Radiating Power

 By Mike Gange

 In my media studies course, I ended the year with a short unit on the Internet. I called on Melanie Thompson from a local company, Radian6, to come over and tell us some details about her work in social media. 

Radian6 is a Fredericton company that monitors media, especially on-line media, looking for comments from viewers, customers, observers and others who might have something to say about the clients of radian6. Let’s say you had an unpleasant experience with Pepsi, and wrote about it in your blog. If Pepsi is a client of radian6, they would get a report on the comments being made on your blog. 

Melanie did an excellent job of talking to two different but related classes. She addressed the Grade 12 Journalism students, urging them to write more and network more. She applauded their efforts on social media for their comments and written work. She had read their work on the website, http://theblackkat2011.wordpress.com/   She liked the fact that the website had readers around the world. She said she was impressed with the authenticity of what the students were writing.  

In the next class, a Grade 12 Media Studies class, she talked about the power of the media. She showed the video “United Breaks Guitars”  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YGc4zOqozo then questioned the students on how they thought this might impact on United Airlines, and how United might have handled things a little better. Her presentation was a rousing success, as she encouraged the students to realize the footprint they leave on-line could have long lasting consequences. She pointed out that although the world is moving faster than ever, there is still a right way to deal with clients and associates.  

Melanie’s presentations were not about being sneaky or secretive. In fact, she was all about ethical treatment and fairness. One of her underlying themes was about the power of the individual to make a difference in a hard-charging world.

It’s a message more kids should hear.