I've always had a bit of a problem with trusting people. I tend to believe what they tell me no matter how ridiculous it may sound.
That's probably why my roommate has decorated our wall with post-it notes containing quotes from conversations that make me look like a gullible idiot. But in my defense, why would anyone lie about the sexual orientation of our R.A.? Seriously, why?
When it comes to social media, I have the same problem -- I generally hold my friends' postings to be truthful. Sometimes they are. For instance, my friend Andrew Dunn tweeted that classes before 10 a.m. were canceled the day it snowed. I trusted him and immediately retweeted it to my followers.We all got to sleep an extra two hours.
But my naivete has had the opposite result as well. Last summer, a friend posted on Facebook, "Mr. Baker, Mr. Lynn, Mrs. Crabtree and Mrs. Patterson all got FIRED."
I was horrified. These were some of my favorite teachers! I knew the school was facing budget cuts, so it seemed logical that they might cut teaching positions. I assumed I was getting information from a reliable source.
However, my friend was completely wrong. These teachers all still have their jobs; they were only a risk of being laid-off since they didn't have tenure.
Although I may be too trusting when it comes to social media, I still trust my sense of judgment when it comes to the news. When Fall Out Boy was a trending topic on Twitter, I read the tweets, but then did a Google search for the band to verify that they had broken up.
But you can't always verify gossip. Sure, I probably could have found the list of lay-offs for Gaston County Schools, but at the time it didn't occur to me.
Today I probably would at least attempt to verify something I knew was public record, but relationship statuses and gossip tweets I would take with a grain of salt. I think most people believe that their friends are sharing valid information when it comes to trivial gossip, but with the speed of sending information via social media, I think we could all slow down and verify our sources.
2.21.2010
2.14.2010
Information Super Highway?
This week I set out to see just how easy is is for citizens to learn about their government using the Internet. I looked up Gov. Bev Perdue's last finance report, the number of registered voters in North Carolina and the salary of UNC-CH Professor W. Hodding Carter.
In less than an hour I was able to this information, but I was surprised that I found it by using links in newspaper articles and blog posts. I was glad to see that journalism is still very useful in providing information, even in the cyber world. But I wonder, what will happen if all newspapers start charging for online content? Will finding information online be more difficult without access to those links?
Below I have chronicled my search for each bit of information.
Bev Perdue's cash on hand
To find Gov. Bev Perdue's cash on hand, I googled "Bev Perdue finance report cash on hand." I found several news articles, but none of them provided the exact information I needed. And those that did list numbers didn't provide links to the report, so I wasn't satisfied.
I searched the North Carolina Board of Elections Web site and was inundated with a long list of documents that I could not decipher. I opened a few of them but still didn't find the information for cash on hand.
So I went back to Google and found an article in the News & Observer that tagged Gov. Perdue. Using that tag, I was able to pull up every blog post and article mentioning the governor. I then searched for "finance report" and found a link to Perdue's campaign finance reports for 2008.
But the link led to a report from Jan. 2009, not the most recent report. But it did lead me to the correct portion of the BOE Web site. I began sifting through the document and about five minutes later, I found a report dated Dec. 31, 2009, which listed Perdue's cash on hand as $485,124.55 for the reporting period and $374,139.74 for the election.
Registered votes in North Carolina
When searching for the number of registered voters in North Carolina, I stayed on the North Carolina Board of Elections Web site. I looked around the site, clicking on the voter information tab and using the search bar, but I was not able to find any numbers. So I went back to Google.
I searched for "number of registered voters in NC" and found a blog, TalkLeft, which listed:
Salary of Professor W. Hodding Carter
I began again with a Google search. It led me to an N&O section, about the triangle. I typed in Professor Carter's name and department but no results were found. I changed my query, but was again unsuccessful.
I went back to Google and changed my query to "NC employee salaries" and found a link to the UNC employee salary database, again via the N&O. I searched for Carter at UNC-CH and found his salary -- $106,778.
Posted by Kelly McHugh
In less than an hour I was able to this information, but I was surprised that I found it by using links in newspaper articles and blog posts. I was glad to see that journalism is still very useful in providing information, even in the cyber world. But I wonder, what will happen if all newspapers start charging for online content? Will finding information online be more difficult without access to those links?
Below I have chronicled my search for each bit of information.
Bev Perdue's cash on hand
To find Gov. Bev Perdue's cash on hand, I googled "Bev Perdue finance report cash on hand." I found several news articles, but none of them provided the exact information I needed. And those that did list numbers didn't provide links to the report, so I wasn't satisfied.
I searched the North Carolina Board of Elections Web site and was inundated with a long list of documents that I could not decipher. I opened a few of them but still didn't find the information for cash on hand.
So I went back to Google and found an article in the News & Observer that tagged Gov. Perdue. Using that tag, I was able to pull up every blog post and article mentioning the governor. I then searched for "finance report" and found a link to Perdue's campaign finance reports for 2008.
But the link led to a report from Jan. 2009, not the most recent report. But it did lead me to the correct portion of the BOE Web site. I began sifting through the document and about five minutes later, I found a report dated Dec. 31, 2009, which listed Perdue's cash on hand as $485,124.55 for the reporting period and $374,139.74 for the election.
Registered votes in North Carolina
When searching for the number of registered voters in North Carolina, I stayed on the North Carolina Board of Elections Web site. I looked around the site, clicking on the voter information tab and using the search bar, but I was not able to find any numbers. So I went back to Google.
I searched for "number of registered voters in NC" and found a blog, TalkLeft, which listed:
- Total Voters 5,791,221
- Democrats 2,616,995
- Republicans 1,933,929
Salary of Professor W. Hodding Carter
I began again with a Google search. It led me to an N&O section, about the triangle. I typed in Professor Carter's name and department but no results were found. I changed my query, but was again unsuccessful.
I went back to Google and changed my query to "NC employee salaries" and found a link to the UNC employee salary database, again via the N&O. I searched for Carter at UNC-CH and found his salary -- $106,778.
Posted by Kelly McHugh
2.06.2010
The sheer awesomeness of social media
I created a Twitter account in April, 2009, but I was the only person I knew with one, so I mainly followed news sources. My English class thought I was weird when I told them about my fascination with the new social medium, but I still hold it as my most powerful source of news.
One hot day in June I was on an assignment, photographing a swim meet at the country club, when my phone buzzed. Michael Jackson had been pronounced dead, according to CNN (@cnnbrk).
I wasn't shocked. I had been getting tweets about the pop idol's condition all day. No one else at the pool knew. My parents, who were at work didn't know. Neither did my 14-year-old sister nor her friends whom she texts constantly.
Thus, I got to inform them, because I was in the loop. I had the latest breaking news. I felt incredibly powerful that day.
Since then, CNN has provided me with countless tweets that have bolstered my feeling of power. But I've also started following other sources. The Daily Tar Heel, @dailytarheel, is one of the best sources for local and campus news. Their tweets and facebook posts are great sources and also point followers toward more information within the paper or online.
Last week I watched the Student Body President forum on the DTH's Web site, which cleared up a few of my questions and helped me form my opinion about the candidates. But it was a tweet that led me to the site.
Individuals are another great source of news via Twitter. I've heard about free pizza in the pit, a tree falling into a building, classes being cancelled and the Chapel Hill election results all from tweets by students, granted most of them are DTH employees.
By following elected officials on Twitter, people can also stay informed about town and state government without having to attend meetings or wading through lengthy articles that do not interest them. For many, 140 characters is all that is needed to be sufficiently informed of recent small changes. Links to longer articles are incredibly useful as well.
My 14-year-old sister doesn't use Twitter. She also knows nothing about politics, other than who won homecoming queen. I think she is missing out. Social media is the most efficient way to get news and I hope it continues to grow.
One hot day in June I was on an assignment, photographing a swim meet at the country club, when my phone buzzed. Michael Jackson had been pronounced dead, according to CNN (@cnnbrk).
I wasn't shocked. I had been getting tweets about the pop idol's condition all day. No one else at the pool knew. My parents, who were at work didn't know. Neither did my 14-year-old sister nor her friends whom she texts constantly.
Thus, I got to inform them, because I was in the loop. I had the latest breaking news. I felt incredibly powerful that day.
Since then, CNN has provided me with countless tweets that have bolstered my feeling of power. But I've also started following other sources. The Daily Tar Heel, @dailytarheel, is one of the best sources for local and campus news. Their tweets and facebook posts are great sources and also point followers toward more information within the paper or online.
Last week I watched the Student Body President forum on the DTH's Web site, which cleared up a few of my questions and helped me form my opinion about the candidates. But it was a tweet that led me to the site.
Individuals are another great source of news via Twitter. I've heard about free pizza in the pit, a tree falling into a building, classes being cancelled and the Chapel Hill election results all from tweets by students, granted most of them are DTH employees.
By following elected officials on Twitter, people can also stay informed about town and state government without having to attend meetings or wading through lengthy articles that do not interest them. For many, 140 characters is all that is needed to be sufficiently informed of recent small changes. Links to longer articles are incredibly useful as well.
My 14-year-old sister doesn't use Twitter. She also knows nothing about politics, other than who won homecoming queen. I think she is missing out. Social media is the most efficient way to get news and I hope it continues to grow.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
