Rosen was interviewed by FishbowlDC, reiterating his regret for the tweets. You can read the interview here, but below, I’ve “graded” the apology.

Legitimate Regret – B: It’s impossible to know if Rosen truly understands why his comments were not appropriate, but the self-degradation he unleashes in the interview was certainly evident. When you succumb to Twitter’s common syndrome of foot-in-mouth disease, the only way to really try and repair the damage is to truly acknowledge your mistake and show regret. While it would be nice to see that before you get attacked by an angry social media mob, he certainly doesn’t hold back here.

The Ignorance Card – D: Rosen said of Twitter, “We don’t regard it as a place to make serious statements, after all, at least I thought, it’s just silly social media, but that was idiotic of me and showed terrible judgment.”

In my research of Rosen it’s pretty evident we’re talking about a smart man. He’s written for highly regarding publications and is a respected journalist. I find it extremely difficult to believe that Rosen was not aware of the power of social media and Twitter in the year 2011. I can’t accept that he made a mistake simply because he thought Twitter wasn’t a big deal. Sorry, but you are too smart to play the ignorance card.

Telling the Truth – D-: Rosen indicated that when he made the comment he wasn’t yet aware of the magnitude of what had happened to Logan. He thought she was just “roughed up.” While he may have heard something before the masses due to his political and journalistic connections, I’m struggling to accept that he was unaware that she was sexually assaulted. The fact that he Tweeted that she was trying to outdo Anderson Cooper also points to that.

The Thought that Counts – C: Rosen discusses the fact that he’s concerned that celebrities, especially white ones, get more attention when tragedy like this strikes. It sounds as though he thought he was defending Arab women because they would never get such attention. While I’m not arguing fact or fiction on that sentiment, it doesn’t make me anymore comfortable about belittling what happened to Logan. If he’s so concerned about that, then perhaps he could make it his cause to highlight those victims.

The Real Reason – A: Rosen says, “I also let my personal dislike of Ms. Logan’s support for wars that have been very costly in terms of human life, which I have seen first hand, make it seem like I somehow actually think she deserved to be attacked.”

Plain and simple, I believe this is what really happened. Political views can power some pretty destructive actions. Glad he acknowledged that.

Humility – A: In the last question, Rosen truly shows he understands the magnitude of his actions. This is the most important part of the interview, because if he’s ever forgiven, it’s this revelation that will help him mend relationships.

What do you think about Rosen’s interview? Did he say enough? Too much? The right things? The wrong things? What grade would you give him? Please add your thoughts to the comments below.

The Comedian – This group of jokers doesn’t let a little earth movin’ stop them from a little Twitter stand up. No harm, no foul, once we know everyone’s A-OK!

If it didn’t Happen to Me it’s Not Worth Talking About – These people can’t possibly be bothered by a potential tragedy. GAWD, what’s the big deal! Sorry to annoy, but ask yourself, have you tweeted in the last several days about Lebron James or The World Cup? To each his own.

The Tough Guy – Yeah B*$%^! It’s an adrenaline rush for guys like this. Boom Boom Pow!

The Ambulance Chaser – Bless her heart, I do appreciate the concern.

Holier Than Thou – Listen guys, we haven’t forgotten Haiti. Trust me, every time the earth shakes these days, which is frequently, we thank our lucky stars that we live in California with its sound structures. It doesn’t mean we can’t talk about what we felt, and how we reacted.

The One Upper – It’s not a competition. We are reacting to something that just happened, and we’re taking it all in and communicating with each other. This doesn’t have to take away from what you are going through.

Confused Substance Abuser – Earthquakes provide a natural high, ok?

Worst Hangover Ever – I saw a lot of these. Question? Isn’t it a little early (or late) to be hungover?

Aspirational – Ask yourself this question: Is the big one really something to be excited about?  Trust me, no.

The Earthquake Virgin - Sorry to disappoint you. Hopefully next time a tree will topple on your car for a greater WOW factor.

The Opportunist – How can I use this to my advantage? I am an expert after all.

The SoCal Native – Earthquakes! What a snoozefest! I’m such a veteran of this stuff. Rawr!

If I used your tweet, just remember it’s all in good fun. So, what kind of earthquake Twitterer did I forget? What kind are you?

• Mass Direct Message Delete Capability – Like emails, DM’s are one of those pesky things that add up quickly, until you have more than 600 like I do. I hope you all manage your messages better than me, but wouldn’t it be great to delete them all with click?

• Sort Function for DMs – While we are on the topic of DMs, have you ever thought of an old DM you wanted to revisit, only to find you had to slowly go through each page until you could find it? It would be much more efficient to sort by sender, as a start. It’d be even more awesome to search by keyword, but let’s not get greedy.

• Longer Shelf-Life for Searches – PR expert @jgoldsborough and I remember the good ole’ days in Twitter’s younger years when we could go back much farther in time to track activity on a certain topic. Now, search.twitter.com only goes back several days. Can we please go back months instead of days? This is also important for Twitter as they expand resources for businesses – in order to track conversations and trends to prove the social network is a viable marketing tool, we need a more robust archive to study.

• List Notification – Lists are an important way to gauge influence on Twitter, trumping followers when automated follow tools may artificially inflate perceived popularity. Lists can also help signal users that they are important to those in their communities. PR and social media strategist @timotis would love to see some sort of notification that you’ve been added to a list. Sometimes it’s impossible to keep track.

• Manage Multiple Accounts in Web – Most of the many Twitter functions trump Twitter’s own interface because they feature sophisticated functions like the ability to manage multiple accounts from one page. Social media practitioner @samirb mentioned how great it would be if Twitter would add this function, which would encourage more usage of Twitter’s Web version.

• DM Multiple Accounts –PR and social media whiz @ryanmathre suggested that, outside of the annoying auto-DM, the ability to “CC” multiple Twitter accounts via DM would help streamline correspondence as we look more and more to the social network for communication.

• Easier to Search by Geography – Public relations and social media pro @arikhanson suggested that an easier way to search by geographic location would be a valuable upgrade. I agree, as geo-targeting has become critically important for marketers this year. I’d go farther and suggest additional ways to better search the people you want to reach, such as by profession or interests.

• More Detailed Follow Notifications – The current email notification sent by Twitter only includes the new followers name and many followers he or she has, and how many people are followed. What’s more valuable, in my opinion, is the bio which appears on every profile page. I’d love to see that at a glance, to help me decide if we might have a good connection. Right now, the numbers don’t mean much to me.

I couldn’t include every great idea, so I just posted some of my favorites. To reiterate, I know everyone who answered, myself included, are huge Twitter fans, so trust me when we say we aren’t being critical. We’ve simply integrated the network into our daily routines so heavily it’s easy to create a wish list of new and improved features. What did we leave out? If you were in charge of product development, what would you put on Twitter’s roadmap? Leave your suggestions in the comments below.

Photo credit: alicepopkorn

Enter the Internet, where buzz words like engagement and conversation often provide the misdirected impression that marketing here is offensive, off limits, and we’re all here just to make friends. Twitter executives made several announcements this week, most notably about its new advertising model, which left many users feeling that Twitter was selling out to “the man,” a common theme when a popular start-up decides it actually wants to start, “gasp” generating revenue. New is always hard, but it’s important to remember that highlighting paid search results isn’t a new practice – Google built its machine in a similar fashion.

In the same vein, notable bloggers and social media strategists also come under fire if it’s ever revealed they’ve actually generated money with content of education, and a virtual witchhunt typically ensues. I truly believe Chris Brogan enjoys interacting and sharing through vehicles like his blog and Facebook, but I’m also pretty certain that if he had the same number of followers on Twitter but was making $23,000 a year he’d be working on his resume right about now. And I’d also guess he’ll be chilling in Bali with a mojito when his start-up begins generating millions in revenue. That’s not selling out, that’s smart business. We need to spend less time pointing fingers and more time examining profitable business models for best practices.

The word transparency (one of those overused buzz words) can create hypersensitive emotions about whether or not a type of marketing is fair game. While I wholeheartedly feel that paid editorial disguised as unbiased commentary is unethical (I’m a sucker for journalistic integrity) I don’t believe accepting paid, clearly marked advertising makes the seller a sellout. Just because content moves from the pages of a magazine, a newsletter, or the television to the Internet does not mean it becomes a free for all. If you’ve monetized your online real estate, kudos to you.

Relationships, knowledge, entertainment – they’re all priceless fruits of the social Web. But if you are using the Internet to build your business and you aren’t making money, you are doing it wrong. What do you think? What is the line between creating a revenue stream and selling out? Why is it so hard to swallow when an online entity starts hosting ads or charging for certain elements, when we’ve been watching ads for years?

photo credit: Muffet

• R.E.S.P.E.C.T – While we all have great contacts with journalists and bloggers alike, the way we built those relationships was by showing an element of respect for and knowledge of their content, pitching style and by taking note of what makes them tick. Twitter’s 140 characters doesn’t mean we throw that approach out the window. I’ve noticed a number of rogue PR folks hounding press with invites to their next events, prodding them to cover their news stories or generally assuming a too familiar tone. That’s the wrong way to get media to notice you and can get you a one-way ticket to the blacklist. How to get noticed in a positive way? Read and retweet their blog posts, comment on their tweets in a personalized but not over-familiar way or even ask them questions about subjects in which they offer an expertise. Tread lightly until you have a good understanding of their comfort levels.

• The Name Drop – I’m sorry, but we’re on to you. We know that the Twitter convo you’ve been carrying on with Alyssa Milano is just a one –way dialogue. I know you’re both Dodger fans and both love pink (actually I don’t know if she likes pink) but girl has 300,000 followers and I’m guessing she might not be as quick as you to schedule that slumber party. You never know when something you tweet might resonate with a celebrity – it’s happened – but there’s a fine line between responding to a tweet and battering anyone, celebrity or non, with umpteen tweets to which you get radio silence (and might be perceived as stalking). I’m sorry, but she’s just not that into you. While Twitter enables us to connect with press, celebrities, and colleagues, remember that one of the best ways to build your community is by sharing ideas with peers, not trying to ingratiate yourself only with the uppercrust.

• It Must be Some Terrible Mistake, But I Forgive You – Visions of sad puppy dogs dance in my head when I see “I tried to DM you but you aren’t following me .” Calling a media person out publicly for not following you unless they have requested a direct message is just plain tacky. That’s the beauty of Twitter, we have the opportunity to follow the tweet streams of those we find of interest. As PR people we have an important reason for following press, celebrities, politicians etc… They probably do not see the same value in following us unless we’ve built a relationship. Putting someone on the spot will just create an awkward moment.

Does this sound familiar? Do you think the loudest voice in the room gets the most attention, or do you think it’s best to test the waters on Twitter first? I’d love to hear some examples.

Photo credit: CarbonNYC

She didn’t go quietly, creating a decently produced rap video explaining her decision. The gossip sites weren’t the only ones making this breaking news – even the social media hounds at Mashable reported on the diss, creating lots of media buzz for the young songstress.  Even her dad, country music star Billy Ray Cyrus hoped (publicly) that she would change her mind. While Ashton Kutcher drove tons of press for his Twitter antics, Miley got an equally passionate reception for her break-up with Twitter.

Miley isn’t the first person to make waves with a change in Twitter strategy. Web celebrity and renowned tech blogger Robert Scoble unfollowed thousands of followers and also received significant press coverage from the event.

So is a drastic Twitter overhaul the newest PR 2.0 stunt?  Do the long term benefits outweigh the short term attention?

Rachel Kay

Yes, I do want to know if there is unrest in the Brangelina household.  Of course I’m watching as Jessica Simpson’s jeans go from low rise to high rise and back again. Absolutely I’m concerned (ok – excited) that Leo and Bar are on a break. But for some reason, following celebrities’ blogs and Twitter profiles doesn’t do much for me.

I find if you follow a few celebrities on Twitter you can see them chatting among themselves. But they really don’t engage with fans and social media tools simply give them a new method of promotion. I get disenchanted pretty quickly and revert back to Perez Hilton and People magazine for the critical “breaking news.”

This weekend I was having lunch with the PR manager of the Hard Rock Hotel San Diego (who happens to be my sister).  She knows I’ve always loved Collective Soul and still listen to it now and again. She mentioned they were on Twitter and that they were following their fans back, so I decided to check in and see how that was working.

I’ve started following them and yes, they tweet frequently. They are touring with Gavin Degraw this summer and have clearly employed social media to help promote it.

Do I think singer Ed Roland is manning the Tweet stream? No, in fact I can’t tell who is behind there.  It would be great if the band members would chime in. But they are sharing cool pictures and engaging fans with trivia contests that bring fans closer to the experience of the music.

In addition, their social media strategy clearly leverages their fan base to virally promote themselves, which I think is quite savvy.

One tactic they use is to select their top 20 fans.  They do this by encouraging fans to promote their Twitter stream to their friends.  Before I even realized they were doing this I tweeted:

“Band @collective_soul is doing the anti-celeb Twitter strategy & following fans back-wonder how they handle tons of DMs? Interesting.”

Within three hours and after some research for this post, they tweeted this:

“Congrats to our new Top 20 @QueenSapphyre @Lynnster23 @DelBarrio @edwardmarcel @babyjsmom @paulikeloa @taylor_blue@rachelakay.”

Well thank you!

Clearly they are monitoring their “brand” and responding aggressively. They are also soliciting blog posts from friends, like this one, this one and many more. The band in turn thanks the fan by Tweeting the blog post to its community, which at present time is almost 20,000 followers strong.

From a PR perspective, one goal in using social media is to get your consumers to do the talking for you – marketers know there is nothing more authentic than the power of peer-to-peer endorsement.  To me, this is a very interesting way of encouraging fan involvement in the promotional process.

Yes, it may be cheating just a bit – rewarding blog posts by promising recognition, but I still give credit for involving fans to promote virality.  Compared to Tweeters like Billy Corgan (Smashing Pumpkins), Beastie Boys and Duran Duran who don’t seem to engage with fans, it’s a step forward.

The band’s strategy is simply to engage with fans, recognize their loyalty and admiration, and encourage them to promote the band – which is not unlike the social media strategies of consumer brands on the social Web.

What do you think about Collective Soul’s tactics?  Where are they doing social media right and where are some areas of opportunity?

Rachel Kay

Update – Within an hour of posting this, I received a very nice, personalized direct message through Twitter from someone representing Collective Soul.  Again, someone is clearly monitoring the conversation and reacting.

I wasn’t sure who sent the message though, because they didn’t include a name. Shortly after, a person close to the band, Susan Cooper (@BuzzEdition), informed me that the person who sent me the DM was none other than guitarist Dean Roland.

Wow! Incredibly cool! I rest my case. You can also find out more about the band’s blog contest here.