From: The National Post What follows is a statement delivered to the United Nations Human Rights Council this week by the NGO UN Watch, in response to the Goldstone Fact-Finding Mission on Gaza.
My name is Dr. Mirela Siderer. I am a gynecologist living in Ashkelon, Israel. Judge Richard Goldstone, in July you invited me to testify. I told you my story. I am known by my patients -- including many women from Gaza. For me, every human being is equal.
On May 14, 2008, my life was changed forever. I was working in my clinic. Suddenly, the building was hit by a missile, fired from Gaza. I was terribly wounded. Blood was everywhere. My patient was also wounded, and more than 100 others. Next month will be my eighth operation. Judge Goldstone, I told you all of this, in detail. I testified in good faith. You sent me this letter, saying, "Your testimony is an essential part of the Mission's fact-finding activities." But now I see your report. I have to tell you: I am shocked.
Judge Goldstone, in a 500-page report, why did you completely ignore my story? My name appears only in passing, in brackets, in a technical context. I feel humiliated.
Why are there only two pages about Israeli victims like me, who suffered thousands of rockets over eight years? Why did you choose to focus on the period of my country's response, but not on that of the attacks that caused it? Why did you not tell me that this council judged Israel guilty in advance, in its meeting of last January? Why did you not tell me that members of your panel signed public letters judging Israel guilty in advance?
Judge Goldstone, you, too, signed such a letter, saying you were "shocked" about Gaza. But where were you when Gaza attacked my medical clinic, in violation of international human rights and humanitarian law? Where was this council? Why were you all silent?
This story is frustrating. Devastating. Infuriating. and blatantly unjust. As an official report of the United Nations, Judge Goldstone and his team had an upstanding obligation to do due dilligence and ensure their report was comprehensive. Through the always expanding means of social media, the report has become a "hot topic" amongst twitterers and bloggers alike. The problem is, blogging and social media has provided a forum for those who do not necessarily deserve one. There is no fact-checking, no screen to escape bias, and certainly no guarantee of validity . It's naive of me to expect that though. This is life. I am happy to have a way in which to help those like Dr. Siderer. Social media has given me that.
Social media gives the world an immediate forum in which to respond. tweet, post, comment, RT. Our platforms are being expanded by the minute. I want to be challenged, pushed, and forced to justify myself. In this case though, I think the evidence speaks for itself.
You cannot believe everything you hear-- despite the assumed credibilty of the U.N. or any other legitimate resource...but that isn't news.
I am slowly beginning to realize the incredible power of these social media tools. With a simple posting, my message is immediately exposed to the entire world.
I often think back to a quote that really resonated with me:
"“Never doubt that a small group of committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” -Margaret Mead
The scariest part is that it's true. While this can be used for both the better and the worse, through mediums of social media, the individual is empowered more than ever.
What can you do? What will I do?
In a graduate program that often feels like it's a 24 hour job, we have a lot to manage. Between 8 full courses per semester, the onslaught of assignments that come along with them, and maintaing our quickly diminishing social lives, time management has never been more important. I found a few pointers in the Globe this week. Check 'em out.
Making Time Management One of your Top Priorities -- Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2009
Know Your Business Priorities
Executives are extremely focused on their priorities. Brian Fetherstonhaugh, Global CEO of OgilvyOne, has a flip chart in his office with his top priorities marked down, to remind him. Michael Cloutier, former CEO of AstraZeneca Canada, uses a technique he calls "Three Balls" to classify and handle his priorities. Glass balls must be handled in 24 hours as they are urgent - and if you drop them they break, with the direct consequence a missed opportunity. Rubber balls are the second priority level - drop them and they bounce back once, giving you a second shot. But that's all you will get: Just one more chance. The third level are lead balls, which fall to the ground and lay there if dropped; although you would like to deal with them, the reality is that their impact is usually small and often they will remain there, as you juggle the more vital glass and rubber balls of your life.
FOCUS ON ONE THING AT A TIME
Research shows that focusing on one thing at a time improves personal productivity. Mr. Fetherstonhaugh considers focus to be like a muscle, that you must keep strong. At the same time, he is alert to when he is losing focus, and switches tracks if he needs a refresher, focusing on something else. Tim Penner, president of Procter & Gamble Canada, says if he's in a meeting he maintains his focus on the discussion, not answering his BlackBerry.
MANAGE YOUR INTERRUPTIONS
CEOs, of course, have assistants to help block unwanted interruptions. Mr. Cloutier ignores all interruptions except calls from his family until he has a break in his planned schedule to address them. Mr. Fetherstonhaugh finds that when people enter his office they assume their issue is top-of-his-mind. So he coaches them to spend two minutes giving him the context and background before presenting their question, allowing him to switch gears and focus on their matter.
BE STRATEGIC ABOUT YOUR E-MAIL
Among the suggested techniques are to set aside specific times for e-mail, and to only touch an e-mail once, deleting, replying or forwarding.
RUN EFFICIENT MEETINGS
The top executives start meetings on time - in the case of Procter & Gamble's Mr. Penner by shutting the door behind him when he walks in. Jordan Banks, former managing director of eBay Canada, scheduled most meetings to start at exactly five minutes after the hour, allowing a transition time from previous sessions people might be attending. Bruce Bowser, CEO of AMJ Campbell, stresses that if a meeting is scheduled for one hour but can be wrapped up in 35 minutes, do so.
BE DECISIVE
The leaders stress the importance of making a decision with dispatch - you'll never have all the information you need - and moving on since action is better than not making a decision. Mr. Bowser makes a decision with the understanding that there is a test period and then he pulls the plug if it doesn't work.
DELEGATE
Get a strong team, and be disciplined about delegating to them, staying out of the details and letting them know they won't be second-guessed. At the same time, ensure when they deliver that you provide feedback that helps them grow.
TAKE A BREAK
All of the executives placed great importance on their lives outside work and maintaining energy levels by exercising and taking breaks during the day.
By: Harvery Schachter
So there you have it. No matter what, our lives are going to be crazy. That's just part of the game.
If ever you wanted to witness the true meaning of an overnight, international superstar...
If you ever you wanted to see what was playing in the theatres...
If you wanted to share your special day with your family across the world...
If you want to rally immediate attention to your cause...
Or if you just need a good laugh...
You can find it within the hundreds of millions of videos posted to one of the world's top social media outlets:
Whether its for entertainment purposes, a necessary distraction from homework, an attempt at instant fame or to learn what's going on in the world around us, we have all used YouTube. In looking at its main functions, origins, development and issues, its revolutionary influence on the world of social media is apparent. Now before you go and Broadcast Yourself...take a look.
What is YouTube? YouTube is a video sharing website on which users can upload and share videos. Whether it's a home video or a popular music clip, each user is granted the opportunity to broadcast him or herself. YouTube empowers us to become the broadcasters of tomorrow. Before the launch of YouTube in 2005, there were very few methods available for ordinary computer users to post videos online. With its user-friendly interface and multiple factors of usibilty, YouTube has made it possible for anyone with an Internet connection to post a video that millions of people could watch within a few minutes. The wide range of topics covered by YouTube has turned video sharing into one of the most important parts of Internet culture and essential part of Public Relations.
Who invented it? YouTube was founded in 2005 by Chad Hurley, Steve Chen and Jawed Karim, who were all early employees of PayPal. Was it a happily-ever-after sort of story?
According to a story that has often been repeated in the media, Chad Hurley and Steve Chen developed the idea for YouTube during the early months of 2005, after they had experienced difficulty sharing videos that had been shot at a dinner party at Chen's apartment in San Francisco. Jawed Karim did not attend the party and denied that it had occurred, and Chad Hurley commented that the idea that YouTube was founded after a dinner party "was probably very strengthened by marketing ideas around creating a story that was very digestible."
Where does its funding come from?
YouTube received its initial funding from Sequoia Capital in November 2005 and was officially launched one month later in December. Chad Hurley and Steve Chen proceeded to become the first members of the YouTube management team and currently serve as Chief Executive Officer and Chief Technology Officer respectively. In November 2006, within a year of its launch, YouTube was purchased by Google Inc. in one of the most talked-about acquisitions to date. YouTube has struck numerous partnership deals with content providers such as CBS, BBC, Universal Music Group, Sony Music Group, Warner Music Group, NBA, The Sundance Channel and many more.
How is YouTube so successfully engaging?
The YouTube website is structured in a way so that it keeps its viewers logged in for more than a single viewing. It is achieved as follows:
First, when the users are accessing the main YouTube page, they are helped in the selection of videos by visual clues incdicating what is featured, most viewed, most dicussed, and what the top videos are. After having selected a video, watching it, and upon its completion, the service provides a set of information about the video such as other related clips, more from that particular user, and complete playlists. Also, you can read about the video, its rating, the number of views, comments and whether or not it has been favorited. These maintains users’ curiosity and encourages them to jump from one movie to another.
What kind of improvements have been made to YouTube since its development?
YouTube is not only accessible via internet. In recent developments, YouTube viewers are now able to view its videos on web pages outside the site. Each YouTube video is accompanied by a piece of HTML, which can be used to embed it on a page outside the YouTube website. This function is commonly used through the embedding of YouTube videos in blogs [like this one!] and social networking pages. Also, some mobile phones are now capable of accessing YouTube videos. YouTube Mobile was launched in June 2007 and uses RTSP streaming for the video.
Since June 2007, YouTube's videos have been available for viewing on a range of Apple products as well. This required YouTube's content to be transcoded into Apple's preferred video standard, H.264, a process that took several months. [Please don't ask how!] YouTube videos can be viewed on devices including Apple TV and the iPhone. A TiVo service update in July 2008 allowed the system to search and play YouTube videos. In January 2009, YouTube launched "YouTube for TV", a version of the website developed especially for cable boxes and other TV-based media devices with web browsers. In June 2009, YouTube XL was introduced, which has a simplified interface designed for viewing on a standard television screen.
Also, in some cases, YouTube no longer restricts its videos to short clips. In November 2008, YouTube reached an agreement with MGM, Lions Gate Entertainment and CBS which allows the companies to post full-length films and television shows on the site, accompanied by advertisements. The move is intended to create competition with websites such as Hulu, which features material from NBC, Fox, and Disney.
What are the social implications of YouTube?
YouTube Celebrities-- Instant Fame
YouTube's immense popularity has led to the creation of many YouTube Internet celebrities. Individuals have garnered internation attention from their respective videos and as a result, find themselves in positions of international focus. The most subscribed YouTube member, as of September 2009, is Nigahiga with over 1.2 million subscribers. The most viewed musician as of Summer 2009, is Britney Spears with over 600 million official BritneyTV YouTube music video views. Her song Womanizer alone has 80 million views. In total adding reproductions, Spears has over 1 billion YouTube music video views, the most by any musician. Singer Damien Rice invited Amy Kuney to perform with him at two shows in Iceland after he saw her YouTube cover of his song The Blower's Daughter. Ryan Higa and Sean Fujiyoshi, who currently have the #1 most subscribed to channel on YouTube, made a movie called Ryan and Sean's Not so Excellent Adventure, that also featured YouTube reporter Michael Buckley.
Rallying of Support-- both for or against
YouTube has changed the nature of politics, consumerism, and advertising. Instead of only being able to promote a product via television, a view can return to the same ad and watch it over and over again. Also, if a sports player [we're looking at you Serena Williams...] or politician [the worst thing to ever happen to George Bush] makes a mistake that would otherwise go unnoticed, a user can post it to YouTube for the world to see. This has also been particularly interesting lately with regards to countries that restrict media footage. A prime example of this comes from the political outroar that exploded out of Iran. Because of the cell phone footage that was posted to YouTube, Iran was exposed as tyrical and anti-Democratic. On the contrary, Iran's leader, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has been given a platform to share his anti-Semitic langauge with the world. He has garned support from others that share his views and in some sense, added "legitimacy" to his claims. This is the nature of YouTube's double-edged sword.
What are some controversial outcomes of YouTube?
Video Ranking Controversy
The viewing figures of some YouTube videos have been the subject of major controversy. There have been numerous claims that automated systems have been used to inflate the number of views received, which is forbidden by YouTube's terns of service. In March 2008, an unofficial video of the song "Music Is My Hot Hot Sex" by the Brazilian band Cansei De Ser Sexy briefly held the number one slot for the all-time most viewed video, with around 114 million views. It was temporarily removed from YouTube after allegations of automated viewing or hacking, before being deleted by the uploader.The viewing figures for the video outnumbered the "most favorited" rating by 20 000 to 1. YouTube's terms of service state: "You agree not to use or launch any automated system, including without limitation, "robots," "spiders," or "offline readers," that accesses the Website in a manner that sends more request messages to the YouTube servers in a given period of time than a human can reasonably produce in the same period by using a conventional on-line web browser."
The YouTube video of the Avril Lavigne song "Girlfriend" was also accused of having an exaggerated number of views. Apparently, AvrilBandAids had a link that would automatically reload the YouTube video of Girlfriend every fifteen seconds.
Copyright Issues
YouTube has been criticized for failing to ensure that its videos respect the law of copyright. At the time of uploading a video, YouTube users are always shown a screen with the following message:
"Do not upload any TV shows, music videos, music concerts or commercials without permission unless they consist entirely of content you created yourself. The Copyright Tips page and the Community Guidelines can help you determine whether your video infringes someone else's copyright."
Despite this warning, there are still many unauthorized clips from television shows, films and music videos on YouTube. YouTube does not view videos before they are posted online, and it is left to copyright holders to issue a takedown notice under the terms of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Organizations including Viacom, Mediaset and the English Premier League have filed lawsuits against YouTube, claiming that it has done too little to prevent the uploading of copyrighted material. Viacom, demanding US$1 billion in damages, said that it had found more than 150,000 unauthorized clips of its material on YouTube that had been viewed "an astounding 1.5 billion times". YouTube responded by stating that it "goes far beyond its legal obligations in assisting content owners to protect their works". Update: Since Viacom filed its lawsuit, YouTube has introduced a system called Video ID, which checks uploaded videos against a database of copyrighted content with the aim of reducing violations. In August 2008, a U.S. court ruled that copyright holders cannot order the removal of an online file without first determining whether the posting reflected fair use of the material.
Inappropriate Content YouTube has also faced criticism over the offensive content in some of its videos. Although YouTube's terms of service forbid the uploading of material likely to be considered inappropriate, YouTube does not check every video before it goes online. Controversial areas for videos have included Holocaust denial and the Hillsborough Disaster, in which 96 football fans from Liverpool were crushed to death in 1989, conspiracy theories and religion. YouTube relies on its users to flag the content of videos as inappropriate, and a YouTube employee will view a flagged video to determine whether it violates the site's terms of service.
Top 10 Most Popular Videos on YouTube of All Time
1. Evolution of Dance
2. Avril Lavigne - Girlfriend
3. Charlie bit my finger - again !
4. My Hot Hot Sex
5. XXX Porn
6. Lezberado: Revenge Fantasies
7. Miley Cyrus - 7 Things - Official Music Video (HQ)
8. Rihanna - Don't Stop The Music
9. Chris Brown - With You
10. Panda Disculpa los Malos Pensamientos
A Brief Overview of YouTube's Success
The Future of YouTube is...
The future of YouTube is in our hands. As of now, it is the most popular, industry-leading technology to broadcast our messages.
While its undoubtedly effective, YouTube is lethally dangerous...
So how then did I get here? Well, without revealing too many personal details, I can sum up my story in what I like to call [the added value of the "e"]. If you look at my blog address, you will notice that instead of just "lwalt.blogspot.com" (like j.lo, k.fed and other such trendy nicknames), there is an additional "e" on the end. While you might think that "e" is silent, it has come to represent my road to where I stand right now.
Before I began my undergrad at the University of Western Ontario [@uwo.ca], I was a frequent user of my very first hotmail account. I started the account at the ripe age of 11. Growing up, I was a happy-go-lucky sort of teenager; though like most, I was relatively lacking in self-confidence. I used the ever so popular “nickname_year of birth” e-mail address (lays_87) and I fit right in. Hotmail was my elementary school haven- a collection of e-mails from my first love, letters of recommendation from my first job, and an introduction to the world of emoticons .
Then high school hit. It grew increasingly embarrassing to give my teachers an address as juvenille as lays_87@hotmail.com. But I was locked in. My ultimate form of communication. MSN messenger relied on the existence of this account. Luckily, I didn’t have much to be e-mailing about during those four years.
Upon my graduation from high school, I was ready for a new beginning. I had grown up a lot over the past four years. I made best friends that will be with me for the rest of my life. I arrived in London, Ontario ready for life on my own. My new phase was also indicated by a new e-mail address. Though it may sound like an insignificant thing, to me it represented the important motto of “out with the old, and in with the new.”
I went to the Western Registrar’s office, confident that my address would read “lwalt@uwo.ca”. I was so excited because “Walters” condensed ever so nicely into “Walt” and the Western recipe for an e-mail address was “first initial and the first 4 letters of your last name.” Over the years I had come to be known as L.Walt, just as my brother was B.Walt, and even my father known to many as G.Walt. To have my nickname incorporated into my e-mail address was too perfect. To my dismay, the woman at the Registrar’s office had other plans for me. She handed me my form and on it was written “Welcome to Western, lwalte@uwo.ca!”
Needless to say, I was devastated. I was dreading the hassle of having to spell out my new address instead of being able to simply say lwalt@uwo.ca. I had enough difficulty with the pronunciation of my name as Leah (said LEY-a), and not LEE-a. But I didn’t have a choice. I was forced to accept my new online identity.
Little did I know, that “e” turned over a new page for me. Firstly, it sparked my new nickname. Instead of the generic “Walt”, I grew into Walt-E. No one ever forgot the added “e” because it was so peculiar. It served as an excellent conversation starter and proved to be the best e-mail address I have held to date. I began to use “lwalte” as my log-in for every site. My friends and I found ourselves frequently cracking up at the added value of the “e”. My life often follows a pattern in which it is perfectly logical that I would be that one with a 5 letter (l.w.a.l.t.e) abbreviation instead of the simple 4 (l.w.a.l.t.)
Though it was an inconsequential e-mail address, at Western I found my own voice- my individuality, a confidence in myself that I never had before. I learned to think, write, argue and articulate under the auspices of lwalte.
In the archives of that e-mail address lie the documents that led me to right here. Inside the carefully labeled folders you can find an array of life-changing moments ranging from my acceptance to my current graduate public relations program, an infinite number of essays that increasingly improve over the years, an eclectic collection of websites and forwards, an abundance of letters to my friends, boyfriends, family, and self. In looking at the first e-mail and comparing it to the last, you can track my transition as a person. I am certainly not the girl I was standing in the Registrar’s Office at seventeen and a half.
It is often said that your four years as an undergrad are the best of your life. I spent those years as “waltE” and now, when I look at “walt” written out, it is blatantly lacking a certain something.
So there it is-- an ever so fragile distinction that separated me from the masses. Its added value is a small reminder that when given the chance to be different, to grow, to surpass the bar that has been raised, we ought to take it, cherish it, and just make the most of it.
As I stand at the beginning of a brand new road, I am excited to see what this world has to offer me. I plan on exploring the world of Public Relations throughout this year and find my own place within it. I have recently been accused of having too many passions but I am beginning to discover that they just might find common ground in this all-encompassing field...
I am letting go of my past @uwo.ca and embracing my future @gmail.com.
[the added value of the “e”] is now with me wherever I go
Now eeeeeeeeeeeenough explaining, lets get to the good stuff.
In beginning this blog, I am embarking on quite the adventure. As a student of Public Relations, I am constantly being exposed to the world around me through a different lens. I am incredibly excited. I have fallen in love with PR. It somehow manages to mix everything I love- people and politics, reading and writing, questioning and then solving. For a girl with too many passions and an itch to travel, I finally feel comfortable staying in the same place.
Each day presents a new adventure, challenge, and of course, a brand new way to communicate with each other. In case my BBM wasn’t working, my e-mail wouldn’t log-in, if I couldn’t text, write, call, tweet or sign, the world of blogging now exists.
To combat my fears of opening myself up to the world, I'm jumping in head first. Here we gooooooooo!
As a student of Public Relations, I was asked to create a "personal brand." My thoughts. Reflections. Questions. Passions. and Interests.
Though I don't know where this journey will lead, I hope you follow...
