I am available for interviews on trends in popular and digital culture marketing and media use.
To arrange an interview, please contact Queen’s University News Centre: 613.533.2877 or email me directly MatrixS@queensu.ca
Newspapers and Online. BlackBerry’s technical problems hurt RIM’s image, in the Winnipeg Free Press, Guelph Mercury, Waterloo Record, St. John’s Telegram, Medicine Hat News, and on many websites, including GlobalTVNews.ca. October 2011.
Newspapers and Online. It’s important for RIM to be perceived caring about the brand community, in the Winnipeg Free Press and on Yahoo.com and GlobalTVEdmonton.com. October 2011.
Newspaper. How technology is changing the way professors teach in university classrooms, in the Globe and Mail. October 2011.
Radio and Newspapers. iPhone4S has some attractive features but there’s no need to upgrade from an iPhone 4, on CBC.ca, and on 10 CBC radio stations across the country (including Victoria). October 2011.
Newspaper. New website allows people to set up on-line memorials to themselves and send messages to loved ones after they die, in the Toronto Star and Hamilton Spectator. October 2011.
Newspaper. Air Canada employees using Facebook to express concerns over labour negotiations, in the Globe and Mail. September 2011.
Newspapers and online. The rising popularity of on-line dating, in the Toronto Sun, Winnipeg Sun, Ottawa Sun, Calgary Sun, 24 Hours Vancouver, Cornwall Standard Freeholder, Kingston Whig-Standard and Fort McMurray Today, and 14 other Sun Media newspapers, and on Canoe.ca.
Radio. Back to school goes high tech, on CKNW (Vancouver radio). August 2011.
Newspaper. Well-designed software products that make the BlackBerry cooler to use are exactly what the company needs, in the Washington Post, Houston Chronicle, Hamilton Spectator, Waterloo Region Record and Guelph Mercury. August 2011.
Newspaper. Apple’s Steve Jobs Resigns, in the Toronto Star. August 2011.
Newspaper. A new website where hackers can report their successes and compare techniques, in the Toronto Star. August 2011.
Newspaper. US President Obama asks people on Twitter to lobby politicians to avert the debt ceiling crisis, in the Vancouver Sun, Winnipeg Free Press and Ottawa Citizen, . Dawson Creek Daily News. August 2011.
Newspaper. Scathing resignation letter goes viral, in the National Post, Ottawa Citizen, New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal, the Nanaimo Daily News, the Saskatoon StarPhoenix and Regina Leader-Post. August 2011.
Radio. Study finds men are better at networking than women, on CKNW (Vancouver radio). August 2011.
Newspaper. J.K Rowling’s Pottermore website could be the future of publishing, on CBC.ca. July 2011.
Radio, Newspaper and Online. Google+ is a threat to Facebook and Twitter, on CFRB radio Toronto, and in the National Post and Kirkland Lake Northern News, the Calgary Sun, Kingston Whig-Standard, London Free Press and 8 other Sun Media newspapers and Canoe.ca. July 2011.
Newspaper. Student wins a scholarship through a Twitter-writing contest, in the Toronto Star. July 2011.
Newspaper and Online. Pottermore e-books are a commercial goldmine, in the Edmonton Journal, Ottawa Citizen, Calgary Herald, Vancouver Sun, Montreal Gazette, Victoria Times-Colonist, Fredericton Daily Gleaner, and on Canada.com. July 2011.
Newspaper. Canada 13th among countries asking Google to remove online content, in the Ottawa Citizen, Vancouver Sun, Montreal Gazette, and Victoria Times-Colonist. July 2011.
Radio. Alleged Vancouver rioter threatens to sue YouTube over a posted video. CKNW 980 Vancouver. July 2011.
Newspaper. Facebook teams with Skype to add video chat service, in the Toronto Star, Victoria Times Colonist, Calgary Herald, Ottawa Citizen, Winnipeg Free Press, Windsor Star, and Moncton Times & Transcript. July 2011.
Newspaper. Tips on how to make an exciting PowerPoint presentation, in the Toronto Star. July 2011.
Newspaper. J.K. Rowling’s new Pottermore website could have a big impact on publishing industry, in the Vancouver Sun, Victoria Times Colonist, Calgary Herald, Montreal Gazette, Fredericton Daily Gleaner, Regina Leader-Post. July 2011. 
Newspaper. Employers are scanning social media websites to screen job applicants, in the Toronto Starand Hamilton Spectator. July 2011.
Radio. YouTube Takes Down Vancouver Riot Videos Over Copyright Claims. CKNW Vancouver News Talk 980. June 2011.
TV and online. Canadian Heritage launches an iPhone app for Will and Kate royal visit.GlobalTVNews.ca. June 2011.
Radio. Movie theatre etiquette in the digital age, on CBC Radio’s Ontario Morning. June 2011.
Radio. Social media is being used to catch Vancouver rioters. CKNW 980 Vancouver. June 2011.
TV. How smartphones are changing the dating world, on CBC’s The National. June 2011.
Newspaper. Study finds watching a TV show in which characters engage in a frank discussion about a taboo subject led participants to discuss that topic. National Post. June 2011.
Newspapers. Reading, writing and tweeting? St. Thomas Times-Journal, Kenora Daily Miner and News and Kirkland Lake Northern News. May 2011.
Newspaper. Social media is in the classroom, but should there be limits? Toronto Sun,Winnipeg Sun, Edmonton Sun, Kingston Whig-Standard, Welland Tribune, Timmins Daily Press, Sudbury Star, Sault Star, Sarnia Observer, Peterborough Examiner, Orillia Packet and Times and 7 other newspapers across Ontario. May 2011.
Newspaper, TV, and online. Public sentiment on social media. GlobalTV. April 2011.
Newspaper and online. Royal wedding could set YouTube records. Canada.com, the Ottawa Citizen, Montreal Gazette, in the Regina Leader-Post, and Nanaimo Daily News. April 2011
Magazine and newspapers. Profs say youth turnout will rise: Votemobs. Macleans, and the Toronto Star, the Waterloo Region Record. April 2011
Newspapers and television. Political polls on Facebook and Twitter, on GlobalNews.ca and various local Global TV News stations across Canada. Related: The use of Twitter during the election, in the Hill Times. Related: Television, How Kingston election candidates are using social media, on CKWS TV. April 2011
Television. Should teachers be Facebook friends with students? CKWS TV. April 2011.
Radio. Facebook Use Causes Depression in Teens? CKNW News Talk 980. March 2011.
Radio. How police and criminals are using social networking, on CBC Radio’s Spark. March 2011.
Magazine. The ‘Breakup Notifier’ Facebook app, in MacLean’s magazine. March 2011.
Newspaper. Use of Twitter as a tool for news reportage increased its respectability, in the National Post. March 2011.
Newspaper and online. Actor Charlie Sheen’s popularity on Twitter, in the Vancouver Sun, Regina Leader Post, Saskatoon StarPhoenix and on Canada.com. March 2011.
Television and online. Twitter’s Fifth Birthday! CBC.ca, CBC Newsworld, and local Global TV stations across Canada. March 2011.
Newspapers and online. Charlie Sheen becoming a sensation on Twitter, on CKNW (Vancouver radio), and in the Regina Leader-Post, Montreal Gazette, Winnipeg Free Press, Vancouver Province. March 2011.
Newspaper. Flirting website likealittle.com becoming popular on campuses, in the Calgary Herald.March 2011.
Television. Summer school on your smartphone!? Queen’s University Course Goes Mobile this Summer.CKWS News at 6. March 2011.
Newspaper. The visual culture of Facebook is by and large the product of female photo sharing and tagging, in the Globe and Mail. March 2011.
Newspaper, TV and Radio. Valentine’s Day and Digital Romance. Toronto Star, CKWS news at 6, CBC Radio, CKNW (Vancouver radio). February 2011.
Newspaper. Canadians hanging up on land lines. Toronto Star. February 2011. 
Newspaper. Real-time online translation service, Ortsbo, in the Winnipeg Free Press and Metro News Ottawa. February 2011.
Newspaper. Social media hype of the major snowstorm, in the Toronto Star. February 2011.
Radio. CRTC decision to charge overuse data fees for Internet, on AM 1130 Talk Radio (Kelowna).
Newspaper and Radio. Scanner could revolutionize publishing industry, in the National Post, Ottawa Citizen, Edmonton Journal, Montreal Gazette, Calgary Herald, Vancouver Sun, Windsor Star, Nanaimo Daily News, Alberni Valley Times, and on AM1150 (Kelowna BC). January 2011.
Newspaper. Return of the Walled Garden: How Facebook and Apple are Socially Curating the Web.Financial Post. December 2010.
Radio and Newspaper. Canadians are tops in internet usage. AM640 Toronto Talk Radio and Radio Canada International. Globe and Mail. December 2010.
Radio. Mark Zuckerberg named Time Magazine’s person of the year, on CBC Radio stations across the country and on CBC Radio’s Metro Morning. December 2010.
Newspaper. Social networking and eBooks, in theNational Post. December 2010.
Radio. Google launches an eBook service to compete with Amazon.com, on eight CBC radio stations across Canada. December 2010.
Newspaper. Fake political Twitter accounts, in the Ottawa Citizen, Montreal Gazette, Vancouver Sun, Edmonton Journal, Victoria Times-Colonist and Moncton Times & Transcript. December 2010.
Newspaper. LikeALittle a new online flirting site, in the Windsor Star, Calgary Herald and Vancouver Sun. December 2010.
Online. The popularity of location-aware services like Foursquare, on CBC.ca. December 2010.
Radio. Google buys Groupon, on CHQR (Alberta) and 98.9The Drive. December 2010.
Newspaper and online. How should Canada protect its culture? GlobeandMail.com. November 2010.
Radio. The future of social media, on News1130 Radio (Vancouver). November 2010.
Radio. “Facebook Mail: a Gmail Killer?” 98.9 The Drive. November 2011.
Online. “QR codes link real world to virtual one” CBC News. November 2010.
Radio.”First graders on Facebook? Elementary school teachers are starting to use Facebook in their classrooms” 98.9 The Drive. November 2010. 
Newspaper. Technological change and its impact on society, in the Globe and Mail. November 2010.
Radio. People who blindly follow their Global Positioning System, on CBC Radio’s Ontario Today. October 2010.
Online. Facebook allows users to download their information. CBC.ca October 2010.
Newspaper. Reuters to eliminate anonymous comments for on-line stories, in the Ottawa Citizen, Edmonton Journal, Saskatoon StarPhoenix, Windsor Star, Vancouver Sun, and the Nanaimo Daily News. October 2010.
Newspaper. Mobile technology use in Canada, in the National Post, Montreal Gazette, Calgary Herald, Ottawa Citizen, several other daily newspapers across the country, and on Canada.com and Global News.ca. October 2010.
Newspaper and online. Parents unaware of kids’ online gaming: survey. CBC news and Kelowna.comSeptember 2010.
Radio. CBC experiments with 3DTV broadcasts of Hockey Night in Canada. 98.9 The Drive. September 2010.
Radio. Sexual Assault Photos on Facebook. Vancouver’s CKNW AM 980. September 2010.
Online and newspapers. Battle to preserve online anonymity rages in video game community CBC.ca. September 2010.
Radio. Research Roundup: Why Gaming is Good for You 98.9 The Drive. September 2010.
Television, radio, newspaper, and online. Craigslist.com in the U.S. stops running adult services ads, onCTV Newsnet, CP’s Broadcast news and on 98.9 The Drive (Kingston radio), in the Globe and Mail,Metro News, Lethbridge Herald and on CP’s Broadcast News and on CTV.ca and many other websites. September 2010.
Newspaper. Smartphones Still the Kid in the Hall: mobile learning, pros and cons in The National Postand Calgary Herald. September 2010.
Television. Smartphones in the classroom. CTV CanadaAM and CKWS News at 6. September 2010.
Television and Online. Facebook 101: Universities teaching social media skills. CTV.ca September 2010.
Newspaper. Cafes unplugging wi-fi. “Board games and coffee, hold the Internet” Toronto Star, Cape Breton Post, and Prince George Citizen. September 2010.
Radio. “Should professors turn off the wi-fi in classrooms?” CBC Ontario. September 2010.
Newspaper. Online communities: “Kirilow case may upgrade social media” Toronto Sun. August 2010.
Newspaper. Mobile learning: “Schools going digital” in the Globe and Mail, Fredericton Daily Gleaner,Brandon Sun, Yahoo!, Winnipeg Free Press, Sympatico.ca August 2010.
Newspaper and Radio. “RIM launches new BlackBerry device and OS.” August 2010. In the National Post and on CKNW radio Vancouver.
Newspapers.”The Internet Never Forgets” August 2010. In the Montreal Gazette, Edmonton Journal, Regina Leader-Post, Saskatoon StarPhoenix, Victoria Times Colonist and Windsor Star.
Newspapers. “Apple’s iPhone 4 leads to long line-ups” July 2010. CBC News.
Radio, Newspapers. “Facebook Hits 500M Members” July 2010. The Globe and Mail and on CBC radio stations across the country.
Radio. “Wikileaks Scandal: secret US military documents posted on the web create controversy” July 2010. 570 News radio in Kitchener.
Radio. “Facebook’s Impact on Friendship and Privacy” July 2010. AM 770 Alberta
Radio. “The darker side of teens’ social media use: sexting and cyberbullying, what can parents do?” Lake88 Perth radio.
Newspaper and Radio. “Computer-savvy students cheating more and get caught less” Globe and Mail, Rutherford Show Alberta Talk Radio CHED. July 2010.
Newspaper. “Branding, PR, and public perception: Police service is back-in-black” Winnipeg Free Press. July 2010.
Radio, Newspaper, and TV. “Social media at the G8/G20 summit” June 2010. On CBC Radio stations in Cape Breton, Sudbury, Corner Brook (NL), Ontario AM, Calgary, Whitehorse, and Vancouver. Also on CTV News Channel, Sympatico.ca, and on Newstalk 1010 (Toronto talk radio). How are police, protesters using social media platforms to participate in the G8 and G20 summits?
Radio. Do social networks isolate or connect people? Digital technologies and the impact on community relationships. May 2010. Vancouver 980AM radio.
Newspapers and Radio. “Lack of Internet access leaving some Canadians behind, experts warn” May 2010. Statistics Canada report on internet usage, in the Ottawa Citizen, Montreal Gazette, Vancouver Sun, Toronto Sun, Ottawa Sun, several other Ontario dailies including in the Kirkland Lake Northern News and Stratford Beacon Herald, in 24 Hours Toronto, and on CBC national radio and on Vancouver 980 AM radio.
Radio and Newspapers. “Canwest News’ future digital plans” May 2010. In the Toronto Sun and 16 other Sun Media newspapers and on CIUT 89.5 FM (Toronto radio), The Rutherford Show, Alberta radio.
Radio. “Buying and Selling Facebook Friends on eBay?” 98.9 The Drive. April 2010. How many Facebook friends and Twitter followers do you have? It may be the crudest of all metrics for measuring someone’s value and influence…but today social size matters and it can help secure your next professional opportunity. And that means, friends become hot commodities!
Radio. “The cure for indecision, choice fatigue, and information overload? Hunch.com” 98.9 The Drive. April 2010. for the indecisive among us: a fun to use free online decision-making tool. Hunch is a website that makes customized recommendations based on your personal preferences. Designed by a group of MIT students, launched in 2009, the recommendation engine is experiencing explosive growth, adding about 8 million users in it’s first year.
Radio. “iCleaning?” 98.9 The Drive. April 2010. For procrastinators, high-tech helpers, and the smartphone-obsessed among us, before you roll up your sleeves and get your fingers dirty this spring, make sure you have all your apps downloaded!
Radio. “Sleeptexting?” 98.9 The Drive. March 2010. New market research study shows that about half of social networkers will check and/or update Facebook or Twitter statuses AFTER going to bed.
Radio and Newspaper. “Canadians’ Internet use exceeds TV time: First time that Web surfing surpasses television watching” Globe & Mail, CKNW Radio Vancouver. March 2010. New Ipsos Reid study shows that Canadians spend 18 hours a week online and 17 watching TV. Of course that doesn’t tell us much about how much TV we are watching online….
Newspaper. “3D TV Arrives in Canada” CBC News, Montreal Gazette, Edmonton Journal, Victoria Times-Colonist, and Calgary Herald. March 2010. A few weeks behind the US release, the newest 3D television technology is available in Canada. Consumers, industry experts, manufacturers and retailers are debating the market appeal of these fancy screens. Limited 3D programming may be the deal-breaker—at least initially.
Newspaper. “3-D TVs coming this week to U.S.” CBC.ca March 2010. Are consumers ready to embrace yet another HD television set and high-tech 3D glasses as part of our home entertainment package? Or are we already suffering from consumer electronics upgrade fatigue, and facing a lack of living room real estate for more screen gadgetry?
Newspaper and Radio. “New social media site goes viral” Montreal Gazette, Ottawa Citizen, StarPhoenix, Vancouver Sun, Dave Rutherford Show (talk radio), Canada.com, 98.9 The Drive. February and March 2010. Chatroulette is the newest NSFW (not safe for work) social networking sensation. Why is it exploding with popularity? We discuss the cultural fascination with anonymous video chat, its fantastic randomness and potential, as well as its graphic pornographic grotesqueries!
Radio. “Wedding Invites inspired by Super Mario” 98.9 The Drive. March 2010. The couple that games together, stays together? An engaged pair in Germany are getting global media attention for their unconventional wedding invitations. Instead of the traditional paper cards, the tech-savvy millennials opted to design and distribute a custom video game. In this segment we discuss high-tech weddings and Gen Y consumer trends reflecting a convergence of gaming and getting hitched!
Newspaper. “Growing e-battle for student votes” Queen’s Journal. February 2010. The university student governance election may be over, but the use of social media as a campaigning tool for campus campaigning in the future is just taking off.
Radio. “Social Networking is GeoLoco” CHUM 98.9 The Drive. February 2010. Foursquare reaches a milestone of over 1 million check-ins a week. Are you part of the trend in mobile GPS-enabled social networking? Today we talk about how geotagging and locational-aware online networking is the next big thing for marketing and local businesses.
Radio and Newspaper. “Apple unveils the iPad.” CBC.ca, SUN media, CanWest Media, Canada.com, CBC Radio Ottawa, Winnipeg Free Press, Kelowna.com, Vancouver Sun, Yahoo!.com. January 2010. Will the iPad be the gamechanger it’s predicted to be? We discuss the impact of this mobile technology on book publishing, magazine and newspaper industries, and Amazon’s Kindle. From handheld gaming to social computing, the iPad ushers in a new generation of mobile lifestyle gadget, betwixt and between the netbook/laptop and smartphone.
Radio. “Digital Moms” CHUM 98.9 The Drive. January 2010. New market research shows that 4 out of 10 moms regularly use digital technologies to try to be a better mom and for millennial moms, it’s 50%. Which technologies do they use/ Smartphones and apps, from recipe finders to baby diaper trackers to kid-friendly games to serve as digital pacifiers in the grocery store.
Radio. “Mobile Giving.” CHUM 98.9 The Drive. Unprecedented success in Canada and the USA of the text-messaging fundraising initiatives for the victims of Haiti’s earthquake.
Newspaper. “Cellphones, Google among women’s life-changing products of the decade” Ottawa Citizen, Winnipeg Free Press, Vancouver Sun, Victoria Times-Colonist, Edmonton Journal, Saskatoon StarPhoenix, Windsor Star, Yahoo!.com, Nanaimo Daily News, and on Kelowna.com. January 2010. Cell and smart phones, Google and wireless Internet topped the list of most important innovations of the last 10 years, based on the findings of a new poll to be published in the March issue of ShopSmart.
Television. “Konekt Magazine Launch” Queen’s TV. January 2010. Students at Queen’s have launched a new magazine, and we talk about why the second issue is making news in Kingston and beyond.
Television. “Digital Film-making: Kingston hardware engineer wins Academy Award for Technical Achievement” CKWS News. January 2010. Mark Wolforth wins the industry’s highest honor for his work on the Truelight system, a post-production technology for digital colour management.
Magazine. “A new way to trash ‘friends’: Gossips attack real people on Facebook’s Bathroom Stall. Macleans. January 2010. “Just like in a real high school, cyberbullies seek out the Internet’s most anonymous corners. One such space is Bathroom Stall, a Facebook application where people can write about their friends without identifying themselves.”
Magazine. “A beginner’s guide to teaching with social media” University Affairs. January 2010. Roundup of advice from tech-savvy professors to give you the resources you need to start incorporating social media into your teaching.
Radio. “Slacktivism” 98.9 The Drive. January 2010. Although it is commonly defined as “feel-good online activism that has zero political or social impact,” slacktivism is not always just about paying lip service to causes. This week we talk about the cultural and economic impact of Facebook’s “what color is your bra” breast cancer awareness meme, as compared to PUR’s campaign to donate 10L of clean drinking water to developing nations on behalf of each new fan of their FB page.
Newspaper. “Consumerism and the Social Graph” Winnipeg Free Press. January 2010. How consumer choices are influenced by how people relate to others.
Radio.”3D Televisions launched at CES 2010.” CBC Radio Charlottetown, Halifax, New Brunswick, Toronto, Sudbury, Windsor, Thunder Bay, Winnipeg, Whitehorse, Edmonton, Yellowknife, and Victoria. January 2010. Are consumers ready to embrace a new television set and 3D glasses, or are we already suffering from consumer electronics upgrade fatigue?
Radio. “Best practices in web security for individuals” 98.9 CHUM FM. January 2010. From data backup and online password protection to domain name purchasing—how to start your digital New Year off securely. 
Television and radio. “High tech help to turn over a new leaf” CKWS Newswatch at 5:30, 98.3 CHUM FM. January 2010. Social media can help you keep your New Year’s resolutions.
Radio. “Regifting and reselling” 98.9 CHUM FM. January 2010. According to eBay, 3 in ten Canadians rec’d a regifted present this year—this is driving trends in local, P2P e-commerce from eBay auctions to Facebook, Kijiji, and Craigslist.
Radio interview. “Presents for Infovores” 98.9 The Drive. December 2009. University of California researchers found that today it’s likely you’ll use a whopping 34GB of data and consume 100,000 words of information. Since we’re becoming a culture of data gluttons, today we discuss some last-minute info-rich gift ideas for perfect for geeks and the infovore in you.
Newspaper. “What’s Next in Social Networking” Canadian Press. MSN tech & gadgets, Yahoo! News, Macleans.com. December 2009. Social networking was arguably the most influential technology of 2009 in Canada and around the world, largely because it’s not just for teenagers and college kids anymore. Social networking got big in 2009 by embracing an older market. The social advertising model on Facebook and Twitter emerged in 2009 as marketing via the “social graph” (friend network) caught on.
Newspaper. “AshleyMadison.com’s advertising controversy arrives in Toronto” Toronto Star. December 2009. After successfully attracting a tonne of media coverage in the US from Hollywood to New York City for its outdoor advertising with the tagline: “life is short, have an affair,” the notorious online dating site for married folks is at it again, this time in Toronto. Shocking, memorable, viral, offensive (to some), this is social advertising at its finest. The guerrilla stunt campaign is again getting national press coverage and inspiring online and water cooler debates concerning its plans to wrap Toronto streetcars in vinyl to advertise (encourage?) its services in extramarital dalliances.
Television. “Social Shopping Trends” Discovery Channel’s Daily Planet. December 2009. Retailers are getting ready for the holiday buying blitz and this year it’s all about mobile and social media advertising campaigns. The social and smartphone shopping trend is in full swing, as consumers seek out product recommendations from their friends and family–while enroute to the mall or in store aisles, and look online for electronic coupons and promos.
Radio interview. “Unfriend: Word of the Year in 2009!?” 98.9 The Drive. December 2009. According to the New Oxford American Dictionary, to “unfriend” someone of Facebook has become so mainstream, it qualifies for word of the year. So what are some of the top reasons people unfriend each other? And what can you do if you find yourself of the receiving end of that digital snub?
Radio interviews. “The Kindle arrives in Canada, at Last” CBC Radio One Windsor, Ottawa, St. John’s, Sudbury, Quebec City, Yellowknife, Thunder Bay & CHUM Radio Kingston 98.9. November 2009. Amazon.com finally starts to ship the eBook reader device to its Northern neighbours. In this series of interviews we discuss what a Kindle is, what competition it has, and why you might want one. We also consider why there was a two-year delay in Canadian availability and what impact this device will have on Canadian bookselling.
Radio interview. “Telebuddies: watching TV in the age of online social networks” 98.9 The Drive. November 2009. Social TV watching is trending, connections between Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and television programming are on the rise. The telebuddy phenomenon describes people watching TV and connecting with friends via instant messaging or status updates. Not in the same room perhaps—but on the same channels, from TV to the web—people have always enjoyed connecting over content.
Newspaper interview. “A teacher in their pocket MP3 players loaded with math and science lessons make learning fun and boost marks” Globe & Mail. November 2009. Article describes pilot project in mobile learning, as a Toronto high school (Cardinal Carter Academy for the Arts) puts math and science lessons on Microsoft Zune devices, and sees higher student grades as a result.
Radio interview. “Gameverts!” 98.9 The Drive. November 2009. In-game advertising is proving to be extremely effective—new figures from Microsoft show that 70% of gamers recall the logos and brands they encounter in the gameworld, and less than a second’s exposure makes a lasting impression.
Magazine interview. “Classroom 3.0: the brave new world of high-tech teaching” Globe & Mail’s Canadian University Report 2010. October 2009. iPhone apps, teachers on Twitter, downloadable lectures: Will a university education ever be the same?
TV interview. “Popular professors on campus” Queen’s TV. October 2009. New series profiles “interesting” profs at Queen’s University.
Radio interview. “Art of the Overshare: NSFW FX” 98.9 The Drive. October 2009. Facebook and Twitter are becoming akin to web-based water-coolers—but disclosing too much personal information, especially of the not-safe-for-work variety, via online networks can damage professional relationships. Interview discusses guidelines to prevent oversharing TMI (too much information!).
Newspaper interview.”Celling ourselves short: Wireless wonders are blurring the lines of play time, home time and work time” Hamilton Spectator. October 2009. Always-on mobile connectivity and shifting cultural expectations of reachability and access.
Newspaper interview. “When I lay me down to sleep my cellphone stays in reach” Toronto Star. October 2009.”Have you been dreaming in digital? Because it seems that smartphones are replacing teddy bears. BlackBerrys and iPhones are not just about extending the office. Today connectivity is a 24-hour experience.”
Radio interview. “Smartphone Snoozing” 98.9 The Drive. October 2009. Cellphone trends: curling up with our handhelds, mobiles become remote controls for the tethered life. Always on, global study shows half of us sleep with our mobile phones.
TV interview. “Your online reputation: social networking dos and don’ts” CTV Canada AM. October 2009. Personal branding for the digital age. Ideas for online reputation repair, design, and management–from Googling yourself to buying up vanity domains, from social network privacy settings to multimedia creation and sharing–there are many things you can do to optimize, improve, and enrich your online persona.
Radio interview. “Pixel Perfection” 98.9 The Drive. October 2009. Can photoshop be dangerous to your health? This month, a group of 50 French politicians have organized to push for new legislation that would require publishers to affix a disclaimer if the images in their adverts have been digitally altered with photoshop. No more sly touchups. No more sneaky airbrush. No more digital deception.
Radio interview. “From Speed Dating to Stream Dating” 98.9 The Drive. October 2009. With more people getting comfortable with lifecasting personal details about themselves on social networks, one company (Gelatodating) has come up with an innovative approach to virtual matchmaking: digital intimacy accomplished through data mining.
Newspaper interview. “These days, it’s hip to be cliché: Pop culture from edge to mainstream” Queen’s Journal. September 2009. “Since the term “pop culture” was invented in the early 1960s, it has channeled itself through both unlikely prophets—such as the president of the United States—as well as the kitsch of plastic sandals with holes and Perez Hilton alike.” 
Radio interview. “Your Digital Tattoo” 98.9 The Drive. September 2009. The haunting spectre of undeletable data: permanence of online profiles and traceable digital footprints causes anxiety in a cached, taggable, socially-networked culture.
Newspaper and radio interviews. “Managing Your Online Reputation” CBC.ca, CBC Radio Canada, 91X News (Loyalist College Radio, Belleville). September 2009. Survey published this week in the Journal of the American Medical Association, notes that “many American medical schools are reporting problems with unprofessional social media posts by their students, including posts that have violated patient confidentiality.” If your online profile needs an upgrade, there are some steps you can take in managing your reputation online.
Television interview. “Parents and Kids Connect Online” CKWS Newswatch at 5:30. September 2009. Should parents and their college- or university-bound kids become facebook friends, twitter followers, and BBM buddies to stay connected from empty nest to dorm room? There are new rules of e-connectivity to keep everyone from feeling abandoned, oppressed, stalked and embarrassed in the digital age.
Newspaper interview. “Social Media Put to the Test in Classrooms” Queen’s Journal. September 2009. How using an “edtech buffet” of clickers and podcasts, Twitter, Facebook and other social media tools can improve student success rates in the higher ed classroom—through enabling connectivity, communication, and engagement.
Radio interview. “Sofa Surfing” 98.9 The Drive. September 2009. Netbook or notebook, no matter how they are marketed (compute in a field! on the beach!), when it comes to how people actually use them, the fact is that portable computers are digital gear for the homebody.
Radio interview. Release of Beatles Rock Band. 98.9 The Drive. September 2009. The Beatles: Rock Band is a great example of how new media revives old media for fresh ‘next gen’ audiences. Rockin’ out to the Beatles will be a huge phenomenon, not only because it plugs into a powerful cultural nostalgia, but also because it syncs with the current trends in casual/family gaming.
Radio and Newspaper interview. “Michael Bryant’s political strategy: PR 2.0” Globe & Mail and CBC Radio-Canada. September 2009. Representatives for former Ontario attorney-general turn to blogs and social media to get their message across–but just how effectively are they joining the conversation and spinning the trending of this story? Not very.
Radio interview. “Online Overtime: BlackBerry Bondage” 98.9 The Drive. August 2009 . A new study shows that Blackberry- (and iPhone-) using employees on average put in 15 extra hours of work per week. How is continuous connectivity impacting your work/life balance?
Radio interview. “Screenagers” 98.9 The Drive. August 2009. Last week a report published in the UK surveyed 3,000 teens and found that on average kids spend 10 hours a day staring at a screen of some sort. But it turns out there’s a little “screenager” in all of us.
Television interview. “Virtual Worlds from Second Life to Webkinz World” CKWS Newswatch at 5:30. August 2009. The trend in virtual worlds for adults and kids is about diversion and online gaming certainly, but there are other outcomes including expanded digital creativity, computer literacy, and social networking.
Television interview. “Social Networking at Work” CKWS Newswatch at 5:30. August 2009. What’s the impact on productivity when employees use Facebook and Twitter and other social media on company time?
Newspaper interview. “You Tube Duck Poachers Plead Guilty” Canadian Press. August 2009. When three young men posted a video on YouTube showing their illegal and unethical behavior, it prompted a flood of tips from the public. Crowdsourcing effects resulted in the shooters being fined thousands of dollars in a Saskatoon court.
Radio interview. “Digital Intoxications” Links between smartphone apps and drinking culture. 98.9 The Drive. July 2009. Last week Best Buy Mobile commissioned a study and found that if given the choice between giving up alcohol or their cellphone for a week—respondents were almost evenly split. It seems drinking and mobile phones go hand-in-hand, (literally!)–and a quick survey of the number of mobile drinking themed apps confirms it. Consequently, mobile marketing for beer and alcohol companies is on the rise.
Radio interview. “Yell Hell!” Rudeness with cellphone use is pervasive, users in denial. 98.9 The Drive. June 2009. This week Intel released the results from a survey it commissioned from Harris Interactive, which asked over 2000 adults in the US about their opinions on how people use mobiles phones in public, including their own cellphone behaviors. At the top of the list of irritations: mobile misfits who persist in talking far far too loudly about their private/banal lives in a public space.
Radio interview. “Digital intimacy” Nintendo Wii makes top 20 list of most-wanted wedding registry items for 2009 in UK. CHUM 98.9 The Drive. June 2009. A new report from British department store John Lewis reveals that many of today’s wedding registries are filled with gizmos, gadgets, and high-tech gear, including the beloved Wii console.
Radio interview. “Google Wave and the Next Gen of Social Networking and Email” CHUM 98.9 The Drive. June 2009. Hailed as the reinvention of online communication, this week Google announced its most ambitious project to date: a web-based social media mashup that combines email, instant messaging, tweeting, wikis, blogging, photo and video sharing, social bookmarking and even online gaming.
Radio interview. “Mobile Phones and Microboredom” CHUM 98.9 The Drive. May 2009. A new study released this week from the London School of Economics and the University of New England has concluded that mobile phone users are not stressed or anxious by virtue of being always-on. On the contrary, researchers found that having access to data and voice communication via smartphones actually decreases stress, in part because of how it fills “dead time.”
Newspaper Interview. “Teens, Sexting and Social Networking” Ottawa Citizen. April 2009. As recent cases in the US attest, sexting is both a normal part of teenage sexual experimentation (between 20-40% of kids do it), and at the same time a serious issue with potentially devastating repercussions including bullying, sexual harassment, peer pressure, teen suicide, and (in the US) criminal charges about production/distribution/possession of child pornography.X
Television interview. “Teens and Sexting–Protecting Your Reputation Online” CKWS. April 2009. Recent headlines regarding teens sexting –sharing sexually explicit messages and images via mobile phones and online, is causing technopanic among parents and school administrators. Interview discusses how parents can approach this issue with their kids via monitoring media use and mentoring about how to be cybersavvy.
Radio interviews. “Sexting and Digital Intimacy” Kingston’s FM96; 98.9 The Drive. April 2009. Teens and the dynamics of risk and intimacy involved with social networking, as well as the changing definitions of privacy in a connected, digital culture.
Newspaper op-ed. “The Flap About Twitter” The Globe and Mail. March 2009. It shouldn’t be a surprise to hear that Twitter is the fastest growing social networking site on the Internet, expanding astronomically at a rate of over 1,000 per cent year over year. People are more interested in themselves and each other than in any mass media.
Newspaper and radio interviews. “Kids and Gaming” Kingston Whig Standard. CBC Radio Ontario Morning, 98.3 FLY FM, 98.9 The Drive. March 2009. During the March break, kids spend more time with leisure pursuits, and for many kids that means gaming. A recent report from the European Union Parliament suggests that parents should not worry about kids playing games, because they are a means of progressive socialization.
Television interviews. “Barbie Turns 50” CBC News, The National & CKWS Newswatch at 5:30. March 2009. How is Barbie still relevant after fifty years on the market? The secret is her cultural elasticity, the ability to shapeshift and emerge in various incarnations. Fifty nationalities and over a hundred careers later, Barbie stays one step ahead.
Newspaper interview. “Mattel Builds Barbie a Virtual World” Kingston Whig Standard. March 2009. Barbie.com is an important destination for girls on the web, receiving 65 million visitors a month. To celebrate Barbie’s 50th birthday, Mattel is upgrading the BarbieGirls.com virtual game and social networking website. The key word in this online gameworld is personalization, as subscribers can dress and design Barbie’s wardrobe and surroundings.
Newspaper Interview. “Fashion Hails Its Darling: Barbie on the Runway at New York Fashion Week” The Toronto Star. February 2009. Mattel was an official sponsor of Mercedes Benz New York Fashion Week 2009. Following the lead of Hello Kitty, Mattel engaged in some cross-generational promotion of their iconic brand, by orchestrating a fashion show featuring designs inspired by five decades of the doll’s fashions. Mass market fantastic plastic met fabulous frocks by fifty established names in haute couture including Vera Wang, Versace, Gucci, Tommy Hilfiger, Diane Von Furstenberg, Jean Paul Gautier, Nicole Miller, and Calvin Klein.
Newspaper Interview. “Celebrating Valentine’s Day in a Recession” Kingston Whig Standard. February 2009.
In the weeks leading up to Valentine’s Day, online dating advertising relentlessly targets single people, encouraging them to find their soul-mate via electronic matchmaking. Pair this holiday pressure with tough economic times such as those we’re currently experiencing, and the results are predictable: an upward trend in online dating subscriptions, as single folks actively seek a partner with whom to bond, connect, and weather the storm.
Television interview. “Valentine’s Day and Commercialism” CKWS. February 2009. Why do we buy the most traditional gifts, cards, lingerie, chocolates and roses for Valentine’s Day, even in the midst of a recession? Seasonal marketing from florists, chocolatiers, and the like, are behind the notion that we should express our love and affection for friends and family by reaching into our pocketbooks. And we do!
Radio interview. “Romance 2.0” 98.3 Fly FM. February 2009. Online dating sites are experiencing a surge in membership, and online matchmaking
companies are using new technologies such as social networks, mobile phones, and even GPS to track and connect potential soul mates.
Television interview. “Super Bowl Advertising” CKWS. January 2009. It’s oft-repeated that the Super Bowl adverts are as much a draw for viewers as the game itself. These big-budget feature ads have always been the perfect media for social marketing, and now marketers are using a range of Web 2.0 tools to increase consumer engagement.
Radio interview. “Guys and Gear” 98.9 The Drive. December 2008. During every holiday advertisers directs women to purchase mechanical and techno-gadgets and gizmos for the men they love. Research suggests that this is not just media myth-making, because guys really love gadget gifts. But why?
