Brett Banter

There is a great piece in Sunday's New York Times on free speech and social media via the ever ubiquitous Twitter. Basically, it involves the tricky issue of a British law called a super injunction, which prevents the media there from naming a soccer star involved in a seedy gossip story. The only problem is thousands of Twitterers are openly flaunting the injunction.

And that leads to the question of free speech and ethics. While people love to treat the idea of twitter as stone-clad news, it is basically a gossip site. Yes, real journalists go on there. And yes, they sometimes blur the lines of ethics themselves. However, one of the tenets of journalism long has been that reporters, writers, editors and the like were ordinary citizens asking questions granted under the idea of free speech.

Does that make them any different than the thousands of people on Twitter spreading news? It is a tough call. It will be interesting to see how this one plays out.

At Brett, Inc., we are lucky to be acquainted with and follow on Twitter Jason Spencer, a political and general assignment reporter for the Spartanburg Herald-Journal. Like other select journalists, Spencer has wisely embraced social media as an important aspect of his job and spends a solid chunk of his time blogging and conversing with his followers and fellow media on Twitter.

Inasmuch as we have talked about the importance of Twitter and other forms of social media when it comes to public relations and networking, an interesting post from Lindsay Olson's recruiting and public relations blog (of which we are subscribers) landed in our email inbox this morning.

The author, Jonathan Rick of Booz Allen Hamilton, a strategy and technology consulting firm, actually points out the benefits of not joining the party on the social media train... that is, at least when it comes to your own personal social media pages and "self-branding". In Rick's perspective, professionals who spend less time working to build their OWN social media notoriety are actually putting those extra hours and efforts into producing for their clients. Read more about his theory here.

We witnessed an interesting conversation on Twitter yesterday, as a well-known local television anchor pondered whether or not he should follow politicians on Twitter. He said, "Have resisted following politicians thinking I have to follow all or none, but I have several following me now and feel rude. Opinions?"

Piggybacking on our most recent blog post about hiring professionals to handle your Web 2.0, we'd be remiss if we didn't take the opportunity to remark on Congressman Joe Wilson's recent decision to hire a professional Tweeter.

That's right, Representative Wilson, following his now-infamous "You Lie!" heckler's shout during President Obama's healthcare speech last week, has suddenly been thrust into the national spotlight. Pre "You Lie!", Wilson was a somewhat under the radar Congressman; a lesser-known Republican who was for the most part seen as congenial and easy-going. But with those two words uttered amongst the sanctity of a televised Presidential address, he suddenly catapulted himself to a whole new level of notoriety.

The chosen Wilson pro Tweeter is David All, a new media strategist whose Web 2.0 firm caters to conservative clientele. All's role ala Joe Wilson is to maintain a constant stream of Twitter updates on behalf of Congressman Wilson as well as to promote him across the political and news blogosphere. Before All stepped in to tidy up Wilson's reputation, the Congressman's Twitter account hadn't been updated since early August. Wilson is now on a roll, spewing out upwards of ten or more tweets a day.

Our point comes down to the mere fact that as amusing as Wilson's professional Tweeter hire may be, it is part of a broader strategy for the Congressman. By hiring All, Wilson is attempting to deflect some of the controversy through professionally-managed social media outreach. Meanwhile, many grassroots supporters and even many fellow Republicans have come out to back Wilson and his anti-Obamacare platform. Wilson seems to be even now using the whole episode as part of a larger tidal wave to keep his name in the media, and on the Web, and to promote his upcoming Congressional race (and raise money at the same time!).

Joe Wilson has certainly made a name for himself in South Carolina and across the country, and with his constant social media presence seems to be launching a PR campaign of his own. Check out his most recent in a string of YouTube videos, "I Will Not be Muzzled".

Whether you're in business, politics, public relations, media or any other field, chances are (more than quite high!) by now you have heard the term "social media", or social interaction via technology. We won't go into a complex explanation of this networking phenomenon, as there exists quite a plethora on the web of valuable information and social media resources.

This past Monday, however, we were fortunate to be able to attend the Social Fresh social media conference in Charlotte - essentially a powerhouse gathering of some of the most reputable, knowledgable social media pros from around the country. From what they had to say, it seems like social media will eventually become the norm; its use just as prevalent and widespread in society as email is today. The dynamism and potential that "SM" holds seems to be unlimited, whether you want to use for political purposes, PR or marketing for your business or event, or just to connect to others.

Take a look at the links below to some great social media information from some of the best out there. Nearly all of the information can be adapted to a variety of professional fields.

Social Business Design - includes other great info and feedback from keynote speaker David Armano

Basics of Social Media ROI - Greenville, S.C. Marketing pro Olivier Blanchard's slideshow

Videos of Social Fresh Speakers - on Charlotte Observer columnist Jeff Elder's blog (search for "social fresh")

The ultra-trendy hit reality television show "Dancing with the Stars" today announced the new lineup of stars for its upcoming season, including former Congressman and Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay. DeLay, a 62-year old Texan once called "The Hammer" because of his political counterblows, joins an odd cast of characters including Kelly Osbourne, Debi Mazar, Kathy Ireland and Olympic swimmer Natalie Coughlin, among others.