MY URBAN KVETCH

President's Conference Update/Rumor Mill-Updated

So, here's what I heard...

There was supposed to be this "crowned heads of internet" type panel at the President's Conference, featuring Sergey Brin from Google, Sue Decker from Yahoo and Mark Zuckerberg (not Zuckerman, as many of the press releases indicated) from Facebook. Note my use of the term "supposed to be." Rumor has it that Zuckerberg has canceled and will not appear. Speculation is that he's a little uncomfortable with my "Weekly Zuckerberg" category. Or perhaps this is a reflection of the recent migration of several of Google's top people to Facebook? Or more likely, that he's really just too busy. Although I don't see why Sergey can't just pick him up in his private jet on the way east. (UPDATED MAY 7: This release lists Brin and Decker, but not Zuckerberg, so I guess it's official.)

So to recap: Zuckerberg out. But Voight in. Angelina's dad, actor Jon Voight,  is coming to Israel to attend the conference and to pay a solidarity visit to the city of Sderot, as well as welcome Chabad’s Children of Chernobyl’s (CCOC) 80th rescue mission airlifting children from irradiated regions in Ukraine, Belarus and Western Russia.

Seinfeld fans remember the episode about Jon Voight's car...here's Voight on the episode:

Engaged for a Day: The April Fool's Facebook Experiment

Did you ever wonder how much technology was taking over your life, and if your online persona was capable of doing things that your offline persona would never do? The one-step-removed aspect of online interaction is one that I find endlessly fascinating, as is the culture of Facebook, which allows people to follow my moves with as much information as I give them (and as much time/inclination as they have to do so).

I've mused before about the numbers of "friends" we all have on Facebook. The likelihood that most of them are actually friends of the sort you'd invite to your birthday dinner or to seder with the family is very low. I mean, people have hundreds of them. I tried to keep my list down, but it was fruitless. Even the restriction of "only accept friend requests from people you know in real life" doesn't help: I meet 120 people each summer. I went on tour with Coolooloosh and Subliminal/the TACT Family. I go to conferences with hundreds or thousands of people in attendance. I live on the Upper West Side. I think I just met five new "friends" while writing this post drinking my coffee in my apartment. Keeping my magic number down is not an option. And I realize that's a blessing.

But the question remains. How much do those people really know me? And how finely tuned in to my status update are they? If I suddenly became the opposite of my public persona, on April 1, no less, would people realize it was a joke, or assume that because they read it online it must be true? Or would people think it was a technical error? Or am I just suffering from blazing egomania in even thinking that people stay tuned to as silly a mechanism as the status feed?

Facebook Fools' Day Experiment: Change "Relationship Status" from "Single" to "Engaged"

Duration: 18 hours: 12:30am-6:30pm April 1

Findings: 35 respondents=15 email messages, 20 wall posts in a 18-hour period. About 70% of responses understood that the status change was a joke. About 25% of responses wished me mazal tov and wanted to know who the lucky guy was or why they were first hearing about this now. And 5% were threatened marriage proposals. From guys who are already in relationships. (Just to give you an idea of what's out there.) Most of my regular posse of New Yorkers knew better than to even respond. Or maybe they're too busy.

Analysis/Conclusions: I was expecting a few people to fall for it, and for most to understand that it was a joke because it was April 1. That my expectations were met proves that people (even my non dinner party friends) actually know me a bit better than perhaps I might have thought. I did think that someone might think it was a technical glitch, like when the JDate site redesign reset all women's profiles to read "I do not plan on having any children."

It did teach me that with over a thousand friends, I can't stay in close contact with all of them, and as a consequence, so much of the public perception of me is based on the information I share online. That's a power I need to continue to wield responsibly and accurately.

Still, some people need to get out more.

I have to admit that being engaged for a day was pretty fun--I'd like to do it for real someday, maybe with someone else to share the joy with.

Other resources: today's Urban Dictionary definition.

Any great April Fool's jokes to share? If you fell for it, admit it here and feel all better. (UPDATED: Here's one I fell for. Those darned Googlers are so funny...)

Zuckerberg=Paris Hilton? To Blame for SXSW Interview?

Although most people are blaming journalist Sarah Lacy for the interview with Zuckerberg at SXSWi this week, ZDNet's Steve O'Hear says he blames Mr. Facebook himself--as well as the instant commentary of Twitter--for how wrong it went:

[...] Lacy might have done a better job. But Zuckerberg’s relentless attempts to stay on message and lack of charisma (on stage at least) is ultimately what killed it for me. However, I think another factor in the keynote’s downfall was the use of Twitter as a so-called ‘back channel’. With keynote attendees able to share live commentary instantly, a negative response can spread like wildfire in a profound way that is very different to what’s possible without such connectivity.

Chantelle Oliver at The Walrus (Canada's Magazine of the Year) reads into the event as an anti-feminist "Punk'd"-style stunt, comparing Zuckerberg to Paris Hilton, who recently punk'd the paparazzi with help from Ashton Kutcher:

[Lacy] had been punk’d by the newest would-be reality show: Cewebrity Priapus. Zuckerberg played the part of Paris Hilton and the audience was his shaman. Like Ashton poking fun at the paparazzi, Cewebrity’s producers are poking fun at the idea a woman journalist ought dare to question a cewebrity. Spurred into action by the recent reports of the feminization of the Internet the show actively defends the genitalia of founding fathers of social networking and their lemming sons.

Lacy is one of the only women reporting on tech, and seems pretty nonplussed in the afterwards of it all, talking about how it went.

Keynote Address Gone Mad: Zuckerberg at SXSW

On any given day there are any given number of reasons that it's good to be Mark Zuckerberg. The Facebook king has enough cabbage to not worry about rent for a while, employees who like their jobs, a company that is only increasing in use despite any glitches or unwise decisions (hello, Beacon?), and a cool sister profiled in the pages of PresenTense Magazine. Plus, Zuckerberg had the plum keynote slot of the year (yes, even surpassing my role at the GA) at SXSW.

But at today's keynote, something went horribly wrong, at least as far as SXSW was concerned. Apparently, the packed room "turned" on the interviewee, but especially on his interviewtrix, journalistrix (I just like the suffix and will begin using it regularly) Sarah Lacy, turning a tame interview into a raucous group of rabble-rousers. (Report is from Wired.)

"Talk about something interesting," one attendee yelled about half way through the keynote. The remark was met with waves of cheering and applause. Meanwhile, members of the audience participated in a backchannel discussion on Twitter, with users of the microblogging site directing most of their animosity at Lacy's unorthodox interview technique. "Never, ever have I seen such a train wreck of an interview," said Jason Pontin on Twitter. "Poor girl, flirtatiously awful tho' she was."

Crunchgear live-blogged the whole thing, also noting the interviewer's flirtatious behavior, and objecting minute-by-chronicled-minute. In this series, Z=Zuckerberg and "chick"=Lacy:

2:10. Facebook and terrorism. Lots of users in Lebanon. Z just said that terrorism is caused by lack of communication and empathy. So… Facebook will also end terrorism. Aren’t journalists supposed to question things and not take them at face value? I don’t know, I’m crazy.

2:53. Holy shit! OK, this is the highlight. Chick asks some rambling nonsense question. Z gives her the wtf are you talking about look. She says, another leslie stahl moment. Then Z says, you have to ask questions. Crowd goes wild like the rock just walked in. Dudes stand up, applaud Z’s calling her out on being a dunce.

Mediabistro chimes in by somehow snagging a few minutes with the Facebook founder and asking for his response, which he provides, and then challenging him to accept their invitation to Mediabistro Circus, another seemingly awesome tech/media conference that few freelancer/bloggers will be able to afford.

And so concludes the Weekly Zuckerberg. Unless any of you have first-person reactions from the floor at SXSW?

Facebook Stalking, Set to Music

Enrique Iglesias's music, to be specific..."I can be your Facebook stalker..."

Hat tip: Frum Satire

This Week, in Zuckerberg

Every year, as I become more and more geeky, my wish to go to South By Southwest (or as it's called, SXSW) increases. This annual tripartite nerdfest (resting on the pillars of music, film and interactive) now features a keynote address by Marc Zuckerberg. As well it should..,

This article by a Georgetown alumnus (who wrote his senior thesis about using Facebook  to analyze cross-cultural Web sites) assesses Facebook's impact on the average college student and reveals an interesting theory about the social value of the website: "At the time, I didn’t think much of the “stalking” side of Facebook, but years later, it would become clear to me: Sex leads to money, and money leads to fame, and fame leads to Mark Zuckerberg." Interesting theory. And then, as a bonus, we get an interesting Zuckerberg factoid; according to the author, when Zuckerberg first arrived in Palo Alto, Calif., years ago to "harvest Facebook," he carried a business card that read, “I’m C.E.O. … bitch.” I did not know that.

A shoutout to Mark Zuckerberg: Dude, as you read this, I'm winging my way to Seattle and bringing some Israeli hip-hop to the west coast. If you want, I'll comp you, especially since we are relying on Facebook to spread much of the information about the tour. But you have to tell me. Email me and we'll talk--we've got shows in SF and Berkeley to choose from, and of course, you're welcome in Vegas for the closing night or any point in between! Hope to see you (and everyone else) there.

The Fate of Scrabulous Hangs in the Balance

Scrabulous isn't your parents' Scrabble. For one thing, it exists only in Facebook. And secondly, each turn can take seconds or days. But now this beloved application -- it has about 600,000 daily users -- is in danger from big business, as Hasbro and Mattel move to shut down the application.

Mashable reports:

As several others have noted, Mattel and Hasbro ought to just buy the application and enjoy having more engaged consumers. Combined, the two companies (who split the Scrabble trademark) have a market value of nearly $10 billion – they could probably acquire Scrabulous for less than they’re about to spend in legal fees to protect their trademark.

In any event, users are flocking to a Facebook group called “Save Scrabulous” to protest a shutdown. 

Power to the people. Especially if "P O W E R" falls on a red square.

The Weekly Zuckerberg: "60 Minutes," "Welcome to F8"

2008 is here, and we're still talking about Facebook. And therefore, the Weekly Zuckerberg continues.

A friend recently noted that, because of my introduction of Facebook to the older set among Jewish nonprofit professionals (most notably at the GA), I've "ruined it" for younger Jewish professionals, who now have to worry about their bosses friending them and having access to photos from their New Year's Eve of debauchery. Still, it could be worse. A friend of mine recently received a friend request from her mother, and instantly changed her status to read, "my mother is not my friend." I have two words for you on that: "Limited Profile."

At ValleyPop, one writer claims that "you and Mark Zuckerberg are the only two people not on Facebook,"  saying that everyone else is leaving "for the same reason we left MySpace: It's all just ads, friend requests from people we don't know (and people we kind of know but wanted to continue not acknowledging at parties), and something about zombies." I don't think this is quite accurate. I know almost a thousand people who are still left on and are actively using Facebook, so I might disagree a little bit.

This weekend, "60 Minutes" profiles Mark; in an interview with Lesley Stahl, he talks about Facebook, the Beacon brouhaha and, in what Wired considers the interview's big scoop (SPOILER!!) quashing IPO rumors. So if you were planning on contributing to Zuckerberg's millions by buying into Facebook, you're out of luck. And no, even if there were an IPO, they wouldn't take Acebucks.

Nice to see that even Mark Zuckerberg is also a little nervous talking to groups...if you weren't one of the 800 developers he spoke to in this video (and just to clarify, I sure wasn't), you might want to check it out for yourself.

Tune in next week, for the exciting adventures of Mark Zuckerberg, captain of the USS American Dream.

The Weekly Zuckerberg: Newspapers and Top Ten Lists

Over at BuzzMachine, the ever-interesting and thought-provoking Jeff Jarvis wonders if newspapers and Facebook are in competition with each other. And it all depends on what the role of newspapers really is, in terms of both bringing news and organizing community...

Not shockingly, Zuckerberg ranked at #2 on a list of eight "top of mind innovators to watch in 2008" at iDunzo.com, where the author noted that it wasn't Facebook itself, but "Facebook thinking" that would be important in the coming year, and that " IT will feel growing pressure to provide social networking functions–to customers, along the supply chain, and inside their workplaces."

Zuckerberg, again, a huge shocker, placed on the Web Celeb 25 list over at Forbes...others on the list include the aforeblogged Jeff Jarvis, the rarely-blogged-here Perez Hilton, and ProBlogger's Darren Rowse, whom I now follow on Twitter, along with several other "weblebrities," as I'm now calling them. I follow them, but only know them and several of the others one-step-removed, through blogmama extraordinaire, Deborah Schultz.

But my favorite Facebook-related post is this one, which lists the top ten Facebook Stories of 2007. Among them are, of course, launch of the "Platform," which enabled third-party developers to create their own apps to run on Facebook; the growth of NewsFeed; and Microsoft's $240B investment in Facebook. Not a typo.

This leads me to wonder what the top ten MyUrbanKvetch Stories of 2007 are. Got any favorites? I'll do a list next week.

Zuckerberg Does Teshuvah Over Beacon

For some people, this post is going to sound like the grownups in a Charlie Brown cartoon. ("Mwah wah wah wah waaaah...") But really, tech trends are important for us all. So listen up. Or skip it. Totally up to you.

For the uninitiated, Mark Zuckerberg is the founder of Facebook, the newish social media platform that's taking everyone by storm, and allowing software developers by the hundreds to become part of the picture by creating their own applications. All the while, Zuckerberg and his team of (mostly male) developers were developing a Facebook feature called Beacon, which would (in Zuckerberg's words) "help people share information with their friends about things they do on the web." Basically, it would share information about users' activity on third-party partner sites and posts it to their friends' "News Feeds" (a function that provides an update about what your Facebook friends are doing on the site).

But even media moguls and their crack team of twentysomethings trying to rule the virtual world make mistakes. And when something goes wrong, they're man enough to admit it.

At first we tried to make it very lightweight so people wouldn't have to touch it for it to work. The problem with our initial approach of making it an opt-out system instead of opt-in was that if someone forgot to decline to share something, Beacon still went ahead and shared it with their friends. It took us too long after people started contacting us to change the product so that users had to explicitly approve what they wanted to share. Instead of acting quickly, we took too long to decide on the right solution. I'm not proud of the way we've handled this situation and I know we can do better.