TV vs web audiences

Just a quick post on something I came across that just reinforces what we know about web audiences, about how they are more impatient  and do not really read but scan mostly.

The article has a comparison of TV and web audiences and I’m reproducing the summary table here for you:

	TV	Web
Audience	Mass: everybody watches the same basic channels, so the programming has to be bland	Niche: everybody seeks out their own special interests the moment they want something
Usability	Turn it on	Figure it out
Technology	Weak: can’t do anything except show pictures; offers no features	Powerful: can do almost anything; offers plenty of features
Main access UI	“Same time, same channel” next week	Search and navigation
User experience	Passive: sit back and let it happen the way the program director decided	Active: lean forward and decide where you want to go at any time
Flow	Linear	Hypertext
Distractions	None (except for temptation to do something else during commercials), so you stay focused on the one show you’re watching	Many: other windows and tabs beckon (and you’d better check your email right now in case something important has come in)
Ownership	MSM (main-stream media = big corporations, because it’s expensive to run a broadcast network)	The means of production are in everybody’s hands, reversing the centralization caused by the industrial revolution
Production values	High	Low
Social context	Often with others; in a family room	Usually alone; in an office or den
Brand-building	Image and slogans	Experience
Good for advertising?	Yes	No (except search and classified ads)
Sales cycle support	Demand creation	Research, buying, fulfillment (for electronic products), customer support, relationship maintenance

http://www.useit.com/alertbox/media-velocity.html

One thing that really strikes me is the amount of distraction you get online, and the compulsion to multi-task when you get online!

Oh, excuse me, let me check on the other page that’s loading and the attachment that I’m waiting to be downloaded and the article I’m waiting to upload… 

 

 

Facebook can save you from a jail term!

Who would think that being on Facebook can save you from a jail sentence!

That thought definitely did not cross 19 year old, Rodney Bradford’s mind when he posted a question to his girlfriend about his breakfast on his profile.

That timing proved to be the time when a robbery he was suspected of as being the criminal, was staged, and the investigators were able to trace the post to be from his father’s keyboard, which indicated that he was nowhere near the crime scne.

So, in a way, Facebook saved him from a jail term, and the facebook alibi  saved him!

By the same token, I wonder if someone who posted on his profile or blog that he was drink driving or using his handphone while driving or, worse, that he had committed some great crime, would be charged for his ‘online confession’?

New Media at the PAP Conference 2009

In a move to show that it’s embracing the use of new media, there was new media tools galore at the recent People’s Action Party (PAP) Conference 2009.

A team of young PAP bloggers were on hand to capture and update posts on the fly on the PAP website as well as on Facebook and Twitter, and netizens could also send Twitter updates and comments. At the same time, partcipants at the event could sms their comments and questions, making the whole atmosphere seem very Web 2.0 – the age of participation and engagement.

According to an article by CNA, “this is the first time new media tools have been given such a prominent spot at the PAP Convention. It is part of a broader effort to update and refresh the party image, reach out to the wider public, and hopefully bring in new members”. Young PAP has a Facebook page to reach out to the young too.

I believe this could be seen as a sincere attempt by the party to use new media to engage its members as well as the larger public. This could be a response to comments made about lip service and all.

The party also screened his political video, in a move to signal that yes, political videos are acceptable. In fact, the government has announced that political videos would be allowed for the next GE.

This is one of the videos – on Unsung Heroes:

Also, in a move to also reflect the age of participation in the live event, (not just in virtual worlds) the party invited ordinary members to make speeches and reach out to their fellow member.

We look forward to seeing how new media will be used to enhance the political climate in Singapore!