Coke Down

I was taken back by the fact that when searching for Vault, a soda made by Coca-Cola, the Web site made by Coke didn't appear for over twenty-five pages. But, the fan-made page was the first result. This astounds me. The mere idea that consumers have this much power with the break out of the Internet and blogging is insane! Karkovak was able to launch not only one, but two, popular Web sites dedicated to different sodas that significantly. Coke used to be a company that did not embrace consumer fan clubs and opinions. Karkovak completely changed Coke's opinion and helped them to use consumers as a benefit. Karkovak, in a round about way, helped Coke to alter their Web site and make it more user friendly.

Citizen Markerts really demonstrated in this chapter the power the consumer now has with the advances in the Internet. As a Generation Y, I have had access to the Internet since I was in ... maybe 6th grade? I have always used it solely to surf the Web and to connect to AIM. When MySpace came out in high school, I joined that networking site. And then Facebook, I signed on as soon as I could. Since being in college and especially a social media class, I have truly seen the endless possibilities the Internet offers. Everything from blogs to consumer feedback to Web sites dedicated to the revival of a soft drink, the Internet is limitless. I am excited to see how public relations and marketing take on the Internet in the upcoming years and I hope, with my major, I play an active role in my profession. Ready or not Internet, here I come!

Freedom of Speech

According to Citizen Marketers and a research paper by Matthew Hurst, the most active bloggers are in China. Although America takes second, we were behind them by "a factor or four." And following the U.S. is Taiwan, Japan, and Brazil. Part of me was not surprised that China was number one. It is the most populated country. Since there is a larger population to participate in blogging, it would make sense they would have more active bloggers than the U.S. But what surprised me is the realization that China, and other countries, are becoming as technologically advanced, and some even more, than America. This book even predicts that China may become the blogging capital of the world. That seems crazy, but again, so true. And even though China is most active, their freedom of speech is still in jeopardy when it comes to blogs. Citizen Marketers touched on this issue in the book which peaked my interest. Then I found this article at http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/06/technology/06blog.html that clearly states how China's government is monitoring and deleting posts by bloggers. The government even takes it so far as to delete blogs completely if they are seen as "anti-government." And the most disturbing part is that MSN Spaces, where one blog was completely deleted, is maintained on computers in the US. When asked why they deleted the entire blog, they defended it by saying they had to upon request from the Chinese. And the blogger they deleted was well-respected even represented China in Germany for a blog competition. After reading this article, it's apparent that the Internet might not completely support freedom of speech.