Go Avatar: How To Avoid the Recession

The age of avatars has never been so prominent than now, so if you’re feeling the effects of the recession, leave yourself behind and become “virtual” in a 3D World.

It’s really easy to do this. Just go to Whirled or perhaps “simpsonize” yourself, but remember to never leave your computer so you never encounter "in the red" surroundings, such as unpaid bills, unemployment, or every single sullen news segment broadcast from the Capitol. Being an avatar only adds to the escape because even though it’s you, it’s not really you and you feel good about that.

Avatars are also good for adding personality to your many social network profiles. Rather than upload a very genuine mug, you can make your nose bigger, color yourself, and own some really nice pearly whites complete with a devil grin. Ugly? Now you can be handsome.

Americans aren’t just home for the holidays; they are at home online, shopping, Tweeting, building a better domain for themselves. But if you really want a cure for your bleak situation, you should “friend” only the people who smile, a recent CNN article suggests. It may not be an avatar, but every little bit helps.

Viral Video of the Week

The video of the week comes from CNN on election night. They used hologram-like technology to beam Jessica Yellin into the studio. It was completely pointless and reminded me of Star Wars, but it was exciting to see a news network embrace new technology.

I guess I shouldn't say it was completely pointless. The video has racked up over 2 million views on YouTube and was discussed on several tech blogs.

Checking Facebook at Work? You're Not Alone!

This is too good. Legal analyst of CNN Jeffrey Toobin was caught checking his facebook during last nights presidential debate. Come on Jeffrey, they weren't that boring, were they?

If even CNN analysts can't pay attention to a debate, what chance do the rest of us have?

Making The News...Literally

CNN is coming into the world of 2.0. They are now showing Tweets sent to Rick Sanchez on national television. Getting your voice heard gets easier and easier. News seems to be shifting towards a new trend, wherein everyone can be heard...briefly. There's less patience for sprawling articles, and more for instant gratification. Follow the link to see video! (Gawker)

Perfect Pitch: How to be a Journalist's Best Friend

Even a "Cadillac pitch" the first time around doesn't work in this new changing age of print media. Yes, we all know print media is slowly deteriorating; calls to travel reporters and those assigned to tech beats confirm this. Perhaps a business reporter will have some decency and open up your e-mail, but you might want to think about using a pitch as a follow-up to an introduction.

Reporters have about five seconds to open an e-mail and decide from the lead if it's worth a read:

• Your subject line is the first thing a reporter will see (unless of course you decided to bcc those 500 people on your pitch list the same one-size-fits-all message that ends up in SPAM), so make it a praise to their most recent article. It's as simple as "Your CNN.com article, from XXX." Why does this work? Reporters love to hear about how great their stories are.
  
• There you have it--- that's your pitch. Next time, they will recognize you as someone who knows them, especially if you end your initial contact with "I'll keep an eye on your byline."

They are putty in your hands...