ADVERTISING
AOL Expects Internet Ads to be Weak
Study Details Impact of Web Ads on Business Execs
MEDIA & SOCIETY: 9/11
Real Solace in a Virtual World: Memorials Take Root on the Web
Where We Stand One Year Later
ADVERTISING
STUDY DETAILS IMPACT OF WEB ADS ON BUSINESS EXECS
Sixty percent of business executives say the Internet is the best way for
advertisers to reach them, according to a recent study conducted online by
Nielsen/NetRatings' ( at )plan and Minnesota Opinion Research, in conjunction
with washingtonpost.com. Nearly 50 percent of participants said the Web has
influenced them to make a purchase or obtain a service for their business,
and 50 percent of the respondents who increased their Web usage in the last
year said they decreased TV viewing. The survey, which included responses
from nearly 1,000 business leaders, also found that Internet advertising
hits them at a crucial time: when they are at work.
[SOURCE: AdAge.com, AUTHOR: Tobi Elkin]
(http://www.adage.com/news.cms?newsId=35985)
AOL EXPECTS INTERNET ADS TO BE WEAK
AOL Time Warner said yesterday that advertising on its flagship online
service, America Online, will be six percent lower this year than its
previous forecast -- a drop of $100 million. As a result, the unit's pre-tax
operating profit will also be $100 million below its expectations. But the
media conglomerate said that its other businesses were performing modestly
better than expected, and that it would meet its current profit and revenue
targets for the rest of the year. AOL also faces falling sales of
merchandise that are promoted through pop-up ads. With subscriber defections
increasing, the company decided to reduce the much-hated pop-ups even at the
expense of merchandise revenue.
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Saul Hansell]
(http://www.nytimes.com/2002/09/10/technology/10AOL.html)
(requires registration)
MEDIA & SOCIETY: 9/11
REAL SOLACE IN A VIRTUAL WORLD: MEMORIALS TAKE ROOT ON THE WEB
There is no grave site for Tracy Orr to visit. The body of her husband, Alex
Steinman, was never found in the rubble of the World Trade Center, and her
guess is as good as any as to when a permanent memorial to the victims will
be built. Until a site is built, friends and families have been using the
Internet to remember, cherish and celebrate the lives of those lost.
Legacy.com is a commercial obituary site that has a section devoted to
victims of the attacks, while CantorFamilies.com commemorates the legacy of
Cantor Fitzgerald, eSpeed and TradeSpark employees. "For the first time in
history we have grass-roots, spontaneous records of how people were feeling
and how they reacted and what they were saying during this kind of major
event," says Tom Scheinfeldt, co-director of the September 11 Digital
Archive.
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Amy Harmon]
(http://www.nytimes.com/2002/09/11/nationchallenged/11GRIE.html)
September 11 Digital Archive:
(http://www.911digitalarchive.org)
WHERE WE STAND ONE YEAR LATER
The USA Patriot Act of 2001, which enables law enforcement officials to
seize data such as phone company records and observe private activity such
as a person's book-borrowing habits, was enacted by Congress in an attempt
to help prevent future terrorists attacks. Critics of the law, however, say
it is both invasive and ineffective. "They don't know who to tap, so they
engage in widespread monitoring and collect far more information than they
can begin to digest," cites Jim Dempsey, deputy director of the Center for
Democracy and Technology. While it is difficult to ascertain how has the
Patriot Act been applied in the year since the September 11 attacks,
anecdotal data suggests that investigators have taken advantage of their new
powers. According to an anonymous, nationwide survey of 1,503 public
libraries last December, for example, 220 of them had received information
requests from the FBI following September 11. The American Library
Association, which represents the nation's librarians, argues that the
Patriot Act violates patrons' privacy and free-speech rights. "There's a
dangerous presumption that there is a connection between what someone reads
and what they do afterward," said association president Maurice J. Freedman.
"Just because someone reads Mein Kampf doesn't mean they're going to become
a Nazi."
[SOURCE: Wired News, AUTHOR: Julia Scheeres]
(http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,55056,00.html)
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