ABC News just broke the story (about an hour ago) about the identity of Elliot Spitzer's call girl. Where did the news organization get most of its information about 22-year-old Ashley Alexandra Dupre? Her "well kept MySpace page."
Dupre's MySpace page has apparently received 5 million hits since her identity was revealed. The ABC piece uses her MySpace profile to speculate on Dupre's life, motivations and personality:
"In some of her MySpace photos, Dupre is the sexy club-goer out on the town, or is goofing off, making digital self-portraits; or she is sleek and tan on a boat in a shot she says was taken in St Tropez; or she is passed out after what looks like a long night. "It happens a lot," she writes."
What do I find interesting about this? That social networking sites are driving mainstream media coverage. We know more about Dupre because we can see how she describes/presents herself in the online sphere.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Monday, March 10, 2008
Social Networking Stats
Happy Monday from Technorella. I just came across this chart on a blog about the social economy. A resource called Complete ranks social networking sites by total monthly visits for the month of February:
To me, less interesting than the actual rankings are the changes sites are experiencing. While MySpace continues to be #1, visits are down 1% from a year ago, while Facebook visits have increased by 77%. Xanga has experienced a 66% decline. And newer, more specialized social networking sites are clearly on the rise.
What does this mean? Maybe it's that as social networking sites become more popular, users seem to be looking for online communities that are more specialized, and address their individual needs. Maybe it's that MySpace is too big, too "Rupert Murdoch," too one-size-fits all in its approach to be a sustainable category leader.
Clearly, the online social networking space is evolving. My bet is that as mobile takes hold, the sites most conducive to it will dominate - at least with the younger set. Given the iPhone/Facebook ad I saw on TV recently, I think Facebook will be the new leader in a very, very short amount of time.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Finally!
Technorella has frequently ranted that she receives Facebook "friend requests" from people who are a) her close friends in the real world or b) people she hasn't spoken to in years/met once.
Yesterday I received a friend request from someone in the middle. And it made me think that these kind of relationships are what social networking sites are really about (I mean, aside from online stalking).
To be specific, Rachel - a close friend of my close friend, Jen - asked me to be her friend. Rachel and I have spent a good amount of time together; she came to visit DC when Jen and I lived there, and for a good year we hung out a lot thanks to another mutual friend's wedding activities.
But, Rachel and I simply aren't close enough to keep in touch via traditional communications methods. Plus, she lives in Chicago, Jen lives in Portland, and I live in New York - so there's not a lot of opportunity to see each other anymore.
Still, I feel like it's nice to be connected to her on some level. In other words, she's the perfect Facebook friend.
Yesterday I received a friend request from someone in the middle. And it made me think that these kind of relationships are what social networking sites are really about (I mean, aside from online stalking).
To be specific, Rachel - a close friend of my close friend, Jen - asked me to be her friend. Rachel and I have spent a good amount of time together; she came to visit DC when Jen and I lived there, and for a good year we hung out a lot thanks to another mutual friend's wedding activities.
But, Rachel and I simply aren't close enough to keep in touch via traditional communications methods. Plus, she lives in Chicago, Jen lives in Portland, and I live in New York - so there's not a lot of opportunity to see each other anymore.
Still, I feel like it's nice to be connected to her on some level. In other words, she's the perfect Facebook friend.
Friday, March 7, 2008
Facebook's Profitability
Forgive the blog hiatus - it's been a hectic week for Technorella work-wise. Anyway - an article from Wednesday's Wall Street Journal (you can only read the article if you're a wsj.com subscriber - sorry) discusses how Facebook, in its effort to become more operationally savvy and profitable, has poached a top Google exec, Sheryl Sandberg, to help grow the business.
Facebook has skyrocketed - check out the chart below that shows the increase in unique Facebook visitors since April 2006.
Facebook has skyrocketed - check out the chart below that shows the increase in unique Facebook visitors since April 2006.
But, just how profitable are social networking sites really going to be in the long-run? Based on this article, it looks like very:
"Last year, Microsoft Corp. invested $240 million in the company, valuing the startup at $15 billion. That gives Mr. Zuckerberg a net worth on paper of at least $3 billion. According to comScore Inc., a Web tracking firm, Facebook had 101 million visitors in January, up from 25 million in January 2007."
I'm interested to see how the company will grow revenue-wise. How will it enhance ad revenue? Will games and video content become the site's profit centers? Social networking sites have clearly provided new ways for companies to reach consumers - particularly young consumers who aren't so easy to reach. My two cents? New advertising and profitability models will evolve to fit the site's "personality."
Monday, March 3, 2008
Hillary Clinton's Facebook Page
Don't tell my boss, but I was just watching the SNL Clinton-Obama debate skit from this weekend.
For anyone who hasn't seen it - it's absolutely hysterical, regardless of your political leanings. At the end, Senator Clinton (the REAL Hillary - not the SNL version) gives an "editorial response" to the skit, which - I thought - painted her as a human, not simply a politician.
SNL is an excellent venue for political candidates looking to enhance their personal appeal. And got to thinking about the role social networking sites play in helping politicians create human identities to appeal to voters.
This thought brought me to Hillary Clinton's Facebook page. I actually like Hillary a lot more than most people do - but her page was beyond canned. For example, in her "About Me" section, Hillary says:
"I was raised in a middle-class family in the middle of America. From that classic suburban childhood in Park Ridge, Illinois, I went on to become one of America's foremost advocates for children and families; an attorney twice voted one of the most influential in America; a First Lady of Arkansas who helped transform the schools; a bestselling author; a First Lady for America who helped transform that role, becoming a champion for health care and families at home and a champion of women's rights and human rights around the world."
I fully understand that politicians must be "on message" all the time. But come on... this is Facebook. If Hillary is really trying to engage younger voters through her official page, she'd be well-served to let go of political-speak and try to communicate in a genuine way. I guess my point is that while digital forums are trendy, I'm not sure they're relevant in politics unless a candidate is truly willing to let go of the spin.
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Tipping Points and Social Networks
... Technorella is back. After procrastinating for much of the day, I'm catching up on my reading for my digital media class. This week, it's all about social networks, tipping points, and early adopters.
Right now, I'm struggling with the idea that in a very tangible sense, weaker social connections may be more "beneficial" to an individual than stronger ones. For example, it's usually helpful to use a broad network of friends, colleagues and peers when engaging in a job search. Broadly speaking, good things - like a new job - can come out of relatively weak social ties.
I completely buy this idea; a former colleague of mine who works in the cosmetics industry and I frequently support our respective friends and co-workers in their job searches by trading resumes. This relatively "weak" social tie is certainly useful. But what interests me is what this really means about online social networks.
Sites like Facebook and MySpace enable us to broaden our social spheres - quickly, easily and without much thought. To a large extent, these forums are all about establishing weak social ties. Maybe I've had the wrong idea about social networking in the digital age; maybe in trying to compare Facebook friendships to real world relationships, I've missed the boat.
Perhaps online social networks are more about reaping tangible benefits from weak social ties - instead of replacing in-person communications.
Right now, I'm struggling with the idea that in a very tangible sense, weaker social connections may be more "beneficial" to an individual than stronger ones. For example, it's usually helpful to use a broad network of friends, colleagues and peers when engaging in a job search. Broadly speaking, good things - like a new job - can come out of relatively weak social ties.
I completely buy this idea; a former colleague of mine who works in the cosmetics industry and I frequently support our respective friends and co-workers in their job searches by trading resumes. This relatively "weak" social tie is certainly useful. But what interests me is what this really means about online social networks.
Sites like Facebook and MySpace enable us to broaden our social spheres - quickly, easily and without much thought. To a large extent, these forums are all about establishing weak social ties. Maybe I've had the wrong idea about social networking in the digital age; maybe in trying to compare Facebook friendships to real world relationships, I've missed the boat.
Perhaps online social networks are more about reaping tangible benefits from weak social ties - instead of replacing in-person communications.
IPhone Meets Facebook
I was just watching Saturday Night Live on DVR, and an iPhone ad I've never seen came on. I don't watch a lot of live TV (meaning I usually fast-forward through the commercials) so I'm not sure how new this one is, but I've never seen it before.
Point being, the ad featured mobile social networking as one of iPhone's main features - specifically focusing on Facebook.
My friend Eddie Radshaw - who blogs about his iPhone - has pointed out that iPhone's target demographic is students. The social networking angle makes sense in this context, and also makes me think that mobile might come around sooner than we think in the U.S. - largely thanks to iPhone's technology.
I mentioned this idea to my roommate (she's my age) and the idea of mobile social networking completely freaked her out. My question is this: will those of us who clearly weren't early adopters of social networking always be adverse to this idea, or will we drink the kool-aid eventually? My thinking is that if mobile social networking becomes applicable, in some way, to the corporate sector, it may eventually impact an older set.
Point being, the ad featured mobile social networking as one of iPhone's main features - specifically focusing on Facebook.
My friend Eddie Radshaw - who blogs about his iPhone - has pointed out that iPhone's target demographic is students. The social networking angle makes sense in this context, and also makes me think that mobile might come around sooner than we think in the U.S. - largely thanks to iPhone's technology.
I mentioned this idea to my roommate (she's my age) and the idea of mobile social networking completely freaked her out. My question is this: will those of us who clearly weren't early adopters of social networking always be adverse to this idea, or will we drink the kool-aid eventually? My thinking is that if mobile social networking becomes applicable, in some way, to the corporate sector, it may eventually impact an older set.
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