Ypulse Essentials: Teen Intern Sparks 'Sensation' With Media Report, Zombies Are The New Vampires, Surf Industry Weathers The Storm
Posted by meredith on 07-13-2009
Everything Wall Street wanted to know about teen media habits (but was afraid to ask. 15-year-old Morgan Stanley intern Matthew Robson explains it all — from teens love of texting and Wii, to their lack of interest in newspapers and Twitter — in a report that's rapidly becoming a "sensation". Check out ReadWrite Web for a break down of the findings. Also IT Pro considers teens' Twitter defection. And Strange Attractor questions the methodology [literally just a teen and his friends] Plus Gawker snarkily says what we were thinking: "it's basically full of common sense") (Financial Times)
- A decade of 'Spongebob' (and the show's unique brand of absurd, wholesome humor is profiled in the New York Times. Also Ad Age, reg. required, takes a look back at how Squarepants and company grew into an $8 billion franchise. Plus PBS turns up the voltage on the new "Electric Company" expanding the weekly series to a daily slot on weekdays) (Variety)
- Image consultants for teen girls (are apparently thriving, in spite of the recession. Why? Peer pressure and makeover shows, according to this Washington Post piece. Not sure if that makes an expensive stylist the answer. Meanwhile Australian teens turn away from consumerism, in favor of more traditional values)
- Are zombies the new Vampires? (Yes, according to Publisher's Weekly. And here I thought it was supposed to be werewolves. Also how the Harry Potter franchise will live on with video games and a theme park. And "Hills" star turned YA author Lauren Conrad makes the New York Times' Best Seller list causing some to prematurely ask if LC will be the next Stephenie Meyer) MTV News) (E! Online)
- ALA panel on teens and privacy (spells out the myths and realities of different teens' online habits and opens a discussion on where to go from here policy-wise. The recap is definitely worth a look. As is this preso from panelist and high school librarian Frances Jacobson Harris) (SLJ)
- More on Staples' 'Do Something 101′ (campaign on Facebook in the New York Times, reg. required)
- Surf industry stays afloat (on the passion of a young, dedicated following. Plus highlights from Michael Wood's preso at SIMA [Surf Industry Manufacturers Association] Boot Camp on how to connect with millennials) (Surf-Eat-Shop)
- Webosaurs (the most recent addition to the dinosaur-themed worlds. Also tween retailer Justice announces an exclusive partnership with My Secret Circle, the closed social network for tween girls, we mentioned last week) (Virtual World News)
- Texting teen falls into an open manhole (and her parents respond by suing. Oy. Also what teenagers' mobile mania means for the news industry) (GizModo) (Wired) (Christian Science Monitor)
- 'HSM2′ in Dubai (meets a warm reception. Plus a Canadian take on bridging the generation gap between older and younger co-workers) (Emirates Business Journal (Canada.com)
Categorized under: Ypulse Essentials
July 13th, 2009 at 2:41 pm
Regarding "Texting teen falls into an open manhole and her parents respond by suing."
At first, a lawsuit may seem ridiculous, because most people don't text while walking.
But if she had been paying attention to cars without looking down, then she also might have fell. And most people would probably say the lawsuit was valid in that case.
"…the Department of Environmental Protection said its workers had turned away briefly to grab some cones when the incident occurred."
One of the workers should have stood next to the manhole to make sure no one fell into it until the cones were in place.
July 14th, 2009 at 8:40 am
After reading the report by the young man, it is completely anecdotal with nothing firm behind it. If anything, it isn't commonsense, it's one boy's perception of his microcosm. It was well written from a grammatical perspective, but without support for any of his assertions. I was taught, in high school, that assertions without support yields bad writing and poor argumentation.
If you are going to make a statement of fact be prepared to back it up with something substantive. Frankly, I don't see why this is such a big deal.
July 14th, 2009 at 10:35 am
The big deal is all PR/executives who are otherwise incapable of listening to young people about their reality.
There's some basic truth to it, but there's also 1) some incidence of socialized revolutionary lies (aka, what young people have trained each other to say in order to influence businesses to give them more for free – which is different from when they're being truthful about what they won't pay for). And 2) A lack of understanding of how an individual teenager grows and changes. It's written in presentism, which is how most teens think – that what they feel at this moment is what they'll always feel.
July 14th, 2009 at 1:50 pm
There's no truth to it at all. There could be something to it, but we don't know because all of the support for his assertion was anecdotal. The PR/Executives don't listen to kids for specifically that reason. Making decisions on anecdotal evidence is foolish.
I do agree with you on point one, but regardless of how it is written it has no basis in fact other than a singular teen's perception of his small microcosm. The tough thing is that he could be right, but we don't know because there is nothing tangible to support him.
While I can appreciate how a teen thinks, I've been there obviously, I also remember learning that to communicate with adults I couldn't expect them to accept my thoughts without support. I'm dismayed that this would have been published in the first place with the lack of evidence. That's the saddest part of the situation.
July 21st, 2009 at 8:53 am
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