E-Media Tidbits

On Aug. 22, the U.K. Daily Mail published a story by Julie Moult about how MP Hazel Blears may have been "Googlebombed". In fact, Blears wasn't Googlebombed at all: The top result for her name just happened to be a popular humorous image. A popular blogger posted a comment on the story correcting it. That's what comments are for, right? Apparently not....

Yesterday, Silicon Alley Insider reported that online video giant YouTube may be quietly taking payments to promote featured videos...

10 ways that ad sales people can save newspapers, How blogging creates new opportunities for journalists, Planning Pays Off as New Orleans TV Stations Sail Through Gustav, and more...

Just as Microsoft finally gets around to updating its Windows-only Internet Explorer browser for the first time in years, Google announced the release its own open-source browser, Chrome. The first beta version is now available for Windows -- Mac and Linux editions are coming later...

Three years ago, frustrated families tried to connect with one another after Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast on August 29, 2005. The Federal Emergency Management Agency provided a database for finding missing family, but their interface required too much personal information -- information that loosely connected family members did not have at the ready.

I was searching for family from New Orleans. And the databases and information sites for finding the missing fell short on several fronts -- requiring too much personal information (legal names instead of nicknames or dates of birth) or not allowing photos to be uploaded of the missing. Within days of the disaster, I created a simple web interface then to allow family to post photos and messages to Hurricane Katrina survivors at The Digital Story Quilt for Hurricane Katrina Survivors and Family.

Last night, as 80,000 people crammed Denver's football stadium to watch Barack Obama's acceptance speech, millions sat back and watched it on TV. But in the world of online and mobile media, the experience was anything but passive...

User-generated content may still be difficult to monetize, but it may be able to earn those users a bit of cash if it's got some quality. New citizen journalism site AllVoices, which describes itself as an "open media site where anyone can report from anywhere," launched its Excellence in Citizen Media program -- where contributors can earn up to $10,000. (Program details)