stats that followed about the scope, reach, and impact of social media was all just so interesting to me. I also loved how we defined the term “social media,” “anything that uses the Internet to facilitate conversations.”
We also learned about how on April 30, 2007, a blogger published the movie industrie’s HD DVD encryption code. As a result, 15,000 Digg members voted for the blog post. As a response, the movie industry sent a cease-and-desist letter to Digg. In return, Digg removed the link to blog post. Then, by next morning 88 other bloggers found the code and published it. There was also a video on YouTube that set the code to music that got 300,000 views. In return, news organizations covered the controversy and ultimately Digg reversed course, generating more news. In my opinion, that whole story is just awesome!
The “Go Dark Day” On January 18, 2012 I also found interesting. I’ll have to admit that I was wrong when I thought that this act would have no affect on the proposed SOPA and PIPA laws, and boy was I wrong. What a strong statement it made! Here is a link that better explains how exactly SOPA and PIPA were stopped. Although a little lengthy, it’s a good read. http://www.forbes.com/sites/larrydownes/2012/01/25/who-really-stopped-sopa-and-why/
Finally, we discussed in class the benefits of “joining the conversation.” The “FastLane” blog started by GM was a really cool story. Last but not least, we all now know about the “Carly Rae Jepsen story,” how she started off on YouTube and was discovered thanks to social media. Now, she is a pop superstar and a known icon world-wide.