Message from Michael - Mobile and Social Media - August 30, 2010

Message From Michael                                 

                                                                                                                        August 30, 2010                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

      JUST ONE WORD AND IT’S NOT PLASTICS

      MRS. ROBINSON WOULD HAVE LOVED SOCIAL NETWORKING

      SOCIAL MEDIA MAGIC

      FACTOID OF THE WEEK --  MEDIA MOGULS

      COCKTAIL CHATTER – SHIPS AHOY, MATEY

 

 

      JUST ONE WORD AND IT’S NOT PLASTICS:  For the Benjamin’s of the class of 2009, the word is “mobile.”  The survey, noted in last week’s Message, of journalism and mass communication graduates, shows that the percentage of graduates using a mobile device for news has doubled in only a year.  More than a third (34.8%) say they watched or viewed news on a mobile device the day before taking the survey, compared to less than a fifth (17.8%) the year before.  And if the graduates were being told the future in two words instead of one, it would be “social networking.”  Not too surprisingly nine out of ten (89.7%) say they visited a social networking site the day before the survey.  As the authors from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication somewhat understatedly put it, “future graduates can not be expected to be much more committed to this form of communication.”  Also, perhaps not surprisingly, more graduates got their news online (74.4%) than from the traditional news leader, television (70.5%).  Maybe I wasn’t paying enough attention, but online news and television news consumption were basically in a dead heat amongst graduates in 2007 – 75.4% for TV and 75.1% for online.  In 2008, online took the lead (74.6%) from television (69.8%).  Television still leads all other media.  For example, less than half (46.8%) read a newspaper the day before, although that’s up slightly from the year before (44.1%), but way down from its 1994 high point (81.7%).  It’s basically the same story with magazines with less than half (48.7%) reading a magazine the day before, compared to a high of two thirds (67.8%) in 1994.  Interestingly, half of the graduates (50.7%) say they read a book the day before, and even more interesting, that percentage has been pretty consistent since 1994.

      MRS. ROBINSON WOULD HAVE LOVED SOCIAL NETWORKING:  For those of you who only think Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn when thinking about social networking sites, the free encyclopedia website Wikipedia lists 190 active social networking sites worldwide.  Yes, I did actually stop and count them one by one.  And Wikipedia notes the list is ‘not comprehensive’; Nor does it include dating sites (13 by my count) or defunct social networking sites (add another 11).  According to the Wikipedia listing which relies on web info company Alexa for its rankings, Facebook, which you probably already know, passed the Half Billion user mark earlier this year, is the second highest rated social networking site in the world.  No site on the Wikipedia reference is listed as number one.   Visit the Wikipedia site and type in ‘social networking websites’ and you will find the list and several hours of entertainment.  It includes the most popular Indian social networking site (Bigadda), the Norwegian social networking site (Blip.no), Iran’s (Cloob), South Korea’s (CyWorld), Poland’s (Grono.net), Hungary’s (iWiW), Sweden’s (LunarStorm), Russia’s (Vkontakte) and Japan’s (Mixi).  There are numerous social networking sites for music, of course, but also research scientists (Epernicus), Christian Churches (MyChurch) and Muslims (Muxlim), as well as knitting and crochet (Ravelry), and BDSM (FetLife).

      SOCIAL MEDIA MAGIC:  According to an analysis by social media experts for Forbes magazine, the best social media campaign of all time is one that originated more than a decade ago.  The campaign?  The Blair Witch Project movie whose student creators managed to stir up a tsunami size surge of interest using websites and message boards.  Enough to generate $500 Million in revenue since its creation in 1999.  The actual production by the amateur auteurs was $30,000.  It actually cost much more ($320,000) for sound and color correction and 35 mm blowup after its acquisition.  The Blendtec “Will it Blend” video showing everything from a baseball to an iPad being ‘blended’ came in second. But the more important number to the company – home sales of its blenders have increased 700% since the viral video began being viewed in 2006.  Okay, you won’t have to dig into your memory banks for number three – it’s the current Old Spice interactive video which turned the TV commercial into an online sensation using Twitter and other social media approaches.  After that, it’s Burger King’s Subservient Chicken (which I am proud to say was highlighted in one of my first messages), followed by Pepsi’s What Do You Care About, VW’s Swedish subway-escalator-turned-piano, Office Max’s Elf Yourself, Evian’s Roller Babies, Ikea’s Facebook Showroom and, finally and controversially, Hotmail’s Hotmail campaign which ran an ad at the bottom of every email.  Controversial because the judges weren’t sure that actually qualifies as truly a social media effort, or just an old fashioned advertising effort.    

      THE MOBILE – COMPUTER FLIP FLOP:  Social networking (at 22.7%) and online gaming (at 10.2%) have replaced checking email (8.3%) as the number one activity for Americans on their home computer.  But the reverse is true for mobile use where email is still “the killer app,” according to Nielsen.  Mobile email use has actually increased four percentage points in the past year (to 41.6%).  Meanwhile, in third place, social networks with “only” a tenth (10.6%) of mobile Internet users spending time on social networks.  Portals actually came in second (11.6%).

      GOOGLE ME THIS:  According to the Alexa site, Google is the top website in the world (social networking aside), while Google India comes in at number 11 with Google Germany at number 17, Google Hong Kong at number 18 and Google U.K. coming in at number 20.  The only non-American website to make the top ten is Chinese search engine, Baidu, which comes in at number six, although just out of the top ten at #11 is QQ.com, which is a Chinese instant messaging service owned by Tencent which also owns one of the most popular Chinese social networking site, Qzone. A quick browse through the Alexa site shows an enormous number of Chinese websites.  (A disclaimer about the Alexa rankings, it requires that the site have the Alexa toolbar; so some would argue that it is not as accurate as comScore or Nielsen.)  The top rated porn website, according to the Alexa rankings, is XVideos.com at #56 followed by PornHub.com at #58.  And I can’t help but point out that sandwiched in between them at #57 is CNN Interactive.              
 

      FACTOID OF THE WEEK:  One of the leading ‘content farms’, or if you prefer the more derogatory term ‘content mills,’ Demand Media has filed for an Initial Public Offering (IPO) of $125 Million.  No, that’s not the interesting factoid.  The interesting factoid is that analysts say the IPO filing would put the valuation for Demand Media at $1.5 Billion.  That’s more than The New York Times!  (We journalism teachers always tell students not to use an exclamation mark at the end of the sentence, but that sentence deserves one.)  And here’s the kicker – that is even though the company lost $22 Million in its first year and $6 Million in its second.  Finally, as an aside to all this, the CEO of Demand Media is Richard Rosenblatt who previously founded MySpace which, if memory serves me, he sold to News Corporation for $650 Million in 2005.

      COCKTAIL CHATTER:  Website MarineTraffic.com lists every ship sailing the high seas (and low seas, too, for that matter) as well as those docked and moored at the innumerable ports around the world in real time.  Apparently ships have to GPS their location on a continual basis, and the Marine Traffic site tracks all that.  The site shows you everything from cargo ships, tankers, and passenger ships to tugs and yachts, complete with pictures, ship statistics and location. You can even find off-shore oil rigs from the North Sea to the Gulf of Mexico.  So, on a Sunday afternoon, the 227-meter Swedish cargo ship Mignon is leaving Melbourne, Australia, headed to Port Kembla.  (No, never heard of it.)  The 199-meter long Panamanian cargo ship Columbia Highway is headed from Taiwan to South Korea.  The 170-meter U-K registered passenger ship Stena Nordica is headed from Dublin to Holyhead.  Meanwhile, the 48-meter pleasure craft Scott Free registered in the Marshall Islands and the 40-meter pleasure craft Mustang Sally also registered, interestingly enough, in the Marshall Islands, are headed up to the Intracoastal Waterway to Fort Lauderdale.  I was looking for a boat captained by one of my brothers.  Several hours later, I haven’t found his boat but I have had a heckuva time.  Way cool.  As a footnote, the site is sponsored by various Greek organizations, including the University of the Aegean (which has both a Greek and English translation website), the University of Crete  and – I love this one -- Aristotle University.

      SUBSCRIPTIONS: We encourage people to pass on copies of Message from Michael.  But if you would like to get your own copy, you can subscribe by sending an e-mail to Michael@MediaConsultant.tv with the word “subscribe-MM” in the subject line.   If you wish to stop receiving this newsletter, e-mail Michael@MediaConsultant.tv with the word “unsubscribe-MM” in the subject line. Also, back issues of MfM are available at the website, media-consultant.blogspot.com.  You can reach me directly at Michael@MediaConsultant.tv.

 

Message from Michael - Mobile and Social - August 30, 2010

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Message from Michael - Custom Content - August 23, 2010

Message From Michael                                 

                                                                                                                        August 23, 2010                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

      YOU READY TO RUMBLE

      A CUSTOM MARKETING MANIFESTO

      BUDDY CAN YOU SPARE A DIME

      COCKTAIL CHATTER  -- PASSWORDS

 

Warning:  This week’s Message from Michael, unlike most, has more commentary (although I prefer the word, perspective) than most.  So, if you’re looking for your usual dose of facts and factoids, this isn’t it.  If you’re looking for insight and understanding… well, this may not be it either.  But if you want to have something to think about, this may be it.

 

      YOU READY TO RUMBLE:  You journalists and you advertisers?  Well, get ready.  Two media marketing groups may end up having as much, or more, impact on the future of journalism than media organizations normally associated with journalism.  How’s that for an opening statement?  Well, it may seem hyperbole, but read on and see for yourself.  The two groups are ones you’ve probably never heard of – the Internet Content Syndication Council and the Custom Content Council.   They both deal with what’s called Custom Publishing, or Content Marketing, or Custom Media or Branded Content.  But some might say a Rose by any other name is still a sales tool with journalistic trappings.  Some might say it’s the social networking, new media version of advertorials and Video News Releases.  As noted in a previous message and what started me looking at this in more depth is a recent warning from the Internet Content Syndication Council that so-called “content mills” are junking up the Internet by providing low quality content.  Basically, content is being cranked out in both publications and on the Web to ‘optimize’ the search engine results and therefore the hits and visits.  The group just released its content syndication guidelines which… candidly speaking… any journalist would accept, calling for accuracy (fact-checking and vetting by qualified reviews and citation of information sources); timeliness (clearly indicate date and time for time-sensitive materials); corrections (“balancing the need for speed on the Internet with timely corrections”); and credentials (display the credentials of the sources so users can determine the credibility of the information).  The group emphasizes that the guidelines are only aimed at informational and factual content, NOT content that is opinion or entertainment; and that the guidelines are only focused on the procedures for generating the content, not the actual content itself.

What makes all this important is that between the two of them, their membership probably accounts for a large percentage, if not the majority, of content you see, read, hear, view, ingest on any given day.  Members of the Internet Content Syndication Council include ABC Radio Networks, About.com, Associated Press, AT&T, Brightcove, CBS, Google, Nielsen, McGraw Hill, NATPE, Nielsen, Reuters, The Tribune Company, Turner Broadcasting Systems… just to name a few.    Members of the Custom Content Council include AdAge Group, AdWeek Media, American Airlines Publishing, Disney Family Fun Group,  Meredith Integrated Marketing and Meredith Parenthood Group, Penton Custom Media,  and Time Inc. Content Solutions… just to name a few.     

What also makes this important is the growth in this area – the concept of customizing content to fit the interests of the consumer but also to fit the interests of the advertiser.  The Custom Content Council, which also operates under the domain name custompublishingcouncil.com, says “custom media marries the marketing ambitions of a company with the information needs of its target audience.”  They offer research that shows 80% of readers prefer receiving information on a company through a custom publication…. 75% feel better informed when reading custom publications… and 60% feel custom publications make them feel closer to the sponsor.  The Internet Content Syndication Council describes its “rose” as “the controlled placement of the same content on multiple partnering internet destinations” with those placements directed “to some degree” by the content owner.  The key benefit, according to the council’s White Paper is that it “enables content creators and advertisers to attract large audience of users in the midst of a rapidly expanding and fragmenting environment.” 

Convinced yet of how much impact this may have on journalism?  Here’s a sampling of some headlines on stories published by American Business Media – Custom content helps publishers help marketers with brand conversations; For custom content, the trick is putting readers first, brands second; They’re partners, not clients; Creating Content People Want to Share; Demand Media’s Content Assembly Line; Finding a paid content model that’s right for you; Where’s the buzz around Custom Media; The rise of private news; 5 editorial performance enhancers; Content networks push user-generated content to the next level.  And, yes, I have read these articles, and more from ABM, and they are interesting… insightful… and provocative – if you’re thinking about the future of journalism.

       A CUSTOM MARKETING MANIFESTO:  But here’s the one that journalists and advertisers alike among the message readers should read.  Titled The New Rules of Custom Publishing, Joe Pulizzi, the founder of Junta42, one of the leading custom content groups, argues that with shrinking media company budgets, the content quality of those media company outlets has dropped, leaving a great opportunity for custom publications to “fill in the vacuum.”  In what may be an ironic twist to his argument, considering he’s arguing on behalf of businesses and marketers, Pulizzi says part of the problem is that “sadly” (his word) as ad revenues crater, companies are caving in to advertiser demands to “compromise content.”  Add several other factors to the equation:  Consumers are tired of “interruptive marketing practices” and would welcome custom content from marketers; Many big companies probably “know more about us than some of our relatives;” New, cheap and easy to use technology means a small company can deliver “great content solutions to a targeted customer base” so that a 10-person might be able to out-market a 10,000-person company “in a carefully chosen niche.”  Add it all up, he says, and it’s the “changes that are leading the content marketing future.” All of it, he is careful to emphasize, dependent on “great content… not just any content… great content.”  And the clincher -- he argues that it doesn’t matter to consumers whether that content comes from traditional media or custom publications by businesses.

      BUDDY CAN YOU SPARE A DIME:  Journalism and Mass Communication graduates nationwide face one of the worst job markets in the past quarter century, say researchers at the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication.  The percentage who reported having at least one job offer dropped significantly.  The percentage who were able to get least one job offer was down significantly.  The  percentage who actually had a job  was down significantly.  And while the level of full-time employment was down significantly year to year, the level of part-time employment was up significantly.  The report cites a piece of black humor advice from one graduate to his peers:  “stay in school forever; it all goes down hill from here.”  As a matter of perspective, the report notes the “good news” that the unemployment rate for journalism and mass communication graduates is slightly lower than the same age cohort nationally.

All right, about now, many of you are saying – you’ve already heard about this report which has made the rounds of most media outlets.  So, confession time, I am late reporting on the survey from my own school.  How embarrassing is that?  That’s why, among other reasons, we’re going to look at different angles.  One of which is the graduates’ concern about their college experience.  On that score it depends on whether you look at the glass as half full --  six out of ten graduates say their college experience adequately prepared them for their work experience; or you see the glass as half empty -- four out of ten said there were specific skills they wished they had acquired at college.  One out of seven (13.1%) went so far as to say the college experience had not prepared them for the work experience.  Much of the training the students wanted was in graphics and, not surprisingly, Internet work.  Not surprisingly since the survey shows the 2009 graduates were more likely to be doing web work, with six out of ten graduates either writing or reporting for the web; They were ‘more likely’ to be doing research on the web, ‘more likely’ to be producing video for the web, ‘more likely’ to be producing graphics and photos for the web, ‘more likely’ to be creating advertising for  the web and ‘more likely’ to be using the web for promotion.  Interestingly, considering the report comes from academics, in their closing remarks, the survey authors say “it would be a pity” if colleges did not take a hard look at what they are teaching in light of the “lousy job market.”  They note that the graduates said the job market had changed dramatically in the past five years – about the same amount of time, the researchers note, as it takes for someone to go through college.         

      COCKTAIL CHATTER:  In the movie Blazing Saddles, the sinister Hedley Lamar played by Harvey Korman finds out that the critical password on a briefcase is 1,2,3,4,5 and exclaims what idiot would have that as password – only to have Governor William J. Le Petomane played by Mel Brooks come in two seconds later and exclaim, “somebody has the same password as me.”  Well, it turns out that, yes, indeed, most people pick such simple passwords, according to research by security firm Imperva.  When it examined 32 Million passwords accidentally released by the social media website RockYou, nearly half were found to be “trivial passwords” such as consecutive digits, dictionary words, or common names.  Meanwhile, Technology Review reports that Microsoft Research has developed a system in which the number of times a common password is used by a number of users can be calculated and monitored.  Then, once a particularly common password reaches a certain level of common-ness, the password can be banned so no one else can use it.  The system is designed for organizations with millions of users.

      SUBSCRIPTIONS:  We encourage people to pass on copies of Message from Michael.  But if you would like to get your own copy, you can subscribe by sending an e-mail to Michael@MediaConsultant.tv with the word “subscribe-MM” in the subject line.  If you wish to stop receiving this newsletter, e-mail Michael@MediaConsultant.tv with the word “unsubscribe-MM” in the subject line. Also, back issues of MfM are available at my  website, MediaConsultant.tv or my blog, media-consultant.blogspot.com.  You can reach me directly at Michael@MediaConsultant.tv.

 

Message from Michael - WikiLeaks and Perspective - August 4, 2010

Message From Michael                                 

                                                                                                                        August 4, 2010                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

      LEAKS, LEAKS EVERYWHERE

      YESTERDAY CAME SUDDENLY

      444.8%

      THE DAY THE MUSIC DIED

      COCKTAIL CHATTER – JERSEY SHORE

 

We encourage people to pass on copies of Message from Michael.  But if you would like to get your own copy, you can subscribe by sending an e-mail to Michael@MediaConsultant.tv with the word “subscribe-MM” in the subject line.

 

 

      LEAKS, LEAKS EVERYWHERE:  Journalists and news organizations ranging from the Christian Science Monitor and the Wall Street Journal to the Nieman Journalism Lab and the Council on Foreign Relations are all trying to determine what the release of the 92,000 ‘secret’ documents by WikiLeaks means to the future of journalism.  What is particularly interesting is that the leak of documents was coordinated by WikiLeaks with three national news organizations in three different countries – The New York Times, The Guardian and Der Spiegel.  As Nieman Lab writer C.W. Anderson notes, it is interesting to see the difference in headlines with the Guardian focusing on civilian casualties while the Times focused on U.S.-Pakistan relations.  From my review, Der Spiegel appeared to focus on the scale of the military involvement and Germany’s ‘naïve’ involvement.  In keeping with the fact only based approach I take with the message, I will not comment (yet), but I would note some observations:  In a broader picture view, the Wikileaks controversy highlights the growth in non-traditional news sources and whether that represents the ‘future of journalism.’ 

For example, the Knight Citizen News Network not only lists more than 800 citizen or community media sites, it also lists more than 236 foundations that have received more than $161 Million in grants over the past five years to fund news projects.  Some of the better known include the Center for Investigative Reporting, the Center for Public Integrity, ProPublica, Alternet and the Huffington Post Investigative Fund.  All of which have allied with, or worked with, traditional news sources.  But then there are the smaller, or lesser known, news projects such as the American Independent News Network, New America Media, and the Mother Jones Foundation for National Progress.  Regardless of whether their high profile or whether they have large media partners, what also stands out is their dependence on grant funding.  For example, the Center for Investigative Reporting received grants ranging from $585,000 from the Ford Foundation to $1,500 from the Tides Foundation.  The Center for Public Integrity received grants ranging from $750,000 from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to $1,000 from the Victor Elmaleh Foundation.  The point is the various groups business model is built on finding and applying for grants, large and small.

Then there are the various content providers springing up around the world and on the Internet.  As noted in a previous message, these are providing free or subscriber content to Website builders trying to bolster their online traffic.  A search using the phrase “free content for websites” returns more than 57 Million entries and sites ranging from FreeSticky.com to FreshContent.net and Feedzilla.com.  Three of the most prominent sources mentioned in the previous message are Examiner.com, AssociatedContent.com and DemandMedia.com.  A visit to any of their sites will show a mix of freelancer material, but often ‘freelancer’ material based on traditional news sources.  Add to that Publish2.com, which bills itself as a ‘news exchange’ and counts such august news organizations as The New York Times, the Oregonian, The Spokesman-Review and PBS as partners.  It recently launched Demotix.com which says it stands at the “forefront of the news revolution – bridging the gap between newspapers and broadcasters and the stringers, freelance photographers and citizen journalists who are forging the new world of user-generated news.”  It also is a news exchange, using both professionals and amateurs, but with an emphasis on video and pictures.  And while it may appear hyperbolic, a visit to the site may change your mind.  And while many of the sites may be driven by concerns about the ‘future of journalism,’ many are probably driven as much by the ethos displayed by the young guys behind BleacherReport.com who said they started the sports site because they were “a group of lifelong sports fans who were not satisfied by local coverage of their favorite teams.”  The site claims to post more than 500 articles every day on various sports, with 11 Million unique users each month.  As the old Southern expression goes… ‘Nuff said.          

      YESTERDAY CAME SUDDENLY:  A look back at ten years of technology from two different surveys shows some interesting developments – some you probably already suspect or know, and some that may be somewhat surprising. The figures come from the University of Southern California’s Center for the Digital Future and the Pew Internet and American Life Project.  In the ‘no surprise’ category, Internet use has grown significantly not only in the U.S.  but around the world.  Depending on whose figures you use, it either went from 67% in 2000 to 82% last year in 2009 or from 46% in 2000 to 79% in 2009.  In the same vein, Broadband use at home has octuppled (No, I don’t think that’s a word) from 10% to 82% (according to USC) or from 5% to 64% (Pew).  The Pew report which was part of a presentation by Lee Rainie, the director of the Pew Project, reports that the percentage of people going online every day has more than doubled in that time (from 25% to 62%); while the USC study sais a third of the online users (31%) go online several times a day.  And while the growth in global mobile cell use may not be surprising, the size of the growth may be… from 15 out of every 100 persons in 2000 to 75 out of every 100 in 2009.

But it’s the development of technology that didn’t even exist or existed at a minimal level ten years ago that is most surprising.  In 2000, less than 10% of adults used “cloud” technology; Now, according to the Pew people, it’s more than two-third’s.  But here are the factoids I find particularly interesting: the Pew Internet group says wireless was almost unheard of ten years with nobody (0%) connecting wirelessly; Now, two thirds of adults using the internet (59%) connect wirelessly.  In 2000, nobody (as in 0% again) used tech social networks; Now, nearly half (48%) do.  Rainie probably best sums up the difference when he says that ten years ago, going online was based on “slow, stationary connections built around my computer.”   Now, going online is based on “faster, mobile connections built around outside servers and storage.”  If you want to see his full presentation, which is worth the read, the link is http://pewinternet.org/Presentations/2010/Jun/How-Media-Consumption-Has-Changed-Since-2000.aspx .

      444.8%:  Keeping our historical perspective, that’s the percentage increase in the number of Internet users worldwide over the last ten years, according to website Internet World Statistics.  In 2000, there were 361 Million Internet users.  Now, (meaning July, 2010) there’s been a nearly five-fold increase, reaching just under 2 Billion (1,966,514,816, to be exact.)  The fastest growth area in the world is Africa which registered an astounding 2,357.3% growth.  Of course, that’s because the number of Internet users was so small to begin with – roughly 111 Million out of the total population of more than 1 Billion, equating to a penetration rate of 10.9% -- the lowest in the world.  The ‘lowest’ growth area was North America with a ‘mere’ 146.3% growth over the past ten years.  But, as you can no doubt figure, that’s because the penetration rate is so high already – now at 77.4% --the highest in the world.  Other areas of high growth are Latin America and the Caribbean area (1,032.8%) and the Middle East (1,825.3%).  The largest number of Internet users is, not surprisingly, Asia where there are 825 Million Internet users but with a population of 3.8 Billion, that equates to a penetration rate of only 21.5%.  The flip side of that, of course is that the potential growth in Asia as well as Africa, Latin America and the Middle East is huge.  With a world population of more than 6.8 Billion and less than 2 Billion Internet users…. Well, you get the idea.        

      THE DAY THE MUSIC DIED:  Of the 98,000 albums that sold last year, only 85 sold 250,000 units or more, according to radio research firm Harker Research.  Or, put another way, 98% of last year’s albums sold fewer than 5,000 copies.   Popular music website Pandora just celebrated its 60 Millionth registered user.  Yet they have ‘well under’ or ‘only’ one million songs.  So, the research firm observes, that “a large number of users have a personalized station that sounds pretty much like a lot of other people’s personalized station.”  By comparison, the research firm notes that stream service Rhapsody has a library of more than 9 Million songs.   The research firm also noted an effort by BigChampagne, a media tracking company, to design a new chart, which they called the Ultimate Chart,  to replace the ‘old fashioned’ Billboard charts.  The new system took into account, not just record plays, but YouTube video rankers, social networks and other areas where music is played to get a true measure of a song’s popularity.   The result?  Basically the same as the Billboard Hot 100 with, for example, Shakira and Justin Bieber making the top five.

      COCKTAIL CHATTER:  Since the Cocktail Chatter in the last message about the popularity of ABC’s Bachelorette drew so much response, I thought I would share another factoid about trash TV (whoops, sorry, that’s commentary).  MTV’s Jersey Shore scored the cable net its highest season premiere rating in seven years with 5.3 Million viewers.  And as The Hollywood Reporter pointedly notes, that’s substantially higher than AMC’s critically acclaimed Mad Men (2.9 Million).  That announcement came about the same time one of the ‘stars’ of the show, Snooki, was arrested on a disorderly conduct charge for harassing people at the beach.  A review titled Jersey Jetsam in The New Yorker said watching the show “makes us feel like anthropologists secretly observing a new tribe through a break in the trees.”