No, we haven’t yet figured out the literal significance of those five names that showed up beneath everyone’s Facebook search bar Tuesday. Facebook claims that it wasn’t a list of the people who search for you the most, nor was it a list of the people you search for. Supposedly, it was just Facebook’s guess [...]

Concerned about what people can see on your Facebook profile? Here’s how to stay in control.

An inspired choice:
Seriously, who actually sits down after a long day at work and says, I’m not going to watch Lost tonight. I’m going to turn on my computer and make a movie starring my pet iguana? I’m going to mash up 50 Cent’s vocals with Queen’s instrumentals? I’m going to blog about my state [...]

I didn’t realize it until a few weeks ago, but Facebook’s news feed turned journalism upside down.
What do you check first to find out what’s happening in your world? A news site or Facebook?

For centuries, journalists have asked questions and recorded names. But the limiting factor in all journalism is what people are willing [...]

If you want to know what really threatens a chunk of The Daily Northwestern, visit the new Backfence.com for Evanston. I found it through Medill grad Patrick Cooper.
Backfence calls itself “do-it-yourself local news,” which means anyone in the community can post their own news and thoughts about what’s going on. Right now, a lot [...]

Assistant Professor Craig LaMay is giving a talk about the risks of social networking right now at Fisk 211. It’s being hosted by SPJ and about 20 people showed up.
Facebook owns your information and can sell it to anyone, LaMay said, according to its terms of service. (It loses the license when you remove [...]

New media is moving fast. Just six weeks after I first posted about how social media is becoming paid and professionalized, The New York Times reports that the United Talent Agency is recruiting online video stars. After the recording industry killed Napster, I’m really happy to see that businesses seem to be much more accepting [...]

 Photo by jkeller on Flickr
There are somber images on Flickr from the plane crash that just happened in New York City. They’re more immediate and powerful than those even in The New York Times, simply because Flickr users were there at the time and the professional press got there somewhat later.
Interestingly, in the comments [...]

It’s somewhat speculative right now, but the Wall Street Journal reports Google is interested in buying YouTube.
Whether or not it actually happens, you can see the trends in online media:
Social media matters. Google already has its own prominent video service, but YouTube succeeds because it just feels so much more of a social site, and [...]

Facebook is letting people out opt of the News Feed.

Wall Street Journal: “New Facebook Features Have Members in an Uproar.” Here’s Reuters. Both seem to miss the irony, and relevance, of people protesting Facebook from within Facebook.

You know all those home surveillance videos of nannies and misbehaving teens? Yeah, about that…
Facebook now shows everything you do on the site to your networks: When you write on a wall, edit your profile, add photos, add friends, join groups, change your status, write a note, and accept or decline an event invitation.
The [...]

MySpace will sell music from its 3 million independent bands.

I’m shocked and appalled delighted: Political candidates now have profiles on Facebook, and you can easily add candidates and issues you support to your own profile. Nice.
You can see who’s running, get a quick bio, and message them.
Candidates will now be forced to answer tough questions, such as why they listen to and enjoy Green [...]

The controllers of the college universe have emerged. Don’t have that much to say though.