Repurposing Zombie Interview for Lively Results

When our Student Activities Director said he’d booked Max Brooks, author of the  post-apocalyptic zombie novel World War Z: An Oral History, for a visit to Mansfield University campus in November 2012, I asked him if I could have the author for a couple hours  to interview him on my half hour talk show “Conversations.”
I also volunteered to take the author to lunch. I knew the novel was a best seller but research showed that Max Brooks is a very respected name in the zombie world.

And the zombie world is huge.
I wanted to do the interview for two reasons.
1. Brooks knows his stuff: geography, politics, climate, plagues, infrastructure,  communities and nations working together to rebuild after international calamity. That’s why the Naval War College takes him seriously.
2. Problems plagued the film production. It began with a bidding war between Brad Pitt and Leonardo DeCaprio before the book was even published. Pitt won and the problems began with the script and continued through production and post production. This was going to build to really major publicity.  MU could be in the mix.
My show airs weekly on regional cable outlets, but I also have my own Mansfield University YouTube channel where we post all the shows. It was a no-brainer that World War Z the film was going to create a lot of chatter world-wide and I was being handed a gift.
I read the novel , an interesting, intelligent treatise in the manner of Studs Terkel’s oral histories.
Brooks and I had lunch in a quiet restaurant and began talking. Almost immediately he exclaimed: “You’ve read the book! I can tell in the first 30 seconds if the interviewer has it – and 90 percent of them haven’t.”
We had a lively discussion ranging from zombies to his parents  to his childhood fears that led to his study of zombies. Later we did two half hour interviews. The first was about zombies, what they represent and how to survive zombie attacks. The second was about the writing life and growing up in Hollywood with parents Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft, and, of course, the movie.

Once they were posted, the interviews did respectably for a specialized subject – a few hundred views each. Then, in April 2013, when the Vanity Fair cover story on Brad Pitt and World War z hit the stands, I pulled a five-minute clip from “Conversations” and produced a stand-alone video, and an audio podcast.
I took the information from the interview and wrote a blog for Huffington Post entitled, “World War Z Author Says Movie and Book Share Title Only.” It included links to the two shows and the shorter interview. It went live May 9.

By the end of the day, the video had picked up 48 views.  Folks on my FB page began sharing it.  Genre bloggers grabbed the clip and posted blogs about the interview.

Ten days later  the interview had scored 6,150 views, about 600 views a day.  The “Conversations” interviews picked up several hundred more.

Of course,  Mansfield University is mentioned at the beginning of the shows and in the Huffington Post blog.  I expect all will continue to attract viewers and readers as the World War Z promotion machine kicks into full throttle.

None of the above cost the university a cent other than my time.

Footnote: Producing your own talk show is not complex. I use our TV Services director. We shoot it in the studio and occasionally on location. I give him general directions, sometimes provide photos for B-roll , and he does the editing. It’s great for college-community relations and YouTube, of course, gives you a potential international audience.
I’ll do a future post on  hosting and distributing your own show in the future if you’re interested.

A Tip for Applebee’s

The recent Applebee’s fracas included God, waitresses, sadly under-prepared management and the Ever-Shifting Mob.
It’s a great case study in crisis PR but not an easy one from which to pull clear lessons.
Recap: Pastor Alois Bell crossed off the default 18% tip and wrote: “I give God 10% . Why do you get 18?” This sets up the pastor as one of the cheapest Christians who ever displayed her parsimony to the masses.
Another waitress saw the receipt and posted it.
The embarrassed Pastor Bell doubled down on her arrogance and demanded that the waitress be fired. (Hell hath no fury like a woman pastor scorned).
Applebee’s did.
It all kicked into viral gear.
That’s when the Ever Shifting Mob moved in. They demanded the waitress get her job back.
Applebee’s reaction to the firestorm? Initially, none. We in the PR business know that’s an invitation for the mob to fill the void with more anger, more demands, sarcasm, vitriol and of course the boycott threat.
R.L. Stollar lays it out in excellent detail.
The Applebee’s social media folks came in too late and did more damage than good. Once they moved past the company line their posts were amateurish, defensive and mildly condescending.
So this is where I enter and tell you what they should have done.
Nope. This, like many crises, has no black and white. First, the pastor was way out of line, both as a person and as woman of the cloth. (Celestial Voice: “Well, done, sister. Ten percent, by God!”)
Second, the waitress who posted the receipt was out of line, breaking the privacy agreement she must have known about.
Third, management had broken its own policy previously by posting positive customer notes.
Fourth, the management reacted very badly, publishing contrite explanations, then dumb explanations, then started deleting incoming posts, then deleted the status update and the 20,000+ responses. Then they lied.
Fifth, Applebee’s let the mob swell too large. When the mob reaches a certain size it continues to grow on its own accord, fed by its own outrage. Most people who post are well-meaning folks trying to find justice. Others are just angry bastards who want to spread their negativity.
When the mob is large, no answer is good enough. No explanation is thoughtful enough. You, the target, will always lose, falling under a barrage of individual postings that congeal into the cyber equivalent of a nuclear bomb.
In a nice family drama, it would have ended this way. The offending pastor would sincerely apologize for her childish behavior and make good with the other 8% tip. The waitress would apologize for breaking privacy rules despite her sense of outrage on behalf of her colleague. Applebee’s benevolently would nod and say possibly they overreacted and would re-examine the case. It would consider reinstating the waitress with a probation period.
And it all would go away.
There is no privacy. The actions of thoughtless people will occasionally be exposed, not in a local newspaper but on the only remaining stage – the international one.
Businesses, companies, corporations, are by default the bad guys and will get the blame. A crisis plan needs to be in place because when you hit the hot seat you need to instantly jump into action or your butt’s going to burn.
The biggest lesson: The Ever Shifting Mob is always in the wings, ready to wave the cyber pitchforks and torches, screaming for whatever they think at the moment is justice.
As my colleague/media master, Dick Jones says: “You can do the right thing 99 times; screw up once and it can bite you big time. And the unfortunate thing is, all institutions screw up occasionally.”
Be prepared, institutions. You could easily have a pastor and a waitress. And no matter what your official policy is, your response better thoughtful, humane and fast.
The Ever Shifting Mob will rant, then slowly scatter, looking for the next thing to protest.

Auschwitz Survivor Gives No Easy Answers

Note:  This is off topic but it was a unique and powerful experience in a university history class. It changed a lot of lives,  including mine.

“Every day they would come in and just choose people and take them to the gas chamber. I lived by the minute.”
Dina Jacobsen spoke in a soft but distinctive voice. At times it rose with the intensity of her feelings. The tiny 90-year-old woman made it clear that seven decades has not softened the horror and suffering of three years as an Auschwitz prisoner where 1.1 million people died.
She spoke to an audience of history students and visitors at Andrew Gaskievicz’s World War II History course at Mansfield University. She recounted how the German soldiers raided her family’s Poland farm and took her parents and six siblings. “I never saw them again,” she said. “I know they were killed.” Two weeks later she was captured and sent to Auswitch.
She was 16-years-old.
She described having to get up at 3 a.m. every day and stand in line for “a little piece of bread and coffee that was really dishwater.” She spoke of having to pick up rocks and put them in another place, then pick them up and put them back, day after day.
Students asked questions.
Did you ever give up hope?
“I never had hope. How could you have hope when at any minute they would take someone away to their death? And the next time it could be you.”
Did you make friends in the camp?
She shook her head. “You didn’t make friends because at any minute they might be killed, or die of sickness. You didn’t want to know anyone.”
She told of a woman who escaped the camp. “But someone turned her in. They brought her back, and made us gather to watch. They stripped her naked and hanged her.”
She told of a young mother who would not turn her baby over to a guard, and so went to the gas chamber with her child in her arms.
Did you ever ask God why this (the holocaust ) had to happen?
“I asked God. He didn’t answer. So I stopped asking.” She leaned forward in her chair. “You ask your God why this had to happen and see if He answers.. . . .” She sat back and stared defiantly at the stunned audience members.
Have you forgiven your captors?
“No. How can I forgive them? Could you forgive them if they killed your family?”
If you could meet one of your captors today, would you speak to him?
“Yes, I would,” she answered. “I would say ‘you are a son-of-a-bitch!’” She paused. “And then I would kill him.”
Could something like the Nazi movement could happen again?
She nodded slowly and gravely. “Yes. I am very afraid it could happen again.”
“I want to talk about this so people know. You need to know. You don’t see me cry. I won’t do that. But I go home and I cry. Every night I have nightmares.” She paused to let it sink it. “Then I find something to laugh about,” she said. “Because if you don’t laugh, you die.”
As the presentation ended, an acquaintance made a request. Without a word, Ms. Jacobsen pulled up her sleeve, held out her arm and displayed her identification tattoo as students silently filed past, many moved to tears.

Why My Book Was Banned

I’m posting this because it was a PR/Library project that was wildly successful.  Some people told me that promotions like this sometimes backfire.  No one said life is safe.

Librarians keep track of books, answer questions and help people in their quest for knowledge.
I never thought of them as courageous.
But something happened this week that gave me a profound respect for several librarians in particular and the profession in general. In a discussion about Banned Book Week recently, one librarian said that in her high school Lord of the Flies was banned because it depicted a group of boys taking power too far.
“Then you should ban mine, “ I said, referring to One Woman’s Vengeance. “It’s about a female protagonist who takes the law into her own hands and kills people. It’s violent. It has graphic sex and a lot of adult language.”
A few days later Amanda Sanko texted  and asked if they could talk with me. So we met. “People in general are complacent,” Nichole Book said. “They don’t understand how dangerous censorship is. We want to find a way to wake people up.” Jamie Harris agreed. Scott DiMarco, library director, agreed.
They asked if they could ban my book.
These are four librarians passionate about their beliefs that everyone should have open access to all knowledge.
“You’ll take criticism,” I said. They nodded. They understood.
Scott stopped in my office later. “We’re doing this for a good reason – to remind people of the importance of having access to information,” he told me, knowing what they were getting into. “I hope we’re redeemed in the end. We have never banned a book in this library, and we never will again.”
They made a simple announcement on Facebook that One Woman’s Vengeance was removed from the shelves due to a parent complaint.” I shared it on my wall. The reaction was immediate. Within 15 minutes a reporter called. Alumni wrote in. My Facebook friends posted their outrage.
The criticism was intense and widespread.
Someone created a Facebook page protesting the band. Messages came in from around the country.

Librarians are the guardians of open access to knowledge and everyday a librarian somewhere is tested. All it takes is one person with a passionate belief to pressure a principal or a school board or a board of a community library to remove a book from the shelf, taking it away from the community.
It’s a symbolic form of book burning. For centuries, kings, churches and despots have understood the power of the printed word. They have known, and still do, if they control what knowledge you receive, they control your thoughts and actions.
This control is widespread in many parts of the world. It is shameful that in this “land of the free” that even one book can be banned.
Why? Because once one book is banned, all books are targets.
This extends to TV, radio and the Internet.
I thank everyone involved in the banning of One Woman’s Vengeance, from the librarians who courageously created the project and saw it through, to students, alumni and fans who expressed their thoughts and feelings.
I hope that people were inspired to think about– and be aware of– censorship not just one week a year but every day. One of our most important rights is the freedom to read, watch and listen to anything we want without fear of reprisal or censorship.
Understand that I don’t see any financial gains from this. All proceeds from my two books go to a scholarship fund for future MU English majors. My goal is $10,000 to endow it and benefit students for generations.
The aim of the Vengeance Project was to emphasize the importance of freedom of information to everyone, everywhere, forever.
Thank you for making this a lively, thoughtful and passionate conversation.

Here’s the video finale.

Old Geeks, What Happened to K? Part 2

I’m continuing my rambling journey through the 1990 Associated Press Stylebook section of Computer Terms.
Remember, this is AP’s instructions for proper use of terms in journalism.

***

log off (v.) log-off (n. and adj.) log on (v.) long-on (n. and adj.)  A process by which a person identifies himself to the computer to gain admission to it.  An individual who wants to use the computer must type a code on a terminal keyboard.  To log off, another code is typed.

mainframe  A full-size central computer.  Also the central processing unit of a computer system.

main memory The internal memory of a computer.  The direct access storage of the computer as opposed to peripheral storage units such as disks.  Main memory is often synonymous with random access memory.

MDS An abbreviation for multipoint distribution system.  Transmission by microwave, usually for pay television.  Range is about 25 miles.

menu  A display of a list of options on a terminal screen of tasks that can be performed by the terminal or  the computer.

microcomputer  A very small computer which has a processor a small number of terminals and a storage system.  Primarily used as a personal computer or for a small office system.  Storage generally is less than that of a minicomputer.

minicomputer  A compact computer with greater storage and processing capacity and capable of handling more terminals than a microcomputer.

modem  Literally: modulate, demodulate.  A device that allows computers to communicate with a central data base via a phone line.

non-volatile  In computer terminology, this means it will not be destroyed if the machine loses power.  A bubble memory is non-volatile.

offline, online  Usually a storage or processing system not directly accessible in an offline system.  An online system has information storage and processing immediately accessible by the user.

peripheral (n. and adj.)  Equipment and machines that can be connected to a computer.  Examples include disk systems, buffers, special input and output devices, and terminals.

personal computer  A version of a microcomputer designed for individual use.  They vary greatly in size and capacity.  Do not use the abbreviation PC.

prioritize  Never.  Use set priorities instead.

real time (n.) real-time (adj.) Instantaneous.  Used to describe computers which have no delay in receiving an instruction and processing it.  Analog computers are real-time computers.

stand-alone (adj.) Not dependent on a main computer for processing.  Many personal computers are used in a stand-alone situation.

synchronous,  synchronous communication  Computer activity that is controlled by time and schedule.  The task cannot be performed except on a strict schedule.

telecommunication (n. and adj.)The transmission of information over radio waves, microwaves, optical fibers or wires.

user friendly.  Avoid.  For example: The system is easy to use, not the system is user friendly.

word  When used in referring to computers, a word is a basic unit of data in computer memory.  A word consists of a predetermined number of characters or bits.  Word length is seven bits, a 24-bit word.

***

That would be the last word in how language and technology have changed in a mere two decades.  . . .  I have processed, input, made no attempt at being user friendly and now, I brandish my cursor and with a click, log off.

Old Geeks, What Happened to K?

I pulled out my Associated Press Stylebook recently to look up a rule and noticed for the first time the section “A Guide to Computer Terms.”  I glanced at some of them in astonishment, then checked the copyright.

1990.

In that 22 years, the universe changed.  I roamed through a few terms as defined by the Associated Press and ways reporters should use the terms.  The following is exactly the way AP Stylebook presents them.

CPU Abbreviation for central processing unit. Do not use.  See central processing unit.  For full-size computers, central processing unit is often synonymous with mainframe.

cursor (n.) A flashing square, underline or similar display on the screen indicating that point at which the next character typed will disappear.

data bank (n. and adj.)  A storage system for large amounts of information.

debug (v)  Jargon for removing problems from the system.  Avoid.

disk  Not disc.  Means hard disk, fixed disk or magnetic disk for storage device.  Not an abbreviation for diskette.

diskette.  A generic terms that means floppy diskette.  Not synonymous with disk. 

first generation, second generation, third generation  The first generation computers used electron tubes like the old radio tubes, the second moved to transistors and the third went to semiconductor chips.

gigo Acronym for garbage in, garbage out.  Jargon.  Do not use.  It means that if flawed data is put into a computer, flawed data will be produced by the computer.

global search  (n. an adj.) A Search that covers all data stored in a computer.

input (n)  Do not use as a verb.

k Abbreviation for kilobyte.  It means 1,024 bytes.  Similarly, 64k means 64 times 1024 bytes or  65,536 bytes, not 64,000.  Leave no space between K and the preceding number, as in 128K of storage.  The abbreviation K should not be used to mean 1,000 as in $25k.

Part 2 will appear later after I find my floppy.

RAM test.  How many of you remember any or all of these terms?

Love Me Tender: Elvis’ Top 20, Part 2

Part 2, in which I continue to list the best songs of the King’s later years and compare him to. . . well, read on. . .  and listen and watch, and enjoy the master in motion before his death on August 16, 1977.

The British Invasion and mediocre movies sucked Elvis into a slump for most of the ’60s. His 1968 Comeback Special blasted a path out of the limbo. It was a short step to Las Vegas where, with spectacular costumes and lavish musical arrangements, Elvis became Las Vegas. With the production of Aloha from Hawaii in 1973, he conquered the world and stayed there until his death on August 16, 1977.

Here are my top 10 picks from this period.

“Suspicious Minds” marked the solidification of his return to the masses. Elvis starts the 1969 song about a dysfunctional relationship in a normal tone and gradually whips it into a frenzy, especially in his Vegas stage shows. Love, jealousy and suspicion were never so circular or exhausting. But millions related.

“In The Ghetto,” 1969, was a gamble. He didn’t need to do a social commentary song. In the hands of lesser voices, “Ghetto” would have been just another protest song. His voice create a mini movie in which you hear and see the unending cycle of poverty and the constant image of “and his mama cries… ” Elvis’ voice gave voice to the urban impoverished.

“Kentucky Rain,” 1970. Ronnie Milsap provided the thunderous piano as Elvis brought to life the bleak desperation of a man searching for his wayward lover.

“Bridge Over Troubled Water,” 1970. From Simon and Garfunkle it is a quiet reassurance. From Elvis it’s a powerful declaration from the soul.

“American Trilogy,” Elvis is in top physical and vocal form. The musical arrangement and his voice work together with subtlety, wistfulness and power as the ultimate Song of the South. It sends chills up my spine even after 50 viewings.

“How Great Thou Art,” 1968. Elvis, a musical pioneer on many fronts, only won a Grammy for his gospel songs. He grew up on gospel, felt it, and this was probably his crowning gospel achievement.

“Blue Christmas” 1964 must be on the list because Elvis boldly jams a blues element into this 1948 number, but it’s infused the holiday culture to the point where I want to ram a an icicle through my ear. But I’m inserting “It Won’t Seem Like Christmas Without You.” The loss of his mother in 1958 was a trauma that never healed and one has to believe when he delivers the lines “the holly’s so pretty this year” and “I’ll see you tonight in my dreams,” that he was giving voice to this lifelong ache and loss. Listen close and you will cry, because this thought, this feeling is in everyone’s experience.

“Can’t Help Falling in Love With You” was part of the 1961 Blue Hawaii soundtrack. Elvis pulled it into the ’70s, with a more fully encompassing chorus and orchestra, ending is stage shows with it. Who can resist: “Take my hand, take my whole life, too/for I can’t help falling in love with you.”? Especially from a guy who spreads his cape at the end.

“Burning Love,” 1972. It outdoes Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire” for describing the heat of love. “Hunka hunka burnin’ love” is part of our musical vocabulary.

“A Little Less Conversation,” underscores The King’s timelessness. The song first appeared in the 1968 film Live A Little, Love A Little. Junkie XL’s remix in 2002 topped the singles charts in nine countries. This demand for less talk and more sexual action, has appeared in eight films and four TV shows.

In 2000, TV Guide named Elvis “Entertainer of the Century.”

Like Mark Twain, Elvis, of poor, rural Southern beginnings, combined genius, lifestyle, clothing, and mannerisms to create a voice, image and body of work that are both immortal and uniquely American.