The BlogTalkRadio Blog

Social Media Club’s first social radio show was a thought provoking dive into authenticity, credibility and authority in social media. Mike McGrath hosted special guests Chris Heuer and Robert Scoble while fielding some great calls from notable bloggers and social media leaders. Among those on the live internet radio show were Tris Hussey, Howard Greenstein, Tony Bove, Phil Wolff, Lisa Padilla, Connie Reece, Todd Van Hoosear and more. Headlines from the discussion tackled Scoble’s recent lessons learned as well as:

• Self-correcting blogosphere and its dynamic nature
• How top bloggers parse information using feed readers
• How people use Search for information
• Different sites used to search for people - Facebook on top at the moment
• Bloggers as journalists or bloggers vs. journalists?
• Mistakes in the blogosphere – making them and learning from them
• Wisdom of crowds - blogging and learning from that community

The archive of the conversation provides an interesting perspective on “lessons learned” by even some of social media’s most notable. A great listen for any novice or “expert” in the online space. You can also subscribe to the Social Media Club show so you never miss an episode. It’s great to be able to provide a platform that enables this interactive, live discussion. I look forward to more SMC shows. Heck, I may even work up the nerve to call in one day.

-Luke

Those of you familiar with me will know I love social media. I love what it can do for individuals and businesses. So you can imagine how thrilled I am that the Social Media Club has a show on BlogTalkRadio. Today’s inaugural episode features Robert "The Scobleizer" Scoble, Vice President of Media Development of Podtech.net talking Authenticity, Credibility and Authority in Social Media.

It amuses me that Robert’s "About Me" section of his highly trafficked blog goes to his Wikipedia entry. Talk about trusting social media…

The show streams at 1pm ET today, August 31, 2007, for 60 minutes. The call in number is (646) 716-9346, so pick up the phone and join this sure-to-be-interesting conversation.

Update: show aired, archive here

About SMC: Social Media Club is being organized for the purpose of sharing best practices, establishing ethics and standards, and promoting media literacy around the emerging area of Social Media. This is the beginning of a global conversation about building an organization and a community where the many diverse groups of people who care about social media can come together to discover, connect, share, and learn.

-Luke

A relatively new parent myself, children’s books are becoming an increasingly important part of my life. So I’m always on the lookout for new, great books.

Today at 3pm ET, the scheduled guest on Book Bites for Kids is children’s author Deborah Reber. She’ll talk about her book - In Their Shoes, in which extraordinary women describe their careers.

Book Bites for Kids features an interview with a successful children’s author and/or illustrator every Friday. Host Suzanne Lieurance discusses this author’s books and offer tips to help aspiring children’s authors or illustrators get their careers started.

-Luke

One of the things I love about the BTR network is that it gives people a chance to showcase their enthusiasm and knowledge. Add to that a special guest - it’s a winning combination. Hosts Aceman and the Kwass will be joined by New York Post Mets beat writer Mark Hale on The Sports Docket tonight at 8pm ET. Mark also blogs the Mets at the New York Post online.

Join the conversation tonight!

The technology that has enabled self-publishing has altered the way we communicate. This technology has brought conversations to the forefront, humanized organizations and given voices to the unheard.

Last month, the Pew Internet & American Life Project posted some statistics from a report called Bloggers. The press release, titled Blogging is bringing new voices to the online world, highlights some of the key findings of the survey:

54 percent of bloggers say that they have never published their writing or media creations anywhere else; 44 percent say they have published elsewhere.
54 percent of bloggers are under the age of 30.
Women and men have statistical parity in the blogosphere, with women representing 46 percent of bloggers and men 54 percent.
76 percent of bloggers say a reason they blog is to document their personal experiences and share them with others.
64 percent of bloggers say a reason they blog is to share practical knowledge or skills with others.
When asked to choose one main subject, 37 percent of bloggers say that the primary topic of their blog is “my life and experiences.”
Other topics ran distantly behind: 11 percent of bloggers focus on politics and government; 7 percent focus on entertainment; 6 percent focus on sports; 5 percent focus on general news and current events; 5 percent focus on business; 4 percent on technology; 2 percent on religion, spirituality or faith; and additional smaller groups who focus on a specific hobby, a health problem or illness, or other topics.

And this is what BlogTalkRadio has done for people. We have given them voices. This social radio network has allowed people to share their lives and experiences through internet talk radio. From Katrina survivors to sports fanatics to political pundits to new media mavens to paranormal purveyors to businesses. These are their lives. These are their experiences. We give them voices.

Actual voices. It’s internet talk radio!

-Luke