Every 60 Seconds on the Internet

Hat Tip @Jesterstudio

How to Make a Presentation

Have you ever sat in a room or a lecture theatre where you are waiting to be inspired?  You have waited for this hot topic for weeks, months.  You have read this person’s books and you imagine that seeing them talking about this topic must be mind-blowing.  You sit there with your iPad*poised to hear their merest utterance.  You are expectant.  The speaker takes to the stage with a round of applause.  The screen shifts to reveal the hot topic and suddenly they begin.  They start to read the words that they have put onto their Powerpoint presentation verbatim.

This is the moment where I realise that I don’t have an inner monologue.  Suddenly I am conscious of two angry little men in the back of my head hitting each other with sticks and shouting “print it out, let me go home and I’ll read it myself – faster!!” 

Lee Jackson tweeted a link to an easy guide in “how to make a PowerPoint presentation that won’t annoy Robb“.  It’s very good.

*let me dream

Jennifer Aniston’s Sex Tape

For a while I’ve been looking at social media as a communication tool.  You will have noticed that I have posted  many blogs about the ways in which the internet can create a sensation that either builds up or destroys its target.  This flash mob video is a great example of how something can spread like wildfire and become a sensation.  However, who can forget the 10 million hits that destroyed United Airline’s reputation?

Above we have a great example of how the internet viral has challenged mainstream communication.  By bringing all of the viral clichés together with the words “Jennifer Aniston’s Sex Tape”, Smart Water pinpoint two key things:

1. Viral video clips sell things by word of mouth and recommendation unbelievably well.
2. We can identify what has worked in the past but it is really difficult to say what will work in the future.  It is a totally deregulated phenomenon and out of the hands of “the man”.  “The man” wants to use it but doesn’t know how.  And if it is used by “the man” people are less likely to pass it on as it stinks of “the man”.

Mission in Culture and Context: Social Media

Sorry but This Video won’t embed.  It is mind blowing and earth shattering so please click it (and come back).

Social media isn’t a fad, it’s a fundamental shift in the way we communicate.

I am currently doing some MA level work on Mission in Culture and Context.  I have been contemplating what area to research and had three ideas.  On of them was the way in which The Church engages with social media in a missiological context.  @annamdrew posted this video.  Needless to say, the two other areas I had contemplated faded into insignificance.  I wonder what Bevans and Schroeder would say about this clip if they were writing their book in 200 years time.

We Publish

I’ve just bought a ticket for We Publish, an event in Leeds.  You can buy tickets here for a mere £5 which gets you the whole day conference and lunch too!  Bargain!  Old Broadcasting House is a really good venue too!!  Win, win and win!!

 WePublish is a new type of event that provides an arena for anyone who creates content, publishes or supports digital publishing.

…Whether you are a self-taught blogger or diarist through to a trained, experienced journalist and all the many alternatives between, this event will than an open and sharing look at subjects such as:

How is ‘digital’ changing the way we publish?
Where are ideas got from?
Moderation
Staying on the right side of the law
Getting the right system in place
Beyond the written word – photography, audio, video and other opportunities
Beyond blogging – what else can I do with my content and ideas?
Building and managing audiences
What do mobile phones, iPads and other new platforms means for me?
Getting real – using third party printing solutions
Using social media to best effect
and much much more…

A wide variety of people will see benefit from this event, but it will be of especial interest to:

Bloggers
Journalists (and journalism students)
Publishers (and those involved in publishing)
Technical support specialists (those who facilitate digital publishing)
Third sector and public sector web writers

So you should expect my blog to get a whole lot better from the 22nd =D