Grading ONU?

While I was playing around with Twitterific (if you don't have this, I strongly recommend getting the software), I found an interesting post from PR Open Mic. The post, written by Peter Kowlaski and Katie Delahaye Paine, is entitled "Does Your University Make the Grade in Social Media?" and talks about a recent study conducted by KDPaine & Partners. The company examined how academic institutions are incorporating social media and created benchmarks in which universities can use to grade themselves in their use of new technology. Pretty interesting to read since ONU just finished their first social media class...

Life Ain't Always Beautiful

For those country fans, you'll recognize this is a Gary Allan song. As I was getting ready this morning, I was thinking about how stressed we have all been over the past few weeks - dead and finals weeks have come and gone and guess what? We all survived. We survived pulling all-nighters, studying until we were slap happy and taking exams that lasted the entire two hours. And why? For most, so they can obtain good grades and go home.

However, for me, I just try to survive the weeks so I can get to the days after finals while still in Ada. Believe it or not, Ada is a pretty fun village after everyone leaves school. You don't have to deal with nearly as much drama and you see friends who you haven't seen all quarter. 

Last night, my friends had a Thanksgiving dinner at their house and I had so much fun. Sitting with people that I hang out and talk to on a daily basis made me realize how lucky I am and how hard leaving this school will be in a few months. I mean, these are the people that I went to a gay bar with, have too many inside jokes to remember, met and stayed with their families, will have my back in a fight, and can call whenever I need anything (and vice versa). 

 

I didn't think about it much until the song came on this morning. Life isn't always beautiful. We have hardships and drama, but without these problems, life wouldn't be nearly as interesting. In the words of Mr. Allan, "Life ain't always beautiful, but it's a beautiful ride."

One Down

I just got done taking my first final of the quarter. I am slightly saddened that I will no longer see Dr. Hovis on the days I decide to show up for class. However, depending upon the grade I receive, I might be making daily visits to his class once again. 

All joking aside, I am really nervous to get my grade back in that class. I haven't received a "C" yet in college and I have  horrible feeling Hovis might be giving me my first one. I studied really hard for this final, too, leaving me barely any time to study for my social media final I have in 30 minutes. But whatever, I am over this quarter for the most part. I don't know if my senioritis is kicking in again or I am just exhausted and ready for a break. All I know is that after I take my social media final, I don't get a rest. Awesome. I love finals week.

Ethical?

First, I have to say I am proud of myself at this moment. I am actually not procrastinating and am writing papers ahead of time instead of trying to finish an hour before they are due. As I was researching for my political communications class, I found an article about bloggers and social media consultants entitled "How Much Do Top Tier Bloggers and Social Media Consultants Get Paid? We Asked Them!" by Marshall Kirkpatrick. As I was reading this post, I started to wonder if a blogger is getting paid to write a post, how ethical is that?

I feel bloggers should not be paid for their opinions as this makes them less trustworthy and not as transparent. I could go on and on about this subject, but I don't think bloggers should get paid unless you are a social media consultant (which I kind of really want to do). I think if you're getting paid to blog you might run into an issue like Edelman and Wal-Mart, which could get me started on an entirely different rant.

On another note, how do you become a media consultant? I think this would be an awesome job, especially because I am very interested in this area of public relations. If anyone knows how I can make this into a career or if a graduate program exists for this area, please let me know!

Helping Out with the Essays

I don't know what everyone is planning to write for their essay, but I found some interesting sites while I was conducting research. I found this link from the Denver Post online edition and is entitled "Redefining Journalism Ethics to Incorporate Social Media." Since I am not incorporating a great amount of social media into my essay, I figured I would share my knowledge. I hope the article helps someone!

Overview

You know the end of the quarter is near when you don't have any more readings on the syllabus. 

For today's class, we finished my favorite book of this quarter, "Citizen Marketers" by Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba. Even though Alisa almost didn't use this book, I feel this made up for the other books we had to read that I have been vocal about not liking (sorry, just telling the truth). "Citizen Marketers" taught us, I feel, more about grassroots campaigns and using word of mouth to our advantage. I believe that as PR practitioners and members of student-run firms, using these type of tactics are very beneficial and are sometimes forgotten among all the other tactics. Overall, I enjoyed this book a great deal and think any PR student should read McConnell and Huba's work. 

Another Post About Twitter

As I was looking on PRinciples, I found an article posted along the side bar. The blog was about how to use Twitter for your business and is creatively entitled "50 Ideas on Using Twitter for Business" by Chris Brogan. Brogan provides invaluable information that can be applied to any PR campaign, from the smallest (which would be great for student-run firms) to international corporations. However, the author also talks about the negatives and positives associated with tweeting for you company. Check out the post, especially if you're into Twitter.