#SocialSJSU: A blog, the first. On Twitter.

Twitter, I get you.

Twitter, I get you.  It took an enthusiastic teacher (Michael Brito, @Britopian), and a grade predicated at least partially on my use of the social media service to get me to get you. 

I tried it in the past, and I've tried different methods in the goal of gathering followers.  Some to less success, some to more success.

Like any brand, I do believe that a twitter account requires a story, a brand message. And I believe that certain topics and stories and methods are more successful than others.

My first method was comedy.  Straight up jokes contained within 140 characters.  I'm a comedian, I'm a writer.  Why wouldn't I be able to attract followers with my hilarious hilariousity?  Well, it didn't work.  Just about all of my first 40 posts on Twitter were jokes.  I got 6 followers. Mostly people that already knew me in real life.  Not a success.

Then I tried local relevant news.  My first two weeks on campus here at SJSU, I took a journalistic approach to covering on-campus events and other things affecting the SJSU student body.  During that time, there was even a bomb scare. A BOMB SCARE!!!!!!  And I covered it from the very beginning to the very end.  From the first ribbon of yellow police tape, to the arrival of the bomb squad, to the final explosion. Yes, apparently, the way you find out if something will explode is by blowing it up. I posted real-time updates, building closures, and even got an exclusive picture of the San Jose Bomb Squad unleashing the San Jose Bomb Squad Robot!  

I did not gain a single follower, nor a single retweet, or even a message from the school to stop using #GhettjoseStateUniversity.

Finally I decided to try being a whore. No, I wasn't selling my (pristine, super-sexy) body via tweet.  I mean selling my brain and my posts to hot trending topics in the hopes of gaining followers by tweeting near-meaningless tweets about their favorite subjects (in this case, usually trade related: tech, advertising/marketing).  This worked.  Almost instantly I was bringing in all kinds of tech bloggers and journalists, even some dude named Christopher Rizzo who works for Edelman.  I was also bringing in the trash, Twitter accounts owned by small companies selling shit software, scam artists, and random foreign people looking for a hot hand in America.  

So if you're not a hot chick who posts a lot of bikini pictures, or an already established content-creator/actor/musician, the best way to gain followers is to be a Twitter whore.

-Chris Phillips 

__Post-Script_

Other things I learned about Twitter:

• Positive tweets are more popular than negative tweets. Even if the positive tweets are completely meaningless, they are more likely to be retweeted.
• Unless the picture contains cats, food, clothes, or nudity, nobody cares.
• I'm good at Twitter fights.
• I'm not very good at being a Twitter whore.

Blog 5: Movies (Chapter 6 and 7)

My favorite of 2012 has to be Dredd.  The movie only earned a little over thirteen million dollars at the box office domestically, $22 million overseas; with a budget of $50 million.  However, Dredd was a huge home-video release, reaching #1 on the sales charts for DVD, Blu-Ray, and digital-downloads.

The movie is based on a decades-spanning British comic series about a the hardcore lawman of desolate future America, Judge Joseph Dredd. I loved the movie because it was a no-holds-barred blood-and-guts, body-shaking, gorefest for the eyes.  With beautiful and gritty cinematography and set-design as well as an intense on-rails story with a matching bodycount, the sheer production quality and heart that went into the script and rendition of the characters really connected with me.

Though I was on of the few to actually see this badass movie in theatres ('tis a shame, as it really is meant for the big screen), I've since convinced many of my friends to see it, and they've come back to me with universal satisfaction.



My favorite film of all time is a tougher question.  I'm a huge fan of Stanley Kubrick, especially Dr. Strangelove, 2001: A Space Odyseey, and A Clockwork Orange.

Dr. Strangelove, high-comedy and political commentary.  2001 is sci-fi and high-art filmmaking. A Clockwork Orange is somewhere in the middle, combining many of the best elements of both.  It's punk, it's comedy, it's future-tale, and a little bit of socio-political commentary.  It's also one of the best films of all time.  Check it out.

Blog 4: Magazine Proposal!

Name: THE USED AUTO

Concept: THE USED AUTO provides the only high-quality magazine experience for the Used-car enthusiast.  Due to high new-car prices and economic woes, the demand for used cars is at its peak and will likely stay that way for the foreseeable future.  THE USED AUTO will contain used-car reviews, brand highlights and lowlights, buyer's guides and repair/trouble-shooting sections, as well as regional classified ads.  It's fun, functional, and fills an unoccupied segment of the market, just like the ideal used car.

Features are in the Top Gear mold, pitting writers/editors for the magazine to buy used cars based on brand or other criteria and go on long road trips and complete challenges to find pros/cons about their automobiles and general hijinx.  

Readers:  Ages 18-55, mostly male.  Low-to-Middle incomes, disposable income, but necessarily enough for a brand new automobile.  Young buyers looking for advice/insight/reviews on used cars.    Feature articles will appeal to fans of other car magazines and car television shows such as Top Gear.

High-school and College students/graduates, Middle-income bachelors or parents looking for affordable/safe/fun/practical transportation for their children/family.

The enthusiast car owner who enjoys working on their own cars.  They keep good maintenance on their vehicles.  Might be looking for their first or next project car to restore.  Might occasionally go to or watch races, might even race themselves!

Competition: No direct competition!  Car & Driver, Road & Track, Automobile all highlight/review new cars, with short "long-terms" reviews (usually lasting a year or less).  Other magazines like Lowrider and Modified focus on very specific types of automobile modifications.  AutoTrader and similar trades are contain only classified/dealer advertisments.

Five Advertisers: Fram air and oil filters, Tire/Wheel companies/distributors such as Hankook, Firestone, Michelin, etc.  Motor oil brands such as Valvoline, Castrol GTX, etc.  Parts warehouses/specialists.  Auto Insurance companies.

Five Articles in an Issue: 
"Used Auto Adventure" - one in every issue, a long feature story containing challenges involving used cars meeting certain criteria such as age, price, size, brand, etc.
"What to look for..." - each issue will contain a buyer's/mechanic's guide to common issues with a certain brand's vehicles.
"Famous, Fair, Fail" - a comprehensive review of a brand's history, including mini-reviews of which models are/will be "Famous" (classics, future classics), "Fair" (mediocre design, perhaps reliable if unremarkable), or "Fail" (avoid completely).
"New or Used" - a race between two comparable models but one car is older and used, the other is new off the lot.
"Editor's columns" - Editors will write monthly columns regarding topics of their choosing.

Cover: The very top of the magazine is wrapped in checkered Black/White to evoke the racing checkered flag.  "THE USED AUTO" flag is Euro-influenced, simple, clean, easy to read and it's large, pink-red font will stand out.  The simplicity of the flag allows for easy/creative changes and possibilities for future covers.

The cover utilizes SAAB colors (Red, white, blue) an attractive, bright, dynamic photo of a used SAAB 9-3 Viggen, positioned left-to-right and positively angled up, aligning with western reading direction.  The font also follows western reading conventions.

Large red font provides good contrast and eye-grabbing.  The large "3" is attention-grabbing, and the repetition of it's use in the corners is both attractive and effective.

Underneath the main article promotion is the forward promotion of another article featuring a SAAB sports model.  The title of the article is a pun. "$7000 BMW Beater" is an effective, attention-grabbing tagline that should entice anyone even remotely knowledgeable of cars.

Chapter 3: Books

Books that have had the largest impact on me:

Brave New World
By Aldous Huxley

Brave New World is probably the most prophetic novels I've ever read. The book, published in 1931, predicted many things about the modern world that have come to fruition, including the state of modern advertising and slogans. It's also a sci-fi adventure which I love.  It's been a while since I last read it, but I remember enjoying it more than just about any other book I've ever read.  


A Clockwork Orange
By Anthony Burgess

Another future-fi story.  I am absolutely in love with both the book and the Stanley Kubrick film based on it. The use of invented words and slang in place of modern-english is beautiful, and also trusting of the intelligence of the book's readers (in that the book takes no extra effort to teach the reader the language, letting you find out what things mean for yourself).  The story is a fascinating and thrilling exploration of societal expectations, government-sponsored control, fear, joy, hypocrisy, and rebelliousness.  

I believe that the book (1962) and the film (1971) are both some of the earliest example of what I would consider the Punk Movement that grew in the seventies on through today.  

Go, Dog, Go!
By P.D. Eastman

This is undoubtedly the first book I remember LOVING.  I begged my parents to read it to me many, many, many times when I was a kid.  This is probably the single most influential book of my life.  I LOVE cars, I LOVE dogs, I LOVE the color red (featured prominently in the book).  My kids will have this book.

McLuhan's Technological Determinism

MEDIUM: Smartphones as Entertainment boxes.

Enhances: Boredom at any given moment.

Reverse: Disconnects user from face-to-face social interactions.

Obsolece: Gameboy, iPod, mobile-DVD players.

Retrieve: Stick, pen-and-paper as everyday accessory.

Media Autobiography.

I started young with Barney, Power Rangers, Reading Rainbow and Star Trek: The Next Generation.

In elementary school through high school I experimented with home moviemaking.  Usually comedies, a horror short, a hidden camera surreality sketch show, and SNL-style fake product commercials.

I've worked in a foreign-language television studio for a local Vietnamese channel.

I was an on-air host and Production Group member at KRFH.net, Radio Free Humboldt for two years under the DJ-name "The Chief".

My second year I was appointed Co-Chief of Production with my good friend Peter Sheppard.  Together we changed the paradigm and attitudes towards production at the radio station.  We got an honorary "Spirit Award" for our College Radio Day programming that year from Radioflag.com, who we've continued to work closely with.  Our quality efforts in Production were also specifically cited when Radioflag named KRFH.net their 2012 Station of the Year. Radioflag 2012 Station of the Year

I also did the sound recording and final sound-mix for the short film "Sweet Dreams", made for the 2012 San Jose 48-hour Film Festival (Where filmmakers have 48-hours to go from prompt to completed project in 48 hours.)

I am transferring to San Jose State for the Journalism-Advertising Degree.  I would like to continue working in Radio/TV/Film, or as a voice actor.  I also enjoy design, graphic design, and branding.

I watch shows on Netflix, and currently on broadcast television: Workaholics, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Breaking Bad, WWE programming, Nathan For You, Top Gear (UK and US).

I read the Wall Street Journal most days of the week and the San Jose Mercury occasionally.

It must be summer.

It must be summer. I think I wouldn't be here otherwise. I mean, I haven't even come close to posting on this blog in over 2 years.

I mean, it being late night, and me being stoned probably are factors.
But really, it's because of summer.

Specifically the freedom it's brought to me. I'm not taking summer classes, so, it's a classic K-12 summer vacation in that sense. Currently my days are completely open. Of course I've spent that time mostly lurking the internet, checking and checking, endlessly refreshing the same pages over and over again. I guess I could call it "Reddit Syndrome", but that gives reddit far too much credit; it's really just "Internet Exists Syndrome".

Reddit of course, despite my criticisms and shame of visiting the site, has firmly embedded itself in my day's rotation of websites. But I suppose reddit is a topic for another day, if I decide to continue writing that is.

I don't know. I feel like forcing myself to write will be good for me. So, I suppose this is an experimental post.

Let's hope I've got enough to write on.

Off the top of my head: music, movies, radio, reddit... That's probably enough to get started here.

HIPSTER SIGNATURE



//chris