I've reinvented my blog and moved to WordPress, so you can follow me at Kristasphere 2.0 http://kristasphere20.com.

I'm also on FriendFeed which is a a "lifestreaming" site that lets you share weblinks you find interesting, your Twitter messages, YouTube videos, ...well..just go out there you'll see. You can also subscribe to my FriendFeed via RSS if you wish. This blog will stay up for posterity. See you on WordPress--Krista

Normally I'd quote my usual "If My people..." Bible verse from Jeremiah here...but let me quote Willona Woods instead: "Negro please!"

BTW I am loving this girl Simha Jamison. She is my new personal hero...she sounds like the real sister from the Southside who is not the least bit pressed about being in a high profile trial. I can see the "and?" and the "Now run and tell that" look on her face now. Probably rolls straight to her regular Friday hair and/or nail appointment after she's done and then to play bid whist at her friend's kitchen table. Trust.

Not a good look when your gear is 50% off before the election is over...
I took this at a Campaign 2008 gift shop in Washington Reagan airport last week.

(Editor's Note: Updated blogcarolinas contact links below--K)


Austin, Silicon Valley, DC, and New York City need to be nervous.

Today's BlogCarolinas confirmed what I and many others already strongly suspected: the blogging and social media expertise in Research Triangle Park, NC is for real.
Given the wealth of technology companies and world-class universities here, this should be a no-brainer, but some people still only think of Mayberry when you mention North Carolina.

I'm just glad I had the chance to experience this. (Felt like I was hanging out with the cool kids in high school ;-)I had the opportunity to meet some terrific people and share ideas. You can review the TweetStream and see what you missed here.

Shout outs to my current and new fellow BlogCarolinians:
Wayne,
Kevin,
Jessica,
GinnySkal,
TheRAB,
Andy,
Lee,
Andrew,
Lenore,
Torka,
Lisa,
Lyell,
and
DaveSnynder.

by Dave Snyder

Another take on yesterday's wonderful BlogCarolinas from SEO expert
Dave Snyder(twitter: davesnyder) . Dave came all the way up from
Florida to be a part of BlogCarolinas...quite an endorsement I'd say.
Here's his post:

The Triangle is a Hot Bed for Social Media

My first social media conference. Feels like I am hanging out with the cool kids in high school.In the Engaging the Customer session. Money quote from Cord Silverstein of Capstrat "The web never forgets."

My "Oh Snap!" award winner this week is the African-American political blog "Jack and Jill Politics". This is one of those "if you know you'll get the title, and if you don't you won't" blogs. (And I'm not going to explain it unless I get asked.) I love how it is irreverent, doesn't take itself too seriously, and pulls no punches on politics. Props to my blog sistafriend Lynne d. Johnson for putting me on to this site. My favorite subhead on the site? The "Black Behind Coverage/Disclaimer"

Jack and Jill Politics, you are the "Oh Snap!" award winner this week!

I'm a Google fiend. I was elated when they finally came out with a portal so I could detach myself from MSN. Today I noticed they have a bevy of "artist" themes you can apply to your iGoogle page. They use the term artist quite loosely,however. Contributors include Dolce and Gabanna, Phillipe Stark, the Beastie Boys, and Lance Armstrong. Still, very nice to change up the mix from the start white with blue links. I'm rocking the Phillipe Stark theme at present. It changes color schemes periodically too. Check them out here.

Taking some long overdue time off and unplugging. Here's a girls vacation themed video "Ladies Night" by Lil Kim, Missy, Mary J. etc. until I return.

Don't call it a comeback, he's been here for years...

My favorite sports journalist and play cousin Bomani Jones(right) makes a cameo appearance today back at his old post on ESPN.com's Page 2. Read his take on the "beautiful absurdity of Clay Bennett and T.Boone Pickens" here. You can also listen to him on the "Sports Saturday with Bomani Jones" radio show locally on AM850 the Buzz .

Queen Rania Uses Social Media (RGM) to Fight Stereotypes of the Arab World

Really inspiring and insightful use of social media. From the Ogilvy Digital Influence blog.

My sister once said the Marley's are kind of the "Kennedy's of Jamaica. Cedella Marley Booker or "Mother B" as she was known to his fans, presided as matriarch over the legendary Marley family and was a force in her own right. Take your rest Mother, and as Bob would say, "Jah bless."

Sobees Builds Slick FriendFeed Desktop App

For the uninitiated, Char Grill is a Raleigh institution. On the weekends, after golf, after kids'soccer or swim practice, this is the destination spot for fresh grilled burgers. Last nightI decided to divert from my "You On a Diet", and get a steakburger when I see a lanky guy in sunglasses with a thick mustache and strong square jaw line.So I'm thinking...looks familiar...wait he lives in Raleigh right?...naw...yeah...maybe. I turned my attention back to filling out my order sheet,popping it in the slot in the grill window,and ensuring it slides down the chute into a Tupperware dish. You get the sense it's been this way since 1957. Back to further review of the coach.

Being my mother's child, I walk over, sit down on the bench next to him,and look at his shoes. Cole Haan loafers-bingo! (Hey its a girl thing.)So I lean over and let him know I'm not about to scream like a teen girl meeting the Jonas Brothers and ask "Are you Bill Cowher?" In a low voice he says"Yes" So I shake his hand, (Baby butt soft, definitely doesn't cut his own grass.) introduce myself, ask him how retirement's going. He says "Hey don't you write that blog the Kristasphere? I love that blog!" (NOT)

I decided not to ask for a photo or autograph. Char Grill's kind of common ground in Raleigh; we figure everyone has the right to wait to hear their number called and get their sandwich in peace, including NFL Superbowl winning coaches. I watch Bill get his order, make small talk with the cashier, get in his Benz SL convertible, and disappear onto Strickland Rd.

"Whoa! Look out! Whoooooooooo!"

• I had a customer need - service on my car.
  
• I had a bad experience with another business.
  
• Someone I considered an expert in auto repair who's opinion I trusted recommended them.
• I had a positive experience first time out.
• Over time, and that phrase can't be stressed enough, my positive initial experience was confirmed by my subsequent ongoing relationship with the shop.
  
• I don't feel I will lose credibility by giving them a recommendation.
  

I'm surprised they didn't give him life without parole for this stunt. Krispy Kreme is a North Carolina institution. Keep us from getting our hot doughnuts, and you are taking your life in your hands in the Old North State - word up. Oh and the money quote of the article? Upon revealing the traitor thief had left a variety of baked goods in the truck cab, Krispy Kreme route supervisor Dwight Bunce stated, "'It wasn't even our brand."--K

Police track down man in theft of doughnut truck

Thomasi McDonald, Staff Writer

RALEIGH - It might not be the vehicle to steal if you want to avoid police scrutiny.

A 15-foot Krispy Kreme truck, with boxes of hot, glazed doughnuts painted on its side panels, was taken last week from the downtown store.

"Seems like he would have got something a little less obvious," said Dwight Bunce, a 68-year-old route supervisor for the company who discovered the theft last Tuesday.

Raleigh police were instructed to be on the lookout for a wayward Chevrolet doughnut truck. Two days later, an officer spotted it on South Saunders Street.

Dwight Edward Carter of 1205 Sawyer Road was charged with one count of breaking and entering and larceny, and one count of possession of stolen property, police reported.

"He was so close to the vehicle, the patrol officer put two and two together and arrested him," police spokesman Jim Sughrue said.

Carter was in the Wake County jail Monday with bail set at $30,000, a spokeswoman said.

Bunce said there was a mess in the cab when police returned it -- chocolate cookies all over the place, a partially eaten cake and doughnuts, though no Krispy Kremes.

"It wasn't even our brand," Bunce said.

This just cracks me up.

Bloggers trying to buck up and beef with each other in cyberspace is like 50 Cent and Ja Rule with USB keys. You can just imagine the trash talk "Yeah mess with me and I got a Perez Hilton redirect for you right here, son!"

So today, Mack Collier at Viral Garden chronicled the Peter Kim v. Robert Scoble dust up. Peter Kim called shenanigans on Robert Scoble over what measurements matter on Twitter. And for good measure, Scoble throws in some requisite Jason Calcanis "haterade". Please guys really. I can see it now; at the next SXSW, they'll be throwing up blog gang signs...

Blogger gang sign as popularized on boingboing.

Wiki gang sign

What can we the blogosphere do to settle this blog beef? What we've always done in America, either dance it out...

Quick follow-up to my April Fool's Day post. Two of my favorite artists
doing an impromptu collabo on stage in Paris. Thanks to Soulbounce.com
for sharing this.

My sociology teacher, Bruce Stevenson, opened class with a presumptive statement.

Famed web strategist, blogger, and grad student Krista Summitt and Grammy-winning rock star Lenny Kravitz announced their engagement today. The power couple will tie the knot in the Bahamas this summer on the private island the couple just purchased. The island will have wi-fi installed in time for the nuptials to allow the press to live blog and Jeremiah Owyang to live Tweet himself into a stupor. Ring bearer will be Krista's nephew Keegan, who will immediately join Kravtiz' band as a drummer after the ceremony.

Summitt explained "I saw this interview on CBS Sunday Morning with Lenny a couple of weeks ago where he said he was saving himself for the right woman because of his Christian faith right? And I said to myself 'Hey I'm single,been saved and baptized since I was 10, I'm a licensed minister. so ,here am I send me!' My people called his people and ba-da-bing, the rest is history." Close friend of the couple and sports journalist Bomani Jones will emcee the reception wearing Keith Lee's vintage pink fur coat. Jones attempted to contact Joakim Noah for a reaction, but reported he was too inconsolable to respond because he "missed his chance". Noah also refused to share any hair care secrets with Jones.

Today show host Ann Curry took her cameras to the midwest to get a reaction from Ms. Summitt's parents and captured this, including Mrs. Summitt almost taking Mr. Summitt out.:



Ms. Summitt's sister had this similar reaction:



After a honeymoon, the couple will split time between Manhattan, Bimini, and April Fools.

This is from the evil genius mind of my "blog play cousin" Rich. Anyone who knows me probably thinks this is hypocrisy on my part, since Mariah is at the tippy-top of my "don't go there" list. I have to give honor where honor is due though, this is hilarious and wickedly creative. Btw, would Mariah's Flintstone name be Magmariah Carey?

Basically because I'm tired of trying out new templates, I'm going with this one called red white by Jackbook. I have a couple of tweaks and alignments to make but overall I am pleased with my choice. I also got the comment function fixed which is key.

Many thanks to Esteban for his unbiased opinions on my design choices.

Testing new comment feature

As you can see I'm trying out a couple of new template designs trying
to "redecorate" around here. Let me know what you think. This one has
pluses and minuses but I love the icons and the color scheme. Trying
a couple more out today so let me know what you think.

Starbucks embraces the 5th P: Church of the Customer Blog

Reminds me somewhat of Dell's IdeaStorm, but more streamlined. I plan to stay tuned to this one.--KS

Everyone's favorite marketing patient, Starbucks, has launched a suggestion box-cum-social network for customers.

MyStarbucksIdea collects the ideas of customers (my guess: just as many employees as customers), puts the ideas up for discussion and a vote. Starbucks says it'll keep members of the socnet updated as the popular ideas work their way through the company.

If Starbucks really follows through with its promise, this suggestion box-on-steroids idea is meritocracy via social network. The congregation is smarter than the preacher, so this could develop into a valuable, and tangible, asset for Starbucks.

Gave an interview today to NPR's Bryant Park Project show.Last year I wrote a
post on 24-7 Branding, profiling my former church, Trinity United Church of Christ, and my former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr. Since I'm a BPP listener and participate in their online community, I was interviewed to give my feedback on Rev. Wright, Sen.Obama's speech, and my personal experiences at Trinity.

Giving phone interviews is an interesting process. They call you, then hang up and call you back so the sound engineer can start recording you. Then you have to count to 20 so they get a level on your voice, then the questions come. Interesting how they drop the interviewer's voice out and just use your responses in the final product. Thanks to Laura Conaway and Alison Stewart for the opportunity to be heard.

The BPP is an awesome show you should definitely check out if your work includes social media, WOM, blogging, or interactive media. I reviewed them for my grad school blog here.

On-air segment is here.

Bryant Park Project's blog post with more audio is here.

(originally written for my grad school new media blog here.)

"...and all the pieces matter." - Detective Lester Freamon, HBOs The Wire

The mantra above from HBO's The Wire refers to doing thorough investigation of all pieces of evidence, no matter how seemingly insignificant. I think the same theory applies in Spike's post today on brand identity and word of mouth. Convincing the folks in the C-suite that word of mouth experiences are the bricks in the wall of a brand's DNA is still a tough sell in 2008. Many businesses still look at branding and WOM like a Teacup Yorkie "Cute,cuddly, and expensive, but of no real value." In other words , anything that doesn't result in a direct physical product or a direct monetary gain is foo-foo dust." Bellowing about this haughtily sounds good in the boardroom,"Monitor Facebook? Yeah there's a good use of money bwaaahaha!" but it is realistically just plain foolish.

Unfortunately, many companies don't get religion on WOM until something bad happens. They get a negative blog post written about a bad customer experience. A political action committee issues a press release condemning their manufacturing practices. Someone creates a "Spacely Sprockets Sucks" group on Facebook which gets 2000 members in 24 hrs. Then companies want to employ what Spike calls the "add-on" approach,running around with their hair on fire(no pun intended), at the expense of being authentic.:

"And for ANY piece of word of mouth marketing to even have a chance to work – an overall movement, or even tactics - it has to be authentic to the company. Thus the dangers of the “add-on” approach. I’m not talking about slapping the logo on a piece of literature or blog. I’m talking about something that is true to the brand, including the voice. The attitude. The vocabulary. The values. And those things can only be found down deep in the identity of a company."--Spike Jones

Church: Obama ex-pastor is under unfair attack - CNN.com

My new piece I did for Black Web 2.0 here.

Call me a hipster, geek, fashion slave, whatever, but I love this new bike. Electra makes California-style cruiser bicycles(note the west coast candy paint.) The Townie line is designed for the "anti-cyclist", someone who gets tired just watching the Tour de France. More than that, for people like me who have degenerative disc disease (aka osteoarthritis) having the seat positioned further back from the pedals means no low back pain while riding.

Funny, this is the type of bicycle I wouldn't have been caught dead on as a kid, when 10-speed racing bikes were the bomb. Now, style takes a back seat to comfort for me.

Now to think of a name for it...

Go here to find out who called shenanigans during a social media panel @ SXSW today.

I attempt to join the "Social Music Revolution" and write about my experience over on my grad school blog, .giga.media, here.

In a very timely case of HBO's "The Wire" imitating life, author Margaret B. Jones has admitted to fabricating her autobiography of life as a white member of the Bloods street gang in LA in today's NY Times. The Times covered Ms. Jones, real name Margaret Seltzer, book and life on Feb 28 here. This season's main story arc on The Wire is a story fabricated by a desperate reporter,Scott Templeton(above) about a serial killer who preys on the homeless in Baltimore.
Schwartz claimed to have grown up in a foster home raised by an older African-American mother with numerous African-American foster siblings. She actually grew up in tony Sherman Oaks,CA with her biological family and attended a private Episcopal school, according to the Times.

I had a gut feel after reading this story it was, at a minimum, far-fetched. Jones/Seltzer referred to her foster mother as "Big Mom" which is just not a correct term of endearment for one's mother or grandmother in black culture. Big Momma, mother dear ,or "mudea" yeah, but Big Mom? no.

She claimed to be able to make her foster mother, "Big Mom's" black-eyed peas and cornbread from memory and was thinking of writing a cookbook. She claimed to be done with gang life but hedged in the interview as to whether she was still considered a member. This photo(right) of her posing with a pit bull on a menacing metal pinch collar in red street gear(Bloods color is red) beside her angelic, well-dressed daughter(also in red) seemed to try too hard. Most former gang members don't still want to dress in anything resembling gang attire for fear of retaliation, let alone let their child do it.

What is most mind blowing to me is, is her editor never met her in the 3 years she was editing the book, and no one checked her unusual story out.

I'd love to hear what David Simon has to say on this.

NYTimes Reader Comments on the Times article here.

This one sort of needs no further explaination. This weeks' Biz Markie "Oh Snap!" award goes to: Brains on Fire.

Brains on Fire is the blog of a South Carolina brand identity agency by the same name. If you are a creative type, or friend of one, the name is perfect. They engage in meaningful conversation on all things branding and buzz. Most recently, they started an innovative "marketer-in-residence" program where they invite a marketing luminary to come down and work with them for two weeks and blog about it. Plus, you have to love an blog where the agency gives someone the title of Firestarter, and their name is Spike Jones. Clearly Spike has his style game tight, too ...

Congrats Brains on Fire, for being awarded the Kristasphere's "Envy" award for the week.

Check out what I had to say over on .giga.media about new media making for lazy marketers here.

Seriously. In the 'Transitions' section - usually reserved to remember famous real people, not fictional characters. What'd I tell you yesterday? The man is a legend. Omar's Newsweek obituary is here.

I let out a primal "Nooooooooooo!" as soon as I saw the little boy holding the gun on him in the convenience store.

But with a pull of the trigger, Omar Little, the greatest character ever in the history of television, lay dead on the floor in front of the bullet proof glass. One clean shot to the head. It is a study in contrasts that his death was written so nondescriptly, while his character was anything but.

To an outsider, Omar's character probably sounds like a corny bar joke - a shotgun toting, black matrix duster coat wearing, Newport smoking, drug stash house robbing gunslinger, who also happens to be openly gay. But if you ever saw the flawless acting of Michael K. Williams, you would understand it was no joke. Williams' portrayal of Omar was as real as the scar that ran the length of his face. (bar fight in his younger days) What made me love this character so? I'll do this Bomani Jones style, in list format.

1. He had a code. While he was a wicked gunslinger, he "never did anyone who wasn't in the game." He literally robbed from the hood rich and gave to the poor, ala Robin Hood. Omar complied without complaint when his childhood friend, Detective Bunk Moreland, told him he didn't want "any more bodies on you" after springing him from a trumped up jail sentence. When you contrast him with the icy evil that is Marlo Stanfield, who would shoot Mother Theresa for looking at him wrong, you had to respect the man.

2. He was hilarious. Williams consistently had some of the best lines on the show, never took himself too seriously, and never played Omar as a stereotypical gay man.

• He told his grandmother he "worked at the airport" to shield her from his real profession because it was the "one place she wasn't going to go looking for him."
• 
  
• While robbing a high stakes card game, he casually peered over his victim's shoulder, while holding a shotgun to his head, and advised,"I don't play cards but it seems to me 4 queens beats two 5s, yo."

• Disguised as a wheel-chair bound elderly man, shakes and all, gets himself wheeled inside a stash house so he can hold up. Pulls a pistol from under his coat and,upon being recognized, retorts "Do tell."
  

• My favorite image is him leaving the house in a pair of turquoise silk pajamas and slippers, strolling down the street to get a box of Cherrios from the corner store, .44 in hand.

THE PARTING GLASS

O, all the money e'er I had
I spent it in good company
And all the harm that ever I've done
alas it was to none but me
And all I've done for want of wit
to mem'ry now I can't recall
So fill to me the parting glass
Good night and joy be with you all

O, all the comrades e'er I had
They're sorry for my going away
And all the sweethearts e'er I had
They'd wished me one more day to stay
But since it falls unto my lot
That I should rise and you should not
I gently rise and softly call
Goodnight and joy be with you all

This will be a new series here in the Kristasphere, as they come up.

Technobabble 2.0
What it's about: "aims to showcase where AR, technology and social media has got it right and wrong."

Why I like it: It's just cool, and you know pretty well what it's about in one succinct term.