From the moment my alarm sounds in the morning, information is coming at me from all directions - the newspaper is waiting at the door, Blackberry is full of e-newsletters and tweets are in full force. Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t a gripe. I love learning and figuring out how I can put things into practice, but there is no disputing that it can all be a little overwhelming.
Since creating more time in the day isn’t an option, managing information is a challenge that takes practice, patience and time and content management skills.
Here is a snapshot of some of my favorites from this past week:
Twitter 101: Succinct guide for anyone interested in learning more about Twitter. It is fairly basic, yet very informative. It also includes great stories about businesses that have successfully used Twitter to promote business objectives.
GeoChirp: Cool website that allows you to select a region and then select keywords; tweets in that region that include the specified keywords are then shown.
Defining Your Social Media Strategy: Great educational video that outlines strategies for social media.
The Key to Developing a Social Media Strategy: Informative article that addresses the intersection of social media, corporate communications and public relations.
Letter to Employees from Zappos CEO: No doubt, a social media pioneer, Zappos made headlines this week when they were bought by Amazon. This letter reiterates how Zappos not only incorporate social media into business practices, but also in transparent internal communications.
Throughout my process of researching graduate schools, I have come across several articles indicating that programs and curricula in Communications departments continue to evolve due to developments in new media. Traditionally, concentrations are added or graduate degrees are intergrated into undergraduate departments, but, in general, it isn’t all too frequent that completely new degrees are constructed. This has changed…
Northwestern’s Medill was a pioneer in the creation of the IMC (Integrated Marketing Communications) program. It was definitely innovative. Graduates receive a Masters of Science rather than a Masters of Arts, which was traditionally the norm in Communications and Journalism schools. There is a strong emphasis placed on data analysis, database management and integrated approaches to marketing communications.
In addition, USC’s Annenberg School for Communication offers a Masters in Communications 
Management. Areas of focus include Marketing Communications, Organizational & Strategic Communications, Communication Law & Policy, Online Communities and Entertainment Management. Students are also given the option to take courses outside of the department. Popular interdisciplinary areas include Business, Psychology, Technology and Public Policy.
This is great news for anyone who has been teetering on the idea of returning to school. When I received my BA, I looked into a few programs. The challenge I encountered was finding a program that offered both applicable and theoretical coursework. Innovative programs, including the IMC and MCM, definitely satisfy business needs, while providing valuable background in theory and rhetoric by offering such courses:
Theory:
Interpreting Popular Culture & Society
Communication, Values, Attitudes and Behavior
Theories of Creating Organizational Identity: Meaning Through Messages
Communications & Persuasive Messages
Business Centric:
Business Management Strategies for New Technologies
Creating and Implementing Campaigns to Measure Communication Efforts
Audience Analysis
Communications Research (surveys, experimental tests campaigns and formative evaluations)
Alas, the best of both worlds!
I just finished a wonderful book by Naomi S. Baron – Always On: Language in an Online and Mobile World. Wonderful, I thought – I had yet to read a book that addressed the implications and impact of new technologies in relation to language!
Naomi Baron does a wonderful job in discussing historical concepts of language and electronic communication technologies and how they are affecting society in an immense way. The book was published in 2008, yet some of the topics in the book might already be considered archaic by some – just another example of how quickly new media is morphing, progressing and changing, only to be replaced by the next “big thing.”
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is interested in social media, language, multi-tasking, linguistics, cultural studies or communications. If nothing else, you’ll walk away with a fresh perspective on how electronic communication is influencing how we listen, speak, read and write. I have to admit, throughout the book I found myself thinking, “I am guilty of that” and “I should be more conscious of that.”
Books addressing similar subjects:
Language and the Internet
Alphabet to Email
Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide (one of my next reads)
A colleague passed this article around last week. I had the opportunity to read through it on the El ride home today. This is definitely a well thought through “manual”. It not only serves as an educational tool, but it also relates social media directly to the members of the Armed Forces. The diagram on page six is a great visual aid.
Communications, Social Media | Rachel Rusnak July 24, 2009 | 
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