Why I Social

Before releasing the next episode of Why I Social - episode 152 - host Chris Barrows has a special announcement to make regarding the new sponsor of the podcast. As the podcast has shifted focus - with a mission to really showcase people who not only social - but have stories that can impact and educate listeners - "education" has become a key term for the podcast. With this in mind - Why I Social is proud to introduce it's new sponsor - the National Institute for Social Media.

Jessica Matthews is the Digital Media Director for the First Lady of New York City. Her previous experience includes the New York Times and New York University. She also interned at Google before beginning her full-time career as a social media and digital marketing professional.

Hear her story on this week's episode. And of course, Why Does She Social?!

Share your thoughts on this week's episode with #WhyISocial Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google or Spotify. Follow at @WhyISocial. Connect with Jessica on Twitter Connect With Jessica on LinkedIn.

If you know someone who deserves their story told, let me know! Tweet me at @CBarrows or @WhyISocial using #WhyISocialGuest Interested in being a part of the Why I Social family? Why I Social is now accepting monthly episode sponsorship opportunities - inquire at @[email protected] for additional information.

On this week's episode, our hosts discover Ikea's new line of products - pregnancy tests. Also, GoPro is more like "oh no".

This week's Five Favorites:

1. Kodak announces its own cryptocurrency and watches stock price skyrocket [Verge - story by Shannon Liao]

2. Viacom snaps up influencer platform Whosay as it looks to bulk up branded content offering [The Drum - story by Rebecca Stewart]

3. Ikea Releases Ad That Doubles As A Pregnancy Test and Reveals Crib Discount [Independent - Story by Chelsea Ritschel]

4. GoPro cuts 200-300 jobs, largely impacting its drone division [Techcrunch - story by Matt Burns & Brian Heater]

5. Hot Topic: Hot Topic: News Feed FYI: Bringing People Together [Facebook Blog - Post by Adam Mosseri]

Honorable Mention

• Stranger Things' David Harbour just made these yearbook pictures [Twitter Moments]

DISHonorable Mention

• False Alarm in Hawaii [The Verge]

Five Favorites' Tweet(s) of The Week

• @kenyatta

Use the hashtag #FiveFavorites to share YOUR favorite stories each and every week - and YOU may be included on the show (including our new tweet of the week feature).

Dr. Josie Ahlquist is a digital leadership educator (josieahlquist.com), teacher and speaker. She has been in education since 2003 including 12 years working at the university level. She currently serves as Research Associate and Instructor at Florida State University and has been named the "Top 50 Must-Read Higher Education Technology blog" by Ed Tech Magazine three times since 2013.

Hear her story on this week's episode. And of course, Why Does She Social?!

Share your thoughts on this week's episode with #WhyISocial Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, or Google Follow at @WhyISocial. Connect with Josie on Twitter Connect With Josie on LinkedIn.

If you know someone who deserves their story told, let me know! Tweet me at @CBarrows or @WhyISocial using #WhyISocialGuest Interested in being a part of the Why I Social family? Why I Social is now accepting monthly episode sponsorship opportunities - inquire at @[email protected] for additional information.

On this week's episode, (spoiler) we somehow end up discussing our favorite fruits. Also, "Bright" really wasn't that bad and is "a lot better than Suicide Squad."

This week's Five Favorites:

1. Iran blocks encrypted messaging apps amid nationwide protests [Verge - story by Russell Brandom]

2. Exclusive: Spotify files for its IPO [Axios - story by Dan Primack]

3. Netflix's 'Bright' reached 11M viewers in its first three days, according to Nielsen [Techcrunch - story by Anthony Ha]

4. Facebook Just Created More Ad Inventory - Through Instagram [AdAge - story by George Slefo]

5. (Hot Topic) Logan Paul

Honorable Mention

• FCC Chairman Ajit Pai's CES appearance has been canceled [Techcrunch]

DISHonorable Mention

• Los Angeles Man Arrested for "swatting call" results in man's death [USA Today]

Five Favorites' Tweet(s) of The Week

• @Netflix

Use the hashtag #FiveFavorites to share YOUR favorite stories each and every week - and YOU may be included on the show (including our new tweet of the week feature).

On this week's episode, Amir and Chris look back at 2017 and poorly attempt to predict the future. We assume it's poorly because we haven't seen the future yet - so they could in-fact be prophets. Also, that dude who scheduled six dates in one night returns to the show - find out why! Note: This episode was recorded on Thursday, December 28th

This week's Five Favorites:

1. Apple Is Developing an EKG Heart Monitor for Its Smartwatch [Bloomberg - story by Alex Webb]

2. Twitter's Adding More Notification Types to Boost Awareness and Engagement [Social Media Today - story by Andrew Hutchinson]

3. Library of Congress Reins in Twitter Archives Project [Washington Times - story by Andrew Blake]

4. 10 Ways Tech Will Shape Your Life (for better or worse) [Washington Post - story by Geoffrey A. Fowler]

5. (Hot Topic) Amir and Chris' Top Social, Marketing and Technology Stories and Trends

Honorable Mention(s)

• Bye Black bars [The Verge]

DISHonorable Mention of the Year

• Guy Who Scheduled 6 Dates In One Night Was Kicked Out of Another Bar for Allegedly Hitting On All The Women [Washingtonian]

Five Favorites' Tweet(s) of The Week

• @chrissyteigen (has since then changed to a "private" twitter)

Use the hashtag #FiveFavorites to share YOUR favorite stories each and every week - and YOU may be included on the show (including our new tweet of the week feature).

On this week's episode, host Chris Barrows (@CBarrows) goes off-the-cuff to take a look back at 2017, shares some of his favorite episodes (5, of course) and looks forward to 2018.

Favorite Episodes include (in no particular order):

• Liz Gross (Episode 144)
• Jenn Patel (Episode 139)
• Matt Marcinek (Episode 128)
• Danny Vecchiarelli (Episode 109)

New episodes with great guests doing awesome things on social return in January!

If you know someone who deserves their story told, let me know! Tweet me at @CBarrows or @WhyISocial using #WhyISocialGuest Interested in being a part of the Why I Social family? Why I Social is now accepting monthly - inquire at @[email protected] for additional information.

On this week's episode, it's basically a holiday episode. Only, no holiday music - because of music rights and stuff. Or time. You decide the reason. Also, the truth is out there. Note: This episode was recorded on Thursday, December 21st.

This week's Five Favorites:

1. HQ Trivia's founders are facing fundraising roadblocks after investors learned of alleged bad behavior [Recode - story by Kurt Wagner]

2. Forrester: YouTube is most popular social site for 12- to 17-year-olds [Social Media Today - story by David Kirkpatrick]

3. Apple confirms iPhones with older batteries will take hits in performance [The Verge - story by Tom Warren and Nick Statt]

4. Magic Leap finally unveils augmented reality goggles, says it's shipping next year [The Verge - story by Adi Robertson]

5. (Hot Topic) Eric Schmidt to become technical advisor to Alphabet [ABC Blog]

Honorable Mention(s)

• Instagram Testing Photos Posts to Multiple Accounts [Matt Navarra]

DISHonorable Mention(s)

• Amazon Files for "AmazonTube" Trademark [TechCrunch]

Five Favorites' Tweet(s) of The Week

• @Astrobull67

Use the hashtag #FiveFavorites to share YOUR favorite stories each and every week - and YOU may be included on the show (including our new tweet of the week feature).

On this week's episode, Amazon and Google have less beef. It's kind of like a sequel in the way The Last Jedi is a sequel to The Force Awakens. Also, we don't spoil The Last Jedi - in case that was some sort of a concern of yours.

This week's Five Favorites:

1. Apple's iMac Pro arrives December 14, starting at $4,999 [TechCrunch - story by Brian Heater]

2. Storify Is Shutting Down [The Verge - story by Shannon Liao]

3. Feds reportedly spent 22 million on Mysterious UFO Program [CNET - story by Steven Musil]

4. Amazon to start selling Apple TV and Google Chromecast [CNET - story by Ben Fox Rubin]

5. (Hot Topic) Here are the films and TV shows Disney would get from Fox [Polygon - story by Samit Sarkar]

Honorable Mention(s)

• Anheuser-Busch Orders 40 Electric Self-Driving Semi-Trucks from Tesla [Adweek]

DISHonorable Mention(s)

• #Netneutality (not Neutrality) trends on Twitter [Tweet sharing story by CNET]

Five Favorites' Tweet(s) of The Week

• @Monte_Colorman

Use the hashtag #FiveFavorites to share YOUR favorite stories each and every week - and YOU may be included on the show (including our new tweet of the week feature).

Chad Jennings is a beat writer and columnist for the Boston Herald. He previously has written for the Journal News (NY) and the Scranton Times-Tribune (Scranton). He currently covers the Boston Red Sox for the Herald and social plays a large role in that coverage.

Hear his story on this week's episode. And of course, Why Does He Social?!

Share your thoughts on this week's episode with #WhyISocial Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, or Google Follow at @WhyISocial. Connect with Chad on Twitter Connect With Chad on LinkedIn.

If you know someone who deserves their story told, let me know! Tweet me at @CBarrows or @WhyISocial using #WhyISocialGuest Interested in being a part of the Why I Social family? Why I Social is now accepting monthly - inquire at @[email protected] for additional information.