reblogged via latimes:
Will the next episode of “30 Rock” explore Jack Donaghy’s adventures into social media blogging platform Stumblr?
reblogged via nbcuniversal:
Welcome to NBCUniversal’s tumblr. Here, we’re going to attempt to tell the long and colorful story of our company…
“Housing isn’t the solution to homelessness. You also need community,” said Mark Horvath.
Founder of InvisiblePeople.tv — a site of raw, uncut videos of homeless people telling their own stories—Horvath was once homeless himself in 1995. So he’s no small advocate for solving the homelessness problem in the United States, and he believes social media will play no small part in doing so.
Naysayers might argue that if one is homeless, technology should not be something that is affordable or accessible. That technology is in large part a luxury.
But those who are on the street or who are about to be might feel differently.
According to Horvath, there’s a rise in the number of homeless people he meets who are on social media platforms, namely Twitter and Facebook. Horvath sees this largely as a positive aspect to their lives, as he senses that the people he meets feel less alone.
“One hundred percent of the sheltered homeless I meet are online and on Facebook. Online is still a human experience, it’s just online,” he said.
Rd Plasschaert believes her life was saved by social networking.
Her story is a familiar one, perhaps.
“I had a great paying job at a high-stress law firm. In February 2009, I left for health reasons because I felt I was going to have a heart attack, and I thought no job is worth that. Not knowing that the great crisis was about to happen,” she said.
She thought she could take on temporary work through local temp agencies, but was surprised when the agencies had no work to give. Due to continued health problems, she ended up on disability.
“In August 2010, I knew I was going to be homeless,” she said. “Agencies kept referring me back to the 211 number. I would call 211 and they would say we cannot help you until you are on the streets. I was in this cycle of: we can not provide help until you are actually homeless.”
She started a blog, as an online journal, she says at first in order “just to stay sane.” Through another blogger she was introduced to Twitter. She originally wrote the site off as inane banter. “At first, I thought: This is where people say ‘I’m going to burp.’ I thought it was nothing.”
But partly out of desperation, she decided to try it, and soon began searching for others in her same situation. Within four days of being online, she found Horvath.
She stayed at Path Achieve in Glendale for three months, and was also placed at the Winter Shelter, before becoming housed in an apartment three weeks ago.
Her current housing is sponsored in part by Skip1.org, an organization she also connected with through the microblogging site.
“Twitter is the only reason I have housing,” she said.
For the full story, visit L.A. Times Chatter.
reblogged via aljazeera:
The 30 seconds that ended 30 years of Hosni Mubarak’s rule over Egypt.
(Source: english.aljazeera.net)
