Preparing For UGA Technology For The Turnaround Event

I am very excited about participating in the upcoming University of Georgia, New Media Institute, Technology For The Turnaround: A Crisis is a Terrible Thing to Waste event on April 25, 2009 in Athens, Georgia. The event is being led by Professor Scott Shamp (@sshamp) Director of the New Media Institute (NMI blog). The core discussion is around what will come out of the massive economic, technology and cultural changes we are currently going through? How will new media, social media, social web (see "Why Social Media Sucks" by Forrester Research Vice President and Principal Analyst Josh Bernoff (@jbernoff), or what I have been calling the social media ecosystem, impact and be impacted by the amazing amount of turmoil we are now experiencing in our society? We will also discuss the challenges this paradigm shift is bringing about in education.

With the theme of the event in mind, I have created the below list of blogs, blog posts, articles and videos I believe are foundational to the discussion. Of key importance to being included on this list is that the material be free, available and, of course, relevant and insightful.

• The Corporate Weblog Manifesto by Robert Scoble (@Scobleizer) February 26, 2003 is a seminal blog post on what it means to blog for your brand or company. This is the foundational document all bloggers should read before beginning their blog.

• 8 Principals for the Modern Blog ...At Least for 2009 by Jeremiah Owyang (@jowyang), the Web Strategist blogger and Forrester Research Principal Analyst for Social Media, Social Computing and Social Web Marketing. This article is an excellent update to the Corporate Weblog Manifesto. The blog is also a wonderful resource for all things social media/computing/web and social media marketing.

• Ask Jeremiah: The Comprehensive FAQ Guide to Twitter by Jeremiah Owyang is another great resource for those first timer Twitter users (or even a good refresher for long-time Twitter (Wikipedia Definition) users) to read before entering the very open and constantly shifting culture of Twitter.

• A Chronology of Brands that got Punk'd by Social Media by Jeremiah Owyang is a list of corporate brands that have been negatively impacted by social media. These brands either did it to themselves or something happened in the social media ecosystem to them. The list is a cautionary tale and a must read for those wanting to use social media marketing to benefit their brands, products and services.

• The Groundswell Blog by Josh Bernoff, Forrester Research Vice President and Prinicpal Analyst co-wrote the Groundswell: Winning In A World Transformed By Social Technologies book with Charlene Li (@charleneli), Altimeter Group and former Forrester Research Vice President and Principal Analyst. Josh and Charlene developed the POST methodology for marketing and communicating in a social web world. POST stands for People, Objectives, Strategy and Technology. It is a systematic process and approach that guides you through a straight forward and thoughtful process for reaching your target customers with social media marketing.

• The Pew Internet and American Life Project (@Pew_Internet) is another excellent resource for community, cultural and technology adoption research. Here are some recent reports that marketers and communications professionals should be reading: The Mobile Difference, Twitter and Status Updating, Generations Online in 2009, and Adults and Social Network Websites.

• Professor Michael Wesch (@mwesch), Cultural Anthropologist at Kansas State University runs the Digital Ethnography program that is proving to be an innovator and leader in university education on new media and its impact on cultures and society. These articles and videos are outstanding: From Knowledgeable to Knowledge-Able: Learning in New Media Environments, A Vision of Students Today (& What Teachers Must Do), An Anthropological Introduction to YouTube, A Portal To Media Literacy, A Vision Of Students Today, and The Machine is Us/ing Us. BTW - Prof. Wesch was just named one of the University Professors of the Year, November 8, 2008.

• Here is a video from Prof. Wesch's World Simulation Class Project and Learning Environment:
  

• The University of Pennsylvania, Wharton Business School (@wharton), Knowledge@Wharton is another excellent resource that delivers relevant research and analysis on the digital ecosystem. Here are some recent articles: All That Twitters Isn't Gold: A Popular Web Application In Search of a Business Plan, Advertising Yourself: Building a Personal Brand Through Social Networks. Also, keep an eye on The Wharton Interactive Media Initiative.
  

• I also like the social web ecosystem perspective shown in The Conversation Prism created by Brian Solis (@briansolis) and Jesse Thomas (@jessethomas):

The Conversation Prism by Brian Solis and Jesse Thomas

• Finally a fun blog post that shows the scale and scope of the social digital ecosystem: 49 Amazing Social Media, Web 2.0 and Internet Stats by Adam Singer (@AdamSinger) from his TheFutureBuzz blog.
  

I hope I am able to provide as much information, insights and perspective to this event as I expect to receive in return. I will blog and Tweet about it after attending.