Social Media News Stories Last Week

Posted on 09. Feb, 2010 by Hardeep Kaur Rai in Media, Reports, Reviews

It’s been a super-busy first week of February in the Indian social media space. A wrap-up of the news stories that made headlines is given below.

1)      Business Line carried an article ‘Websense unveils security application for Facebook users’ on 3rd Feb that brings a sigh of relief to Facebookers. The article quotes Mr Surendra Singh, Regional Director (SAARC and India), Websense, ‘While other  security offerings are designed to clean users’ computer after it has been infected, we worked with Facebook to create Defensio so customers are protected from emerging threats  and malicious  content before  they spread beyond the social Web and become a broader security concern’. The article describes the mechanics of the application, ‘Defensio would analyze the links on the social web before users try to access them and gather intelligence of the site as well as the content and embedded links on it.’

Comment- This is surely a good sign for all Facebookers. With more and more people using Facebook,  the site is increasingly posing a security risk and the application helps protect Facebook users.  The application would also lessen the occurrence of online crimes such as hacking, phishing, credit card frauds. Truly, it would prove to be a boon.

2)      Economic Times quoted IT research major Gartner in its article ‘Microblogging may replace email: Gartner’ on 3rd Feb. The article states Gartner predicting, ‘by 2014 social networking will replace email as the primary vehicle for interpersonal communications for one in five businesses across the world. During the next several years, most companies will be building out internal social networks and/or allowing business use of personal social network accounts.’

Comment- Technology is fast evolving, bringing with it some new application, phone, game or software every day. The very concept of social networking is the ability to maintain the interest and loyalty of users by continuously expanding services. A case in point being platforms such as Hi5, Myspace etc reduced to ghost websites after being unable to offer more to its audience in terms of something faster, cooler and more exciting. Thus, the insight made in the Gartner report should come as no surprise. Corporates already have begun to build internal social networks and it won’t be long before businesses allow for the mingling of personal social networks with one’s professional counterpart.

3)     How vocabulary has undergone a sea-change due to increased adoption of social networking sites is discussed in the article ‘Networking sites influence lingo’ by Nivi Shrivastava published in Asian Age on 3rd Feb. The author writes that the maximum new words recorded in the Oxford University Press were related to technology and ‘some words were even inspired by the micro-blogging giant Twitter like- Tweetup, Tweeple, Tweetaholics, Twitterati, Twitterverse, Tweet’. Other new words mentioned were unfriend, defriend, freemium, Facebookarrhea and Facebookazzis, blogebrity, bloggage,blogosphere, blogademia and blogathon.

Comment- What this means for the English language is something resembling a face-lift.  Modern times call for modern language, after all as the famous proverb states- Language is the means of getting an idea from my brain into yours without surgery.

4)      The Hindu printed an article on  ‘Efficiency in everyday work brings laurels’ by K.V. Rajasekhar  on 3rd Feb. The author discusses at length on lessons in management exhibited by the flawless functioning of the taken case in point- Mumbai’s famed Dabbawallas. The article states, ‘The fact that 85% of the dabbawallas are illiterate and the rest have studied only till ClassVIII but form part of an organization that is in existence since the last 125 years and has notched up a Six Sigma certification and delivers lunch boxes to over 2, 00,000 people across Mumbai city in which out of 6, 00,000 deliveries only one mistake is made but that never really happens as the misplaced box is sooner or later traced and returned to the owner.’ The author then identifies the management lessons one learns from the unique functioning of this famed organization also acknowledged as ‘management guru’ to corporate India and others across the world.

Comment- The author has taken an outstanding example that inspires individuals with their simple and yet efficient management process. A simple color coding system, strong internal HR policy also translating itself into commendable CSR policy and the adoption of the latest technology, here being utilizing social media to reach out to customers is just some of the lessons the author talks about at length. But there are more lessons here like- passion and empathy for customer needs and not just robotic execution being the most glaring of all. Another lesson is overcoming one’s limitations and utilizing available means to achieve goals. The fact that most of the dabbawallas are not educated and those that are do not possess even a graduation degree or an MBA but are yet invited to give guest talks on management at well-known business schools is simply due to the business acumen to utilize available means of transport like bicycles and trains to build a distribution chain that never fails to deliver on time in the densely populated city of Mumbai. Therein lies the lesson that corporates can surely learn.

5)      Mail Today published a shocking article on ‘Facebook is No.1 security risk-site’ on 3rd Feb.  The author reveals how a high level of activity compromises the user’s Facebook account. The article quotes IT security firm Sophos claiming in its annual IT security investigation report that ‘instance malware affliction and span rose 70 percent on social media sites. Twitter, the micro-blogging site is next after Facebook.’ The report provides stats to back its claims and also blames Linkedin to be another culprit in its IT security risks survey.

Comment- This comes as a great surprise and shock to the millions of social media enthusiasts.  But it again wakes up the reader to being more cautious and vigilant whilst online.

6)      Another article appeared concerning Mr Shashi Tharoor’s tweets albeit in a more positive instance for him. Hindustan Times published an article by Jayanth Jacob on ‘Tharoor’s tweets have a new follower: Twitter’ on 3rd Feb. Hailing Mr.Tharoor as the only politician in the world outside the United States to have 600, 000 Twitter followers, the articles states, ‘Twitter wants Mr. Tharoor’s inputs on how public figures can use it to keep in touch with followers and get their grievances redressed’.  Mr Tharoor’s tweets have led him to be considered a case study  of effective use of the new medium  by Twitter and also gained him a recommendation as ‘leader to follow’ along with the likes of Australian PM Kevin Rudd and Sheikh Mansour bin Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoumi of Dubai on Twitter.

Comment- While a lot of hue and cry has been made in the corridors of the Indian government over Mr Tharoor’s tweets, it cannot be negated that today’s youth identifies more with the tech-savvy Mr Tharoor along with Rahul Gandhi and Sachin Pilot.

7)      How the SRK-Shiv Sena controversy conducted itself was watched out on mainstream media by all. However, Hindustan Times brings to attention the support SRK received on social media in its article ‘Twitter votes for SRK @MyNameIsMumbai’ on 4th Feb.  Twitter lent itself as the medium where support poured out in favour of SRK. The article states, ‘The words Shiv, Sena, Khan and @iamsrk were the most tweeted words in Mumbai and New Delhi this past Wednesday. Also trending widely was the hash tag MyNameIsMumbai started by actors RanvirSorey and Konkona Sen’. The article also mentions people being encouraged on Twitter to buy tickets for SRK’s latest film My Name is Khan that the political party has been threatening the launch of.

Comment- What one witnesses through this article is the collaborative voice of thousands of people in favour of their shared beliefs, the case here being the right of an individual, albeit a celebrity yet an Indian, to express himself in line with his constitutional right, without being harassed to compromise on values or opinions.  Another reason why social media in India is fast gaining ground since it provides people an opportunity to express and quickly leverage support in matters even political.

8)      Deccan Chronicle elaborated on the changing face of marriages with most partners choosing to connect online to strengthen their bond.  The article ‘City couples connect online for fun, comfort’ published on 4th Feb quotes relationship expert and psychologist Meenakshi Venkateshwaran, ‘Keeping in touch through emails and social networking sites helps to build a sense of security around the couple’.

Comment- Giving each other space is important but it is also essential to maintain contact with the partner. And social networking sites offer a perfect medium to maintain contact when time constraints do not allow for video calling and emailing.

9)      Hindustan Times published an article on the changing job criteria in its article ‘Want a job? Get on Facebook’ on 4th Feb.  The article states, ‘In fact having a specified numbers of fans, friends or followers on these sites are now a hiring criterion. These active netizens are hired by companies who wish to use social networks, online communities and other online mediums for marketing, sales and public relations’.

Comment- Whilst there are still firms that object to employees using social media at office hours, there are yet those who support it and even encourage employees to tweet or blog to their advantage since it brings more visibility to the firm. The article does establish that more and more corporate visit social networking sites before hiring a candidate.  Whether this is to determine a prospective employee’s character or his social circle is largely dependent on the firm’s activities.

10)   Asian Age published an article on ‘Networking in the real world’ by N.Kartik Rao on 5th Feb elaborating on how a certain section of youngsters prefer to be ‘disconnected’ in favour of real-world meetings. Such youngsters consider social networking to be ‘boring and a waste of time’.

Comment- Youngsters must be taught time management to balance both academics and extracurricular activities, whether offline or online. In most cases, youngsters become addicted to their online activities mostly at the deterrence of their academic goals. In such cases, choosing to stay offline does seem the right way forward. However, online networking enables maintaining contact where physical presence is not possible.

11)   Financial Chronicle published an article on ‘Social Netizens need privacy’ by Varun Dutt on 5th Feb that elaborates on online privacy on social networking sites and measures to strengthen it. The article states, ‘If someone steals information by faking a relationship on a social network then they may harm the individual as well as their close contacts’. The author sheds light on how ‘some social systems collect names and email addresses of people who have sent messages and also collect the ‘cc’ information in emails sent to users’.

Comment- Online privacy is an important issue to be understood by every netizen. Social networking sites in particular hold utmost responsibility due to maximum information being uploaded on them. To be precise, users must be kept in the loop-hole on all actions undertaken regarding the use of their data and supreme freedom granted to them to make decisions pertaining to their information.

12)   Deccan Chronicle published an article on ‘Egypt: Fatwa against Facebook’ that reported on a top Egyptian cleric banning the social networking site due to divorce rates rocketing and marital infidelity increasing. The announcement termed Muslims using Facebook as ‘sinners’ and describes it as ‘an instrument that destroys the family because it encourages users to have relations with other people which break Islamic Sharia law’.

Comment- Social networking sites are intended to open communication between like-minded people and for businesses to build one-to-one relationships with their clients or customers. Whilst such networks do prohibit posting offensive information, yet user activities beyond that are not monitored for the purpose of allowing users freedom to interact amongst their social circle. Thus, it translates into individual sensibilities and responsibility to be mindful of one’s activities and not indulge in behavior that may not be un-permissible in the fabric of their social circle.

13)   The Pioneer featured an article ‘Facebook a virtual memorial site’ on 5th Feb talking about the trend of setting up memorial pages on Facebook to mourn the death of those who might otherwise be forgotten. The article quotes the example of a Facebook page for Henio Zytomirski- the six year old Holocaust victim, with other examples of pages for each of the 27,594 Allied soldiers killed in Belgium during WWII, The Auschwitz memorial site and the Anne Frank page.

Comment- Such pages bring to light the horror of tragedies committed during war-torn times and to remember the heroes from yesterday who might otherwise have been forgotten by the generations today. These pages also give a chance to millions who may have otherwise never heard of them to pay their homage and respect.

14)   The Hindu reported the adoption of social networking sites by a new section of audiences- senior citizens.  The article ‘Senior Citizens take to social networking websites  in a big way’ by Liffy Thoman published on 6th Feb elaborated on how sites such as Facebook, Orkut and Twitter are a big rage amongst  the older audience and helping them connect with other like-minded audience whilst making them rediscover their zest for life and learning.  The article states, ‘For a majority of people post-retirement social networking  sites have become a  good way to stay connected, reminisce memories, get rid of the boredom or simply to  play games  form the many features and applications’.

Comment- It is heartening to see that social networks are providing the older audience with a zest for life and to fulfill their hobbies or simply renew old contacts. It allows for a stronger bond between the youth and the senior citizens since each knows the basics of what the other is talking about.

15)   DNA featured a story on ‘Facebook marks sixth year with new home page’ on 6th Feb. The article elaborated on a new home page on the popular social networking site which included a simpler menu bar and applications dashboard along with a games dashboard.

Comment- The new home page is simpler and cleaner and certain to make it easier for a new user to understand the mechanisms of the website.

16)   Economic Times published an article charting the competition between Facebook and Orkut to emerge as the most popular Indian Networking site. The article, ‘Facebook may elbow out Orkut as top Net hangout’ by Harsimran Singh was published on 6th and predicts that ‘Facebook could well overtake Orkut in India in about seven months’.

Comment- It seems like Orkut may well be in danger of becoming another ghost website like Myspace and Hi5 if Google does not take drastic measures in a country that forms 20% of the global traffic.

That’s all from last week. Do watch this space next Monday for more productive but immensely interesting last week with novel social media happenings :)

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