The Sternberg Effect
Social Media
Twitter vs Google
If there were a global thermonuclear war between Google (and all its services) and Twitter, and only one survived, which would you rather see? In other words, if you had to choose one to give up, which would you choose? I posted this question on Tumblr and Twitter last night, and here are the results: Continue reading
5 Underreported Stories of 2011
As we ring in 2012 and close the books on 2011, we take a look back and assess stories that had major impact on our society. Current.com asked me to put together what I thought were some of the stories that flew under the radar. Continue reading
Occupy Wall Street: What A Difference A Week Makes
Yesterday evening, I strolled down Broadway from Houston to Zuccotti Park, about a half hour walk, anticipating what the Occupy Wall Street protests would look like a week after I last visited.
I passed the inelegant federal buildings on Broadway and Reade, and saw ahead of me, a couple blocks away on the sidewalk in front of City Hall, a group of protesters and picketers marching side by side. I maneuvered around them and noticed there were several police officers and quite a few paddy wagons with more cops sitting inside them. It began to rain.
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Why I Will Never Fly KLM Again
Imagine this scenario: you are a doctor – a heart surgeon – who is away on a much needed vacation overseas. You booked your flight months in advance, followed all the rules, and after 2 weeks away, as you get ready to board your flight home, you are told, “Sorry, sir, but the flight is overbooked and there are no seats available for you. Not even in business class or first class.” Now imagine you are supposed to fly home on a Monday so that you can perform open heart surgery on Tuesday on a 6 year old child who, if she doesn’t have this surgery, will die. Instead, you are stuck in a foreign country, with no way of getting home.
I am not a doctor. Obviously. But the subtext of this scenario, getting bumped from a flight, happened to me recently. And according to the concierge at the Courtyard Marriott in Amsterdam, this happens at least 15 times a day.
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Critical Analysis of “Page One: Inside the New York Times”
It’s been a very long time since I wrote a critical content analysis of a film, so I decided to write one about “Page One.” A note: This is unedited and very, very long, and is not meant to be a “like it or not” review, but instead, to use a theoretical lens to discuss this particular documentary. This critique looks at “Page One” through an expository mode of representation lens, which is meant to highlight a) how to read documentary film, b) how this film uses a the expository mode of representation to push its agenda and from that, c) can documentary film be objective? Continue reading
Tumblr
This post originally ran on Mediaite. I wanted to add it here because this blog has gotten lonely and wanted some company. But please feel free to read this and other posts of mine over at Mediaite.
For 50+ years, if someone were to mention The Big Three Networks, one would automatically know the conversation was about ABC, NBC and CBS. Over the past several years, a new Big Three Networks has emerged, only now it’s the social networks of Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn (and while the folks at MySpace believe they’re in this cadre, who really uses MySpace anymore except for the next promising local band?).
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Communications Renaissance: Thoughts From Guest Lecturing
Last night, I had the pleasure of guest lecturing at NYU for a class about PR 2.0. About 2 minutes into the class, I felt right at home. Maybe it was because the class was intimate – only 8 students; maybe it was because the professor, Matt Knell making me feel at ease. Or maybe because I’ve been there before, in front of a class of people wanting to learn.
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What’s a Jew?
This week brought two interesting aspects of what it means to be a Jew to the world. The first, which actually started in January but didn’t get much notice until recently, has been seen as both a triumph of spirit and a desecration of memory. The second has the ability to eradicate what it means to be a Jew.
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Smell Like A Man
One of the most talked about advertising campaigns right now is the Old Spice Man, starring the sculpted former NFLer Isaiah Mustafa . But it’s not your grandfather’s Old Spice campaign, as there’s a highly interactive – and addictive – online push (a combination of viral video, Twitter feed and Facebook page) to support the non-sequitur TV spots.
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Who Controls the Message?
http://www.facebook.com/widgets/like.php?href=http://www.joshsternberg.com/blog/2010/5/18/who-controls-the-message.html The first several weeks after signing a new client are always my favorite. Why? Because this is where we lay the foundation of most, if not all, of our efforts moving forward. We come up with the processes as well as the goals to have a successful relationship. Most importantly, this is the time … Continue reading
Mixing Theory With Business
One of my favorite theories to go over when I was teaching was called the Uncertainty Reduction Theory (URT). Basically, the theory tries to explain and predict how relationships develop between strangers. The idea is rooted in the logic that the more (and often, how) we communicate upon initial interaction, the more we reduce our uncertainty of this person and thus determine if we will continue to develop the relationship.
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Three Laws of Social Media
This post originally ran on the Huffington Post
Social media. Two average-sized words that carry a tremendous amount of meaning. However, we have yet to create a working operational definition for social media…
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Why Sarah Palin is what’s right and what’s wrong with America
Say what you will about the dilettante politician from the great state of Alaska, but she sure knows how to ignite passion – both from supporters and detractors. And while you may agree on her stance that global warming is fake (you know, it’s not global warming-global warming, a la Whoopie’s ‘rape-rape,’ but it’s pretty … Continue reading
Social media is…
As a thought experiment, I asked followers on Twitter and friends on Facebook this little question: What’s the first word that comes to mind when you think of social media? Sure enough, the myriad responses are as diverse as those responding. Some use the ingrained buzzwords: engagement, community, interaction, filter, sharing. Some look at social … Continue reading
How I’m Becoming A Real Person
Last week, I participated in a Web 2.0 panel about trust and journalism with Dan Patterson of ABC News and Jen Nedeau of Air America. This was the first panel I’ve sat on and as I look at the past year or so, I’m starting to see a clearer picture of how I’M quickly becoming … Continue reading
The Sternberg Effect 