Subtitled Videos - What does social media mean to you? (Continuation of previous post)

Mission Accomplished!

"New media is a term meant to encompass the emergence of digital, computerized, or networked information and communication technologies in the later part of the 20th century. Most technologies described as "new media" are digital, often having characteristics of being manipulated, networkable, dense, compressible, interactive and impartial.[1] Some examples may be the Internet, websites, computer multimedia, computer games, CD-ROMS, and DVDs. New media is not television programs, feature films, magazines, books, or paper-based publications" (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_media)

Our most recent project in Social Media class was to interview three people using our phones and then to edit, process, upload and add subtitles to them. The questions revolved around social media and its usages.

Episode I was fun because I was interviewing my best friend and the "friend" she kept mentioning was actually me. It was the first one I did so it was obviously quite difficult for me to grasp the whole thing at first.

Episode II was also fun to shoot and there were PLENTY of bloopers (that I plan in including in the blooper reel later on). But I found that I was getting used to the subtitles/annotations so it was simpler.

Episode III was a bit more difficult...My first interviewee backed out and the next one that I had lined up as backup backed out as well. So I made a few phone calls and shot the video, edited and did the annotations in less than an hour (which would explain why there MIGHT be a difference in the work between this one and the other two..)

The three videos don't differ much expect for technical aspects such as lighting since two were shot at night, and one was shot in broad daylight. One of the two shot at night was in a well lit room indoors while the other one was actually shot outside. The sound also differs depending on the volume of the speakers voice and how far the phone was from their face. The last two episodes, the interviewees were quite uncomfortable with a phone "all up in their business" so the sound quality differs a bit.

The shakiness is similar in all the videos as well as the opinions expressed by the interviewees. My hands tend to shake because of the amount of nicotine I take into my body, so the shot was never quite steady (which is why I like to use a tripod while using a real camera. and probably why I would never be a good surgeon). The opinions of all three were quite similar in the fact that all three used the internet on a daily basis, however they didn't find twitter or blogs very useful. In fact, two of the interviewees said the exact same thing "I find them useless"

I recorded on my Nokia e71 (my trusty companion) and then bluetoothed them to my laptop (took mere seconds) and then edited the videos, added a little intro, processed them and uploaded them to youtube.

I used the simplest program ever to edit the footage and take out what I didn't really need: Windows Movie Maker. I've been using it for years now and so it took as much time to cut down the footage and insert an intro as it took to shoot the footage. It was very easy considering I'm used to this program. There wasn't really any difficulty in this stage.

Adding subtitles was by far the most difficult step in this whole process. It took so long because I did it through YouTube (the videos below have no text but if you go to my youtube page, you can see the videos with the subtitles (http://saso-underneaththeblue.blogspot.com/). Youtube kept freezing and the process was just so slow no matter what computer I switched to. It would freeze and type things I didn't want to type and eat up letters...it was just a horror to use...

My lease favorite part was the subtitles. They took up too much time HOWEVER they were very helpful, especially in episode II where the twins start to speak over each other, so the subtitles helped the viewer understand what was going on and who was saying what. But all in all, it was STILL my least favorite part of the project.

My favorite part was definitely everything else besides the subtitles. I enjoyed the interviews, editing and uploading (since the files were so small they took no time to upload at all.

This project was quite an interesting experience, especially the subtitles, which I struggled with a LOT. In fact, at one point I hit save, and then Publish and it told me my annotations had been published but when I went to view the video, they were GONE. I almost had a small heart attack..Never again will I underestimate the amount of work it takes to do subtitles or criticize the one making them for spelling mistakes or leaving out whole sentences. It's hard work. Takes FOREVER.

EPISODE I - SAM AL-HAMAWI

EPISODE II - ABDULLAH AND YOUSIF AL-HAMAWI


EPISODE III - AYMAN ABDEL HADI

ChatRoulette - WHAT THE HELL..

ChatRoulette is a site where you can video cam with random strangers. It's like an updated version of an old chat room. It randomly matches you up with strangers for video, audio and text chat.
So, curious, I googled the history of chatroulette and I got this ridiculously entertaining article:

"Think of the history of online chat as you would the arc of a young American's life. When Chat was 8, it began sorting through its parents' record collections, finding bands and movies it enjoyed, aggressively asserting its identity. At 9, it began passing secret notes in school. After an awkward adolescence, it grew into its body at 15, tried out for debate club, and developed a loyalty to its friends. A year or two later it started missing curfew and smelling funny, and after it was caught at the wrong kind of party and had its car privileges revoked, Chat cut its hair, ironed its clothes, and got accepted at a competitive college. After a transitional freshman year, it now calls its parents every weekend.

Firefly, AOL IM, Friendster, MySpace, Facebook, Skype. If online chat was officially born in 1988, Chatroulette arrives while it's looking for its first apartment, barely old enough to drink.

Per the Web site itself, Chatroulette is a "brand new service for one-on-one text-, webcam-, and microphone-based chat with people around the world." Its austere design contains a single chat box and two fist-size webcam boxes — one for you, one for them. A click of the play button brings up the message LOOKING FOR A RANDOM STRANGER. What you find next is anyone's guess.

Whimsical? Yes. Easily corruptible? Sure. Surrealist playground? Why not? Nevertheless, in a world where distant friends spam your Facebook inbox with MafiaWars notices, Chatroulette's unmediated platform might save us from our own monsters. It relies on an intelligence the online community hasn't used since grade school.

Collaborative filtering has been the dominant networking concept in the Internet landscape since the mid-'90s, when many middle-class US households first vacuumed out their dens and fashioned them into "computer rooms." It relies on a simple logic: that the Web is a Neronian coliseum of indigestible information without a built-in compass, one constructed from rational personal interests. After personal interests came user accountability, user-generated content, and ultimately, what we have today: relentless real-time documentation. Virtually all online interaction hinges on one of two assumptions: that you're organized by a common interest, or you're already part of a real-world social framework.

What Chatroulette does, remarkably, is ignore this concept. In practical terms, this isn't learning to brush your teeth with the opposite hand; it's brushing them with your friend's foot. For as much as the Internet has accomplished in its 20-plus years, the "stranger's face," someone who sees you at the same time you see them, has been the exclusive domain of real-world interactions.

Chatroulette contains no organizational filters, no fee, no common threads (the notable exception being requisite access to a computer), and no names or addresses. It might be the Web's first purely democratic medium, free (for now, at least) from advertisements, where people can theoretically "meet" and "converse" with someone well outside the grids that construct our normal social lives. No unseen market forces are at work, "guiding you" by steering your Webcam to some nearby Pilates instructor. If someone creeps you out, skip 'em. Perhaps best of all, you're relieved of the occasionally stifling accountability of Facebook, which feels increasingly like a high-school yearbook committee meeting that never ends..."

"Think of the history of online chat as you would the arc of a young American's life. When Chat was 8, it began sorting through its parents' record collections, finding bands and movies it enjoyed, aggressively asserting its identity. At 9, it began passing secret notes in school. After an awkward adolescence, it grew into its body at 15, tried out for debate club, and developed a loyalty to its friends. A year or two later it started missing curfew and smelling funny, and after it was caught at the wrong kind of party and had its car privileges revoked, Chat cut its hair, ironed its clothes, and got accepted at a competitive college. After a transitional freshman year, it now calls its parents every weekend"

(read the full article at http://thephoenix.com/boston/life/97620-chatroulette-new-online-intelligence/)

 

ChatRoulette has a terrible reputation. In fact, most of the time, you're supposed to get a naked guy ready to masturbate to anything.

So..we decided to give it a shot...The first guy that appeared was completely naked. We were so shocked that we slammed the laptop screen down. The second guy, was also completely naked. We were about ready to give up when we disconnected and started again. We finally got a girl, but she saw us and disconnected. Were we THAT scary? Finally we got a guy who was...HALF dressed but at least he didn't disconnect when he saw us :)

All in all, it was quite entertaining on a low level sort of way. I could see how people who didn't have anything else to do could be entertained by such a site.

However it can EASILY be abused and used for porn and such. Similiar sites where you can chat with strangers are omegle.com and chacha.com (I've actually posted a screenshot of a recent convo i've had on omegle. Omegle differs because you can choose whether you want to use the cam or just chat)

ChatRoulette could do very well in the Middle East. However, in lebanon, some of the connections are terrible and don't trasmit a very clear picture, which might ruin the overall experience.

"How dependent on technology are you?"

This is a video I made my freshman year at Simmons (Spring 07)

It's terrible but hey, it's about technology and I figured I'll be doing something quite similar to this in a couple of days for Social Media
Please ignore the terrible filming. I cringe cuz nothing is centered and the camera is constantly shaking :/

Over and Over again (published article)

With all of Europe in turmoil and the Catholic Church in the public eye because of the child molestation cases, is it possible that we aren’t safe in Lebanon from these horrors as well?

For the past decade, stories of little boys being abused and raped behind the doors of the church have been resurfacing. Stories that date back all the way until 1960 and possibly further.

In addition to the actual sexual abuse, the problem lays with the members of the Catholic Church who knew what was happening and chose not to report it or to not do anything about it. A specific case is that of Reverend Peter Hullermann who was convicted of abusing minors in 1986.

However, all that happened was that he was suspended for 18 months and fined a fine of $2,000, and he was allowed to work with children once again. A psychoanalyst who had examined him at the time demanded that Hullerman never be allowed to interact with children again.

The big problem here is that Hullerman’s case wasn’t the only one that was just swept under the carpet and he was allowed to work with children once again. Child molesters found that they could easily abuse children behind the closed doors of the church according to the reportHiding Behind the Cloth by Kathryn A. Dale and Judith L. Alpert published in August of 2007.

But it’s not only happening behind Church doors. Here in Lebanon, it happens behind the mask of family friends and those offering to “help”.

Yasser’s Story

Yasser* is a ten-year-old boy that lives with his family in Beirut. He is the youngest of three and has an older brother and sister. His parents aren’t that well-off, and both his parents work for long hours. His mother comes home at 8:30pm and his father comes home at midnight. Yasser is like any ordinary child, except for the fact that he was raped.

He goes to a public school near his house, and often hangs out in a tiny store by his house. The shop owner has known Yasser’s parents for almost 18 years. Because Yasser is often alone after school, he would stay at the shop. Yasser’s parents considered the man as close to them as a member of the family and entrusted Yasser in his care the nights that they were working especially late. He even used to attend parent/teacher conferences on their behalf.

The shopkeeper would often give Yasser things he couldn’t afford such as chocolate, good, games and sometimes money while always trying to touch him. Due to his young age, Yasser didn’t understand what the man was doing was wrong until that day that he raped him.

It started off as an ordinary day, Yasser finished school and headed to the shop. The shopkeeper offered him cigarettes and they smoked. At around 6pm, the shopkeeper told Yasser that he had a nice gift for him at his house and took him to his house. When they got to the house, the shopkeeper told Yasser to take off his pants. Yasser refused and started to get scared.

He then grabbed a knife and held it to Yasser’s throat and told him that he would kill him. After the shopkeeper finished, he told Yasser that if he mentioned what happened to anyone, he would kill him. Yasser kept his mouth shut for weeks and tried to avoid the man, however, it was nearly impossible as his parents were very close to the shopkeeper.

Yasser eventually told his brother what happened, and Yasser’s brother went to threaten the shopkeeper instead of going to the police. He wanted to kill the shopkeeper, but couldn’t do it, so the man simply left the country.

Other rape incidents

The First Lieutenant* in the Lebanese Internal Police opened up the folder and there, stacked inside was case over case of child molestation and child rape cases in Beirut. However, that isn’t the most worrisome part. “Nobody comes to report the cases. It’s considered a scandal to the family, so instead, they try to cover it up and these predators stay free,” Said the First Lieutenant.

One of these reports contains an unusual story of a man who would go door to door selling iron. He stopped by a house with a family of 3 girls, a mother and a father. The father invited him in for some coffee and the defendant sat with him and drank the coffee. He later monitored the house and found out the hours when the father was out at work.

The defendant stopped at the house at a time the father wasn’t at home and told the wife that he needed to use the bathroom. Once inside, he told her that he felt a negative spirit in the house and that she needed his services to rid the house of the devil, however, she could not speak a word of this to her husband. The wife agreed.

He came back and lit candles and chanted some hymns and told her that the house was now rid of the spirit but it had flown into her 15 year old daughter. He then told her he needed to take her daughter into the next room. The wife asked if she could come in with them. He replied no as the spirit would fly into her once it had left her daughter. She consented and the defendant took the girl into the bedroom alone.

A neighbor was passing by for some daily woman talk and the wife told her what was going on. The neighbor was shocked and told her to quickly go and check on her daughter. They opened the door and saw the man was naked on top of the girl, who was also naked. They chased the man out and the wife told the husband what had happened as soon as he came home. They reported it to the police and a couple weeks later, the man was arrested.

The Internal Police can’t do much besides arrest offenders when they have viable proof of something happening. If someone comes forward they are able to interfere, otherwise, they really can’t do much. “Families don’t come forward when these things happen because it’s like a scandal. They don’t want to report it. If only they would report it, then we could get out a warning list or some sort of advisory on the news because often we see the same stories over and over again with no details changed.”

A report from about four years ago catches his eye on the desk. A girl and her mother lived alone and the mother’s brother used to often come over and visit and take care of the little girl when her mother was at work. At the age of 5, he started to help the girl bathe by washing her back. At first, she was startled but it became a routine that her uncle would help bathe her.

When she turned 8, he started to wash her entire body during her baths. She was startled once again, but it continued. By the time she was 11, he was raping her on a regular basis and she didn’t think anything of it because she didn’t know it was wrong since boundaries had been crossed at such a young age.

“We need to raise awareness about these issues and educate the public,” said the First Lieutenant.

Another case is the story of a little boy that happened a year ago. He was raped and found dead near the sea in Tripoli. The rapist had been raping the boy and the boy had started to think about telling on the rapist, so the man killed the boy and threw him into the sea. “It’s very sad. If that boy hadn’t been killed, nobody would’ve ever known that he was being raped,” said the First Lieutenant.

Law in Lebanon

Lawyer Ibrahim Al Arab said that Rape is defined in Lebanese Law as performing sexual acts without the approval and consent of the other party. Sexual abuse is the practice of sexual relations in spite of the victim by blackmail, psychological pressure, and physical pressure.

Article 503 from the Lebanese Law states that if someone is forced to have intercourse without marriage and with threat of violence, the rapist will be punished in hard labor for at least five years and faces sentence of seven years if the victim is less than ten years old.

If the result of rape is death of the person, Article 549 of Law 302/94 states that it is punishable by death.

In addition, Article 505 of the Lebanese Penal Code No. 513/96 of intercourse with a minor under the age of the Fifteen is punished by imprisonment with hard labor. The penalty shall be not less than five years if the child is twelve years old.

Intercourse with a minor that completed fifteen years of age and not yet eighteen will be punished by imprisonment from two months to two years.

The punishment serves two purposes. “The first is to deter the criminals from the rest of the tradition of the offender, and the second is reform.” There is also blame to be put on the parents who give enough attention to monitor their children. Absence of family remains the direct cause behind every criminal act.

Safety Tips for Teenagers (As instructed by Internal Police)

• DON’T RUN AWAY FROM HOME! If life at home is unbearable, talk to a teacher, your local minister, your doctor or someone at your local crisis center. If you run away, you will soon be at the mercy of street people who might try to push you into drugs, pornography and/or prostitution.

• Be very wary if a stranger or someone you don’t know very well offers to be your friend. Remember that when you’re feeling lonely or depressed, you’re an easy target for strangers who pretend to care about you.

• Never accept any invitations to offbeat, lonely areas. Be wary of people who offer you jobs that seem too well-paid. If you want to work part-time, find a job through legitimate channels like a student job placement office. Check all references of potential employers.

• Never agree to have your photograph taken by someone who promises to make you famous. He or she might be trying to take advantage of you. Tell somebody you trust immediately.

• Never get into a car with strangers or people you don’t know very well. Be careful not to walk too close to cars, because someone might grab you and pull you in. NEVER HITCHHIKE!

• Go around in groups or with a friend — there’s safety in numbers.

• Never go into dark or lonely areas, especially at night.

• Never accept dares to do foolish things, such as going to deserted or badly lit places.

• Always tell your parents where you are going to be and let them know when you change your plans.

• Never babysit for people you don’t know.

• If anyone tries to touch or caress you in a way that makes you feel uncomfortable, say “NO!” right away. Remember to report the incident to someone you know immediately. Even if you’re on a date, you have the right to say “NO!”.

• Be wary of people loitering around your school, home or favorite hangouts. Be observant. A good description of a person can be very helpful during a police investigation.

• Never accept offers of alcohol, cigarettes or drugs.

• Trust your instincts: the little voice in your head is usually right.

• Remember, it is not your fault — so don’t be afraid to tell if someone has bothered you.

Safety Tips for Grade School Children

• Always tell your parents where you are going.

• Go around in groups or with a friend — there’s safety in numbers.

• If you see someone hanging around your school or play areas, tell an adult you trust. Learn to give good descriptions of people: is the person tall or short, dark-skinned or pale? What is the name and model of his or her car? What is the license plate number?

• Never go into lonely areas at night.

• Never accept offers of jobs, outings or gifts from a stranger.

• If someone you know asks you to accompany him or her, never go without asking your parents first. Let the person know that your parents have agreed to let you accompany him or her.

• Never accept dares to go to deserted or badly lit places.

• Running away isn’t a smart thing to do. You can always find someone to talk to about your problems, no matter how bad they are.

• Never answer the door when you are alone at home, and never tell anyone that you are alone at home either.

• If somebody calls persistently or tries to break into your house, call the police immediately.

• If people in a car ask you for directions, step back and tell them you don’t know. Walk away quickly.

• If someone touches you in a way that makes you feel uncomfortable, say “NO” and tell an adult you trust. Nobody has the right to touch you in any way that makes you feel uneasy. Don’t stop talking about it until you find somebody who listens to you and believes you. Remember, YOU haven’t done anything wrong.

• Never go anywhere with a stranger or even someone you don’t know very well. Always insist on getting permission from your parents first.

• Parents and their children should share a secret password. If someone tells you that your parents asked him or her to take you somewhere, don’t go unless that person is able to give you the secret password.

Safety Tips for Young Children

Note to parents: These tips are for children who are too young to read. Try not to frighten your child, but make sure he or she learns the following rules by repeating them on several occasions:

• Never get into a car with a stranger. If someone you don’t know asks you to get into the car, tell your parents.

• Always play with a friend.

• Never accept candy or other gifts from strangers or anyone else without asking a parent first.

• If a stranger tries to take you somewhere, run home..

• Scream for help and run if you are being followed by someone, or if someone is following you in a car.

• Practice dialing your number with the area code. (Parents should make a list of important names and numbers and leave it next to the phone. Go through the list with your child and have him or her practice dialing these numbers and talking with the people who answer).

• Memorize the secret password and only go with people who know the password. Remember that this word is a secret that you shouldn’t share with anyone other than your parent(s).

• Never let someone touch any part of your body that a bathing suit would cover. Never let someone touch you in a way that makes you feel uncomfortable. If anyone does touch you in this way, tell your parents or somebody you trust immediately.

• Remember that your parents love you and that you will never be punished for telling the truth.

• Never go anywhere without first asking for permission from a parent or babysitter.

(You might want to make sure your child has understood these tips by playing the “what if game”).

Safety Tips for Parents

• Keep in a safe, accessible place, your child’s digital fingerprints, a precise, up-to-date physical description and a portrait photograph from the shoulders up.

• Make sure your children know their full telephone number and address.

• Make sure you always know where your children are. Also be sure to set a good example by letting them know where you are at all times.

• Never leave your child alone in a public washroom.

• Make sure your child is always accompanied.

• Make sure that your child’s name is never visible, e.g. on clothing, a bicycle or toys. A child is less likely to fear someone that knows his or her name.

• Teach your children to avoid speaking to strangers or people they don’t know very well.

• Never leave your children alone in the toy section of a department store or allow them to wander around shopping malls. If they get lost or are bothered by someone, tell them to ask the nearest cashier or salesperson wearing an ID pin for help. Make sure that they can easily recognize cashiers and employees and tell them to never leave a store or mall if they get lost.

• Become involved in your child’s activities and get to know his or her friends.

• Listen to your children when they tell you they don’t like somebody. Try to find out why.

• Be on the alert if someone pays undue attention to your child.

• Never make light of your children’s fears and concerns, even if you think they are unfounded or imaginary.

• Tell your children that if something happens, you will look for them until you find them.

• Parents and children should share a secret password. If someone wants to take your child somewhere, seemingly at your request, your child should refuse to go with that person unless he or she knows the secret password.

*NAME HAS BEEN CHANGED/OMITTED IN ORDER TO PROTECT THE INNOCENT.

(I wrote this article with my classmate Lara Temsah / http://larloura.wordpress.com/)

Comm Arts Student Strike

This petition was presented recently to the administration and was signed by 131 Communication Arts students a month ago. However we got no answer yet:

We as Communication Arts (Radio/TV/Film) students have the right to study this major in better conditions, the classrooms and the studio cannot be in this area together.

1. The ceiling is too low for practicing TV light design. (A minimum of 5 meters is needed).

2. Many classes take place at the same time in this limited space causing disturbance.

3. A very low budget is given to the studio which is not enough to buy up-to-date equipments.

4. No frequent structure maintenance is provided in the studio to keep it in a good and functional condition.

5. There are frequent floods of sewers and rain from the walls and the floor which create a very unhealthy and dangerous environment for all occupants.

6. The staff offices are integrated with students work areas which are ALWAYS crowded with students.

7. Bad ventilation in the studio (no fresh air) which is unhealthy for students present there in large numbers.

8. When the electricity cuts, there is no source of sunlight (it’s in the basement).

9. The main problems concerning the equipment are:

a) The studio offers 12 cameras only which makes the work of the students harder, they often cannot present their projects on time.

b) There is not enough space for practicing TV shows in a proper technical way.

c) The editing equipment is not enough compared to the number of students (4 computers, and 2 A/B rolls).

10. The students of communication arts emphasizing in film making are learning only the theory of film making, without practicing anything because there is no film equipment. The emphasis is called radio/TV/FILM after all.



· As students, we see that the solution would be to relocate the studio providing us with higher level of practical work and education.

· The Department could also sign a contract with any production company in town in order to utilize its equipments to use in the students’ projects instead of buying new ones.

So what are we gonna do? Strike.

Date:	Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Time:	7:00am - 6:00pm
Location:	fine arts building

Project What Does It Mean To You

Project What Does It Mean To You

Mission: Hunt down three people from three different age groups, interrogate them on their thoughts on social media. If their ideas are acceptable, they are free to go, if not, begin "Project Brainwash"

Just kidding people! That little blurb was just to make this a little more interesting. So basically we're starting a new project in Social Media class. The first step is to find three people from three different age groups, write their associated information down, who they are (basically I must stalk them. I joke! I joke!!), why I chose them and the 5 questions I'm going to be asking them (with the objective of answering what social media means to them)

First, for those of you scratching their heads in confusion wondering what social media is, "Social media is an umbrella term for the mixing of technology and social interaction for the co-creation of value. Where media means digital words, sounds and pictures which are typically shared via the internet and the value can be cultural, societal or even financial." Thank you wikipedia!

Now I bet you're all DYING to know who the three people I chose are..right?

Abdullah and Yousif Al-Hamawi: Twins, 15, still in school. I'm putting them together in one interview cuz they're twins and it'll be interesting how they both see social media. (Plus twins are always cute!)

Questions for the cute twinsies:

1. How much time do you spend online?
2. Do you read the news? If no, where do you get the majority of your information from?

3. How do you stay updated on your friend's lives?

4. What is the extent of your knowledge of the internet??

5. Do you know what a blog is? Twitter?

Next is the sister of the twins, Samah Al-Hamawi. A 22 year old LAU student. A Radio/TV/Film directing major with experience with technology (As in she's not some noob to any of this stuff)

Questions for the adorable Samsam

1. How much time do you spend online?
2. Do you read or watch the news? If no, where do you get the majority of your information from?

3. How do you stay updated on your friend's lives?

4. What is the extent of your knowledge of the internet??

5. Do you know what a blog is? Twitter?

And the third person (last but not least!)

Third is Amal Mattar, mother of 5 and a housewive.

1. How much time do you spend online?
2. Do you read or watch the news? If no, where do you get the majority of your information from? If yes, here's a quick questions: How'd you find out michael jackson died?

3. How do you stay updated on your friend's lives?

4. What is the extent of your knowledge of the internet??

5. Do you know what a blog is? Twitter?

Omegle (the less trashy sister of chatroulette)

Omegle is this website like chatroulette (without the constant porn!) where you can talk to strangers! Here is my latest experience on Omegle. New best friend? I THINK SO! :D

(Once again, click on the picture so that it gets enlarged. Unless you have super eyesight and can read the extremely tiny font!)

FOR THE WIN!

My mother posted a link on my FB wall today about Maya Zankoul's blog. It made me feel kinda awesome to tell her that I actually met the genius behind the blog and that she came to our Social Media class TWICE. Great day? I believe so :)

Pics of all the tweets from live.lausocial.com

Here are all the live tweets from http://live.lausocial.com covering session 10 of the Arab Popular Culture and the Media conference

Need a quick smile??

Some kid wrote the following on his exam in the bonus section, accompanied with an illustration:

First stick figure: "Give the man a bonus point or the stick figure gets it!!"
Second stick figure: "Please do what he says"
Teacher (in red pen): " I don't negotiate with terrorists"

Summary of the Arab Pop Culture Conference

This past week, LAU hosted the Arab Popular Culture Conference. On Friday at 2pm, Session 10 was taking place at the Irwin conference hall. The session was divided into two parts: Features of Online Love Stories in the Gulf given by Nele Lenze; Relationship Between Satellite TV and the Phone in Egypt given by Iman Hamam.

Nele Lenze discussed two online love stories. The first was about two girls whose car breaks down and they decide to take a cab. Now the cab driver is the owner of the cab company, however his car broke down so he took one of his company cabs. When he spots the two girls, he pretends to be an Indian cab driver and drives them. He even fakes an accent. One of the girls forgets her phone in the cab and ends up having to meet up with the cab driver. And then forgets her phone once again. In the end, they fall in love and get married. The second story is about a man who goes to a book store and he buys a book and finds a love letter. The letter tells him that if he wishes to continue correspondence, he should sell the book back to the book store and then come back and buy it later because she would've bought it, left another note and sold it back. This goes on for quite some time and eventually the man finds out that it is the book seller writing the love letters in order to keep his business going.

The stories were entertaining and covered taboo subjects like the mixing between the genders and the communication. There wasn't much to agree with or disagree with in this lecture, because she barely covered anything. She just read two stories and talked about what they had in common. That was it. There was no interaction with the audience and there were barely any questions besides "how old are the writers?" and the reply was that they vary from 15 to 30 years

Iman Hamam talked about the relationship between sms and satellite tv. How there are channels dedicated to viewers just sending in smses all hours of the day and then displaying them on the tv, so that it is one giant conversation on tv. She compared this interaction to the porn peep shows in the 1950's, although I didn't quite understand the comparison at all..I enjoyed her presentation but her comparison didn't make much sense. Yes there is an obsession with texting into the channels, but it's not worldwide. I never saw anything like this in any European countries nor in the Americas.

The whole hhtp://live.lausocial.com coverage of the event was so exciting! I knew exactly what was going on in the conference without actually attending most of the sessions (I only attended and tweeted two sessions). A bystander in the 10th session asked what I was doing and I showed her how we were covering the event live and she was actually quite impressed.

I didn't see any user engagement, or maybe it was because I didn't know where they were commenting? I don't know. I tweeted about the live coverage and put links on facebook as well, I don't know what more I could've done..

Arab Popular Culture and the Media part II

Conference: "Arab Popular Culture and the Media"
April 21–23, 2010
Beirut campus

Culture encompasses every aspect of our lives and is relevant to each
of our academic disciplines. The papers presented will discuss, among
other things, culture and medicine, religion, cinema, music,
literature, gender, architecture, emigration, the internet, as well as
romance.
Organizer: LAU's Institute for Media Training and Research (TIMTAR), &
the Department of Communication Arts

2:00 Session 10A – Irwin Conference Room

Moderator: Elise Salem

a) Features of Online Love Stories in the Gulf

Nele Lenze. University of Oslo

b) Relationship Between Satellite TV and the Phone in Egypt

Iman Hamam. American University in Cairo

c) Pride vs. Prejudice-LGBT Cyber-networks and the Challenge of Gender Based Violence in the Middle East

Luisa Gandolfo. Institute for Middle Eastern & Islamic Studies (IMEIS)

Don't forget to follow my live feed at http://live.lausocial.com

Arab Popular Culture and the Media

Conference: "Arab Popular Culture and the Media"
April 21–23, 2010
Beirut campus

Culture encompasses every aspect of our lives and is relevant to each of our academic disciplines. The papers presented will discuss, among other things, culture and medicine, religion, cinema, music, literature, gender, architecture, emigration, the internet, as well as romance.
Organizer: LAU's Institute for Media Training and Research (TIMTAR), & the Department of Communication Arts

The session that I will be covering live is:
1:00 SESSION 5B —LRC 21
Moderator: MAHMOUD TARABAY
a) Arab Hip Hop in an International Frame
Caroline Rooney. THE UNIVERSITY OF KENT
b) Popular Music and Student Identity
Wael Khatib. YARMOUK UNIVERSITY
c) Palestinian Hip Hop: Youth, Identity and Nation
Sunaina Maira & Magid Shihade. UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-DAVIS, LAHORE UNIVERSITY OF MANAGEMENT SCIENCES


FOLLOW MY LIVE COVERAGE AT: http://live.lausocial.com

LAMEBOOOOOOOK

There's this wonderful website, Lamebook. And I believe this recent conversation between me and two other people belongs on Lamebook bi ouweh!! (click on the image and then when it opens to a new page, click so that you can zoom in!)

Why are me, my hubby and his bestie such ADORABLE losers? :D

iPod Malfunction!

AHHHHH!! So while I was sick last week with some TERRIBLE food poisoning, a friend of mine called me asking me what to do because his iPod had frozen. So since I guess I am the resident technical expert (God knows why...I mean I'm always having problems with my laptops and iPods and such...so I don't know why anyone would consider me an expert or come to me for advice about these things..anyways). Ayman called me and was like "HELP ME! what should I do?" So I gave him the standard Apple advice. "Press and hold the middle button and the play/pause button and wait", he did that and nothing happened. So I told him to toggle the hold switch and repeat. He did and nothing happened. So I gave him advice that Apple doesn't give..."just wait until the battery dies and then recharge it and you'll be fine." Which turned out to be exactly what happened!
Last night my iPod decided to have its own spazz attack and freeze WHILE ON HOLD! So I followed the standard Apple advice and when that didn't work, I just waited for the battery to die. Woohoo! And now it's working perfectly again! Frustrating though because I had wanted to use my iPod at that moment :( Sad me :( :(

Just a question for Apple: WHY DO OUR IPODS FREEZE LIKE THIS????

CLASSICO

Saturday, April 10th 2010 was the date of the Classico game: The game between Futbol teams Real Madrid and Barcelona. This particular game was at Real's field, which meant that they should've had the home advantage. There were about 13 of us at our table, however, in the restaurant we were seated at, there were over 275 people packed in an area that normally seats half of that amount. There were no seats left, so there were people standing and people on the street peering at the screens. There were two Real fans at our table, but most of the restaurant was Real fans.

When Barca scored the first goal, the Real Madrid fans began chanting "Bassita chou sar, Real mitlil nar" ("what happened is okay, Real is on fire")
After the first half, nearly 40 people left to go to another restaurant, leaving our area of the restaurant dominated by Barca fans.

And when Barca scored the second goal, all hell broke loose and the Barca fans started to sing "bye bye, bye bye, bye bye ya 7elween" (bye bye, bye bye, bye bye cuties) to mock the Real fans.

The game ended with all Barca fans counting down the last ten seconds, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1!!!! WE WON!!!
After the bill was settled, every single person seemed to head to Bliss street and honked and cheered "GO BARCA!!!", after bliss, the procession continued onto rawche and then everyone headed home. CONGRATS BARCA :D

On a side note...

It's funny how Lebanon seemed to be united watching a futbol match, but they can't agree on everyday issues...

Maya Zankoul LIVE :D

wooohoooo! I'm currently in class and Maya Zankoul just posted her newest entry live from our class!! First time she EVER does something like this. I feel special ^_^

ps, check out her blog http://mayazankoul.com/

It really is hilarious...one of my favorite websites along with http://textsfromlastnight.com/

Her blogging style and the way she illustrates everything is completely Lebanon! All the things that are annoying in Lebanon, she captures them perfectly! (and of course the beautiful things as well! yay hurray!)

Twitter Obsession

Maya Zankoul.. :)

http://mayazankoul.com/ <-- please check it out!!!

So this week, we're going to have a guest speaker in class. And she's pretty much AWESOME.
The way she writes it's hilariously entertaining!
After reading up on her, I have a couple questions for her :)
1. Are there any other advertisements besides the Exotica ones that get on your nerves?
2. Where do you come up with the ideas to turn everyday situations into sarcastic humor?
3. When did you start cartooning?
4. You're actually quite young, is this something you can see yourself doing later on as well?
5. When did you realize that you're actually really good at this???
6. You've got quite a following. Did you expect this when you first started??
7. Totally random, but what's your favorite cookie? (The cartoon version of yourself is eating a chocolate chip cookie..)

Good Morning Beirut

Good Morning Beirut!!
I think I might be getting addicted to twitter >_<
First thing I did after opening my eyes?? Opened my phone's internet browser and typed in twitter.com
Ho shit! (suber jasim style)

"How twitter will change the way we live"

Time Magazine published an article June 5th, 2009 about how Twitter is affecting the way we live and interact daily.

What is #HACKEDEDU?
#hackededu is just a small example of how Twitter affects our day to day lives. "40-odd educators, entrepreneurs, scholars, philanthropists and venture capitalists, all engaged in a sprawling six-hour conversation about the future of schools." Participants were encouraged to post anything about the conference on twitter and just adding #hackededu. What does that do? Well, if you go to www.search.twitter.com you can just type in #hackededu and you would get all the posts that included #hackededu. At first it was only participants present at the conference who were tweeting, but half an hour into the conference, people that weren't present began to follow the thread and commenting, offering suggestions to those in the room at the actual event.

how is real-time search affecting search engines? what moves are search engines doing as a reaction to growth of real-time information and search?
"Websites that once saw their traffic dominated by Google search queries are seeing a growing number of new visitors coming from "passed links" at social networks like Twitter and Facebook. This is what the naysayers fail to understand: it's just as easy to use Twitter to spread the word about a brilliant 10,000-word New Yorker article as it is to spread the word about your Lucky Charms habit.
At its heart, Google's system is built around the slow, anonymous accumulation of authority: pages rise to the top of Google's search results according to, in part, how many links point to them, which tends to favor older pages that have had time to build an audience. That's a fantastic solution for finding high-quality needles in the immense, spam-plagued haystack that is the contemporary Web. But it's not a particularly useful solution for finding out what people are saying right now, the in-the-moment conversation that industry pioneer John Battelle calls the "super fresh" Web. Even in its toddlerhood, Twitter is a more efficient supplier of the super-fresh Web than Google."


Read more: http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1902604,00.html#ixzz0hnGybfBb


what type of content do you suggest we hashtag with #lausocial?
Argh...this is a difficult question...eno what are we supposed to hashtag with lausocial besides stuff related to class? Our class is about new media, so shouldn't any content that we hashtag with #lausocial be about new media??