What's on Your Face?

How much influence does the media hold over the general population’s opinion? In this case, how has 23-year-old Mark Zuckerberg emerged as one of the most influential minds of this generation?

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Why are people so impressed with Facebook?

• Nearly 150,000 new users daily
• Referred to as a “social utility” as opposed to a “social network”
• More than half the users use the site everyday
• Nearly 30 Million active users
• 40 Billion page views every month
• Yahoo thinks it is worth more than a Billion Bucks!!!

As one of the most influential quarterlifers, Mark Zuckerberg has got quite a lot going for him. He is the creator of the mega popular Facebook.

In September 2007, Yahoo offered to by Facebook for ONE BILLION DOLLARS. Zuckerberg rejected their offer, as he had done in the past when Viacom offered $750 Million. His plan for the utility is that it remains independent – he wants Facebook to “make it really efficient for people to communicate, get information and share information.”

What draws viewers in? Some people think it is the applications. Applications on Facebook are made by users themselves, not Facebook employees. This allows users to feel as though they are a part of the Facebook team.

Facebook started on Harvard’s’ campus, then moved to other colleges campuses, then to high schools and businesses; now it is international. By only allowing certain groups to join at certain times, Facebook has managed to control its growth – and therefore, continue it.

Some say Mark Zuckerberg is the next Bill Gates, but it is Steve Jobs whom he looks up to. Both Zuckerberg and Jobs see eye to eye on one thing, however:

"In order to be doing something like this, you have to really, really like what you're doing, because otherwise it just doesn't make sense."

ARTicles: TIME
Picture Credit:
TIME

The Pencils Reach Peace

How much influence does the media hold over the general population’s opinion? In this case, did internet rumors help the Writers’ Guild reach a deal with Hollywood producers?

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As of Saturday February 9th, a tentative deal has been made between Hollywood Producers and members of the Writers Guild. According to the New York Times, the writers will be returning to work on Wednesday the 13th.

Reports of the strike being over have been floating around the internet for the past week. On Thursday February 7th, Just Jared claimed that Walt Disney chief executive Michael Eisner announced a deal between the Guild and major media companies. Whether or not this was fact at the time is currently unknown – but speculated false. Perez Hilton, a fellow blogger, also latched on to the story claiming that the Writers’ Strike was 99% over at the time.

On Wednesday February 6th, the New York Times announced that Vanity Fair canceled its Oscar Party. With the strike being over, perhaps it’s back on. This event costs a lot of money and adds much to the economy -

Although in the spotlight for the last three months, it appeared that strikers were suddenly trendy again. The Oscars were coming up, and after the economy already lost $20 billion dollars, it was clear that action needed to be taken. Bloggers and commenters were pleading with themselves, really, for a resolution to be made.

Did all this sudden speculation help negotiators with their task? Did pleading fans influence the need for a solution? Well, one way or another, the strike being over can only be a good thing for writers, fans, and economists.

Additional ARTicals:
United Hollywood
TV Guide’s Strike Watch
Photo Credit:
Scrubs writers and cast members
United Hollywood

Edited to add: According to United Hollywood, the Union vote as to end the strike will take place on Tuesday.

Cassie Edwards: Writer? Researcher? Thief?

How much influence does the media hold over the general population’s opinion? In this case, did a pair of bloggers ruin a person’s long lasting career?

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Some people just do not understand the realities of plagiarism. If a writer is not required to cite where she did her research – is it plagiarism? Recently, Cassie Edwards has been accused of this act.

Cassie Edwards is a well known historical romance author whose career spans more than 25 years; she currently writes for Signet, a branch of Penguin Group. One of her novels was passed to an academic who noticed something odd while reading. Many of Edwards’ sentences appeared familiar to her, and ill-fitting with the rest of the novel. The academic began to google the sentences and came up with startling evidence. It appeared that Edwards had taken from Paul Tolme’s article "Toughing It Out in the Badlands," almost word for word.

Originally Signet stood behind Edwards 100%, but the support quickly dwindled. These accusations rooted from the blog known as "Smart Bitches Who Love Trashy Books," but the Associated Press latched on to the story, even making the New York Times. When questioned, Edwards’ admitted to sometimes taking her information from references books – but she remained firm in her belief that what she was doing was not plagiarism.

By January 21st, 2008 – 13 days after the story first broke - the bloggers from “Smart Bitches Who Love Trashy Books” had assembled an 87 page document showing Edwards’ words versus articles they found when typing phrases into google. The proof is extreme, as it is clear that Edwards copied information.

Since novelists are not required to provide a bibliography or works cited, at what point should plagiarism be punishable? And what should the punishment be? Plagiarism is a form of theft. What will be taken from her in return? Clearly, in this case, the bloggers have already demolished Edwards’ credibility and career.

Additional ARTicles:
Publishers Weekly

Picture Credit:

New York Times