Archive for January, 2009
interview with amc’s blogger
30 Jan, 2009 • posts i've written • No comments
A while back I did a quick phone interview with John Frankfurt who writes AMC’s Mad Men blog. John just posted the interview and sent me some nice schwag to say thanks.
Q: How are characters assigned or chosen from the show in Twitter?
A: Originally it was anyone who jumped on it and registered that account, because that’s the way Twitter works: If you have the account it’s yours. Main characters like Don Draper and Peggy Olson were picked first. After that, we see one person will run three or four accounts to pick up some peripheral characters so they can do really interesting things together. I think you’re seeing that with Francine’s character and Betty Draper, so they can experience what’s going on outside of Manhattan. For other people, it’s what resonates most with them.
I definitely prefer email interviews to phone, there’s always a good bit lost in translation, but I was happily surprised when AMC’s blogger reached out to me. The next step is talking to AMC proper, then Matt Weiner.
better know a beatle
29 Jan, 2009 • posts i've written • No comments
Stephen Colbert interviews Sir Paul.
mad recognition
28 Jan, 2009 • posts i've written • No comments
What a week! First off, Henry Jenkins himself, the father of Convergence Culture, posted an entry about my report into my time as one of the Mad Men characters on Twitter. And then New York Magazine online picked it up and wrote a little ditty.
I’m pretty elated by Henry’s recognition of my blood, sweat, and welling of tears. Henry’s work, along with the work of his research assistants and students, is absolutely essential to the future of entertainment and culture (and more importantly to me, Henry has given me immeasurable inspiration). Beyond my mere involvement, I’m excited at how much attention fan work is receiving these days. It’s a good sign of the times. But it means there’s so much more to do and say and explore. Are you game?
After Henry posted his thoughts, a representative of Deep Focus quickly commented on the piece. Although I disagree with some of what he said, he was absolutely right by pointing out the hard work of the other Mad Men characters. If they do ever choose to reveal themselves publicly, I hope they finally can receive the personal recognition they deserve. You guys and gals really did blow me away.
I guess I need to add a press page to my site. I’m kind of a big deal on the internet now. 
branding in the era of the remix
23 Jan, 2009 • posts i've written • No comments
Mike, Faris and I were all contacted by Ben Alter, a grad student at the VCU Brandcenter to help answer one huge question:
Do you think there are any major ramifications for companies/brands knowing that the next generations connective tissue is this sharing, participating, and remixing of ideas?
Ben, my answer is yes. Thanks for the question. Now here’s a funny video.
I kid. I kid. Mike and Faris both took an eloquent stab at an answer, so I’ll do my best not to simply repeat them.
Recombinance is not a marketing strategy. Recombinance is a behavior. And it’s how culture advances. Technology has only further enabled remixing of content; but it’s less important how and more important why.
If you stand for nothing, no one will stand with you. Remixing is a form of personal expression in relation to something else. If you provide no stimuli, you can’t expect the behavior. From time to time, novelty can stand in for a lack of belief or values. But novelty is a diminishing resource by definition.
Brands have a myopic fascination with the effect, while they ignore the cause. Faris made the excellent point that remixes are sexy to brands because they’re a form of media that gets shared (and we like for the word to be spread). And brands are practiced at creating content that would never be spread by actual non-zombies: the dreaded press release, or a shallow micro-site, or banner ad, or interstitial video ad. Brands have perfected a model that is unremarkable. Instead of building a strategy around being remixed, brands should dedicate themselves to being remarkable.
Trying to control digital manipulation is the new tilting at windmills. You can’t influence culture without influencing culture. Certainly not all remixes are positive, so again, focus on your brand and what you stand for.
The rate of change will only increase. Having the ability to drag and drop pre-made elements to create something unique means that creation is more accessible and rapid. The pace also applies to building things like interactions: kids are out there building the next Facebook while brand managers review their :30 spots.
It’s time to create or capture more content, and distribute it more quickly. By spreading a wide net of content, your audience will stumble across it as they like and craft their own personal story of your brand.
Whew, that’s enough for now. Mike, Faris, your serve.
more learnings from becoming a mad man
22 Jan, 2009 • posts i've written • 1 comment
Flourish Klink is consumed. She co-founded one of the largest Harry Potter fan fiction sites, FictionAlley.org. She was one of the young fan fiction writers interviewed for Henry Jenkins’ Convergence Culture. Currently, she attends the Comparative Media Studies program at MIT, focusing on fan culture, and is co-chair of Formal Programming for Azkatraz 2009, a Harry Potter conference.
And she just interviewed me over at her new Fandom Blog.
In “Becoming a Mad Man,” you identify yourself as a fan, going so far as to defend that identity to Deep Focus, Mad Men’s digital marketing agency. How would you define that identity, “fan”?
I define a fan simply as someone whose enjoyment of something becomes part of their expressed identity.
I’m loathe to think of myself as a marketer first, or even a consumer first. It’s too convenient a trap to fall in to. Deep Focus didn’t know how else to treat me beyond the accusatory; but even your last post identified me as a marketer. In the digital space, I’m hired to help people think more like human beings; to rid themselves of the artifice of the Madison Avenue castle. Oversimplification is why we all feel insulted these days.
Go on and read the full post (and subscribe to the blog).
If you haven’t already, now’s a good time to read my full report on being a Mad Men character on Twitter.
Oh, and just a reminder, I want to write for your blog. Gratis. But you have to give me a great question or profound thought to ponder.
