Slayterbox1748

In response to a “serious security flaw” that led to the hacking of several e-mail accounts, the French government has issued a nationwide recommendation to stop using Internet Explorer, and switch to either Firefox or Google Chrome for a more secure web browsing experience.

Microsoft has issued a response, stating that the Germans — the country responsible for the initial recommendation to stop using their popular web browser — had “over-reacted about the threat posed by the vulnerability, and that general users were not at risk.”

However, while the French and German responses certainly don’t fare well for Microsoft’s increasingly dwindling share of the web browsing market, Graham Cluley, a senior security advisor at Sophos, says: “Every browser has its security issues, so switching may remove this current risk but could expose you to another.”

For more information on this topic, check out Telegraph.

Upon tweeting this message to his 1.4 million followers, Wyclef Jean  ignited the largest text-based fundraising effort in history just hours after news of Haitian devastation  hit the US:

“Please text ‘Yéle’ to 501501 to donate $5 to Yéle Haiti. Your money will help with relief efforts. They need our help.”

But Yéle Haiti and American Red Cross are just two of the thousands who are harnessing the power of social networking to lend aid to the victims rocked by the magnitude 7.0 earthquake that hit Haiti just days ago.

For more on how social networking websites and applications have been essential in raising awareness, and information on how you can get in on the action, check out Anita Hamilton’s article in Time Magazine.

Opinions on Google are decidedly split. While one party hails the engine as the end-all-be-all in search superiority and advertising awesomeness, the other deems it the algorithmic Antichrist — an inherent invader of privacy, and the exploiter of unknown millions.

Regardless, Google has undoubtedly changed the world. And in their latest debacle with the Chinese, the bandwidth behemoth is making a convincing argument that they’ve brought us together for better, and not for worse.

When Google decided to enter the Chinese market a few years ago, they complied with controversial censorship rules and moved into murky waters. While Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin are respected for letting their creation simply “do its thing,” the decision to allow mass censorship suddenly brought their pious, arms-length stance into question. Suddenly, Google’s omniscience became overtly political, entering an ethical gray area.

Now, with a 15-20% share in the Chinese search market, perhaps the largest emerging market in the world, Google has made what could be one of the digital era’s most profound moves — by challenging China’s strict censorship policies and threatening to leave the country entirely.

So while the entire world stood more or less powerless in the face of Chinese censorship, Google comes along and challenges the world’s biggest nation. And with Secretary of State Hilary Clinton weighing in on the issue, could Google’s ultimatum be bringing us one step closer digital warfare?

AdAges’s Henry Blodget reminds us that Google isn’t playing a game of Socio-Political Chinese Checkers — it’s just good business:

Google has played the overall China situation maturely and brilliantly. It has not been evil. It has balanced the interests of its shareholders, employees, and, importantly, Chinese people. It has also done the most it can to address an appalling and ridiculous injustice in the world’s most populous country.

For more on this story, check out AdAge.

We recycle, we monitor our shower time, we carry our own reusable bags to the supermarket. Homes and swanky hotels are becoming more environmentally conscious. Energy-wasting electricity is being swiftly replaced in favor of solar power. The hot topic around the world is a lovely shade of green.  In another effort to encourage green-ward thinking, Giftzip.com has surfaced for your shopping convenience. Inspired by creator Sam Hogg, the start-up site out of East Lansing, Michigan, is urging shoppers to can plastic gift cards by promoting greener gift-giving, and they have just the solution: e-gift cards. The site is sponsored by most major retailers that offer gift cards to their shoppers, everything from Disney to Neiman Marcus. Don’t know what you’re looking for? Narrow your search down by category: Him, Her, House, Apparel, Gourmet, Family, and Unique. From there, you have the option of browsing all the retailers advertised, and, upon clicking, Giftzip will redirect you straight to the retailer’s official website.  Handy, or just another testament to our society’s increasingly lazy attitude? With GPS, Widgets, iPhones and quick links at our disposal, could Giftzip be just another shortcut, an excuse for time-saving that hides behind the power of Green? It’s possible. With Giftzip, there exists more opportunities for retailers to advertise, and the site will generate a decline in the purchase of plastic gift cards. Slowly but surely, Giftzip will contribute Mother Nature’s cause. 

…They do…and they will. The web’s newest guilty pleasure, TextsFromLastNight.com, is making its sweeping rounds across the nation, and for once, we can all feel a little better about the crude, rude, or simply incomprehensible texts we sent last night.  The site, created by partners Ben Bator and Lauren Leto, is a user-generated forum for anonymous posters to advertise their unapologetically blush-worthy and decidedly hilarious text messages that they either sent (after the tequila shot that sealed their doom) or received. The appeal of harmlessly voyeuristic TFLN? It’s become a pseudo-support group for all the victims of SMS-faux pas. The majority of TFLN’s subject matter is…well…sex and drinking. Not often a good combination, but the crafty messages it spawns are the site’s recipe for survival, and even what makes it thrive.One would think the site’s content would prove way too risky for potential advertisers (unless your name is Jack Daniels, José Cuervo or Trojan Horse), but the site boasted fresh American Apparel banners starting at the beginning of this week. Of course, the clothing store isn’t exactly known for its conformist marketing, but it will be interesting to see the stampede as TFLN grows more popular by the day. It begs the question: Are advertisers ready to steer away from their stoic relationship with content, especially during this economic catastrophe? TFLN will provide an insightful platform for comparison. If you have a cellular device, chances are you probably sent a text you wish you could hide from (at least once in your life), whether or not it was the result of a night of alcohol-induced debauchery. We can all relate. So forget your humiliation: Search your outbox, find a gem, and share it with the world. It’s likely someone else did (or said) something similar - or just a lot more mortifying.  

Just a quick note…. I stumbled (using stumbleupon.com) on this website creativeadvertisingworld.com which is a blog that basically is what the website says. It has all sorts of interesting articles linked to funny, creative, and unique stories of advertising or advertisements in general. Its worth a look.

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While Billy Mays has hocked countless Mighty Mendits, Big City Slider Stations, Handy Switches, Steam Buddies, Simoniz Fix Its!, and several other semi-useful products in the past few years, is it any wonder DC Snowboards and ESPN360.com have recruited the almighty infomercial man to be there spokesman?

Do you find yourself craving an interactive web adventure? Thanks to the folks @ ZenSoft, you can go on a magical quest as our new Commander-In-Chief in Super Obama World.

Thanks to G4TV for the scoop, and remember to watch out for lip-sticked Pigs and evil Lobbyists!

This is a pretty interesting video that was forwarded to me about the incredible technological changes constantly occurring in our modern world. It was created for a conference and was posted on Flixxy. It is strange to think what our world was like before technology began to dominate, and what it may be like in the future.

I was browsing through Valleywag.com today and found an interesting article about Leon Craig Ramsden, age 19, who stabbed and killed Paul Gilligan, age 31, at the Pepper Alley bar six months ago.

Oddly enough, just hours before the murder, Ramsden decided to upload the picture on the left and update his Facebook status, saying: “I’m twisted at home. My head’s up my —–. I feel like killin some1 need to stay off the hard stuff ha —– it it’s Saturday ha.”

Sentenced to at least 17 years for the crime, Facebook’s role in the case is interesting…can we use the revolutionary social networking tool to help prevent crime, like in the film, Minority Report?

The newest addition to the YouTube community comes all the way from Vatican City. Yup. Pope Benedict XVI now has his own YouTube channel.

But, while his decision to join the likes of Barack Obama, Queen Elizabeth II and other dignitaries online validates the importance (and perhaps the necessity of the Internet), Pope Benedict warned of the risks of “obsessive” online networking, which “could isolate people from real social interaction and broaden the digital divide by further marginalizing people.”

Check out the Pope’s papal page on YouTube, or click the pic. for the article.

So today was one of the biggest days in American history. President Obama became the first African American to hold office in the White House. The inauguration was incredible and it was great to see that our country has come together so much in the last few months since the election. I posted a video last November where it had celebrities telling people to not vote unless they actually cared about the country. Well I have seen a ton of celebrity videos popping up on Youtube and other places online that are all revolve around politics, from the goofy SNL political videos to the music videos in support of Obama. Well today I found a video asking Americans to send in their congrats to Obama. It was sponsored by Pepsi and it looks pretty cool. Here is the video:

Burger King is running a new campaign with the USA’s two best friends, Facebook and hamburgers. Upon installing the new application online, users are prompted to remove 10 of their friends in exchange for a free Whopper. Designed by ad agency Crispin Porter + Bogusky, nearly 60 000 people have been “de-friended” and received notifications that their “friends” prefer an old-fashioned American burger, free of charge, over them.

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Visit http://www.whoppersacrifice.com/ for more information.

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The Twitter accounts of Bill O’Reilly, Britney Spears, Barack Obama and and CNN’s Rich Sanchez were hacked Monday. The counterfeit tweets are pretty funny. Click here for the full story.

Here at Slayterbox1748.com, we like to see what other blogs are reporting on in the marketing and media industry. The newest blog to hit the internet involving the advertising and branding industry is brandfreak.com. Here is their statement of intent:

“BrandFreak is an irreverent look at the the world of marketing with an eye for the interesting, the absurd and the appalling. Updated daily.”

This new website comes from the writers of Brandweek. It is updated daily and sure to bring up some interesting ways to market and advertise. 

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The slow march towards blognificence moves a step in the right direction. Check out our Technorati Profile

“Ad Agencies Fashion Their Own Horn, and Then Toot It” - C. Cain Miller / 30 Dec. 2008 / NYTimes

Throughout the industry, creating and marketing their own brands  has become a new trend among ad agencies. Among the myriad of agencies who’ve taken a beating this year, Bartle Bogle Hegarty and many others are coming up with creative ways to bring in revenue.

Ben Jenkins, the strategic director of Zag - a subdivision of Bartle Bogle created to make its own brands - says: “Advertising is a massively old model based on the 1950s. As media has proliferated, it’s become a lot harder for us to earn enough money off our ideas.”

Mrs-O.org, a website dedicated to the stylings of Michelle Obama, is an example of this new trend. Inspired by the First Lady-elect’s wardrobe at the 2008 Democratic National Convention, the blog has become very succesful, getting 120,000 page views in November and earning revenue from Google’s AdSense.

While giving credit to the dude at AdScam for this plug, other agencies like Brooklyn Brothers created its own line of furniture as well as Fat Pig chocolates.

“No More Warner Music on YouTube” - Techtree.com / 22 Dec. 2008

Warner Music demanded that thousands of its music videos be removed from YouTube. Unable to reach fair liscencing agreements for its artists, songwriters and publishers, Warner Music Group artists like Madonna and Metallica account for more than 1 billion YouTube views. Since the conception of digital music, the licensing dispute has become the predominant dispute between the two worlds. Click image for more information.