Category: Uncategorized

  • The sad tale of Orkut.com

    The internet seems to love abandoned buildings.  Broken windows, chairs laying randomly about, trees growing through the ceiling.  The more desolate and sad they appear, the better.  I got that same sort of feeling when I looked at the Orkut.com website today. Where there once was s networking website that had 30 million users, there…

  • Can We Chat About WeChat?

    What is the appeal of a super app, and why don’t we have one in the US? Before this course, the first time I learned about WeChat was when the Trump administration announced they were banning WeChat and TikTok in August 2020.  And honestly, I had kind of forgotten about it since then.  But WeChat…

  • Activism or Entertainment? Lessons from Two Social Media Campaigns

    In 2014, someone dumped an ice bucket over my head.  Looking back on it now, it seems kind of weird.  But it all made perfect sense at the time. After all, millions of other people were doing it as well – as part of the Ice Bucket Challenge, an enormously popular and successful fund-raising and…

  • How Warby Parker Got Eyewear Shoppers to See Things Differently

    I’ll be honest, opticians take one look at my insurance and their eyes light up like its Christmas morning.  Special lenses, protective coatings, steep discounts on frames – a cornucopia of eyewear options for me choose from!  Don’t get me wrong – I’m really grateful for that great insurance. But in reality, all I want…

  • Finding the social in social media

    Finding the social in social media

    There seems to be one consensus with the people in the class I am taking – very few people are 100% comfortable with social media. We know that is where all the action is, but we don’t seem to be really sure we want to be there. I am no different. I was on Facebook…