Janet Giampietro :: Gblog

Today, 18 january 2012, is a day that we’ll live in ignorance. Many Internet sites have begun 24- and 12-hour blackouts in protest of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) in the House and the Protect Intellectual Property Act (PIPA) in the Senate.

Internet companies (including Google, Wikipedia, Firefox, Wordpress, Reddit and Creative Commons, among others) are concerned that SOPA and PIPA, if passed, could be used to target legitimate sites where users share content.

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Upbeat beats a downer any day. There’s a great social media lesson there on persuasion and engagement.

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Whether you considered Marshall McLuhan a visionary, a hoax or a contrarian, it’s undeniable that he upturned the academic world he inhabited and foresaw the foundation for the way we live and communicate today.

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Earlier in the year, political unrest in North Africa led the way for the Arab Spring. Now it’s Italy’s turn.

What unites people more than a place to chat freely – and a common enemy?

Fed up with Silvio Berlusconi’s corrupt and ineffective government, thousands of Italian voices were heard via the “4 Sí” campaigns on Twitter, and in Facebook groups such as Questo pomodoro avrà più fans di Silvio Berlusconi (This tomato has more fans than Silvio Berlusconi) and Un’Italia senza Berlusconi (Italy without Berlusconi).

While Berlusconi owns about 70% of the country’s media, social media is still firmly under public control. (more…)

Iceland has taken one monumental step in revitalizing its economy: Amending its constitution via Facebook.

The constitutional council’s weekly meetings are broadcast live there and with two-thirds of tech-savvy Icelanders on Facebook, it seemed the most logical place to go to get attention and feedback.

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