Mediaboss Marketing

Social networking sites such as Facebook have been found to play a modest role in influencing most US users' political views. AFP pic

The poll by the Pew Research Centers Internet & American Life Project comes as Democratic President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney are using Facebook Inc pages and other social media as campaign tools ahead of the November election.

For most of those who use the sites, political material is just a small portion of what they post and what they read. And the impact of their use of the sites is modest, at best, Lee Rainie, director of the Pew project, said in a statement.

Thirty-six per cent of social networking site users say they are very important or somewhat important to them in keeping up with political news, the survey showed.

The sites are very important or somewhat important to 26 per cent of site users in recruiting people to get involved in political issues that matter to them.

A quarter of the site users say they are very important or somewhat important for discussing or debating political issues, the poll showed.

Twenty-five per cent of users say the sites are very important or somewhat important in finding other people who share their views about important political issues.

In each case, Democrats are more likely than Republicans or independents to say the sites are important.

A third of Democrats and liberals who use social networking sites say their activities on the sites have led them to become more active, compared with 24 per cent of site-using Republicans and independents.

The survey found that 84 per cent of site users say they have posted little or nothing related to politics in their recent status updates, comments and links.

Follow this link:
US social sites have modest political impact says poll

By Nick Bramhill

Tuesday, September 04, 2012

Irish holidaymakers who are experiencing flu-like symptoms after travelling to far-flung countries over the summer have been warned they could be carrying a killer virus.

Chiefs of the Tropical Medical Bureau said countries as diverse as Chile, the Ivory Coast, India, and Paraguay had all seen outbreaks of hantarivus in the past five months a rare lung disease for which there is no cure.

Symptoms for the virus, which is carried in rodent faeces, urine, and saliva, are similar to those in common flus and include headaches, fevers, shortness of breath, muscle aches, and coughs.

However, experts at the medical bureau warned that symptoms can appear six weeks after exposure, meaning holidaymakers might have returned home to Ireland and dismissed their condition as nothing more than the common flu.

The warnings come after it emerged that two people have died with thousands more are at risk from an outbreak of the deadly virus in Californias Yosemite National Park.

Dr Graham Fry, of the Tropical Medical Bureau, said: "I would urge anyone who has travelled to a country where there has been an outbreak of hantavirus over the past five months and who has experienced symptoms to seek medical advice immediately.

"The same goes for other rare diseases, such as rabies. If people are feeling unwell, having been over to a foreign country, they need to be aware that their ill health might be linked to their travel history."

Meanwhile, camp officials in Yosemite National Park are in the process of contacting the 10,000 mos-tly US citizens who they fear might be in danger of contracting hantavirus.

Read the original:
Sick holidaymakers ‘could have deadly virus’

Winning gold was a family affair for Belfast runner Michael McKillop when his mother presented him with his medal.

The emotional athlete, who runs for Ireland, had not been told of his mother Catherine's involvement prior to the ceremony for the T37 1,500m race. He had tears in his eyes as the medal was placed around his neck.

The pair embraced to loud cheers from the crowds at the Olympic Stadium, the outside of which was bathed in green light to honour the Irish athlete. Flowers were given to McKillop by Paralympics veteran Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson.

It is thought to be the first time a mother has presented her son with a medal at the Games and was organised by Paralympics partner P&G.

Liam Harbison, Paralympics Ireland chef de mission said: "This is a fantastic achievement for Michael. For him to race in front of his mum at this level for the first time is special but to receive his gold medal from his mum will be a memory he will treasure forever. As a supporter of Paralympics Ireland, we are delighted P&G were able to enable an Irish athlete to enjoy such a moment."

Nathan Homer, Olympics & Paralympics Project Director at P&G, said: "This is an extraordinary accomplishment, and on behalf of P&G, I am delighted for Michael, his mum Catherine and family. And to see Catherine hand over a gold medal to her son during such an historic occasion really is something very special that the family can treasure. Congratulations."

Speaking before the medal ceremony, McKillop said of his win: "It feels unbelievable, it feels fantastic to be able to do it in a crowd so big and cheering you on the whole way.

"Even though there was a British guy in my race I felt like they were cheering for me also.

"There was nobody going to beat me on the night, especially in front of the crowd with my friends and family there."

McKillop, who has cerebral palsy, won the 800m in Beijing but was denied the chance to do the double because the longer distance was not on the programme in 2008.

View post:
Mum's the word for gold medallist

In its announcement that it had decided to leave its cash rate unchanged at 3.5 per cent today the Reserve bank reached exactly the same conclusion as it did when it left rates on hold a month ago.

Interest rates are already "a little below their medium-term averages", it says, as it did on August 7. Inflation is not threatening to get out of control, Australia's economic growth is close to trend, and "with a more subdued international outlook than was the case a few months ago, the stance of monetary policy remained appropriate," it says, perfectly replicating its concluding statement four weeks ago.

Subtle changes in the latest communiqu suggest, however, that the the Reserve's bias towards another rate cut has become more pronounced.

It said on August 7 that current assessments were that global gross domestic product would grow "at no more than average pace in 2012." It says the same thing in today's announcement, but adds a new comment that "risks to the outlook (are) still on the downside."

Advertisement

It notes again that commodity prices have declined, but also refers tacitly to the more recent startling drop in the price of iron ore, Australia's most important export earner, saying "some commodity prices of importance to Australia have fallen sharply in recent weeks."

China, Europe weakness

Its commentary on China's growth is also more cautious. A month ago, it said that China's growth had "moderated to a more sustainable pace, but does not appear to be slowing further." Today it says "Growth in China remained reasonably robust in the first half of this year, albeit well below the exceptional pace seen in recent years. Some recent indicators have been weaker, which has added to uncertainty about near-term growth"

The central bank board repeats its view of a month ago that financial markets have reacted positively to signs of progress in addressing Europe's sovereign debt problems - a reference mainly to the plan that European Central Bank President Mario Draghi is working on, to forge an ECB-European Union alliance to buy European sovereign debt, in Spain, notably, driving borrowing costs down in the process.

Now however it also says that "expectations for further progress are high" - a reference to the fact that the markets have already rallied, and that Draghi must now deliver, beginning on Thursday night when the ECB meets to draw up its plan in detail, even as interests including Germany's Bundesbank lobby against ECB intervention.

Read more:
Subtle word shifts reveal RBA readiness to act

Summary: According to a new survey, the majority of young people - without a roof over their heads - remain connected through social networking.

According to a new survey, the majority of young people -- without a roof over their heads -- remain connected through social networking.

The Atlantic reported the results of a new study, published in the journal Computers in Human Behavior, which found that 75 percent of homeless participants in the study used social networks -- and the usage was comparable to college students.

The small but interesting research project, led by the University of Alabama's Rosanna Guadagno, interviewed 237 college kids and 65 homeless people. All subjects were roughly 19 years old. The team found that usage patterns for social networking in both groups were very similar.

90 percent of those attending college were on social networks, including Twitter and Facebook. Fewer homeless youth were found on social networking sites, but those that were reported the same time spent online -- at over an hour a day.

Guadagno argues that a 'digital divide' may be worth rethinking -- as living arrangements and stability did not appear to change how young people find channels to communicate. The study says:

"To the extent that our findings show a 'digital divide' between undergraduates at a four-year university and age-matched participants in a program for homeless young adults, it is mainly in types of Internet use and not access to the Internet, and that divide is relatively minor.

Since it is clear that the proportions of undergraduates and homeless young adults accessing social networking sites are similar, we assert that the term digital divide is not descriptive of the young adult population."

Another recent study from the University of Dayton explored how social media is used by the homeless -- perhaps not only for social contact and equality, but as a means to solve practical issues.

Leader of the study Art Jipson found that the homeless use social media as a place where all people are treated 'equally', and through a series of interviews, discovered that it can also be a medium to find social services, somewhere to sleep and the next hot meal. One subject said:

See more here:
75 percent of homeless youth use social networks