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Feb. 29, 2016, is an important day in our home – one we’ve looked forward to for decades.
Our wonderful Aunt Donny will turn 21 tomorrow. Donny is a caregiver to our children, and was a caregiver to my wife from infancy through adolescence. Yes, Donny is turning 21 and, yes, my wife is ... well, my wife is older than 21 (I think I’m permitted to disclose that). Now, if you’re doing the math in your head, let me help. 2016 is a leap year. Donny will turn 84. But we like to think she’s actually turning 21. After all, she only gets a birthday every four years. We like to tell Donny she’s finally legal to go to a bar and have a drink. I’ve contemplated taking her to the bar tonight at midnight, but I’m pretty sure neither of us would make it. Plus, she’s lived a pretty clean life. Shots of tequila are probably out of the question. I did ask her, however, if she would mind me posting a picture of her to Facebook, Twitter and other places celebrating her 21st birthday. Donny doesn’t use social media, but she sees the value in using Facebook and other platforms to connect with people and to share important moments. This is one of those moments: a chance to celebrate something that only comes along once every four years. A birthday, on the actual day you were born. In recognition of leap year birthdays all over the world, here are a few ways to celebrate this important day on social media. Make it a big deal: Sure, Donny is turning 21, but it’s not just about birthdays. Know a happy couple married Saturday, Feb. 29, 1992 (the last “Saturday” leap year)? Celebrate their anniversary on social media. Even though the wedding was in 1992, this is their sixth anniversary. Ladies propose: Speaking of weddings, it’s tradition for women to propose to men on Feb. 29. Even if you’re not ready to propose, but you’re ready to take control of your relationship status, change it on social media and make it Facebook official. Be prosocial: This day only comes around every four years. Use it as a day of social media civility. Think of this as a bonus day to be judgment-free, to post inspirational and uplifting notes. Instead of pushing yourself away from other people who tend to annoy you, embrace them on social media with some kind words. Set a four-year goal: Go to Twitter or Facebook and type, “In four years, I will ...” and fill in the blank. We like to set resolutions on New Year’s Day. Why not give yourself a few extra years to realize that goal? If you share it on Facebook, look back in 2020 (pun intended) using TimeHop to see how far you’ve come in reaching that goal. If you reached your goal, celebrate it with the world on social media, of course.
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 On Tuesday, April 5, 2016 at 7:00PM, former New York City Police Commissioner, Raymond Kelly, will deliver the Skeggs Lecture at Youngstown State University (Stambaugh Auditorium). However, the format for this Skeggs is a bit different. The entire lecture will follow a Q & A format. I have the honor of serving as moderator for this Q-&-A-type lecture, taking questions from the audience and from social media for Commissioner Kelly. If you have a question you'd like me to ask Commissioner Kelly on your behalf, please post it using the form below, or send it to me via Twitter (@adamearn) or Facebook (facebook.com/adamearn). From Commissioner Kelly's Profile: With 50 years in public service, including 14 years as Police Commissioner of the City of New York, Raymond W. Kelly is one of the world’s most well-known and highly esteemed leaders in law enforcement. Kelly was appointed Police Commissioner in January 2002 by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, making Kelly the longest serving Police Commissioner in the city’s history, as well as the first to hold the post for a second, separate tenure. He also served as Police Commissioner under Mayor David N. Dinkins from 1992-1994. In 2002, Commissioner Kelly created the first counterterrorism bureau of any municipal police department in the country. He also established a new global intelligence program and stationed New York City detectives in eleven foreign cities. Under Kelly’s leadership, the NYPD lowered violent crime by 40% from 2001 levels, while also dedicating extensive resources to the successful prevention of any future terrorist attacks. Commissioner Kelly also established the Real Time Crime Center, a state-of-the-art facility that uses data mining to search millions of computer records and put investigative leads into the hands of detectives in the field. These department wide improvements have served as the model for other law enforcement agencies around the world. The former commissioner opens up about his life in law enforcement and his fight against international terrorism post-9/11 in his memoir Vigilance: My Life Serving America and Protecting its Empire City, released September 2015 by Hachette Book Group. Currently, Commissioner Kelly serves as President of Cushman & Wakefield’s Risk Management Services division, a position created specifically for him. As President, Commissioner Kelly focuses on helping clients identify potential vulnerabilities, as well as prepare for and manage risk across a number of critical areas, including physical and cyber security intelligence, crisis management, and emergency preparedness. Kelly is also a Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and an ABC News consultant.
DOYO Live - www.doyolive.com
About two years ago, I met Dennis Schiraldi, owner of CYO Marketing, during the lead up to the first TEDxYoungstown event. Schiraldi and I spent a lot of time talking about social media, marketing and how we prepare students to be engaged and responsible citizens on social media. Conversations always revolved back to how our students learn, share and interact with others because of (and, in some cases, in spite of) marketing and branding. These students already use social media to manage personal and professional relationships. They are surprisingly good at it despite the fact no one ever really taught them how to communicate via social media. These students are also really good at using social media to find information about their favorite TV shows, sports teams, restaurants and myriad other brands, products and services. In communication and marketing classrooms, instructors have always used this connection as our way to get students to think about how they communicate with their world through social media. As usual, Schiraldi was two steps ahead of me. After a few beers at O’Donold’s Irish Pub in downtown Youngstown, Schiraldi laid out his vision for a one-day social media conference.For this conference, Schiraldi envisioned the students as small-business owners and marketing professionals from Northeast Ohio, western Pennsylvania and beyond in search of ways to make their products and services shine on social media. To get things moving, Schiraldi reached out to the amazing interactive design wiz (yes, he really is a wizard), R.J. Thompson of Youngstown State University’s Department of Art and creator of Youngstown Design Works. Anyone who knows Thompson knows that if you want something cool to happen, he’s the person to do it. Enter DOYO Live, a digital marketing, interactive design conference coming to Youngstown on Aug. 4. DOYO (short for “Do” Youngstown) is a showcase of some of the area’s best minds in marketing, social media and interactive design. Later this week, Schiraldi plans to reveal the names of two high-profile keynote speakers who will headline the event. Our hope is that DOYO Live will introduce professionals to the latest trends in digital marketing and interactive design. More importantly, it will be the first event of its kind in the area that gives professionals an opportunity to network with other marketing and design professionals. Of course, any undertaking like this takes a team (and Schiraldi has a great team), but it also takes buy-in from a bunch of willing souls in the community. So, if you’re lifelong learner, a student of digital marketing and interactive design, and you’re in Youngstown on the first Thursday in August, be sure to check out DOYO Live to learn the latest innovations, strategies and applications. For more information and updates, check out www.doyolive.com. Registration information is coming soon along with a schedule of events and speaker bios.
In the past decade, most of the world has gone from spurning the idea of finding love online to embracing it with a big bear hug.
Just look at the abundant number of dating apps available, many based on specific needs and interests. Some of these apps are so ingrained in our everyday vernacular that the mere mention brings a smile to our faces. I once overheard my 8-year-old daughter humming a familiar tune. When I asked what is was, she sang out, “You don’t have to be lonely at Farmer’s Only dot com." To which I replied, “City folks just don’t get it.” She laughed because she knew the commercial and the jingle. Clearly, Mom and Dad were watching Dr. Phil again, because I’m pretty sure that spot doesn’t air on Nickelodeon. If you’re lost, go to YouTube and type in “Farmers Only Commercial” to see the original from 2007 and many more ads like it on the FarmersOnly.com YouTube channel. Not surprisingly, these interest-specific sites report high levels of relationship success (of course they do). But there really is external evidence to support sites intent on matching us based on religion, sports, sexual preference and more. In an article published in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, researchers Sharon Sassler at Cornell University and Amanda Jayne Miller at the University of Indianapolis examined working-class and middle-class couples. Among other interesting tidbits, they found that where individuals meet romantic partners (e.g., bar, church, online) has a big influence on the kind of support they expect to receive from friends and family. They also found those common interests were credited for sustaining relationships long after that initial glance at church or the “swipe right” on Tinder. So if the sea of fish on popular dating sites such as Match.com and eHarmony is just too difficult to navigate, check out some of these interest- and lifestyle-specific sites: SinglesWithFoodAllergies.com: As the name suggests, this site connects singles affected by food allergies. According to their site, if you’re celiac and sexy or dairy-free and dynamic, they can help you find lactose-intolerant love. If you’re not looking for love, only to make friends with others with similar allergies, this is still a great service for making those connections. GlutenfreeSingles.com: Similar to Singles With Food Allergies, this site matches people based on food, allergies and lifestyles. So if you’re gluten-free due to disease, intolerance or choice, have no fear. GlutenfreeSingles, is “committed to building a national and global community for those who are gluten-free.” Vampersonals.com: Looking for a sleep-all-day, party-all-night bloodsucker? This site is for you. In all seriousness, they possess the power to link you with “like-minded individuals in your area to spend time with, hang out, have fun and enjoy the darker sides of [un]life.” TrekPassions.com: If you’re into “Star Trek,” TrekPassions.com creates bonds based on science fiction and fantasy interests. They even accept “Star Wars” fans.
Super Bowl Sunday is usually a record-setting day, whether you’re watching on TV or interacting on social media.
Last year’s Super Bowl drew 114 million viewers, setting the record as the most-watched television show in U.S. history. Not surprisingly, the 2014 Super Bowl was a close second with more than 112 million viewers. In fact, in the history of U.S. television viewing, only seven shows have surpassed the 100 million-viewer mark. Six of those shows are from the last decade, all of them Super Bowls (2010 through 2015). The only non-Super Bowl show to exceed 100 million viewers was the “M*A*S*H” finale in 1983, with 106 million viewers. Ratings and shares are often the highest on Super Bowl Sunday. The rating, or the percentage of people in the U.S. with a TV who watch a particular program, was 47.5 for the 2015 Super Bowl. Last year’s game also earned a 71 share. In other words, 71 percent of people who were watching television were tuned to the Super Bowl. These are some of the highest ratings and shares since the Super Bowls of the 1980s. Why the increase in viewers, ratings and shares over the last few years? Social media. Consider this: In 1983 during the “M*A*S*H” finale, we had fewer media options distracting us. In 2016, we have hundreds of TV channels. More importantly, we have social media. Sure, the population has grown, but not enough to account for the difference in viewers between 1983 and 2015. While people were helping to set the most-watched-TV-program record during the 2015 game, they were also on Facebook and Twitter. There were more than 265 million posts, likes and comments on Facebook (over 65 million active users), and more than 28 million tweets. This set Super Bowl records for both platforms. Commercials and Music There’s something for everyone during the Super Bowl. Many viewers look forward to Super Bowl commercials. Companies will shell out an average of $4.9 million for a 30-second ad in 2016. These companies have figured out that they can get viewers to talk about those expensive ads on social media, long after 30 seconds are up. Half of last year’s commercials included a hashtag, encouraging online chatter about commercials and products. If you used the commercial break to load up on nachos, only to return to find out everyone is talking about the best commercial ever, head to YouTube. Most brands will post their commercials to YouTube before the ad airs during the big game. If you’re a music lover, it shouldn’t surprise you to learn that social media use spikes during the half-time show. Last year’s show with Katy Perry, Lenny Kravitz, and Missy Elliot attracted the most viewers in half-time history with more than 118 million viewers (more than the game itself). The half-time show streamed live on YouTube, generated 3 million tweets and Facebook said more than 1 million people per minute were posting updates about the performance. Super Bowl 50 will certainly be one of the biggest television shows ever. Will it be the biggest on social media? That’s up to you. |
AuthorDr. Adam C. Earnheardt is special assistant to the provost and professor of communication in the department of communication at Youngstown State University in Youngstown, OH, USA where he also directs the graduate program in professional communication. He researches and writes on a variety of topics including communication technologies, relationships, and sports (with an emphasis on fandom). His work has appeared in Mahoning Matters as well as The Vindicator and Tribune-Chronicle newspapers. CategoriesArchives
February 2021
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