Making Money With Youtube

We’ve provided you with nearly 300 in-depth features, galleries and how-tos in the past year to help you navigate the social media world.

Here you’ll find a comprehensive list of all of those posts, covering everything from how to enhance your class='blippr-nobr'>Facebookclass="blippr-nobr">Facebook profile, find videos and music, contribute to a charity and just about any other topic you can think of.

We’ve broken the posts into categories including the big ideas about social media, the most popular social sites, including Facebook and class='blippr-nobr'>Twitterclass="blippr-nobr">Twitter, music, videos and photos, geo-location services, education, privacy and safety, social good, activism and government, among others.

If you’re looking to get caught up on — or re-read — class='blippr-nobr'>Mashable’sclass="blippr-nobr">Mashable social media resources from the past year, here’s your chance.

About Social Media

• How Social Media Has Changed Us
• 5 Insightful TED Talks on Social Media
• 5 Levels of Effective Communication in the Social Media Age
• Why Social Media Means Big Opportunities for Women
• The Science of Building Trust With Social Media
• How Companies Are Using Your Social Media Data
• Why User Competency Matters in Social Design
• 10 Essential Design Tools for Social Media Pros
• Why Content Curation Is Here to Stay
• Inside Gatorade’s Social Media Command Center
• Why Feedback and Filters are Necessary in Social Media
• 9 Universal Principles of Viral Media Sites
• Why Social Experience is the Future of Online Content
• 10 Beautiful Social Media Infographics
• A Look Back at the Last 5 Years in Social Media
• 5 Huge Trends in Social Media Right Now
• 5 Trends Affecting How We Connect Through Social Media
• The Next 5 Years in Social Media

Facebook

• Why Facebook’s Privacy Changes are Detrimental to Users
• How Facebook Can Become a Money Making Machine
• HOW TO: Keep Your Facebook Updates Private
• HOW TO: Block FarmVille on Facebook
• 4 Easy Ways to Engage Your Facebook Fans
• Facebook vs. Google: The Billion Dollar Battle to Be Your Default Social Profile
• How a Facebook Group Helped Reunite a Band for Charity
• HOW TO: Clean Up Your Facebook Profile
• 5 Ways Facebook Changed Dating (For the Worse)
• HOW TO: Disable Facebook’s “Instant Personalization” [PRIVACY]
• 5 Ways Facebook’s Open Graph Will Impact E-commerce
• HOW TO: Find Long Lost Friends on Facebook
• In Defense of Facebook
• How Facebook Makes Edgy Concepts Mainstream
• Why Facebook Must Get Serious About Privacy
• HOW TO: Send a Real Gift on Facebook
• How Does Facebook View the World?
• Why Facebook Can’t Genuinely Connect People
• 3 Things Facebook Does Very Well
• 10 Cool Facebook Status Tips and Tricks
• My Facebook Story: An Inside Look at Facebook’s First Privacy Fiasco
• 10 Fascinating Facebook Facts
• HOW TO: Put Facebook’s “Like” Button on Any Website
• 5 Ways Facebook Questions Can Be Improved
• A Closer Look at the Privacy Features of Facebook Places [PICS]
• A Field Guide to Using Facebook Places
• 5 Useful Facebook Trend and Search Services
• Facebook Privacy: 6 Years of Controversy [INFOGRAPHIC]
• 5 Fun FarmVille Accessories
• 3 Tips for Maximizing Engagement With Facebook “Likes” and Shares
• Facebook vs. Google and the Battle for Identity on the Web [OP-ED]
• The Biggest Brands on Facebook [INFOGRAPHIC]
• The New Facebook Messages: A Walkthrough [SCREENSHOTS]
• 5 Facebook Profile Photos to Avoid
• 10 Creative Uses of the New Facebook Profile [PICS]

Videos and Pics

• HOW TO: Add Captions To Your YouTube Videos
• 10 Amazing Magic Trick Videos on YouTube
• Exclusive: Inside YouTube’s War Room
• HOW TO: Boost Your SEO with a YouTube Channel
• EXCLUSIVE: Behind the Scenes at the “Married on MySpace” Wedding [VIDEO]
• HOW TO: Make a Great How-To Video
• 4 Tips for Producing Quality Web Videos
• 10 Best World Cup Goals on YouTube
• 5 Ways to Build a Loyal Audience on YouTube
• 6 Tips For Experimenting with Web Video
• 15 Fab Flash Mob Videos on YouTube
• 5 Handy YouTube Channels for DIY and Home Improvement
• Why Hulu’s New Dance Show is a Game-Changer
• How Social Media has Changed the Game for Documentary Filmmaking
• 5 Inspiring Celebrity Videos Tell Gay Teens “It Gets Better”
• 3 Things Any Video Needs to Go Viral
• 5 Ways to Get a Job Through YouTube
• HOW TO: Become a YouTube Sensation
• 5 Fresh Places to Find Great Online Video
• How To Make Your Music Video Go Viral: 10 Tips From Cee-Lo, OK Go & More

Music

• HOW TO: Create Free Music Playlists Online
• Why MySpace Can Still Win as a Music Destination
• Musicians Can Help Each Other Get Famous with New Site
• How Rdio Makes Your Music Mix Social
• 7 Superb Podcasts for Summer Listening
• 8 YouTube Channels for Unique Music Performances
• 10 Ways Touring Bands Can Leverage Location Apps
• Exclusive: Trent Reznor on “The Social Network” [INTERVIEW]
• 4 Ways to Find Legal Music for Your YouTube Videos

Twitter

• Zen and the Art of Twitter: 4 Tips for Productive Tweeting
• 5 Big Twitter Trends to Follow Right Now
• 4 Tips for Tapping Into Twitter Conversations
• HOW TO: Spring Clean Your Twitter Account
• 5 Free Services for Pre-Scheduling Your Twitter Updates
• How Twitter’s New Media Blog Aims To Teach By Example
• HOW TO: Make the Most of Your Twitter Profile Page
• Why Twitter Needs to Do More to Save Trending Topics
• 5 Terrific Tools for Keeping Tabs on Twitter Trends
• HOW TO: Help New Users Stay Engaged on Twitter
• The Rise of Comedy on Twitter
• Top 20 Sites to Improve Your Twitter Experience
• The Origin of Twitter’s “Fail Whale”
• 5 Free Ways to Never Miss a Twitter @Reply
• 10 Free and Fun Twitter Bird Icons for your Website
• 5 Fab Twitter Follower Visualization Tools
• 5 Useful Tools to Track Twitter Unfollowers
• 5 Tips for Dealing with Complaints on Twitter
• 7 Cool Chrome Extensions for Twitter
• 20 Cool Twitter Accounts for Daily Fun and Inspiration [PICS]
• TwitPic Founder Talks About the Future of Twitter Photo Sharing [VIDEO]
• Top 10 Twitter Tips for Bands, By Bands
• The New Twitter: The Web is Back
• How NPR Is Leveraging the Twitter Generation [STATS]
• Why Twitter Influences Cross-Cultural Engagement
• HOW TO: Gain Twitter Influence
• HOW TO: Use Twitter’s Advanced Search [VIDEO]

Geo-location

• The History of Location Technology [INFOGRAPHIC]
• Dear Foursquare: This Is Not the Right Time to Sell
• Gowalla CEO Talks About the Future of Social Media [INTERVIEW]
• Why the Fashion Industry Loves Foursquare
• Why Hasn’t Location Reached the Mainstream Yet?
• Beyond the Checkin: Where Location-Based Social Networks Should Go Next
• Top 16 Unusual Foursquare Badges
• Why Entertainment Will Drive the Next Checkin Craze
• Why Location-Based Social Media Needs to Get “Passive” Aggressive
• The State of the GeoSocial Universe [INFOGRAPHIC]
• Mayor Wars: A Battle For Foursquare Supremacy [VIDEO]
• Social Media Grammar: The “Checkin” Conundrum
• HOW TO: Become a Foursquare Power User
• A Glimpse at the Future of Foursquare

Education

• 3 Ways Educators Are Embracing Social Technology
• How Twitter in the Classroom is Boosting Student Engagement
• 4 Tips for Integrating Social Media Into the Classroom
• Why Online Education Needs to Get Social
• The Case for Social Media in Schools
• 7 Fantastic Free Social Media Tools for Teachers
• How Online Classrooms Are Helping Haiti Rebuild Its Education System
• 10 Free Online Resources for Science Teachers

Privacy and Safety

• HOW TO: Erase Your Online Past [HUMOR]
• Privacy: Managing the New Currency of the Social Web
• Why Banning Social Media Often Backfires
• HOW TO: Prevent and Report Online Stalking
• Social Media Parenting: Raising the Digital Generation
• HOW TO: Get Notified When Someone Hacks Your Facebook
• 5 Essential Facebook Privacy Tips
• HOW TO: Deal with a Cyberstalker
• 5 Fun and Safe Social Networks for Children
• 4 Effective Tools for Monitoring Your Child’s Online Safety

Digg

• New Digg Is Live: What It Means For Digg and For You
• A Brief History of Digg
• What Digg Must Do to Survive

Crowdsourcing

• HOW TO: Crowdsource Funds for Causes, Creativity and Startups
• 5 Creative Uses for Crowdsourcing
• 10 Cool Crowdsourced Music Video Projects
• 4 Real Challenges to Crowdsourcing for Social Good
• 4 People Who Let the Crowd Control Their Destiny

Social Good, Activism and Government

• 5 Ways Mega Charity Events Can Harness the Power of Social Media
• 9 Ways to Do Good With 5 Minutes or $25
• How Social Media Can Effect Real Social and Governmental Change
• 4 Ways One Non-Profit Uses Location to Increase Engagement
• 5 Ways to Support World Malaria Day Online
• How Non-Profits are Using Social Media for Real Results
• How Does Twitter’s New Social Good Initiative Stack Up?
• 5 Ways Government Works Better With Social Media
• 8 Tips for a Successful Social Media Cause Campaign
• HOW TO: Turn Slacktivists into Activists with Social Media
• How the U.S. Engages the World with Social Media
• How Social Media is Changing Government Agencies
• 5 Things the Library of Congress is Archiving Online
• 6 Websites for Remembering and Honoring Veterans
• How Political Campaigns Are Using Social Media for Real Results
• How Social Media is Helping Veterans Connect
• How the Gulf Coast Benefit is Using Social Media to Rally Support
• How Social Media is Changing the Way Government Does Business
• How You Can Do Good with Small Actions: Try Bolder
• How CrisisCommons Is Helping the Tech Community Help Others
• 5 Social Fundraising Alternatives to Facebook Causes
• Why Social Media Is a Game-Changer for Causes
• How the Web Can be Harnessed for Social Good
• How Social Media Helped 174 Million People Get the Message About Malaria
• 5 Easy Ways to Support a Cause Through Your Social Network
• Social Media: The New Battleground for Politics
• 3 Small Cause Campaigns That Won Big With Social Media
• How and Why PepsiCo Engages in Social Good [VIDEO]
• 9 Creative Social Good Campaigns Worth Recognizing [Mashable Awards]
• 5 YouTube Projects That Are Making a Difference
• Why Social Media Is Reinventing Activism
• 3 Creative Social Good Campaigns that Will Make You Smile
• HOW TO: Help Solve the Global Water Crisis with Social Media
• The Future of Social Media and Politics
• 5 Must-Follow Non-Profits Making a Difference With Social Media [Mashable Awards]
• 10 Inspiring “Buy One Give One” Projects
• How Social Media Is Making Veteran Service Organizations Better
• Checkins for Charity: The Rise of Geo-Social Good
• HOW TO: Help Feed the Hungry With Online Donations
• Facebook Co-Founder Launches Social Network for Social Good, Jumo [IMAGE]
• 5 Ways Cities Are Using Social Media to Reverse Economic Downturn
• The Holiday Survival Guide for Social Media Professionals

Holidays & Major Events

• 10 Fabulous Valentine’s Day Gifts for Your Beloved Geek
• 5 More Ways to Go Green for Earth Day
• How Social Media Helped Travelers During the Iceland Volcano Eruption
• 5 Ways to Go Green for Earth Day with Social Media
• 4 Social Media Efforts to Aid the Gulf Coast
• 8 Ways to Follow Internet Week New York Online
• HOW TO: Follow the 2010 World Cup on Twitter
• The World Cup’s Social Media Evolution
• World Cup 2010: Mashable’s Complete Coverage
• HOW TO: Follow the US Open with Social Media
• HOW TO: Follow New York Fashion Week Online
• HOW TO: Get the Most from Fashion’s Night Out with Social Media
• How Social Media Has Changed Fashion Week
• 17 Web Resources to Help You Decide on Election Day
• How the “Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear” Nailed Social Media
• 5 Free Halloween Music Playlists for Your Monster Bash
• 4 Ways to Visualize Voter Sentiment for the Midterm Elections
• HOW TO: Plan the Perfect Thanksgiving With the Help of Social Media
• HOW TO: Use Social Media to Enhance Your Event

Managing Your Social Media Time & Presence

• 4 Essential Traits for Social Media Success in Your Career
• 4 Steps for Managing Social Media Attention
• 5 Simple Social Design Tips From the Masters
• 3 Tips for Managing Your Online Reputation
• 5 Tips for Creating the Perfect Profile Pic
• 5 Ways to Reduce Social Media Distractions and Be More Productive
• Tim Ferriss: 7 Great Principles for Dealing with Haters
• 21 Rules for Social Media Engagement
• HOW TO: Send Digital Invites Without Being Obnoxious
• Are You a Comments Troll?
• 5 Ways to Clean Up Your Social Media Identity
• HOW TO: Deal with a Real-Life Breakup Online
• HOW TO: Enhance Your Online Presence with Video
• 11 Free Services for Scheduling Social Media Updates
• HOW TO/NOT TO: Ask Someone Out Online
• 7 Services to Find and Reserve Your Name Across the Web
• HOW TO: Gracefully Promote Yourself Online
• HOW TO: Win the Search Rank Race for Your Name
• 7 Resources for Handling Digital Life After Death
• 11 Essential Apps for Managing Your Real Life Social Networks

Blogging

• HOW TO: Integrate Google Buzz Into Your WordPress Blog
• HOW TO: Create a Successful Company Blog
• 10 Beautiful Free Blogger Templates
• HOW TO: Maximize Your Content’s Reach on the Social Web
• HOW TO: Rescue Your Blog From Social Isolation
• A Look Back at the Last 5 Years in Blogging
• A Brief History of 9 Popular Blogging Platforms
• 7 Perfect Posterous Themes for Multimedia Blogs
• HOW TO: Use Tweet Buttons as a Blogger or Site Owner
• 21 Creative Blogger Bio Pages
• HOW TO: Help Your Child Set Up a Blog

Google

• HOW TO: Integrate Facebook, Twitter and Buzz into Your Gmail
• HOW TO: Make a Google Buzz Desktop App
• 4 Ways Non-Profits Can Use Google Buzz
• 12 Fresh Web Tools for Getting the Most Out of Google Buzz
• Google’s Long History of Social Media Attempts [INFOGRAPHIC]
• Why Google Wave’s Demise Is Good News for Facebook
• Which Words Does Google Instant Blacklist?

Industry-Specific Resources

• How the Fashion Industry is Embracing Social Media
• How the Resort Industry is Using Social Media
• How Musicians Are Using Social Media to Connect with Fans
• 6 Ways Law Enforcement Uses Social Media to Fight Crime
• The Future Newsroom: Lean, Open and Social Media-Savvy
• 6 Ways Brands are Using Social Media For Real-World Action
• How Journalists are Using Social Media for Real Results
• How Freelancers are Using Social Media for Real Results
• Social Enterprise: 5 Tips for Getting Execs on Board
• How Lawyers Are Using Social Media for Real Results
• Why Social Media is the New Source of Hollywood Talent
• How Salespeople Are Using Social Media for Real Results
• Why Food Bloggers Are Here to Stay
• 6 Crucial Social Media Tips for Traditional Media
• 5 Tips for Aspiring Social Media Marketers
• Why WikiLeaks and the Mainstream Media Still Need Each Other
• How Freelancers Might Use Social Media in the Future
• The Future of Public Relations and Social Media
• How Social Data Built a Better Health Care App
• The Future of Social Media in Journalism
• The Future of the Hotel Industry and Social Media
• How Lawyers May Use Social Media in the Future
• The Future of Human Resources and Social Media
• How Investigative Journalism Is Prospering in the Age of Social Media
• How Social Media Is Changing the Way Movies are Promoted
• Why More Health Experts Are Embracing the Social Web
• Sports and Social Media: Why the Best Is Yet to Come

Other

• The Birth of the Virtual Assistant
• The Ultimate March Madness Social Media Guide
• 5 Stellar Ways to Explore Space Using Social Media
• 6 Easy Ways to Score the Best Deals with Social Media
• 5 Free Ways to Identify that Song Stuck in Your Head
• Why Chatroulette Is More Than Just Penises
• 3 Ways Live Events Improve Online Communities
• 12 Chatroulette Clones You Should Try
• Top 10 Online Mascots
• HOW TO: Rent Anything Online
• HOW TO: Get the Most Out of Q&A Sites
• 13 Internet Slangs with Unexpected Alternate Meanings
• 5 Ways Social Media Helps Promote Good Health
• For Women, Social Media is More Than “Girl Talk”
• Inside Street Food’s Social Media Revolution [VIDEO]
• 10 Great Geek Tees For Kids
• 7 Days on Craigslist’s Casual Encounters
• HOW TO: Follow Mashable Staff Online
• The WikiLeaks Debate: Journalists Weigh In
• 7 Services That Will Suggest Things You Like
• 7 Questions With AOL Co-Founder Steve Case
• 5 Online Community Killers to Avoid at All Costs

Image courtesy of iStockphotoclass="blippr-nobr">iStockphoto, morozena

For more Social Media coverage:

class="f-el">class="cov-twit">Follow Mashable Social Mediaclass="s-el">class="cov-rss">Subscribe to the Social Media channelclass="f-el">class="cov-fb">Become a Fan on Facebookclass="s-el">class="cov-apple">Download our free apps for Android, iPhone and iPad

The Education Tech Series is supported by Dell The Power To Do More, where you’ll find perspectives, trends and stories that inspire Dell to create technology solutions that work harder for its customers so they can do and achieve more.

Non-profit organizations and passionate individuals have found a slew of creative ways to leverage social media and the class='blippr-nobr'>Internetclass="blippr-nobr">Internet to make the world a better place. Online campaigns help provide clean drinking water, food and malaria-preventing bed nets to people who need them.

Creative uses of the web are helping to provide and enhance education. These four projects, for instance, found innovative ways to help build schools through digital campaigns.

1. Epic Change

Epic Change has become a model for raising money using social media. Since 2008, its annual TweetsGiving has asked people to tweet about what they’re thankful for while making a donation. The strategy was so successful that #tweetsgiving became a trending topic on Twitter during the first year’s campaign.

Starting out, the benefactor of TweetsGiving was a school in Tanzania that was founded by Mama Lucky Kamptoni, a passionate local woman who started the school using money she earned from her poultry business (now there are two more benefactors). Epic Change wanted to help her rebuild and expand the school.

The organization also launched To Mama With Love, a website where users can make a donation by creating a “heart space” for a mother they care about. The “heart space” is a collection of photos, videos and words dedicated to that mother. Other people who care about that mother are invited to donate in her honor.

From one of the classrooms that was built using donations from these campaigns, the students now tweet and connect with the rest of the world.

“So often, we hear the stories of children in the so-called ‘developing’ world from the perspective of the media, non-profits or friends who have traveled or volunteered,” explains the Epic Change Blog. “What happens now – when these students can share their own stories, and build relationships with the rest of the world, for themselves? How will the world be different when these children, who live so geographically far away, move into our virtual backyard? What difference will it make in their lives to know that their voices will be heard?”

2. Stillerstrong

When Ben Sitller launched the Stillerstrong campaign on YouTubeclass="blippr-nobr">YouTube, Twitterclass="blippr-nobr">Twitter and a branded website, he did it with a video that poked fun at Lance Armstrong’s Livestrong campaign. It was hard to tell if he was kidding.

But the campaign, which sells Stillerstrong headbands and accepts donations by text message and credit card, has raised about $300,000 to help provide temporary schools for Haitians displaced by January’s earthquake. At the time the campaign was announced, the organization and its partners Causecast and the Global Philanthropy Group were expecting each school to cost between $45,000 and $55,000.

3. TwitChange

Instead of auctioning off celebrity memorabilia to support a charity, TwitChange hosts eBay auctions for celebrity Twitter interaction. The donation’s bidders put down to have a celebrity follow them, retweet their tweet, or mention them in an update. The proceeds go to aHomeInHaiti.org, which will use them to build a home and school for children with disabilities in Haiti.

The first auction in September raised $531,640.25. The website instructs us to “stay tuned for the celebrity tweet auction coming this holiday season.”

4. University of the People

Less of a “campaign” than a full-blown effort to democratize education, University of the People provides tuition-free higher education through an online campus.

Since launching last year, the university has accepted about 700 students from 100 different countries to its three- to four-year programs for business and computer science. Recently the university opened computer centers in Haiti so that students with limited Internet access could enroll in its courses.

“I do believe that if we take the millions of people around the world who could not afford going to university and teach them tuition free, we’re not only changing their lives, and their family’s lives, we also change their communities, their countries,” founder Shai Shai Reshef says. “And if we have a lot of them, we will change the world for a better world.”

Series Supported by Dell The Power To Do More/>

The Education Tech Series is supported by Dell The Power To Do More, where you’ll find perspectives, trends and stories that inspire Dell to create technology solutions that work harder for its customers so they can do and achieve more.

More Social Good Resources from Mashable:

- How Online Classrooms Are Helping Haiti Rebuild Its Education System/> - Why Social Media Is Reinventing Activism/> - 5 Creative Social Good Campaigns for the Holiday Season/> - 4 Real Challenges to Crowdsourcing for Social Good/> - 9 Creative Social Good Campaigns Worth Recognizing

Image courtesy of iStockphotoclass="blippr-nobr">iStockphoto, urbancow

For more Social Good coverage:

class="f-el">class="cov-twit">Follow Mashable Social Goodclass="s-el">class="cov-rss">Subscribe to the Social Good channelclass="f-el">class="cov-fb">Become a Fan on Facebookclass="s-el">class="cov-apple">Download our free apps for Android, iPhone and iPad

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<b>News</b> - Queen Elizabeth Welcomes First Great-Grandchild! - Moms <b>...</b>

Peter Phillips' wife Autumn gave birth to a baby girl Wednesday.

No, Snooki Will Not Be Dropping in a Ball in Times Square on New <b>...</b>

New York City to Snooki: fuhgeddaboudit. MTV wanted.

AOL Weird <b>News</b> Top 10: The Best of the Bizarre

What does a one-legged man, a fly-sized frog, a bacon sculpture of Kevin Bacon, conjoined twins who can see out of each other's eyes and a 115-foot Jesus statue have in common? They've all made the list for AOL's Top Ten Weird News ...


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Making Money

This is the second and final part of a series of posts that looks at why I am skeptical that The Giving Pledge will have the kind of impact many people are saying it will. In Part I, I explored how the pledge is likely to have an extremely small impact on total giving, and how little money will likely benefit underserved communities.

Below, I look at how giving by billionaire philanthropists has typically been limited in its effectiveness and has dangerous implications for democratic decision-making.

Billionaire philanthropy has real limits and risks.

Billionaires don't typically like to share power.

Some forward-thinking foundations share power with communities by including grantees or the constituent perspective on their boards. Others share power by giving most of their grants in the form of unrestricted general operating support so that the leaders of the nonprofits can best decide how to spend the money.

But most billionaire philanthropists don't follow these practices. The current trend in philanthropy is to develop highly specific theories of change around narrowly defined issues, and then to look for nonprofits that can carry out the foundation's plan. It's often called "strategic philanthropy." In this approach, the billionaires and their families get to decide what the problems are facing communities and how best to solve them.

"What's wrong with that? It's their money," you might ask.

First, it's not entirely their money. Dollars donated by millionaires and billionaires should be thought of as partially public dollars. Given our current tax code, most gifts by the ultra-wealthy are subsidized at the 35 percent level by other taxpayers. A foundation created with a $1 billion gift is really $650 million from the donor and $350 million from the tax-paying public. When tax-exempt donations are made, the U.S. Treasury forgoes revenue, and other taxpayers pay higher rates to make up the difference.

Second, there are real risks for democracy when we allow billionaires to have undue influence on public institutions. It has been well documented how the charitable choices of the ultra-wealthy are influencing government policy in this country and around the world. For just one example, look to an opinion piece in the Chronicle of Philanthropy, where education historian Diane Ravitch explains, "A foundation's offer of a multimillion-dollar grant is enough to cause most superintendents and school boards to drop everything and reorder their priorities."

Third, having billionaires tightly control the decision-making process is not optimally effective, for three reasons.

• Overwhelming evidence from groups like Grantmakers for Effective Organizations and the Center for Effective Philanthropy shows that when nonprofits receive unrestricted support, they have greater impact. That's because the people closest to the problems, those running nonprofits, often have important insights about how to find solutions. So to increase impact, billionaire pledge-takers would be wise to give more unrestricted funding.



• Research by theorist Scott Page demonstrates that diverse groups make better decisions, so a foundation that has a diverse board is likely to be more effective than a foundation with a small board that includes only the donor and a few members of his or her family. Advisory committees are a good half-way step, but there is no substitute for truly sharing power by adding community perspectives to the board of trustees.



• Another way billionaires often fall short of being optimally effective is that they tend to favor technocratic approaches to solving social problems. Yet, as philanthropy expert Michael Edwards points out in his latest book, many of the most pressing challenges we face are not best addressed with a business-oriented approach. Thorny social problems require investments in civil society and social justice, not technocratic business-driven solutions. Unfortunately, despite the fact that it is well documented that foundation investments in advocacy, community organizing and civic engagement have an incredibly high return on investment, few high-net-worth donors currently focus on promoting social justice in these ways.
  
  
  

  
  Happily, a few of the billionaire donors who have taken the pledge are leaders in social justice giving. Herb and Marion Sandler are among them -- they're big supporters of grassroots community organizing. Jean and Steve Case, too, have devoted more than 30 percent of their foundation's grant dollars to social justice causes, primarily by investing heavily in civic engagement. But these donors are the exception rather than the rule among billionaire philanthropists.

What's needed to mitigate these risks and limitations is for billionaire pledge-takers to recognize that donors, taxpayers and nonprofits are really all partners in pursuit of the common good. We all have certain rights and responsibilities in this partnership. And as true partners, we need to share power. If signers of The Giving Pledge think about their philanthropy in this way, it will help democratize their work and lead to better results.

(For more critiques of strategic philanthropy, check out these posts from Sean Stannard-Stockton, Susan Berresford and William Schambra.)

Final Thoughts

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once noted, "Philanthropy is commendable, but it must not cause the philanthropist to overlook the circumstances of economic injustice which make philanthropy necessary."

As I stated up front, all things considered, I'm glad the Gateses and Mr. Buffett started The Giving Pledge. It's better for our nation and the world to have billionaires giving to charity than to leave vast amounts of their wealth exclusively to their kids. I hope this initiative inspires bolder giving from billionaires, millionaires and the rest of us.

But it's not just the amount of giving that matters. The quality of the giving matters, too.

Thus far, The Giving Pledge has been silent on these questions of quality, following a politically safer route that says implicitly that all charitable giving is noble and of equal value. But that's just not true. The choices philanthropists make determine to what extent the common good is served by their generosity. We should all hope they make good choices.

A little OTB update: Yes, it's still dead and its employees have been put to pasture...except for CEO Gene Rayburn. Earlier this year, it was noted that Rayburn was being paid $125,000 a month and it turns out he's on payroll through January 14. The Daily News reports, per the governor's office, "Rayburn has stayed on to 'finish everything up.' The restructuring specialist is dealing with the outfit's remaining issues in bankruptcy court and is making sure money owed to various creditors and staffers is paid out... By the time he is through, Rayburn will have been paid at least $750,000 for six months on the job. His predecessor made $175,000 annually."

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Fox <b>News</b> - Ratings - 2010 | MSNBC - CNN | Mediaite

Fox News will mark 2010 as one of the best years since the network's launch in 1996. The network posted powerful ratings, beating the combined ratings of CNN and MSNBC and marking the ninth straight year as cable's top news network.

Fugitive Banker Surrenders in $1.2 Million Fraud Case - AOL <b>News</b>

A former Oregon bank manager who fled after she was accused of stealing up to $1.2 million from customers has surrendered in California, the FBI said. The FBI had been seeking 37-year-old Shawna Leimomi Moore-Saia since Oct. 27, ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: December 28, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): The reactor on your roof: Caltech breakthrough uses solar power to generate liquid fuel; Fmr. Shell president predicts $5-a-gallon gas by 2012; EPA develops neurotoxicants list; Obama admin takes ...

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Fox <b>News</b> - Ratings - 2010 | MSNBC - CNN | Mediaite

Fox News will mark 2010 as one of the best years since the network's launch in 1996. The network posted powerful ratings, beating the combined ratings of CNN and MSNBC and marking the ninth straight year as cable's top news network.

Fugitive Banker Surrenders in $1.2 Million Fraud Case - AOL <b>News</b>

A former Oregon bank manager who fled after she was accused of stealing up to $1.2 million from customers has surrendered in California, the FBI said. The FBI had been seeking 37-year-old Shawna Leimomi Moore-Saia since Oct. 27, ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: December 28, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): The reactor on your roof: Caltech breakthrough uses solar power to generate liquid fuel; Fmr. Shell president predicts $5-a-gallon gas by 2012; EPA develops neurotoxicants list; Obama admin takes ...

bench craft company scam

Fox <b>News</b> - Ratings - 2010 | MSNBC - CNN | Mediaite

Fox News will mark 2010 as one of the best years since the network's launch in 1996. The network posted powerful ratings, beating the combined ratings of CNN and MSNBC and marking the ninth straight year as cable's top news network.

Fugitive Banker Surrenders in $1.2 Million Fraud Case - AOL <b>News</b>

A former Oregon bank manager who fled after she was accused of stealing up to $1.2 million from customers has surrendered in California, the FBI said. The FBI had been seeking 37-year-old Shawna Leimomi Moore-Saia since Oct. 27, ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: December 28, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): The reactor on your roof: Caltech breakthrough uses solar power to generate liquid fuel; Fmr. Shell president predicts $5-a-gallon gas by 2012; EPA develops neurotoxicants list; Obama admin takes ...

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Fox <b>News</b> - Ratings - 2010 | MSNBC - CNN | Mediaite

Fox News will mark 2010 as one of the best years since the network's launch in 1996. The network posted powerful ratings, beating the combined ratings of CNN and MSNBC and marking the ninth straight year as cable's top news network.

Fugitive Banker Surrenders in $1.2 Million Fraud Case - AOL <b>News</b>

A former Oregon bank manager who fled after she was accused of stealing up to $1.2 million from customers has surrendered in California, the FBI said. The FBI had been seeking 37-year-old Shawna Leimomi Moore-Saia since Oct. 27, ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: December 28, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): The reactor on your roof: Caltech breakthrough uses solar power to generate liquid fuel; Fmr. Shell president predicts $5-a-gallon gas by 2012; EPA develops neurotoxicants list; Obama admin takes ...

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Fox <b>News</b> - Ratings - 2010 | MSNBC - CNN | Mediaite

Fox News will mark 2010 as one of the best years since the network's launch in 1996. The network posted powerful ratings, beating the combined ratings of CNN and MSNBC and marking the ninth straight year as cable's top news network.

Fugitive Banker Surrenders in $1.2 Million Fraud Case - AOL <b>News</b>

A former Oregon bank manager who fled after she was accused of stealing up to $1.2 million from customers has surrendered in California, the FBI said. The FBI had been seeking 37-year-old Shawna Leimomi Moore-Saia since Oct. 27, ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: December 28, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): The reactor on your roof: Caltech breakthrough uses solar power to generate liquid fuel; Fmr. Shell president predicts $5-a-gallon gas by 2012; EPA develops neurotoxicants list; Obama admin takes ...

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Fox <b>News</b> - Ratings - 2010 | MSNBC - CNN | Mediaite

Fox News will mark 2010 as one of the best years since the network's launch in 1996. The network posted powerful ratings, beating the combined ratings of CNN and MSNBC and marking the ninth straight year as cable's top news network.

Fugitive Banker Surrenders in $1.2 Million Fraud Case - AOL <b>News</b>

A former Oregon bank manager who fled after she was accused of stealing up to $1.2 million from customers has surrendered in California, the FBI said. The FBI had been seeking 37-year-old Shawna Leimomi Moore-Saia since Oct. 27, ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: December 28, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): The reactor on your roof: Caltech breakthrough uses solar power to generate liquid fuel; Fmr. Shell president predicts $5-a-gallon gas by 2012; EPA develops neurotoxicants list; Obama admin takes ...

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Fox <b>News</b> - Ratings - 2010 | MSNBC - CNN | Mediaite

Fox News will mark 2010 as one of the best years since the network's launch in 1996. The network posted powerful ratings, beating the combined ratings of CNN and MSNBC and marking the ninth straight year as cable's top news network.

Fugitive Banker Surrenders in $1.2 Million Fraud Case - AOL <b>News</b>

A former Oregon bank manager who fled after she was accused of stealing up to $1.2 million from customers has surrendered in California, the FBI said. The FBI had been seeking 37-year-old Shawna Leimomi Moore-Saia since Oct. 27, ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: December 28, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): The reactor on your roof: Caltech breakthrough uses solar power to generate liquid fuel; Fmr. Shell president predicts $5-a-gallon gas by 2012; EPA develops neurotoxicants list; Obama admin takes ...

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Fox <b>News</b> - Ratings - 2010 | MSNBC - CNN | Mediaite

Fox News will mark 2010 as one of the best years since the network's launch in 1996. The network posted powerful ratings, beating the combined ratings of CNN and MSNBC and marking the ninth straight year as cable's top news network.

Fugitive Banker Surrenders in $1.2 Million Fraud Case - AOL <b>News</b>

A former Oregon bank manager who fled after she was accused of stealing up to $1.2 million from customers has surrendered in California, the FBI said. The FBI had been seeking 37-year-old Shawna Leimomi Moore-Saia since Oct. 27, ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: December 28, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): The reactor on your roof: Caltech breakthrough uses solar power to generate liquid fuel; Fmr. Shell president predicts $5-a-gallon gas by 2012; EPA develops neurotoxicants list; Obama admin takes ...

bench craft company scam

Fox <b>News</b> - Ratings - 2010 | MSNBC - CNN | Mediaite

Fox News will mark 2010 as one of the best years since the network's launch in 1996. The network posted powerful ratings, beating the combined ratings of CNN and MSNBC and marking the ninth straight year as cable's top news network.

Fugitive Banker Surrenders in $1.2 Million Fraud Case - AOL <b>News</b>

A former Oregon bank manager who fled after she was accused of stealing up to $1.2 million from customers has surrendered in California, the FBI said. The FBI had been seeking 37-year-old Shawna Leimomi Moore-Saia since Oct. 27, ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: December 28, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): The reactor on your roof: Caltech breakthrough uses solar power to generate liquid fuel; Fmr. Shell president predicts $5-a-gallon gas by 2012; EPA develops neurotoxicants list; Obama admin takes ...

bench craft company scam

Fox <b>News</b> - Ratings - 2010 | MSNBC - CNN | Mediaite

Fox News will mark 2010 as one of the best years since the network's launch in 1996. The network posted powerful ratings, beating the combined ratings of CNN and MSNBC and marking the ninth straight year as cable's top news network.

Fugitive Banker Surrenders in $1.2 Million Fraud Case - AOL <b>News</b>

A former Oregon bank manager who fled after she was accused of stealing up to $1.2 million from customers has surrendered in California, the FBI said. The FBI had been seeking 37-year-old Shawna Leimomi Moore-Saia since Oct. 27, ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: December 28, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): The reactor on your roof: Caltech breakthrough uses solar power to generate liquid fuel; Fmr. Shell president predicts $5-a-gallon gas by 2012; EPA develops neurotoxicants list; Obama admin takes ...

bench craft company scam

Fox <b>News</b> - Ratings - 2010 | MSNBC - CNN | Mediaite

Fox News will mark 2010 as one of the best years since the network's launch in 1996. The network posted powerful ratings, beating the combined ratings of CNN and MSNBC and marking the ninth straight year as cable's top news network.

Fugitive Banker Surrenders in $1.2 Million Fraud Case - AOL <b>News</b>

A former Oregon bank manager who fled after she was accused of stealing up to $1.2 million from customers has surrendered in California, the FBI said. The FBI had been seeking 37-year-old Shawna Leimomi Moore-Saia since Oct. 27, ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: December 28, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): The reactor on your roof: Caltech breakthrough uses solar power to generate liquid fuel; Fmr. Shell president predicts $5-a-gallon gas by 2012; EPA develops neurotoxicants list; Obama admin takes ...

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Moms Making Money

From Claire Berlinski in City Journal:

You see, about a month ago, I asked my mother to bail me out. I knew she’d do it. She’s done it before. She sent me money she’s been saving toward my retirement. I resolved to stop spending money on stupid things. (There was really no excuse for that lamp, Mom, I know. Sorry! In my defense, I was sure there was a genie in it.)

With my mom paying my rent, I’ve been able to charge less for what I write and stay in the black. Voilà, I’m selling a cheaper product (for now) than Reuters and AP. That will teach them where to stuff their “good investment decisions” and their “economies of scale.” I fired the guy who does my odd jobs—it was painful, but it had to be done. So, congratulations to me! I’m making it in this tough business climate, with a little help from Mom. America’s back! And if I’m broke again in a year, I’ll hit her up again. (Don’t forget, Mom, that you really have no choice: no matter what you do, I’m still going to be a huge financial drag on you. If I fail, I’ll end up coming home with all my cats. You don’t want me sleeping on your couch, do you? And you sure don’t want to see what my cats would do to that couch. Antique, I believe it is?)

All of this is, alas, a perfectly accurate description of my financial life. The reader may wonder about my mom’s wisdom in going along with this plan. That’s between me and her—she loves me, and it’s her money, not yours. The money that went to GM was yours, however. And I suppose you must love GM as if it’s your profligate kid, because surely you could not be so credulous as to believe these reports about the spectacular success of the bailout.

There was a rush to buy GM shares last Thursday, when the company, which emerged from bankruptcy restructuring last summer, held an IPO. The company has been drowned in taxpayer cash. It’s going to be fine in the short term. No one should be surprised by this. Anyone—and any company—can get back in the black in the short term if someone gives it a ton of money. And who wouldn’t want to invest in a company that everyone knows won’t be allowed to go down? All the merchants in my neighborhood would lend me money, too, if I asked, confident that their loan would be repaid. A “generous American mom” sounds pretty good to them.

Of course, GM is paying back its new loans, though this doesn’t help investors who hold old GM stock; that’s worthless. By the way, I’m also considering stiffing my creditors. The GM example proves that it will result in an immediate improvement of my balance sheet. GM’s production numbers have been increasing, and mine have, too: it’s a lot easier to write when you’ve got peace of mind. Whether anyone will buy the stuff I’m writing, God knows, but my word count is definitely up, and that, apparently, is the number that matters.

Note that GM is still producing those gas-guzzling pickups and SUVs that no one seemed to want before. Great news for me: I’ll just keep writing about the arcana of Turkish constitutional politics. It’s what the market should want. Turkish politics are fascinating. I don’t know what’s wrong with Americans. If they understood what was good for them, they’d want to be better informed about Turkey. (They’d want that Volt electric car, too. I hear it’s much better for the environment.)

Naturally, I’ll pay my mother back. Here’s how: I’m going to have her put a small percentage of all the money she’s given me in an escrow account, which I’ll call a “working capital” account. Then I’ll transfer the rest of my assets to her. (Good news, Mom: you own seven cats and seven litter boxes.) Then I’m going to use the money from that escrow account to pay her back at an interest rate no one but my own mother would give me. As soon as I empty the escrow account, I’ll declare the loans repaid. What do you mean, that makes no sense? That’s just what the U.S. governmentdid for GM, and no one finds that problematic, do they? Never mind that the cash part of the loan has been repaid from TARP, or that this in fact represents only about 15 percent of the total bailout, or that the rest remains tied up in the automotive equivalent of cats and litter boxes. By the way, I’m thinking of bundling all my liabilities into a separate company, just like GM. I’ll call the company “Some other Claire who can deal with the creditors, never heard of that Claire.”

Read the whole thing here.

The Halo franchise's quest to produce a feature-length film has been almost as epic as the games themselves, with Peter Jackson, Neill Blomkamp and Steven Spielberg all making appearances as the real-life drama has unfolded. Even though Bungie and Microsoft are parting ways post-"Reach," finding a way to turn Halo into a success outside of games is something Microsoft wants to see happen, whether it means working with a studio or bringing it to HBO as a TV series.

"There will be a Halo movie. We don't need a movie. But we'd like a movie," Halo franchise development director Frank O'Connor told Harold Goldberg of the New York Videogame Critics Circle. "We'd like the moms of gamers to see the movies because they would love our characters. Maybe we’ll even fund it ourselves."

O'Connor explained that Microsoft is keeping their options open, too.

"We'd love to see Halo as a television series," he said. "Look what HBO did with Band of Brothers or even Rome. Something like that would work because the Halo universe is so vast."

O'Connor was reportedly approached by a high-level network executive the Future of Television East conference in New York last week, and though the exec agreed to bring large amounts of money to the table, he wouldn't be the first to try securing the rights to Master Chief.

In the post-Bungie era, there's going to be a lot of pressure on MS to make sure they do right by Halo, whatever happens. Either a film or a "Sopranos"-sized TV series would be fine by me as long as they make it look good, but I'm sure I'm not alone in wondering where that exec was from.

Would you rather see Halo become a film or a TV series? Do you trust Microsoft to make the right choices? Share your opinions with us in the comment section below.

Tags halo, halo movie, microsoft, microsoft game studios

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Digital <b>News</b> Platforms Still Present Opportunity For Marketers <b>...</b>

News sites are a good place to advertise since 92% of consumers use multiple platforms to get news.

Julian Assange | Sarah Palin | Fox <b>News</b> | Mike Huckabee | Mediaite

In an exclusive interview with Cenk Uygur on MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan Show, Julian Assange described criticism in Washington and elsewhere of WikiLeaks as nothing short of attacks on journalism and the first amendment.

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Digital <b>News</b> Platforms Still Present Opportunity For Marketers <b>...</b>

News sites are a good place to advertise since 92% of consumers use multiple platforms to get news.

Julian Assange | Sarah Palin | Fox <b>News</b> | Mike Huckabee | Mediaite

In an exclusive interview with Cenk Uygur on MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan Show, Julian Assange described criticism in Washington and elsewhere of WikiLeaks as nothing short of attacks on journalism and the first amendment.

Denver Broncos <b>News</b>: Horse Tracks - 12/23/10 - Mile High Report

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Digital <b>News</b> Platforms Still Present Opportunity For Marketers <b>...</b>

News sites are a good place to advertise since 92% of consumers use multiple platforms to get news.

Julian Assange | Sarah Palin | Fox <b>News</b> | Mike Huckabee | Mediaite

In an exclusive interview with Cenk Uygur on MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan Show, Julian Assange described criticism in Washington and elsewhere of WikiLeaks as nothing short of attacks on journalism and the first amendment.

Denver Broncos <b>News</b>: Horse Tracks - 12/23/10 - Mile High Report

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Digital <b>News</b> Platforms Still Present Opportunity For Marketers <b>...</b>

News sites are a good place to advertise since 92% of consumers use multiple platforms to get news.

Julian Assange | Sarah Palin | Fox <b>News</b> | Mike Huckabee | Mediaite

In an exclusive interview with Cenk Uygur on MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan Show, Julian Assange described criticism in Washington and elsewhere of WikiLeaks as nothing short of attacks on journalism and the first amendment.

Denver Broncos <b>News</b>: Horse Tracks - 12/23/10 - Mile High Report

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Digital <b>News</b> Platforms Still Present Opportunity For Marketers <b>...</b>

News sites are a good place to advertise since 92% of consumers use multiple platforms to get news.

Julian Assange | Sarah Palin | Fox <b>News</b> | Mike Huckabee | Mediaite

In an exclusive interview with Cenk Uygur on MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan Show, Julian Assange described criticism in Washington and elsewhere of WikiLeaks as nothing short of attacks on journalism and the first amendment.

Denver Broncos <b>News</b>: Horse Tracks - 12/23/10 - Mile High Report

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Digital <b>News</b> Platforms Still Present Opportunity For Marketers <b>...</b>

News sites are a good place to advertise since 92% of consumers use multiple platforms to get news.

Julian Assange | Sarah Palin | Fox <b>News</b> | Mike Huckabee | Mediaite

In an exclusive interview with Cenk Uygur on MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan Show, Julian Assange described criticism in Washington and elsewhere of WikiLeaks as nothing short of attacks on journalism and the first amendment.

Denver Broncos <b>News</b>: Horse Tracks - 12/23/10 - Mile High Report

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Digital <b>News</b> Platforms Still Present Opportunity For Marketers <b>...</b>

News sites are a good place to advertise since 92% of consumers use multiple platforms to get news.

Julian Assange | Sarah Palin | Fox <b>News</b> | Mike Huckabee | Mediaite

In an exclusive interview with Cenk Uygur on MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan Show, Julian Assange described criticism in Washington and elsewhere of WikiLeaks as nothing short of attacks on journalism and the first amendment.

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Digital <b>News</b> Platforms Still Present Opportunity For Marketers <b>...</b>

News sites are a good place to advertise since 92% of consumers use multiple platforms to get news.

Julian Assange | Sarah Palin | Fox <b>News</b> | Mike Huckabee | Mediaite

In an exclusive interview with Cenk Uygur on MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan Show, Julian Assange described criticism in Washington and elsewhere of WikiLeaks as nothing short of attacks on journalism and the first amendment.

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Digital <b>News</b> Platforms Still Present Opportunity For Marketers <b>...</b>

News sites are a good place to advertise since 92% of consumers use multiple platforms to get news.

Julian Assange | Sarah Palin | Fox <b>News</b> | Mike Huckabee | Mediaite

In an exclusive interview with Cenk Uygur on MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan Show, Julian Assange described criticism in Washington and elsewhere of WikiLeaks as nothing short of attacks on journalism and the first amendment.

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Digital <b>News</b> Platforms Still Present Opportunity For Marketers <b>...</b>

News sites are a good place to advertise since 92% of consumers use multiple platforms to get news.

Julian Assange | Sarah Palin | Fox <b>News</b> | Mike Huckabee | Mediaite

In an exclusive interview with Cenk Uygur on MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan Show, Julian Assange described criticism in Washington and elsewhere of WikiLeaks as nothing short of attacks on journalism and the first amendment.

Denver Broncos <b>News</b>: Horse Tracks - 12/23/10 - Mile High Report

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Digital <b>News</b> Platforms Still Present Opportunity For Marketers <b>...</b>

News sites are a good place to advertise since 92% of consumers use multiple platforms to get news.

Julian Assange | Sarah Palin | Fox <b>News</b> | Mike Huckabee | Mediaite

In an exclusive interview with Cenk Uygur on MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan Show, Julian Assange described criticism in Washington and elsewhere of WikiLeaks as nothing short of attacks on journalism and the first amendment.

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Help Making Money

Ok Go Explains There Are Lots Of Ways To Make Money If You Can Get Fans

from the everything's-possible dept

Over the last few years, we've covered many of the moves by the band Ok Go -- to build up a fanbase often with the help of amazingly viral videos, ditch their major record label (EMI), and explore new business model opportunities. In the last few days, two different members of Ok Go explained a bit more of the band's thinking in two separate places, and both are worth reading. First up, we have Tim Nordwind, who did an interview with Hypebot, where he explained the band's general view on file sharing:

Obviously we'd love for anyone who has our music to buy a copy. But again, we're realistic enough to know that most music can be found online for free. And trying to block people's access to it isn't good for bands or music. If music is going to be free, then musicians will simply have to find alternative methods to make a living in the music business. People are spending money on music, but it's on the technology to play it. They spend hundreds of dollars on Ipods, but then fill it with 80 gigs of free music. That's ok, but it's just a different world now, and bands must learn to adjust.

Elsewhere in the interview, he talks about the importance of making fans happy and how the band realizes that there are lots of different ways to make money, rather than just selling music directly:

Our videos have opened up many more opportunities for us to make the things we want to make, and to chase our best and wildest ideas. Yes, we need to figure out how to make a living in a world where people don't buy music anymore. But really, we've been doing that for the last ten years. Things like licensing, touring, merch, and also now making videos through corporate sponsorship have all allowed us to keep the lights on and continue making music.

Separately, last Friday, Damian Kulash wrote a nice writeup in the Wall Street Journal all about how bands can, should and will make money going forward. In many ways the piece reminds me a bit of my future of music business models post from earlier this year -- and Kulash even uses many of the same examples in his article (Corey Smith, Amanda Palmer, Josh Freese, etc.). It's a really worthwhile read as well. He starts by pointing out that for a little over half a century, the record labels had the world convinced that the "music" industry really was just the "recorded music" industry:

For a decade, analysts have been hyperventilating about the demise of the music industry. But music isn't going away. We're just moving out of the brief period--a flash in history's pan--when an artist could expect to make a living selling records alone. Music is as old as humanity itself, and just as difficult to define. It's an ephemeral, temporal and subjective experience.



For several decades, though, from about World War II until sometime in the last 10 years, the recording industry managed to successfully and profitably pin it down to a stable, if circular, definition: Music was recordings of music. Records not only made it possible for musicians to connect with listeners anywhere, at any time, but offered a discrete package for commoditization. It was the perfect bottling of lightning: A powerful experience could be packaged in plastic and then bought and sold like any other commercial product.

But, he notes, that time is now gone, thanks in large part to the internet. But that doesn't mean the music business is in trouble. Just the business of selling recorded music. But there's lots of things musicians can sell. He highlights Corey Smith and Smith's ability to make millions by giving away his music for free, and then touring. But he also points out that touring isn't for everyone. He covers how corporate licensing has become a bigger and bigger opportunity for bands that are getting popular. While he doesn't highlight the specific economics of it, what he's really talking about is that if your band is big, you can sell your fan's attention -- which is something Ok Go has done successfully by getting corporate sponsorship of their videos. As he notes, the sponsors provide more money than the record labels with many fewer strings:

These days, money coming from a record label often comes with more embedded creative restrictions than the marketing dollars of other industries. A record label typically measures success in number of records sold. Outside sponsors, by contrast, tend to take a broader view of success. The measuring stick could be mentions in the press, traffic to a website, email addresses collected or views of online videos. Artists have meaningful, direct, and emotional access to our fans, and at a time when capturing the public's attention is increasingly difficult for the army of competing marketers, that access is a big asset.



...



Now when we need funding for a large project, we look for a sponsor. A couple weeks ago, my band held an eight-mile musical street parade through Los Angeles, courtesy of Range Rover. They brought no cars, signage or branding; they just asked that we credit them in the documentation of it. A few weeks earlier, we released a music video made in partnership with Samsung, and in February, one was underwritten by State Farm.



We had complete creative control in the productions. At the end of each clip we thanked the company involved, and genuinely, because we truly are thankful. We got the money we needed to make what we want, our fans enjoyed our videos for free, and our corporate Medicis got what their marketing departments were after: millions of eyes and goodwill from our fans. While most bands struggle to wrestle modest video budgets from labels that see videos as loss leaders, ours wind up making us a profit.

Of course, that only works if you have a big enough fanbase, but that doesn't mean there aren't things that less well known bands can use to make money as well. He talks about an up-and-coming band in LA that doesn't even have a manager that was able make money:

The unsigned and unmanaged Los Angeles band Killola toured last summer and offered deluxe USB packages that included full albums, live recordings and access to two future private online concerts for $40 per piece. Killola grossed $18,000 and wound up in the black for their tour. Mr. Donnelly says, "I can't imagine they'll be ordering their yacht anytime soon, but traditionally bands at that point in their careers aren't even breaking even on tour."

The point, Kulash, notes, is that there's a lot of things a band can sell, focusing on "selling themselves." And, the thing he doesn't mention is that, when you're focusing on selling the overall experience that is "you" as a musician or a band, it's something that can't be freely copied. People can copy the music all they want, but they can't copy you. "You" are a scarce good that can't be "pirated." That's exactly what more and more musicians are figuring out these days, and it's helping to make many more artists profitable. And, no, it doesn't mean that any artist can make money. But it certainly looks like any artist that understands this can do a hell of a lot better than they would have otherwise, if they just relied on the old way of making money in the music business.

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Even in times of severe budgetary crisis, WMATA still has to advertise itself. And what better way to reverse the public's negative opinion about random bag searches, constant maintenance, annoying talking buses, broken escalators, confusing fare structures and so forth than with some state of the art "guerrilla" marketing! Kytja Weir reports that the agency is going to try and get your attention the same way your local emo band does.

The transit system brought on Williams Whittle, based in Alexandria, earlier this month to help market the agency using traditional advertising but also possibly "guerrilla marketing" and "street teams," said Metro spokesman Reggie Woodruff.

"Williams Whittle will assist us as we continue to explore ways to increase revenue and off-peak ridership and to more effectively promote Metro and the improvements that we are making," he wrote in an e-mail.

That could mean "unconventional marketing" that directly engages potential riders, he explained. He could not provide any examples of what such direct marketing might look like, though.

What, was Evan Hensleigh not available? WMATA will be using about two-thirds of its $1.8 million advertising budget on Williams Whittle's services. For the sake of public transportation, I sure hope that Williams Whittle has some better "unconventional" ideas than those Second Life animations which Metro rolls out every now and then -- based on the company's website, it looks like they've got a ton of experience creating slightly annoying, yet oft-imitated television ads.

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Obama <b>news</b> conference: liveblog – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama held a news conference Wednesday to discuss the lame duck session of Congress and plans for the upcoming year.

Fox <b>News</b> Dubs Elie Wiesel &#39;Holocaust Winner&#39;

shitlox news........are we morons........you decide? right wingnut garbage...delivered in a carnival barker style ! Reply. 5. 6. Flag as Offensive. Seems fair on Dec 22, 2:03 PM said: Since it never happened. Who cares? ...

<b>News</b> Corp. Sells Fox Mobile Group To Investment Firm Jesta

It looks like News Corp. has unloaded its Fox Mobile Group division. According to a release, investment company Jesta Group has acquired Fox Mobile Group (FMG) from News Corporation. Terms of the deal were not disclosed in the release.

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Obama <b>news</b> conference: liveblog – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama held a news conference Wednesday to discuss the lame duck session of Congress and plans for the upcoming year.

Fox <b>News</b> Dubs Elie Wiesel &#39;Holocaust Winner&#39;

shitlox news........are we morons........you decide? right wingnut garbage...delivered in a carnival barker style ! Reply. 5. 6. Flag as Offensive. Seems fair on Dec 22, 2:03 PM said: Since it never happened. Who cares? ...

<b>News</b> Corp. Sells Fox Mobile Group To Investment Firm Jesta

It looks like News Corp. has unloaded its Fox Mobile Group division. According to a release, investment company Jesta Group has acquired Fox Mobile Group (FMG) from News Corporation. Terms of the deal were not disclosed in the release.

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Obama <b>news</b> conference: liveblog – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama held a news conference Wednesday to discuss the lame duck session of Congress and plans for the upcoming year.

Fox <b>News</b> Dubs Elie Wiesel &#39;Holocaust Winner&#39;

shitlox news........are we morons........you decide? right wingnut garbage...delivered in a carnival barker style ! Reply. 5. 6. Flag as Offensive. Seems fair on Dec 22, 2:03 PM said: Since it never happened. Who cares? ...

<b>News</b> Corp. Sells Fox Mobile Group To Investment Firm Jesta

It looks like News Corp. has unloaded its Fox Mobile Group division. According to a release, investment company Jesta Group has acquired Fox Mobile Group (FMG) from News Corporation. Terms of the deal were not disclosed in the release.

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Obama <b>news</b> conference: liveblog – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama held a news conference Wednesday to discuss the lame duck session of Congress and plans for the upcoming year.

Fox <b>News</b> Dubs Elie Wiesel &#39;Holocaust Winner&#39;

shitlox news........are we morons........you decide? right wingnut garbage...delivered in a carnival barker style ! Reply. 5. 6. Flag as Offensive. Seems fair on Dec 22, 2:03 PM said: Since it never happened. Who cares? ...

<b>News</b> Corp. Sells Fox Mobile Group To Investment Firm Jesta

It looks like News Corp. has unloaded its Fox Mobile Group division. According to a release, investment company Jesta Group has acquired Fox Mobile Group (FMG) from News Corporation. Terms of the deal were not disclosed in the release.

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Obama <b>news</b> conference: liveblog – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama held a news conference Wednesday to discuss the lame duck session of Congress and plans for the upcoming year.

Fox <b>News</b> Dubs Elie Wiesel &#39;Holocaust Winner&#39;

shitlox news........are we morons........you decide? right wingnut garbage...delivered in a carnival barker style ! Reply. 5. 6. Flag as Offensive. Seems fair on Dec 22, 2:03 PM said: Since it never happened. Who cares? ...

<b>News</b> Corp. Sells Fox Mobile Group To Investment Firm Jesta

It looks like News Corp. has unloaded its Fox Mobile Group division. According to a release, investment company Jesta Group has acquired Fox Mobile Group (FMG) from News Corporation. Terms of the deal were not disclosed in the release.

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Obama <b>news</b> conference: liveblog – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama held a news conference Wednesday to discuss the lame duck session of Congress and plans for the upcoming year.

Fox <b>News</b> Dubs Elie Wiesel &#39;Holocaust Winner&#39;

shitlox news........are we morons........you decide? right wingnut garbage...delivered in a carnival barker style ! Reply. 5. 6. Flag as Offensive. Seems fair on Dec 22, 2:03 PM said: Since it never happened. Who cares? ...

<b>News</b> Corp. Sells Fox Mobile Group To Investment Firm Jesta

It looks like News Corp. has unloaded its Fox Mobile Group division. According to a release, investment company Jesta Group has acquired Fox Mobile Group (FMG) from News Corporation. Terms of the deal were not disclosed in the release.

bench craft company scam

Obama <b>news</b> conference: liveblog – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama held a news conference Wednesday to discuss the lame duck session of Congress and plans for the upcoming year.

Fox <b>News</b> Dubs Elie Wiesel &#39;Holocaust Winner&#39;

shitlox news........are we morons........you decide? right wingnut garbage...delivered in a carnival barker style ! Reply. 5. 6. Flag as Offensive. Seems fair on Dec 22, 2:03 PM said: Since it never happened. Who cares? ...

<b>News</b> Corp. Sells Fox Mobile Group To Investment Firm Jesta

It looks like News Corp. has unloaded its Fox Mobile Group division. According to a release, investment company Jesta Group has acquired Fox Mobile Group (FMG) from News Corporation. Terms of the deal were not disclosed in the release.

bench craft company scam

Obama <b>news</b> conference: liveblog – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama held a news conference Wednesday to discuss the lame duck session of Congress and plans for the upcoming year.

Fox <b>News</b> Dubs Elie Wiesel &#39;Holocaust Winner&#39;

shitlox news........are we morons........you decide? right wingnut garbage...delivered in a carnival barker style ! Reply. 5. 6. Flag as Offensive. Seems fair on Dec 22, 2:03 PM said: Since it never happened. Who cares? ...

<b>News</b> Corp. Sells Fox Mobile Group To Investment Firm Jesta

It looks like News Corp. has unloaded its Fox Mobile Group division. According to a release, investment company Jesta Group has acquired Fox Mobile Group (FMG) from News Corporation. Terms of the deal were not disclosed in the release.

bench craft company scam

Obama <b>news</b> conference: liveblog – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama held a news conference Wednesday to discuss the lame duck session of Congress and plans for the upcoming year.

Fox <b>News</b> Dubs Elie Wiesel &#39;Holocaust Winner&#39;

shitlox news........are we morons........you decide? right wingnut garbage...delivered in a carnival barker style ! Reply. 5. 6. Flag as Offensive. Seems fair on Dec 22, 2:03 PM said: Since it never happened. Who cares? ...

<b>News</b> Corp. Sells Fox Mobile Group To Investment Firm Jesta

It looks like News Corp. has unloaded its Fox Mobile Group division. According to a release, investment company Jesta Group has acquired Fox Mobile Group (FMG) from News Corporation. Terms of the deal were not disclosed in the release.

bench craft company scam

Obama <b>news</b> conference: liveblog – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama held a news conference Wednesday to discuss the lame duck session of Congress and plans for the upcoming year.

Fox <b>News</b> Dubs Elie Wiesel &#39;Holocaust Winner&#39;

shitlox news........are we morons........you decide? right wingnut garbage...delivered in a carnival barker style ! Reply. 5. 6. Flag as Offensive. Seems fair on Dec 22, 2:03 PM said: Since it never happened. Who cares? ...

<b>News</b> Corp. Sells Fox Mobile Group To Investment Firm Jesta

It looks like News Corp. has unloaded its Fox Mobile Group division. According to a release, investment company Jesta Group has acquired Fox Mobile Group (FMG) from News Corporation. Terms of the deal were not disclosed in the release.

bench craft company scam

Obama <b>news</b> conference: liveblog – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama held a news conference Wednesday to discuss the lame duck session of Congress and plans for the upcoming year.

Fox <b>News</b> Dubs Elie Wiesel &#39;Holocaust Winner&#39;

shitlox news........are we morons........you decide? right wingnut garbage...delivered in a carnival barker style ! Reply. 5. 6. Flag as Offensive. Seems fair on Dec 22, 2:03 PM said: Since it never happened. Who cares? ...

<b>News</b> Corp. Sells Fox Mobile Group To Investment Firm Jesta

It looks like News Corp. has unloaded its Fox Mobile Group division. According to a release, investment company Jesta Group has acquired Fox Mobile Group (FMG) from News Corporation. Terms of the deal were not disclosed in the release.

bench craft company scam