New Species

Recently, two people, one from James Cook and one from Harvard University, found three new species in Australia's Cape Melville. One was named a leaf-tailed gecko, one named a blotched-boulder frog and one named a shade skink. Below are pictures taken from CNN's website covering the story.

Leaf-tailed gecko

Blotched-boulder frog

Shade skink

I think it is absolutely amazing there are still animals we have not discovered. When thinking about it, I understand how three new species could be found, but it still astounds me. Scientists have done so much to discover unknown species and places, but a vast majority of the ocean is still unexplored. I can't wait to keep reading about all the species scientists continue to discover.

The Craziest Weekend Imaginable

As I write this, I am sitting in the Loews hotel waiting for the pilot episode of JJ Abrahm's "Almost Human" to start. For those of you who don't know, I am currently in Philadelphia for the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) National Conference. I just finished a session with two publicists from Warner Brothers and a writer for TV guide. I cannot even describe to you fellow bloggers how lucky I am.

Part of my luck I've been continually reminded of this weekend has stemmed from the education I'm getting at Ohio Northern. Our public relations program is difficult, yes. Stressful? Oh, yes. Bounds ahead other schools? I can't even describe. Dr. Iseman is an incredible educator and set up our program for our students to succeed. Many things I had taken for granted don't exist at other schools. We are so lucky for all the programs and opportunities for experience offered to us. Keeping tradition alive, Ohio Northern University's chapter of PRSSA won the Star Chapter award. In addition, Katie Hozan, Jake Schwerer and Lauren Tennet each won the National Gold Key award, an award given to graduated seniors who showed public relations and leadership excellence.

I'm also so lucky to be surrounded by incredible students and faculty at ONU. Dr. Agozzino and Dr. Fleck do so much to guide us and make sure they're doing all they can to prepare us. Many advisors don't know their student's faces, let alone anything personal about them. Also, our student network is so unbelievably supportive of one another. I know I can go to anyone in the pr department if I need to talk to someone. They are always there to lift me up if I need it.

To start the weekend off with an amazing start, I had the pleasure of seeing "Zombie Prom" Thursday evening. For those of you that missed it, you truly missed an amazing experience. I am so incredibly impressed and proud of the 10 member cast of ONU students. It was incredibly choreographed, directed, costumed, acted and sang. And any other verb a musical should be. For those of you that did miss it, small clips and pictures can be found on the Freed Center Facebook page.

Once again, this weekend has reminded me how lucky I am to be attending ONU. I continually applaud my senior-self for making the decision to come to this campus. My professors, friends, education and opportunities have been extremely amazing, and I couldn't imagine myself anywhere else.

Ohio Northern University Homecoming 2013

After covering an event at homecoming, the task then came to overlook how Ohio Northern is utilizing their Twitter and Facebook pages.

On Twitter, Ohio Northern seems to do a decent job at giving future notice of events, such as a performance, special recognition or even homecoming.

As seen in the examples above, almost all of the tweets sent directly from the Ohio Northern account contain a link to further information about the upcoming performance or event. Many of these links go to the Ohio Northern website.

Their Facebook page, however, does not give any notice for upcoming events. This medium for ONU is mainly used to post pictures or videos about recent events.

As far as specifically promoting homecoming, Ohio Northern did not do the greatest job. On the Twitter account, two tweets were made about homecoming, one of which was a retweet. The Facebook page, as mentioned before, only posted information about homecoming after each event happened. Perhaps students could see the pictures and look up future events, but there was no outright promotion for attendance at events on the Facebook page. However, a fair amount of pictures were posted on the page, giving a nice visual representation of homecoming. Also, all of this happened around the time President DiBiasio made the Ohio Northern promise, possibly stealing some attention away from homecoming. Most of the buzz on Twitter and Facebook seemed to revolve around this promise, rightly so considering this is a huge piece of news.

Here is a link to my storify blog:

http://storify.com/alexalammers/ohio-northern-homecoming-2013

Connecting With Customers or Marketing and PR?

When I first read the title to Chapter 10 in "Real-Time Marketing & PR," this was the first picture that popped into my mind. The chapter, entitled "Connecting with customers is marketing and pr,"talked about the importance of interacting and pleasing current customers. With the uprise of social media, customers are more able to spread their opinion, whether it be good or bad. In order to keep the opinion positive, helpful interaction must be made between the customer and the company. David Meerman Scott then goes into detail about the four key components of making or improving connections between the consumer and organization.

Working for a family-owned business, I know how important word-of-mouth advertising is. Because the store doesn't have much expendable income, television advertising is not the ideal place for the store. Even if television advertising was a possibility, it wouldn't make sense with the atmosphere of the store. Word-of-mouth is truly our most effective way of advertising. People are welcomed in, listened to and cared for whenever they enter. Because of this connection with customers, many have recommended our store to others. Many new customers enter saying they heard about us from another customer. The fact that I know many of the customers by name is a true testament to the connections we build with those that visit our store.

All of this fits well because it sits in a small town. If we were in a different location, a new approach would need to be taken. No matter what, connecting with customers would still be very close to the top of importance, if not first. The fact still stands that many people rely on those around them for opinions on products or businesses. Scott was definitely right when he said connecting with customers is a way of marketing your business.

Dick Cheney and His Heart

In the midst of all of the government drama, former Vice President Dick Cheney appeared on "60 Minutes" to talk about his health. Apparently, Cheney has suffered from five heart attacks, his first one when he was 37. After about two months of being sworn-in as vice president, he had a letter of resignation written just in case another attack would happen leaving him incapable to properly carry out his duties. He has recently undergone a heart transplant. However, I was more how CNN covered this story.

Normally, I wouldn't be entirely interested in this subject matter. Yes, I think it's great Cheney's heart is in better condition now. Modern medicine and procedures are truly a miracle. However, I clicked on the link to the story because I thought it read "Dick Cheney opens his heart." That sounds appealing, I thought. I wonder why a former vice president would be opening his heart to the media. Even though the title was truly "Dick Cheney opens up about his heart," the title was still meant to intrigue readers. I couldn't help but marvel at the tactics CNN used to increase readers' interest.

The most important things, most times, can be headlines. If the headline isn't interesting, what will push people to read the story in the first place? Truthfully, I wouldn't have clicked on it if I knew that's what the story was about. Like I said, I am very happy Cheney is in better health now, but it truly doesn't interest me. CNN sparked my interest, and I thought he was possibly was giving his interpretation on what was happening in the government currently, spoken from his heart. Nice move, CNN.

Are You Afraid of the Theatre Students?

Although this is a delayed reaction, how could I not post about Freed Fright Night? Run by Theta Alpha Phi, a theatre honors fraternity, Freed Fright Night offered students the opportunity to be frightened on their last day of fall break. Even though I was simply stamping hands, I did have the chance to help set up and walk through the trail. I must say, had I not known every single thing that was going to happen, I would have been extremely terrified.

Like all good theatre students, we took this night as a chance to tell a story throughout the trail. The story started with a girl named Emily who was a double major in chemistry and theatre. That coming fall, the theatre department was planning to present "The Crucible," and Emily was expecting to be cast as Abigail Williams. However, Emily was not cast in the play at all. On opening night, Emily attended the performance with a gas mask and a plan. She sealed all the entrances and exits, then released a nerve gas that would rob victims of sanity for 20 minutes before suffocating them. When the police arrived the next morning, few people had actually suffocated to death. The rest ripped each other to shreds.

Sounds frightening, right? I also highly suggest checking out the awesome promo video made for the Fright Night. Ushers led people to the studio theatre lobby, down the hallway, past the scene shop and dressing rooms, through the dance room and finally into the main stage theatre, all while listening to shrieks of terror from the audience members. I thoroughly enjoyed asking those who walked through their favorite part and the scariest part. For the most part, everyone agreed on one specific point, but I loved hearing reactions.

The turnout for the event was incredible! We had many more 'victims' than we anticipated, which was a very good problem to have! For all those who attended, there was talk of another Fright Night next year, but with more time allotted so groups wouldn't be as large. A movie was also offered after all of the groups were lead through the trail, but not without a finale for the trail depicting what happened to Emily.

A huge thanks to those who attended and made Freed Fright Night a huge success. Also, if anyone out there has any suggestions for next year, I will definitely pass them on to a leader figure! After all, running events are great, but we need to evaluate after the fact. So, whatever evaluation those of you have would be much appreciated to make Freed Fright Night a success next year as well!

The People Don't Stop Talking, So Neither Should You

Chapter seven in Real-time Marketing & PR talks about a crisis situation involving a company called Eurostar. From what I've gathered, Eurostar is one of the only trains that connect London to Paris and Brussels. In December of 2009, a train shutdown, leaving hundreds of passengers trapped in the Channel Tunnel, as well as thousands wondering why their train is late. Instead of letting the public know exactly what was happening, Eurostar stayed completely silent. But their audience wasn't. The author found one tweet was being sent per minute bashing Eurostar. They didn't understand the problem, so they became angry, and who could blame them? Their mode of transportation was not working, they didn't know why, and they didn't know if anything was being done to fix it.

If I've learned anything about public relations (and trust me, my professors have taught me much about it), it's that the job never rests. If a crisis happens during the night, you have to jump into action from your couch, or wherever you may be. The public wants answers. If you don't have your side of the story available, then they'll start making their own side, a side that probably won't be great for your business.

It is also vital to keep your audience happy. Can this be done all the time? Of course not. However, explain what your company is thinking and why you think it'll be the best for your consumers. Make them see the big picture. In times of a crisis, let the audience know step-by-step what happened and what is being done to fix it. Let them know it was a slight mistake. Even if it was a huge mistake your company should have fixed a long time ago, fess up to it. Sooner or later, your consumers will figure out how you could have prevented the crisis, so it's better to be upfront and honest than lie.

I was astounded that Eurostar stayed completely silent in a crisis situation. They seemed to slightly monopolize the long-distance transportation system, but you never know when another business will have the resources to do so. When that day comes, don't you want customers to continue coming to you instead of immediately switching to your competitor? If you keep them in the dark on a crisis, though, they'll be happy to leave your company.

Another trip to the World Series?

Being from a family of Detroit Tigers fans, I have to post about their win last night! Facing the Boston Red Sox, the Tigers won 1-0 at Fenway Park last night. In the first inning, pitcher Anibal Sanchez struck out four batters, something that hasn't been accomplished since 1908. He also led six no-hit innings, and the Red Sox only had one hit the entire game.

Right now, the Tigers are playing the Red Sox in the ALCS, or the American League Championship Series. Seven games are played and the overall winner of those games advance to the World Series. The above link does lead to a Wikipedia page with more information on the ALCS if anyone is interested. Yes, I know Wikipedia can be unreliable, but if you wish to have a general understanding, the site will work just fine.

The Tigers last won the World Series in 1984, but did play last year. As a Tigers fan, I am hoping for the best as they continue the remaining six games. Hopefully those six will lead to more as they go on their way to win another World Series champion title.

With such a gap since the last World Series championship, the public relations team for the Tigers could have a major advertising opportunity. Also, with the Tigers just going to the World Series last year, many of the T-shirt designs from last year. I think this could be an easy advertisement for the pr team!

Team Not Today! An Inside View of the Undy 5000

Today, I was fortunate to participate in the Undy 5000 on my cousin Christina's team. Along with the Colon Cancer Alliance, the Undy 5000 strives to raise awareness and funds for colon cancer research and prevention. The Undy 5000 is a 5K, or a one mile run or walk if you so choose, in underwear to raise awareness. Instead of a T-shirt, they handed out pairs of boxers with registration. The Colon Cancer Alliance hopes to wipe colon cancer out of the top three cancer killers. Currently, colon cancer is the second cause of cancer-related deaths. Mainly, colon cancer affects those 50 years or older, but some rare cases do occur, such as my cousin.

Christina Lewis is 34 years old and has Stage 3 colon cancer. Recently, she has also tested positive for Lynch Syndrome. Lynch Syndrome is a genetic mutation in the cells that increase chances of having colon cancer to 85 percent and uterian cancer by 65 percent. After developing cancer for the first time, chances of a reoccurrence increase. Because I cannot put into words her experiences, I will attach this video. After learning of Christina and her condition, those at the Undy 5000 asked her to speak and share her story.

Her favorite saying through this whole experience has been "Not Today!" Because this has been such a major part in her attitude, our team for the Undy 5000 was called Not Today. She is such a positive person, and I believe her when she says she's going to be just fine. However, if any of you fellow people reading this are religious, I ask you to keep her in your prayers. If any reading this are not religious, please just keep her in your thoughts. With help from organizations like the Colon Cancer Alliance, we can all help to kick cancer in the butt!

"There is only one thing we say to death: Not today."

The Government Won't Stop the Veterans

This past Tuesday, veterans stormed past the barricades closing the World War II monument to pay their respects. Tuesday was priorly planned to be a day of memorial to these veterans, so that's what happened. Almost 200 veterans from Mississippi and Iowa, joined by Rep. Steven Palazzo, walked past security guards and barriers to the tune of "Amazing Grace." The amazing thing? All of these people, with the exception of Rep. Palazzo, were in their 80s and 90s. They had travelled a long distance in old age to pay respects of those who fought with them for the same cause.

However, Rep. Palazzo was not the only member of Congress to help the veterans. Others joined him in lining up these aging heroes along the barrier and helped to move the blocks. A move the security guards did not stop, one being a war veteran himself. Congressman Bill Huizenga was quoted saying, "this is the best civil disobedience we've seen in Washington in a while" (Fox News, para. 14).

Wednesday, another group of veterans stormed the memorial, as well. This time, veterans from Ohio, Kansas and Missouri lead the charge to pay their respects, regardless of the signs. Today, a story was posted about more Ohio veterans willing to risk arrest to pay respects to those lost in World War II. Lee Armstrong is the coordinator of Honor Flight in Ohio, a service offered to veterans for an expense-paid visit to war monuments. He was told by a woman at National Park Services if others defied the blockades, they would be arrested.

Do veterans deserve to be arrested for wishing to pay respects? Are other groups acting in defiance after seeing the first group succeed, or are their intentions pure? After all, they are in their 80s and 90s. Should the government even shut down national war monuments in the first place? In my opinion, if they have security guards watching the blockades, why don't they use those security guards to just watch the monument as those who wish come to visit.

Looking for a Movie to Check Out?

This weekend, I experienced both Gravity and Don Jon. The movies had very different themes, but both were enjoyable in their own way. Gravity was an intense drama about a space mission gone wrong. Don Jon was a truthful comedy about a New Jersey boy searching to fill a void in his life.

Starring George Clooney and Sandra Bullock, Gravity is a suspenseful fight for survival. Sandra Bullock plays Dr. Ryan Stone, a medical engineer on her first space mission. Matt Kowalski, played by George Clooney, is a wise-cracking, veteran astronaut, obsessed with beating the record for the longest spacewalk. After being alerted about rubble from the Russian anti-test satellite, Dr. Stone and Kowalski, along with the other three crew members, hurriedly try to escape the area. A crash of rubble send the crew apart and cease any communication they had with Mission Control in Houston. In fear of ruining any more surprises, I will stop my synopsis there. The film was shot using a 3D camera, so I would advise seeing it in 3D. Granted, I have not seen it in 2D, so I can't compare the two, but the director used the camera for the purpose of 3D being worth the money.

Don Jon is a comedy starring, written and directed by Joseph Gordon-Levitt. These 90 minutes were much different than the 90 minutes spent watching Gravity. This film is about a man who enjoys watching pornography more than he does being with a real woman. Even his record of scoring a girl rated an eight or nine every weekend can't stop his frequent visits to pornhub.com. Then, he meets Barbara, played by Scarlett Johansson, a girl obsessed with the idealized man in romantic comedies. She convinces Jon to enroll in night school, among other things, where he meets Esther, played by Julianne Moore. Again, for fear of ruining the movie, my summary stops here. Joseph Gordon-Levitt's depiction of male nature is hilariously true, and that's even coming from my boyfriend. I was surprised how much of a date movie it turned out to be, although the movie can clearly point out if you're in a working relationship or not.

A New Way Post and Share Pictures

Through a new smartphone app and website, TimeShaker is a way to link pictures together. From what I've seen through their website and description the the app store on the iPhone, pictures can be sorted by date or event. The website gave some examples of famous events in history. It also looked as if you could sort pictures by location as well.

A definite pro to this new app is it is a new concept for picture sorting. IPhoto on Mac computers do sort pictures by event, but there is no way to share the group of pictures to anyone else. Although I don't know how the sharing works exactly, the option to share a group of organized pictures is a nice feature.

A con to this new app is I don't know exactly how it works. If I were to create an account, I'm sure the company would tell me what I need to do. However, if I don't know exactly how it works, what will push me to download the app or create an account in the first place?

They seem to have a nice tagline and website setup, but more attention needs to be made to actually describing the product. The switch between the social and business websites is an excellent idea, but I didn't see much difference between the two besides the scrolling pictures. Perhaps a highlighted section detailing the features of the app for social and business use in the appropriate places would help adaption of this new app.