JamesonBull.com/blog

Blogs can die, but can they be brought back?

2008-09-17T18:34:00.002-04:00

It has been about a year and a half since my last post here, so if you are picking this up in your feed reader..

SHAME ON YOU!

Clean that thing out once and a while! Have you not noticed that this blog has officially died?

While this blog was originally built to get my my first job in PR, and it worked, I got tired of advising clients about blogging all day, just to come home and do my own blogging. I've still be very active in other blogs and social networks, just not here. If you want to test out your google skills, feel free to see what other projects I've been up to for the past year and a half. I'm not keeping any secrets, I just decided to draw a line between work and play. My lack posts here doesn't mean that I haven't been playing around in other blogs and having some fun.

On to this blog's rebirth..

I was asked by my boss about if I had ever thought about restarting this blog, as he was probably one of my first few readers when I began with this experiment. I hadn't given too much thought about it, but am feeling like I still have a lot to say about social media, PR and being a 20-something in Boston but need a new megaphone to play with.

The gears are turning and I've got a few ideas.

Stay tuned peeps.

Finally Got Joost

2007-04-11T21:19:00.000-04:00

I finally got my Joost invite last Friday, and I was pretty pumped. After all the buzz, and seeing all those other people scrounging for invites in other bloggers' comments section, I was finally invited on to the other side of the velvet rope.

My impression from using it over the weekend was a little dissapointing. The picture quality wasn't what I was expecting, Some shows took almost a whole minute to load up, and they would randomly stop streaming and refresh for a good 30 seconds or so. If they really want to build a platform that will bring TV to the internet, It shouldn't be constantly reminding me that I'm... watching TV on the Internet.

THEN, this morning I got an email saying that version .9.0.1 was "off the air" due to not being able to predict complications with blah blah blah and I'd have to download .9.0.2, the newest version in order to watch Joost..

Downloaded the newest version... Still doesn't work... My views on Joost, and IPTV in general, are dropping by the minute. ::sad face::

Update: Sorry Folks, I wasn't actually given any invites just yet. I'll pass 'em out once I get some... but don't have anything to offer just yet.
But joost does seem to be back online this morning. Now off to watch the new Diddy/Christina video...

Ask A Ninja: Special Delivery 1

2007-03-29T09:26:00.001-04:00

And the winner is.... Ask A Ninja for "best series" in the You Tube Video Awards

Waiting for my Joost invite

2007-03-16T19:14:00.000-04:00

I've been patiently waiting for a while now for my Joost Beta test invite to go through, but so far... no luck.

But I DID get a teaser email letting me know that it is not too far off!

Here is the email:

Hi Jameson Bull,

This is just to let you know that we haven't forgotten your request to try Joost. We're now speeding up the process of adding testers and we'll shortly be inviting everyone who has signed up to try Joost.

This includes you, so expect an invite within the next couple of weeks - in the meantime, thanks for bearing with us - we appreciate it.

See you soon on Joost!

The Joost Team

Web 2.0 ... The Machine is Us/ing Us

2007-03-04T22:43:00.001-05:00

Interesting explanation of how the interactive web is changing just about everything around us.

Behind the Scenes with Steve Garfield

2007-02-08T22:02:00.001-05:00

Click To Play

A video I took with my digital camera of Steve Garfield, filming Bryan Person, at February's Social Media Club of Boston.

This is my first BlipTV test video to see exactly how easy posting video on the net is.

Check out Steve's Video HERE.

I have returned!

2006-12-13T14:06:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I took a little unexpected break from the blog, but I have since been re energized with some Social Media Fuel and have decided to return to posting. With the idea that social media is rapidly growing, probably even faster than I can imagine, I thought it might be interesting to anyone out there looking at expanding their knowledge of "PR 2.0" by checking out just some of the sites that I subscribe to (not that I know even close to everything about new media communications, but I do have a pretty heavy new media diet).

I’ve included just about everything in my regular new media diet, not just things PR related. Hopefully this will give some newcomers to the new media world an easy way to get their feet wet, as well as give some "veterans" an idea of what else there is out there that they may not have stumbled upon yet.

What else is everyone subscribing to? Leave responses in the comments.

Communities I belong to
Digg
Del.icio.us
New Media Release Google Group
Flickr

Podcasts I Listen to/watch
For Immediate Release – The Hobson and Holtz Report
New Comm Road
This Week in Tech - TWiT
NPR – On the Media
Steve Garfield's Video Blog
TEDTalks
The Show with Ze Frank
Ask a Ninja
Diggnation

Anti-DRM Day

2006-10-03T12:31:00.000-04:00

Protect your freedom!

As dubbed by Defective By Design.org, today, October 3, 2006, is "Anti-DRM Day." With recommended demonstrations, protests, stickers, flyers... the whole shebang... I am still not that sure of the effectiveness of today's "theme" especially when tossing around the misleading phrase of "digital freedom". To me at least, it gives the impression that we should toss DRM out the window all together, while it is far more logical to urge content producers to use DRM to manage the rights of musicians, artists, and thier own copyrights through a compromise of each groups interests rather than enforcing secretive, and sometimes immoral and illegal, restrictions on how consumers can use content that the rightfully purchased.

Why was Oct 3 picked anyway? Does it have some significance?

Anyway, while the program lacks any clear strategy or objective (not necessarily a bad thing), I do think they are heading in the right direction. Education is the first step toward having any sort of change in how DRM is treated by media companies. Not only does the general public need to know what exactly it is they are paying for with each$.99 iTunes purchase, but a greater understanding of the implications of DRM, the limitations it puts on the content that you "purchase" (in the most severe of cases, a purchase can more closely resemble a rental agreement without the buyer's full understanding of how the content is allowed to be used).

If I tell my technophobic-girlfriend about DRM by explaining merely that it is the technology that Apple puts on iTunes songs that limits you to use it on X computers and burn it to CD X times, she'll just shrug her shoulders. But if she finds out that playing a CD on her computer can secretly install software that will monitor her content usage as well as open up her system to a slew of viruses and hackers, she might pay a little more attention.

If the RIAA/MPAA are so concerned with piracy, would it be such a bad idea to act ethically and with honest concern for the relationships that they have with their customers rather than bully them around and anyone who stands up against them a pirate, criminal or a thief? Not that content producers/distributors don't have a right to protect their content... but if you push your entire customer base into corner, and someone is bound to push back.

Hopefully the video industry will not muck it up as badly as the music industry has. ..

Links:

http://defectivebydesign.org/en/node
http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=3705

Technorati Tags: anti drm day, Jameson Bull, DRM

Andy Rooney made me dumber

2006-10-01T21:17:00.000-04:00

While doing some casual chanel surfing tonight, I happened to stumble upon Andy Rooney's daily rant on 60 Minutes.I hadn't actually seen his segment in five years or so, but I was really glad that I hadn't because my brain went numb for a good 20 minutes after the show and it almost completely washed away my faith in network news.

Not only did Andy just miss the boat with his rant on Spinach, the day after the F.D.A gives the OK to eat it again, but his two minute verbal vomit lacked event the slightest hint of intelligence, insight, or even respect for the program's viewers.

Check out the text version here.

I'm not sure if the aging viewers of 60 minutes demand that this junk, or if the show's producers are too stuck in tradition to actually offer their viewers that might enlighten or even improve their daily lives. Either way, I don't see myself trying to swallow that much garbage anytime soon unless I develop some masochistic tendencies.

Tecnorati Tags: andy rooney, vegitarian

My absence

2006-09-24T18:32:00.000-04:00

Okay, so maybe my promise to up my posting frequency hasn't been completely fulfilled. I used to look forward to blogging, but now it seems to have become more of a chore than a hobby.

I'm not sure if it is because I am actually working in PR now and have got exhausted that it is the last thing I want to think about when I get home at the end of the day, my disappointments with Blogger Beta, or just the fact that I'd rather not blog at all than do poorly researched, bland, and uninteresting posts about developments in the PR/new-media worlds.

When I first got into blogging, I made sure that it was something I enjoyed. I am hesitant to completely abandon this method of personal expression, but would rather look into new ways to refine jamesonbull.com/blog.

Maybe this will become my comments on my adventures in triathlon, political views, making fun of the disgusting and insulting junk that local news stations spew every day... or whatever it is that is on my mind at the time...

I'm not expecting this to die, but would rather expand it, mold it, shape it, and just have fun with it. I'm still tossing a few ideas around in my head, but I'll let you know what I settle on.

Podcamp Boston!

2006-09-09T13:07:00.000-04:00

Okay, so my posts could not have been more infrequent... and I don't plan on keeping such a low profile much longer, but I will blame it on having to deal with the stresses of moving to a new apartment...

Anyway, I'm at PodCamp Boston and it is pretty fun so far. Its great to see a lot of the vidcasters whose feeds I subscribe to in person, as well as hear attach some faces to the voices that I hear in some of my fav podcasts.

Anyway, just thought I'd give an update while I am on my lunch break of PodCamp Day 1.

More to come!

Technorati tags: podcamp

Ze is on a Roll

2006-08-24T18:40:00.000-04:00

It seems like Ze Frank is on a roll this week, or maybe I just like that I hadn't watched the show in a few days so got a nice 20 minute block of Ze on my drive to work this morning. He is a funny/insightful quote machine!

Here are some of my favs so far..

"Just be yourself. Unless you're an asshole."
"I wonder what would happen if I brought an empty bottle of Gatorade onto the plane but then left with it full."
"Although reclining your [airplane] seat is technically your right, just like free speech, if you exercise it too your limits everyone around you will think your an asshole."

Tracking my site with ClickDensity

2006-08-24T07:56:00.000-04:00

I'm tracking the clicks on the homepage of my website with a free 30 day trial of Clickdensity. The service is pretty cool. Go click around on my homepage and I'll share the heatmap on the blog once the 30 day trial is up. (I know its a little stalkerish, but that's why I'm promising to share the results after).

It'll be pretty cool to see how people are clicking around my site and maybe it'll even convince me to redesign it to make it easier to navigate.

Now go click!

Hello Real World

2006-08-13T19:02:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow morning is my first day of post-grad employment. I am really excited (and only a little nervous) about starting my ~~three month interview~~ internship with Lois Paul & Partners tomorrow. Wish me luck!

This starbucks ad seemed to fit my mood pretty well, even though I'll most likely be sipping a Dunkin' Donuts iced coffee on my way to Woburn tomorrow morning.

Dear Floyd:

2006-08-11T12:19:00.000-04:00

You are a hero. You are a two-wheeled animal. You are an inspiration, but effective communication 'aint your thang. That is fine. You are an athlete. Take Lance's advice. Let your critics speak, but never let their attacks go unanswered.

Fire whoever told you to stop allowing comments on your blog. Stop making it so difficult to believe that you are truly innocent.

If you honestly deserve that yellow jersey, don't let anyone ever speak otherwise unless they have just cause. If you did anything at all illegal, honesty is your best friend at this point.

Best Wishes,

Your Loyal Fan (for now)
Jameson Bull

Technorati tags: blogging floydlandis

Will PR steal my soul?

2006-08-11T10:02:00.000-04:00

PR in general certainly doesn't have the greatest of reputations. While the industry has done plenty of good, people always seem to remember Firestone before they remember Johnson & Johnson.

It is always frustrating when people people I meet ask what I do and they have such a rudimentary understanding of the PR industry that I am forced to use ugly words like "publicist" and "spin doctor" just to get both of us on the same page. I've even been guilty of pretty grotesque comparisons between PR and Marketing/Advertising just because I lacked the time an energy to educate the world about the industry.

From my perspective (however biased or just plain inaccurate it may be), there is a clear division between Publicists, and Professional Communicators. I hope working at Lois Paul & Partners doesn't turn me into a slave to the clip book and I am actually able to retain my soul and not end up on this list.

I think I will make looking in the mirror to make sure I still have a reflection a new party of my nightly routine. Crossing my fingers....

The Right to Blog

2006-08-03T08:59:00.000-04:00

It has now been six months since I started this blog. I decided it was about time that I reevaluate my objectives and policies for posting. Any similarity to these principles are clearly intentional as I used them as the starting point to my own.

While I do veer off the main topics of new media, communications, and Public Relations from time to time, my opinions and reflections on advances in each of these areas are the primary focus if this online space. It is my full intention for this space to be a reflection and extension of some of my own values: honesty, creativity, trustworthiness, loyalty, and fairness.

Privacy: I will respect the privacy of all those who contribute information to my posts. I will create a clear division between personal communication and blog related communication. No information received through a casual conversation will be fair game for blogging unless given the full consent of my source.

Kindness: I will do my very best to refrain from causing any undue harm to any party involved in any of my blog posts. Beyond the cardinal rule of not posting anything that will get anyone fired or killed, I will do my best to keep in mind the interests of those mentioned in my posts.

Linking: Since this blog doesn't exactly reveal breaking news, I will continue to give credit to all the sources of my information through linking to the original site. It is just as important to explain my opinion as it is to reveal the sources of information that have brought me to my conclusions. All relevant information pertaining to each post will be included through links to outside sources.

Transparency: I will clearly state all the sources of my information as well as have a clear division between opinion and fact. I will not use unnamed sources. Any direct quotations will reflect the exact phrasing and ideas of those quoted and I will do my best not to take any information out of context where it may be misleading.

Accountability: I will take credit for any and all of the effects of what I write. I will hold myself fully accountable for my posts and will do all in my power to repair any harm to innocent parties. Needless to say, I will also take full credit for any of the positive impacts, if any, which result from my blog. I will boast with brevity and humility.

Corrections: While I do my best to ensure the truth of my posts, I will make corrections as soon as I become aware of any factual errors, or completely remove any posts whose information is grossly inaccurate or damaging information.

These principles may need revision from time to time, and changes will be made as needed. If you catch me breaking any one of these principles, I want to know. (Remember the accountability part?)

Technorati tags: blogging ethics principles

First Video PR Pitch: Gouge my eyes out!

2006-08-01T15:19:00.000-04:00

5WPR claims the first ever online video pitch. I don't really need to explain much about this... but I'm just glad that i wasn't holding anything sharp. Gouging my eyes out has never been more appealing. Apparently PR practitioner is now the equivalent of crappy infomercial producer.

I found the video blogged here.

Check out the original video here.

Technorati tags: 5W PR Video Pitch

Is Jobster the MySpace of job sites?

2006-07-29T19:46:00.000-04:00

Jobster is an interesting idea, allowing job searchers to use tags, aggregated job postings, and even allows people to give the inside scoop on what exactly it is like to work at a company, beyond what you can learn from the corporate website.

I love that Jobster seems to have embraced this web 2.0 culture and has given a personality to not only job applicants, but to the companies looking to fill open positions. The personal information that it offers about companies answers many of the typical questions I ask when networking with PR practitioners, and all without finding the closest Starbucks to meet at.

I have been nothing but disappointed by Monster and Career Builder, but have found countless leads and have gotten at least half of a dozen interviews through CraigsList. It seems like the number of applicants is high enough, and the price is low enough, that it may be difficult for employers to make the switch. It doesn't look like a replacement of any of the job sites out there already, but definitely looks like a great new tool to toss into the mix.

I like the idea behind Jobster, but am a little suspicious on it's ability to get enough traffic from both job searchers and employers to take any significant market share from CraigsList. We'll see how their marketing and PR efforts work to build a strong community around what they are offering. Hey, maybe I'll even find my next job (assuming I don't stay around Lois Paul & Partners) on Jobster.

Technorati tags: jobster craigslist monster career builder

Meet me at Podcamp Boston

2006-07-29T00:14:00.000-04:00

I'll be at Podcamp Boston Sept 9 and 10. It is a free conference for podcasters and podcast enthusiasts and should be a pretty fun time. I'm excited by the attendee list so far with names like Bryan Person, Steve Garfield, it will definitely be exciting. If you are going to be in the Boston area, join the list and sign up at the site wiki.

Check out the info and keep checking back for a location at the site.

Technorati tags: podcamp boston

Buying Social Media

2006-07-28T22:17:00.000-04:00

Last week’s big Web 2.0 story, Jason Calacanis tries to buy the top Digg/Flickr/Del.icio.us users. I may be a little slow to respond, but here are my $0.02.

Ever since I first heart Netscape Executive Calacanis on Episode 57 of TWIT, I wasn’t exactly a huge fan. I’m not sure if it was his voice, what was clearly not made for radio, or the way he seemed more interested in milking money off of the Web 2.0 revolution rather than creating something worthwhile to contribute to the movement, but he clearly didn’t fit in with the rest of the panel.

Not only does the new Netscape site blatantly steal Digg’s design, layout, and structure, but it fails to even bring anything original to the idea of a social news website. Now Calacanis offers to pay off the top Digg users to join his site? I guess it makes sense that Calacanis can’t build a site that will foster web-based social groups when he doesn’t even understand why so many people visit dig each day to post, comment, and of course, digg.

Kevin Rose has called out Calacanis on Diggnation, Leo Laporte has clearly picked sides, and as far as me, I think he is just a douchebag. There are few ways to rectify someone going beyond trying to create productive competition and stealing your intellectual property. At least it is comforting to know that Calacanis can’t even hire someone to get it right.

Calacanis, go back to the magazine business.

Technorati Tags: Calacanis, Digg, Netscape

Best Week Ever

2006-07-28T22:11:00.000-04:00

This has been a pretty busy week, hence my rather disappointing posting performance. Sorry about that everyone, but other ventures have taken me away from my laptop for a brief period.

Sunday I completed my first triathlon, check out my flickr page for a few pictures shot by my gracious girlfriend. Monday I received a pretty awesome birthday present of being offered an internship position at Louis Paul & Partners’ life science practice, which I accepted shortly thereafter.

Now I am on an Amtrak train headed from Boston to Hartford to meet up with my big brother for his bachelor party and maybe spend some time with a few hometown friends this weekend.

I am very excited to see the end of my employment drought as well as being able to share my experience as an LPP intern. WOOT WOOT! Expect to hear my first day reactions once I start on August 14.

Will consumer creaded media content increase media literacy? My ramblings...

2006-07-17T13:39:00.000-04:00

This Friday's The Show got my gears turning all weekend and I haven’t quite been able to get them to stop. I haven’t quite answered the questions that have come out of this discussion that I’ve been having with myself, but let's see where this takes me...

(rant)

It is undeniable that blogs and internet culture are changing not only in how news is spread, but also in the voice that is used to tell it (not to mention the voices speaking back at the author in story comments).

Paul Grabowitz spoke with Steve Garfield about how consumer created news should be posted on websites right up top along with traditional news content. How easily will the average reader be able to distinguish unbiased, sufficiently researched and balanced news coverage of a story from the subjective ideas communicated through a blog on the same subject? Will blog posts ever be able to be completely integrated into traditional news content without a distinct division that editorial and advertising has requiered?

As the youth Internet culture becomes more and more accustomed to learning about the world around them through My Space and their friend's blogs, will they begin to distrust the traditional media that so distantly resembles the media channels that they are so used to (even more than the rest of society already does)?

My experience conducting journalistic interviews and reporting stories for print publications has certainly changed the way that I interpret news content (as well a fostered a strong distain of 90% of local news programming). Will the Internet culture's access to blogging have any significant affect on they way they interpret news content? (I sure hope that www.nytimes.com never resembles a My Space page... ugh).

The fact that HTML coding and website design were once powerful skills that separated internet media producers from consumers but now it has even begun to integrate into IM slang to the point where (/rant) may some day be as common as ROFL and WTF, is pretty wild.

Sure Dell's blog sucks, but at least they are communicating in a medium where we can call them out on it publicly. THAT is cool.

The average man’s ability to create his own media content will hopefully increase his media literacy, changing the way the entire internet culture consumes and interprets the news media. And in any case, media literacy is good for everyone. The news media may be the fourth estate, but it is only as powerful as the public's ability to interpret and formulate their own educated opinions based on the content.

(/rant)

I appologize for the completely random chain of ideas, but I was in the mood to publish all ideas that have been fueling my brain for the past few days in more of a mental regurgitation than anything else. I hope I didn't give anyone a headache. I will now return to my regularly scheduled and fully thought out posts.

Technorati Tags: Media Literacy, Ze Frank

Dell's one2one Blog

2006-07-11T13:00:00.000-04:00

Dell responded to criticisms from Shel Holtz, Steve Rubel, and Jeff Jarvis about its new blog, one2one. The H&K blog also added it's two cents.

While it is pretty hard to argue on behalf of Dell, I am glad to see that they are at least responding to the comments out there in the blogosphere. I hope that they master the transition between brochure writing and blog writing very soon.

There certainly is endless potential for this blog to help bring Dell out of some pretty mucked-up situations, but if they don't improve their posts it could turn into a big threat. Blogging is an excellent communications tool, as has been proven thousands of times, but only if you know how to do it right. (I surely not perfect, but at least I try and don't blatantly ignore the commonly accepted rules of blogging.)

Technorati Tags: Dell, one2one

2006-07-09T19:45:00.000-04:00

Andrew talks about the recent turmoil at Rocketboom UPDATED

Andrew Baron of RocketBoom tells his side of the story. His transparency and honesty definitely takes him out of the "evil business man who killed rocketboom" light.

The audio quality is awful for the first minute, but just grit your teeth and bear it.

I sincerely hope that Andrew is not surprised that he has been painted in such a bad light. If you do your business is vlogging, and you refrain from being completely transparent during a time of crisis, I begin to doubt how thoroughly you understand the medium.

I am not saying that Andrew did anything wrong, or was "the evil business guy who killed RB," only that he should not be surprised by the image that has been given to him. In a time of crisis, the party who is most transparent will almost always appear in a better light. Typical "no comment" syndrome.

I do wish both Amanda and Andrew the best, and hopefully they'll throw all of this behind them, realize how silly this is, and get back to the daily vids.

The brevity/conservativeness of the message that he mentions leaving on the rocketboom website just made him seem sketchy and impersonable in my opinion. I wish he could have done a better job of explaining his position, but I am sure he will take advantage of his opportunity to tell this side of the story on Monday.