Mediaboss Marketing

Published: Thursday, June 28, 2012, 12:01 a.m.

Overall, the teens who participated in the study painted a positive picture of the influence of social media on their relationships and self-image. More than half of these "digital natives" -- the first generation to have grown up with Facebook -- said these technologies have helped them keep in touch with friends, get to know other students at their school better or connect with those who share a common interest. One in 5 said that using social-networking sites makes them feel more confident, popular and sympathetic to others.

The national study of more than 1,000 young people between the ages of 13 and 17 by the child advocacy group Common Sense Media generally debunks the popular perception that using social-media sites is inherently harmful because of the dangers of isolation, bullying from peers, the release of private or personal information, or online predators.

However, the report did contain hints of what it called "Facebook fatigue," with a significant number saying they are "addicted" to devices (41 percent for cellphones), would like to unplug sometimes (43 percent), or go back to a time before Facebook was invented (36 percent).

"Many teens express an almost adult-like weariness with the pressures of the constant texting and posting involved in their modern lives," the report stated.

The mixed feelings that teens have about digital communication shed new light on a population growing up immersed in online technology. Research is scant on the behavioral and developmental effects of technology on youths.

Text messaging is still the favored application of teens for communicating. Two-thirds of respondents said they text every day, and half said they visit social-networking sites daily. One-quarter of teens use at least two different types of social media a day.

Facebook, which is considering lowering the minimum age of its users, is the favored service among teens, with seven out of 10 people surveyed saying they have an account, compared with 6 percent for Twitter and 1 percent for Google+ and Myspace.

Half of teens said they feel social networks have helped their friendships, while only 4 percent said the platforms have hurt relationships.

Three out of 10 teens said social networks made them feel more outgoing, compared with 5 percent who said they felt more introverted.

Read more here:
Teens say social media a positive in their lives

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/978r62/u_s_consumers_and) has announced the addition of the "U.S. Consumers and Social Media: Revisiting Banking's Social Influence" report to their offering.

Social networking is developing faster than any other communication medium before it. What was once primarily a medium for students to share personal information has become much more. People of all ages are creating social accounts for countless uses and are also using social networks to interact directly with businesses.

The commercial aspects of social networks are becoming ingrained into society. Television advertisements direct viewers to the advertiser's Facebook page, rather than a website. Billboards promote Twitter handles more prominently than telephone numbers. Social networks provide an interactive connection with consumers with which few other media can compete. Businesses have learned this lesson and are taking advantage of the new medium.

Mercator Advisory Group's new report, U.S. Consumers and Social Media: Revisiting Banking's Social Influence, based on a CustomerMonitor survey, reflects on the status of social networking in the United States as well as the progress financial institutions have made during the last year in utilizing social media to their advantage.

Highlights:

- Statistics on the percentage of people using specific social networks, the demographics most attracted to which networks, and a profile of the average social networker

- Investigation into the percentage of financial institution customers who are aware of whether or not their primary financial institution is present on various forms of social media, and whether those who are aware have interacted with their FI via social networking

- Breakdown of the reasons that convinced consumers who interact with their FI on social media do so, with a particular focus on the value of use of social networks for customer service

Companies Mentioned:

See the rest here:
Research and Markets: U.S. Consumers and Social Media: Revisiting Banking's Social Influence

26-06-2012 14:00 Zynga is expected to unveil a lineup of games to be released over the next several months when it holds its "Unleashed" event Tuesday. Shayni Raice reports live from the Zynga event.

Original post:
Zynga to Announce New Games, Playground - Video

Chesterfield County Public Schools now has a policy that establishes guidelines for the use of social networking sites by school division employees.

The School Board voted 3-0 Tuesday night to approve the new policy one of 17 new or revised policies adopted at the meeting making Chesterfield the first of central Virginia's four largest school divisions to have a specific social networking policy.

Board Chairwoman Patricia M. Carpenter and Vice Chairman David S. Wyman were absent.

School Board Attorney Kimberly Smith said during an afternoon work session that the division has worked on the policy for months because "social networking is an issue of great concern across the country."

Richmond Public Schools is also devising a policy to address the use of social networking, while the school systems in Henrico and Hanover counties incorporate the topic into already-established policies.

Chesterfield's new policy is a guide for how employees should establish social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter for educational purposes as well as how employees should use their personal social networking sites.

Smith said there was great discussion as the policy was being crafted about balancing free speech and freedom of expression while protecting students at the same time.

According to the policy, if a site is started for educational purposes then it must contain a clear statement of purpose and outcomes as well as a code of conduct for all site participants.

Also, the employee is responsible for applying appropriate security settings, allowing only approved participants access and to "diligently monitor" the site for inappropriate content.

The policy also states that the school system "does not recommend that any employee establish an online social networking relationship with a currently enrolled (student) on his or her personal social networking site(s)."

Go here to read the rest:
Chesterfield schools adopt social networking policy

26-06-2012 13:54 Microsoft has agreed to acquire enterprise social-networking company Yammer for $1.2 billion in a deal that will expand the software giant's cloud services portfolio, Shira Ovide reports on digits.

See the original post:
Microsoft Scoops Up Yammer - Video