Strong stuff. You know, they say that on “30 Rock” Tracy Morgan basically plays himself, but there is no real-life Liz Lemon to figure out a way to make this a sitcom misunderstanding.

Why so much hate, Tracy? Even if you feel that way, which is your prerogative to feel, playing down the bullying problem and talking about stabbing your gay son are some alarming things to say.

What say you, Pop2it readers?

Article source: http://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/zap-tracy-morgans-anti-gay-rant-durin20110610,0,4969286.story

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Lies, Damned Lies And Facebook Evidence Get FBI Involved In Divorced Couple’s Spat

from the sounds-like-a-movie dept

In a story that sounds like a movie plot with a few extra twists in it, last week a man, David Voelkert, was arrested for putting a GPS device on his ex-wife’s car. The backstory behind this is that the ex-wife, Angela Voelkert, had created a fake Facebook profile of a 17-year-old girl, named Jessica Studebaker, and then befriended David to try to “get him to talk” in a way that would provide her ammo in their custody battle. We’ve been hearing how Facebook evidence has become pretty standard these days in divorce cases, so I guess creating a fake persona to try to dig out some extra info is the obvious next step. David Voelkert was apparently extremely forthcoming with the fake teen, telling her how he had put a GPS device on Angela’s car, and said something about harming Angela. He also spoke of taking his kids and “disappearing.” Angela reported this to the authorities, and the FBI stepped in and arrested David over the GPS tracking while investigating the rest.

And that’s where the case turned strange.

After holding him for four days, federal prosecutors have dropped all charges against David. Amazingly, he provided them with a sworn affidavit that he’d had notarized before all of the incriminating messages were sent to “Studebaker,” a letter saying that he believed his wife was behind the account and was trying to “tamper” with his life:

I received a friend request from a one Jessica Studebaker. From the start of that friend request, I was under suspicion that it was not a real person, but my ex-wife or someone she knows. I am talking to this ‘person’ on Facebook via messages through the Facebook mail system. I am lying to this person in extent to gain positive proof that it is indeed my ex-wife trying to again tamper in my life. Anything said in the chat to her from me cannot be held as truth and I am chatting to this person in attempts to prove to my court that my ex-wife will not leave my personal life alone…. The lies that I am placing in this chat is for her to bring such up in court on the 8th day of June, 2011. I need proof what my ex-wife has been doing…. In no way do I have plans to leave with my children or do any harm to Angela Dawn Voelkert or anyone else….

Federal officials checked with the person who notarized the letter, confirming that it was indeed written and signed prior to the messages actually being sent… and realized that they had no case at all.

So how long until the movie rights to this story are sold?

35 Comments | Leave a Comment..

Article source: http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20110609/22173914646/lies-damned-lies-facebook-evidence-get-fbi-involved-divorced-couples-spat.shtml

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Facebook tries to save face after launching new facial recognition feature

People are starting to protect their face on Facebook as the social-media powerhouse furthers its reach with its facial recognition feature.

The feature identifies faces in photos uploaded onto the website and gives users the option of putting a tag with the face.

The expansion of the new feature has caught the attention of privacy groups and lawmakers. The Electronic Privacy Information Center, based in Washington, D.C., said it plans to file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission concerning Facebook’s “tag suggestions,” according to The Los Angeles Times.

“Obviously we’re not going to comment in detail until we file whatever we’re going to file,” John Verdi, senior council at EPIC told the Times. “But, we think the facial recognition feature raises real questions about what sort of data Facebook is collecting from its users and from its users’ photographs.”

The new feature has caused an uproar in Europe where privacy laws tend to be stricter. German privacy advocates look at the new feature with particularly critical eyes.

“Again Facebook has changed its privacy declaration without the users’ consent,” Peter Schaar, Germany’s federal data protection commissioner, told Germany’s international broadcaster Deustche Welle. “I do not think that Facebook’s action conforms to European and German data protection law.”

Facebook apologized for springing the new feature on users without making it well known.

Ed Oswald, a writer for PCWorld, jeered at the apology.

“Thanks, Facebook!” He said sarcastically. “Nice of you to think of us after the fact!”

Others think the fuss over the feature is misplaced, including Kashmir Hill, a blogger for Forbes who expressed her opinions in a recent blog post.

“The new technology is simply making easier a process that was already happening: people tagging their friends in photos,” Hill said. “Should we also launch an investigation into the facial recognition that our brains do naturally?”

EMAIL: jferguson@desnews.com

Article source: http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700143110/Facebook-tries-to-save-face-after-launching-new-facial-recognition-feature.html

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Russell Crowe Defends Abortion in Profane Twitter Rant

Russell Crowe Defends Abortion in Profane Twitter Rant

by Steven Ertelt | Hollywood, CA | LifeNews.com | 6/10/11 12:46 PM

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Article source: http://www.lifenews.com/2011/06/10/russell-crowe-defends-abortion-in-profane-twitter-rant/

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Twitter is the new Facebook

Editor’s Note: Adam Ostrow is editor-in-chief of tech news site Mashable.

(CNN) — Following a whirlwind week and a half of product announcements, you can throw Twitter’s attempts to differentiate itself as an “information network” out the window — there is little doubt the company is now entrenched in serious competition with Facebook for the much grander social networking crown.

After announcing that it would finally be bringing native photo and video sharing to its service on June 1, Twitter’s biggest product win to-date came on Tuesday, when Apple announced that iOS 5 would include deep Twitter integration.

That means that the 200 million plus people with iPhones, iPads and iPod Touch devices (or at least the tens of millions able to upgrade to iOS 5) will have the ability to do things like post photos, videos and links to Twitter with a single tap.

Application developers will also be able to add this type of functionality to their iOS applications, further accelerating the impact of the partnership.

In summarizing the significance of that, my Mashable colleague Jennifer Van Grove wrote, “[Twitter] will soon be the social layer of iOS, enabling users to turn individual actions such as snapping a photo or reading an article into instant social activities.”

For Facebook, who has long positioned itself as the social graph of the Web (and in turn mobile), that’s a big blow.

Sure, application developers can still build Facebook integration into their iOS apps, but by making Twitter the default in apps like Camera, Safari and YouTube, Apple has dictated where millions of pieces of content will invariably flow.

At the same time, by adding native photo and video sharing and moving people over to its own Web and client experiences, Twitter is positioned like never before to capitalize on that content and keep people on its site, and in turn challenge Facebook where it dominates like no other: Engagement.

At the start of this year, Hitwise reported that the average Facebook user spends an impressive four hours and 35 minutes per month on the site, more than any other property on the Web, and more than double the average Twitter user’s monthly two hours and 12 minutes.

But now that Twitter is turning itself into a social network, that could soon change. Instead of creating and consuming photos and videos on third-party sites — something that’s already hugely popular on Twitter and is Facebook’s No. 1 time sink — users will be doing it on Twitter.com.

Add to that the fact that Twitter now owns the most popular third-party client (TweetDeck) and has been systematically eating away at the ecosystem it enabled, and the numbers quickly add up.

The icing on the cake, of course, is the iOS tie-up, which for now gives Twitter priority seating over Facebook with tens of millions of highly engaged mobile users.

Granted, Facebook could also do a deal with Apple before iOS 5 rolls out this fall, but it’s unclear what kind of relationship those companies have following last year’s contentious split over Ping.

For the moment, Twitter’s iOS win is a symbolic victory over Facebook that signals the company’s growing ambitions as a social network.

In the long-run, however, it could very much be the partnership that helps move Twitter from Facebook’s distant cousin to its arch rival.

Article source: http://edition.cnn.com/2011/TECH/social.media/06/10/twitter.facebook.competition/

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Twitter User Who Broke Anthony Weiner Story Remains a Mystery

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Rep. Anthony Weiner’s errant public tweet of a lewd photo of himself two weeks ago may have easily gone unnoticed if it hadn’t been for a single Twitter user who spotted and documented the gaffe, and shared it with the world.

Now, a week after the photo helped lead to Weiner’s dramatic mea culpa, the man whom some conservatives have hailed as a harbinger and a hero remains silent.

Records show Dan Wolfe, using the Twitter alias PatriotUSA76, was the ringleader of an informal posse of conservative Twitter users known as the #bornfreecrew who, annoyed by Weiner’s politics and bombastic style, scrutinized his online behavior.

“We didn’t like the fact that he [Weiner] was so arrogant and that he’d come down to the floor of Congress and waste our time with his huge sandwich boards and just ripped the Republicans apart,” said Mike Stack, a 39-year-old member of the #bornfreecrew who lives in New Jersey.

“As the months went by, I noticed Wolfe was very, very fixated on Weiner’s followers, and a few times he said to me, ‘Oh, he added this one and added this one,’” he said. “And we all noticed some of the girls were getting younger and younger, like high school age.”

For months, Twitter records show, members of the group messaged some of the girls and Weiner, at times harassing them publicly for their electronic ties as they tried to ferret out any inappropriate behavior, Stack said.

“I busted his balls. I never said anything threatening, I would never do that,” Stack said. “But with the women, I mean, you can follow whoever you want. It’s a free world, free country. But why are you so enamored with this guy if you’re in Seattle or Texas? It didn’t make a lot of sense.”

On the evening of May 27, Wolfe happened to be monitoring Weiner’s Twitter profile page just as the photo of bulging gray boxer briefs appeared. He excitedly messaged his group about the post and forwarded a screen grab to conservative blogger Andrew Breitbart of Biggovernment.com before Weiner quickly took it down.

View an exclusive slideshow of images obtained by ABC News

“I was shocked,” Wolfe told the website in a message shortly after the story broke. “I capped [screen captured] it. Capped the tweet, everything. That’s all. Then I RT [retweeted].”

But as Weiner then began to insist he was a victim of a “hack” and “prank,” his online supporters made Wolfe their top suspect, casting him as a political operative who acted nefariously to bring the congressman down.

Amid the intense scrutiny, Wolfe deleted his Twitter profile and Yahoo email account last week, and has stayed mostly silent and out of the spotlight since.

“I have A LOT of personal problems,” Wolfe wrote to a friend on May 30 in an email chain obtained by ABC News. “If all this comes out along with everything I’m dealing with here — I don’t know what to do,” he said, referring to the accusations against him.

But now, even as Weiner’s admission of guilt has “vindicated” Wolfe and the #bornfreecrew of any alleged hack, they have still been subjected to threats.

“I got death threats. I got people use Google skyview to print pictures of my house, my address,” Stack said. “These people say I set up Rep. Weiner, I framed him. Mediaite says I was harassing these girls.”

As for Wolfe, Stack said he’s gone into hiding. “I haven’t heard from him since Weiner confessed,” he said. “And now some of us are speculating who this guy really is. No one has ever met him in person or spoken on the phone.”

Article source: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/twitter-user-caught-anthony-weiner-photo-remains-mystery/story?id=13810284

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How Using Social Media Can Harm Your Case

Social Media is continuing to explode in usage and is a huge part of our collective hyper-connected daily lives. Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, MySpace and other forms of social media can, however, seriously harm your personal injury or medical malpractice case.

Insurance companies, adjusters, investigators, and defense attorneys will want to uncover as much information as they can about you to help undermine your case in an effort to pay you the least amount of money possible. You have the opportunity to afford them that chance by utilizing social media. In a case where a person has suffered personal injuries, two important considerations are: the verifiability of the accident related injuries; and the credibility of the injured party.

If you are posting online pictures or videos of events, activities or vacations the insurance company might use those to show that you are engaging in various physical activities which would tend to evidence the fact that you are  not as injured as you claim to be. Similarly, if you post certain comments about activities or other subjects, those too could be used to challenge your veracity or call into question your truthfulness. Even a seemingly innocent picture that you post, or is posted by your friends, as well as comments involving you, could be used to drastically reduce the value of your injury case.

Imagine, weeks after being injured in a car accident, you reluctantly and in great pain, attend your sibling’s wedding as a member of the bridal party and a photograph of you is posted on Facebook apparently dancing. You are in excruciating pain but only come on to the dance floor for the ceremonial first dance with the wedding party. The defense attorney finds this photo of you, blows this picture up, and shows it to the jury arguing that you have exaggerated your injuries and are in fact dancing the night away.

So, if you have an injury claim or a medical malpractice case, what should you do regarding social media?

1. Ideally, you should shut all of your social media accounts down, or suspend your use of all of them;
2. Assuming you cannot or will not suspend all use of your social media accounts then go private and only share information with people you know and trust. Do not become a friend with anyone you do not know and trust;
3. Assume everything you post is going to be read or viewed by the insurance company or the defense attorney. Do not talk about your case, refer to it, mention it or post anything that can later be used against you;
4. Do not post any photos or videos of yourself and request that anybody you know not post photos or videos of you. If you are tagged in any pictures ask that they be taken down or at a minimum, that you be untagged; and
5. Do not participate in any online discussions about your case including forums, chat rooms, blogs, email, or message boards.

Following the above instructions is not meant to distort or hide the truth from the insurance company but rather to avoid giving them the chance to mischaracterize or take something out of context that could be used against you.

You should be aware that there are cases in several states where judges have order Plaintiffs  to turn over usernames and passwords for their Facebook and MySpace accounts to defense counsel.  In one such case, the Judge ruled that it would be unrealistic for a person who posted things in such forums to expect them to be confidential.

So before you go out and post photos or videos of yourself or blog or tweet about your injury case, remember that the insurance company may very well be watching you, looking to downplay your injuries and damage your integrity and credibility.

Richard P. Hastings is a Connecticut personal injury lawyer at Hastings, Cohan Walsh, LLP, with offices throughout the state.  He has been named a Connecticut Super Lawyer and is the author of the books: “The Crash Course on Child Injury Claims”; “The Crash Course on Personal Injury Claims in Connecticut”; and “The Crash Course on Motorcycle Accidents.”  He can be reached at 1(888)CTLAW-00 or by visiting www.hcwlaw.com.

Article source: http://ridgefield.patch.com/articles/how-using-social-media-can-harm-your-personal-injury-case

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Toyota forecasts 35 percent profit slide after quake

MSNBC Business, Friday, June 10, 2011, 4:51am (PDT)

By Nathan Layne and Mariko Katsumura

Article source: http://powerwall.msnbc.msn.com/politics/toyota-forecasts-35-percent-profit-slide-after-quake-1691458.story

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5 Facebook privacy settings to check now

Facebook is the most popular place for connecting with friends and family online. You share photos, opinions and personal details from your daily life. You don’t want this data to fall into the wrong hands. But if you don’t set your privacy settings correctly, that’s exactly what will happen.

• 

  By Alejandro Gonzalez, USA TODAY

  Facebook’s default settings might leave you sharing more than you’d like.

By Alejandro Gonzalez, USA TODAY

Facebook’s default settings might leave you sharing more than you’d like.

Facebook has a group of recommended settings. It only takes a couple clicks to select them. However, doing so will likely share more information than you would like. That’s why you should customize your privacy settings.

Friend list, education and likes

You may not worry about sharing certain information on Facebook. For example, you may be sharing your friends list and your education. However, snoops can tell a lot about you from this information. And others can use it to trick you into friending them.

• MORE: Komando columns

To hide your friends list, education and work and likes, click AccountPrivacy Settings. Click View Settings under Connecting on Facebook. You’ll see the options for these items. Set each to Friends Only.

Birthday, address and phone number

It is more obvious why you want to hide other information on Facebook. These are items that can be used to steal your identity. They can also invite unwelcome contact from strangers or casual acquaintances. I’m talking about items like your birthday, address and phone number.

To hide this data, click AccountPrivacy Settings. Click Customize Settings. A list of information appears. Delete what isn’t necessary. You should set most of this to Friends Only. In some cases, you will want to restrict items to You only. For example, you may not feel like sharing your religion.

Places and photos

There are two settings to watch particularly closely. The first relates to Facebook’s Places feature, which lets you check in to real-world locations. Facebook contacts will be able to see where you are. By default, friends can check you in without your permission.

The other item you need to watch is photo and video tagging. You probably don’t want everyone to see photos and videos you’re tagged in. This can lead to embarrassing moments at work.

Click AccountPrivacy Settings and click Customize. Find “Friends can check me in to Places” under “Things others share.” Click Edit Settings. Select Disabled and click Okay. Next, click Edit settings beside “Photos and videos you’re tagged in.” Set it to Friends Only. Click Okay.

Games and apps

Facebook games and apps you use can access your information. You can’t revoke access entirely. But you can block access to certain items. Click AccountPrivacy Settings. Click Edit under Apps and Websites. Click Edit Settings under “Apps you use.” Select an app to specify what it can access.

You also have to worry about your friends’ apps. By default, they see everything that your friends can. Click AccountPrivacy Settings. Click Edit under Apps and Websites. Click Edit Settings under “Info accessible through your friends.” You should make much of this information unavailable. Click Save Changes when done.

Creating lists

Facebook lets you limit postings and photos to friends, friends of friends and everyone. You may want more control over who can access your information. You can do this by creating friend lists. You can then grant or block access to specific information by list.

To create a list, click Friends and then Edit friends. Click the Create a List button. Enter a descriptive name for the list. Next, select the friends to include on the list. Finally, click Create List.

Once you’ve created lists, you can specify them in privacy settings. Just click the button beside a privacy option and select Customize. To grant access to a list, select Specific People under “Make this visible to.” Type the name of your list. To block access to a list, type the list name under “Hide this from.” When you’re done, click Save Setting.

Speaking of Facebook, if you have any comments or questions, like my page at www.Facebook.com/kimkomando

—

Kim Komando hosts the nation’s largest talk radio show about computers and the Internet. To get the podcast or find the station nearest you, visit: www.komando.com/listen. To subscribe to Kim’s free email newsletters, sign up at: www.komando.com/newsletters. Contact her at C1Tech@gannett.com.

Posted

Article source: http://www.usatoday.com/tech/columnist/kimkomando/2011-06-10-facebook-privacy-settings_n.htm

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The Nation: Diapers on Vitter, Weiner on Twitter

Enlarge J. Scott Applewhite/AP

Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) was outed as the client of a prostitute in 2007 but was not forced to resign.

J. Scott Applewhite/AP

Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) was outed as the client of a prostitute in 2007 but was not forced to resign.

Leslie Savan blogs for The Nation about media and politics.

Whether or not you think Anthony Weiner should resign, remember this: Republicans have kindly provided the frame in which to argue the question. For some reason, the following query isn’t allowed into that frame: Why aren’t members of Congress and the media demanding that Senator David Vitter resign?

If you recall (and how can you forget?) Vitter was outed in 2007 during the DC Madam sex scandal as a frequent client of prostitutes. (The mental picture of him allegedly wearing diapers during these visits is nearly as damaging as the actual pictures of Weiner — Vitter’s just lucky his fetish wasn’t photographed.) But yesterday, as calls for Weiner’s exit by Republicans and quite a few Dems were reaching a fever pitch, the GOP hosted a fundraiser for Vitter in a lobbyist’s fancy DC townhouse, video of which Rachel Maddow aired last night.

Her must-see piece takes us through the sex scandal and resignation of almost Speaker of the House Bob Livingston — a leader in President Clinton’s impeachment — to the Louisianan who inherited his seat, Mr. Vitter.

Maddow asks members of both parties, “If you do not now feel moved to demand that David Vitter resign — now, in June 2011 — how on earth can you demand that Anthony Weiner needs to resign?”

Article source: http://www.npr.org/2011/06/10/137100838/the-nation-diapers-on-vitter-weiner-on-twitter

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