Hot Entertain News

These days when I turn on the news there is an 80% chance that a reporter will have a clip from YouTube on his or her show. Sometimes it's a funny clip about kids doing crazy stunts, or a blooper of some notable TV on-air personality. The viral nature of the Internet is such that we can now count on viral marketing as a viable way to promote products and services.

That doesn't mean that you're going get a hit every time. It means that when planning an online strategy, be sure to include viral marketing in the mix.

1: Viral marketing has to incite strong emotion

The greatest effect of viral videos now is comedy. Intense laughter will prompt the viewer to take the action to pass on the video or program. Sometimes the work is shocking or sexy. The work has to pull the viewer into a different state than the one they were in prior to watching the piece. People love to be grossed out, sexually stimulated, horrified, brought to tears; laugh intensely, or in some cases, scared witless.

Viral marketing is not for everyone. The material is not going to make sense to everyone. The real beauty of viral marketing that the folks who love your piece, will send it to people who they know will love it too.

2: The element of surprise is the key to great viral marketing.

I saw a clip about a dancer doing Michael Jackson moves and doing so quite well. The British judges were impressed. That wasn't the kicker; that was the setup. Soon a rotund cleaning person enters the stage and interrupts the dancer. The judges are surprised and before you know it there's an altercation on the stage. What happens next is the unexpected part. No, I'm not going to tell you; check it out yourself on Youtube.

That's the power of viral marketing. I sent this one to everyone on my email list that loves American Idol.

3: Viral videos are entertainment spots... period.

When was the last time you saw a really good viral video that featured the product or service of the company that produced it? You might remember the company, but chances are you'll never see the product in the video. The most effective viral video makers know that the product will distract from the effectiveness of the piece. No one wants to think about the features, advantages and benefits of a product when they are experiencing an intense emotional shift.

4: It's about branding at this point, not selling.

A crucial point to remember is that you aren't selling anything here. You are using emotion to brand your image. You are taking a slice of the market and making them work for you. The point of making your viral video is to get others to enthusiastically move it along. The temptation to sell is great but you will fail. Don't even bother.

5: Make it easy to access, easy to download and easy to pass along.

Your work needs to be like a piece of candy. You can't make it difficult for people to find. Make sure that your video is accessible and downloadable. You've got to keep the download time on the program or video low and the file as small as possible.

So you get a hot viral video going and people are checking it out on MySpace TV and YouTube. The people are eating it up and loving it. They are passing it around like candy. So what's next? If you don't have something for them right there and then to keep their interest, you've lost them. You've got to have a follow-up. You're like a comedian on a good night. If you've only got one joke, you're sunk.

Take the time to plan your viral strategy for maximum effect. Have a follow up video or some out-takes or perhaps a making of or back story. The worst kind of publicity to have is the kind that catches you off guard. You'll need to be prepared for success.

If the viral campaign does not take off, don't give up study the effects, do a little more research. Were you original and innovative or were you imitating some other campaign? Were you playing it safe or was it bad timing?

There are a million reasons for not succeeding in a viral program, a lot depends on your intended market and your subject matter. Hey, if it was easy; everyone would be millionaires. Don't give up.

One of the popular birds preferred for a pet is the cockatiel. Pet enthusiasts have given consideration on cockatiels as pets primarily because of these birds' behavior and qualities. They are also known as little parrots with diverse color patterns and of course, a crest. Cockatiels are attractive, easy-to-tame and affable. With their size, some are convinced that they are easy to handle.

Any pet aficionado will adore raising cockatiels as pets because they simply are entertaining because of their specially ability in mimicking speech that they hear or taught upon. Quite the opposite, these birds are comparatively good in whistling several melodies that they either hear from or get taught as well. With these, you now know what type of talking parrots appear in some shows.

Should you choose cockatiels as pets, single out a hand-fed cockatiel that you can also supervise regularly. The prices of cockatiels differ depending on its color. Well, you can expect to shell out more amount of money for a cockatiel from decent breeders than getting from a pet store. But then, any expenditure of a good handled cockatiel is worth it.

Cockatiels as pets are obtainable from pet shops. Preferably, choose an active one. A cockatiel which quietly sits might be feeling sick and should be passed up by buyers. Their feathers should be supple, shiny and lays flat on their body. Feathers should be clean and dry. Look at their feet as their feet scales ought to be smooth. Their nails and nostrils must be in great condition and their beak should be well-shaped.

A proper cockatiel cage is another major thing to think about cockatiels as pets. Because of their playfulness, they have to be endowed with an ample-spaced cage. It should be at a minimum of 26 inches height and 20x20 inches width. Its spacing should not go over æ inches. Horizontal cages regularly provide a great way them to keep fit and climb perches. Few spaces should be provided as perches.

Cockatiels as pets entail giving suitable nourishment. Bird seeds are beneficial aspects of a cockatiel's diet. The problem is that they have high fat content. So, seeds must be given moderately. Experts can suggest a mere 30% of it. Conversely, pelleted diets are typically fine choices for birds as they are balanced and best of all, birds don't pick a favorite seed to eat a favorite kernel then just put down the remaining seeds.

The church continues to get defined by society. An argument can be created against this concept, but never won.

Men in Ministry, look at the church in Acts, which is the church as handed to us by Jesus through the Holy Spirit. It is defined right here in this book and not meant to change.

1. We are told to wait to receive the power of the Holy Spirit. The disciples waited for 10 days unified, praying together in a room for the Holy Spirit. We should agree that unity and prayer brings the power of the Holy Spirit.


2. The church's first move was to testify to the public what Jesus had done. The power from the Holy Spirit is vast as evidenced first in a simple but bold message, which resulted in 3,000 people accepting Jesus and being baptized.


3. They devoted themselves to the Apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and prayer. They held everything in common. They studied the Bible; they shared all their experiences; they ate together and they prayed.


4. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had a need.


5. Every day they continued to meet together. They ate in each other's homes. They were glad and had sincere hearts, praising God. They took care of the needy they met with sincerity. They did not lie to each other-no gossip, either-and they were cheerful. They praised God. God added to their number daily. (The church grew every day.)


6. God performed miracles through them all the time. They used the miracles to bluntly testify in the love of the Lord and more were added to their number. When was the last time your touch healed someone?


7. After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. They were filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.They Prayed and were refilled with the Holy Spirit. When was the last time the ground shook during a church prayer meeting?


8. The apostles continued to testify.


9. God's grace was so powerfully at work in them, there were no needy persons among them. God provided for every need. There was so much purity, sin had no place, to the point that when Ananias and his wife lied, they died. Sin cannot live in the presence of God! Fear seized the entire church. Does the fear of the Lord exist in the church today?


10. The Apostles continued to heal every day.


11. When the disciples worshipped in the colonnade, no one else would enter.


12. The apostles appointed men from the complaining faction to serve the people while they focused on testifying and preaching the Word. When there is a need for ministry work, the congregation should step up to do the work. How is this working in the church today?

So what is the elephant in the room? The church has slowly lost all its effectiveness because it has slowly stopped doing what it was created to do: Study the Word, Praise God, Pray, Fellowship, Evangelize, take care of the needy, meet continually in homes and the gathering place, and tithe.

Men in Ministry, the church looks like society: can you imagine a person lying to a pastor and dropping dead? Why doesn't that happen? Is there so much sin in the church that one more sin does not make any difference? Has the Gospel been watered down? Our acceptance of a watered down Gospel and sin in the church is supporting the slow decline of the church. How many people actually pray and study the Bible everyday?

If you put the frog in the water and warm it slowly, the frog will enjoy himself swimming and splashing until it is cooked.

It is not too late. II Chronicles 7:14, "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

Let us pray.

Phil Bronstein, San Francisco Chronicle editor-at-large, said during the 2008 AlwaysOn media summit at Stanford that if he "could collect a buck every time anyone says 'monetize,' I wouldn't need any more money." But Internet users have come to expect free content. So, how will online media companies transform "free" into revenue? Nobody really knows-not even Google CEO Eric Schmidt, who refers to Web-based content profits as the Holy Grail.

How to cash in on the vast online audience for music, videos, news and other content? Media companies launching new online products find themselves weighing whether to build a subscription-based audience, charge on a pay-per-play basis, or rely on ad revenue. Online marketers tread the thin line between "free" and "fee" daily. For some strategies on converting the freeconomics of online media into monetization, here are three pieces worth a look:

Free! Why $0.00 is the Future of Business. Read what Wired's Editor-in-Chief Chris Andersen is thinking about free, in his blog and upcoming 2009 book on the subject.

"Let them eat chocolate." A Duke University case study on the power of that emotional hot button: free.

When Access was Free. A look back at 1999, when Netzero offered its Internet access service for free.

The Po!nt: Monetize with care. Judging the value of "free vs paid" offers online, in terms of their ultimate ROI, is a tightrope walk.

John McCain got people talking when he aired an ad that compared Barack Obama to style-over-substance celebrities like Paris Hilton; but the conversation really picked up when Hilton shot back with an entertaining rebuttal at the comedic website Funny or Die. Reclined on a chaise lounge-and attired in high heels and a revealing swimsuit-the celebutante outlined her own energy plan, a policy-wonkish hybrid of the McCain and Obama proposals, while also taking self-deprecating jabs at her vapid image.

"Infectious video content like the Paris video spreads like wildfire across the Web in under a week," says Chrysi Philalithes in a post at MediaPost's Search Insider. She notes that Google searches using the term "Paris Hilton" began to spike on August 5 and peaked on August 8 with a five-fold increase over normal volume.

Only a few companies seemed to capitalize on this heightened interest in paid search campaigns. When Philalithes googled Hilton's name, a paltry two ads appeared: one for Funny or Die and the other for Jeremiah Weed, which led not to the bourbon-maker's website but to the company's own YouTube reaction to Hilton's video. "Company strategists have recognized a pop and political cultural moment and are piggy-backing on to it to promote their brand," she says, "And they are not spending tens of thousands or getting buried in a time-consuming production schedule to do so. These opportunities have a short life span, so being quick to leverage them is crucial."

Of all the rooms in your house, the kitchen has some of the greatest potential for disaster. There are lots of attractive shiny things with sharp edges or knobs on appliances that make noise. The attraction for children can be very great. The diligence of parents to keep their baby or child safe also needs to be great.

Your low cupboards and drawers need to be made child-proof. This is to keep your children away from pointy, sharp things in the gadgets drawer, and to keep children from getting to cleaning supplies, which can be very poisonous, under the sink. It is nice to have a small supply of pot lids and wooden spoons to entertain a child under a cupboard, but keep an eye on any heavy pots that may be pul led out and dropped on a toe.

Many parents take the extra precaution of putting cleaning supplies or poisons high out of reach. The telephone number for your local poison information center needs to be plainly posted somewhere in the open with your other emergency telephone numbers. Also many experts advise parents to have syrup of ipecac on hand in the event that poison control or the doctor advises a parent to induce vomiting in a child. This antidote should be used only on the advice of a physician.

Other things in the kitchen need to be kept out of the reach of children such as alcoholic drinks and medicines. It is nice to have at least one high cupboard that can be locked with a key for keeping the most dangerous of substances and sharp knives. Many people will use a locking box for medicines or for knives. Keep chairs away from the counters and discourage your children from ever climbing on your countertops.

The stove should always be regarded as a danger for burns even when it is turned off. Always treat the burners as if they could be on. Use the back burners for cooking whenever possible and remove stove and oven knobs to a drawer when not in use. Some parents also buy a stove guard to install across the front of the stove to prevent children's reaching fingers from getting burned. Also, turn your pot handles towards the wall to prevent spills caused by accidentally knocking in to them.

Be wary of the dangers of your small appliances. It is so easy to leave an unattended, but hot, coffee pot. There are other dangers besides burns from hot appliances like toasters, waffle makers, and panini machines. If you must leave your kitchen mixer on the countertop at least unplug it and remove the mixing blades. Also remove sharp blades from food processors and keep them inaccessible like knives.

Hopefully the first time you realize your small child has figured out how to climb on the countertop, you will have removed enough dangers that the only thing your child will get is a scolding. It is something that will inevitably happen. As is always true with children, the best insurance for their safety is a parent's watchful eyes.

Basing your business at home allows you to stay closely connected to your family. When the children need to be picked up from school or are home sick, the home-based Dad can quickly drop everything and respond. But having the family so close to work can also spell trouble if distractions and family problems start to eat into work time.

If you are planning to work from home, either remotely via your employer or if you setting up a business, be prepared for a massive shift in the way you work.

Yes, we are talking discipline. Get used to that word, because you are going to need a lot of it.

"Those pesky kids... "
"He said... "
"She said... "
"I want... "
"I need... "

Yes, those pesky kids who you adore and with whom you wanted to spend more time, are suddenly under your feet - literally. OK, they may disappear off to school or nursery (or even better, university!) but when they are around, you will know it. And as much as you keep saying that you are working and you are not to be disturbed, be aware that the mind of a juvenile does not have the mental capacity to understand what that means. The same theory also applies when you ask them to keep the noise down - it just will not happen.

The lure of the patterned biscuit tin:

When you worked in an office, you were so busy and your head was spinning so fast, that food could not enter your mouth unless your stomach moaned so loud that other workers wondered if it was thundering outside. As if to balance out those years of malnutrition, your body and mind are now in food overdrive. If you manage not to put a stone on in weight in six weeks then you are well and truly blessed with the skinny gene. Try to resist the temptation, or better still, keep no food other than broccoli stalks in the house. Trust me, it is the only way

Jeremy Kyle is so funny!

You have hated him for years, mocked him, those who appear on his show, and especially those poor souls who are compelled to watch him every day. But actually, it is really interesting! Who would have thought that two brothers could marry their own twin sisters half removed. No... really! A quick five minutes of telly time just to relax, is suddenly five hours of auctions, property makeovers and Hollywood gossip. Hide the remote... now!!

Right and wrong are a matter of personal opinion, this is the definition of morals. Your morals define what is right or wrong for you.

If you do things you feel are wrong, but then convince yourself it is acceptable or divert your attention from feeling what you did is wrong, that takes energy and builds guilt.

The worst part of it is that to deal with this moral conflict, you have to shut your mind from the accurate memory of the event. You will block out all or certain aspects of the event or create other imaginary aspects so you can deal with your moral conflict without it being a conscious conflict at all.

When this happens, the only way to maintain a sense of sanity and balance without feeling so much guilt you cannot bear with facing yourself, is to close your heart.

Our morals, one could say, reside in our heart. They are an integrated part and function of the basic foundation of our individual personality, and out ability to feel emotions and express ourselves.

If we contradict our own code of moral conduct, we will subconsciously see ourselves as bad, evil and not worthy to receive anything good in life.

This is a key to self sabotage as well as the bizarre characteristic that some people have of not being able to accept a gift or any gesture of generosity. They do not feel worthy to receive anything good because they subconsciously feel they are bad due to having acted in contradiction to their own set of personal morals and will not see or deal with that due to the above described process of blotting it out.

This is how we get messed up. The solution is always found in the problem which means the solution is in your hands.

The problem is your particular set of morals. The solution is in objectively understanding your particular set of morals. The method to solve the problem is to question why you have chosen these morals and if they are valid at all, then to redefine your moral code.

Where did we each acquire or choose our own moral code? Was it our choice or was it thrust upon us due to culture or family tradition. Did you personally choose what your morals should be?

I personally have my own set of morals which I could believe I have chosen, the things I consider right and wrong. If I go against those self imposed rules, I know that I will have to shut my heart so that my mind will be able to rest in the belief that I have not contradicted my set of rules on how I should live and function without guilt, otherwise, I will just be lost in guilt. Shutting down, even a little, is a very unhealthy thing to do.

It is possible that ultimately, I have not chosen my morals but have accepted them as mine due to my upbringing and the morals I learnt from my grandfather. I have also learnt contrary morals from some people. These are my morals which are polar opposites of their morals and ways of behavior.

Morals can be emulations or rejections of other peoples personality traits. Regardless of the source, I have accepted them and am constantly aware not cross them. In this way, my mind is calm and my heart can rest.

What I chose to do as I became aware of how my moral compass rules my life was to determine my own morals by examining each one I had and tested them through my life experiences to see what makes sense for me in today's world. What do I feel is right or wrong, and never to expect anyone else to have the same values.

These are my rules and mine alone. Everyone is free to have their own. Anything short of allowing everyone the same freedom I desire is to limit my own freedom to be me. This is one of my personal rules.

The purpose of being aware of your moral code, which you will have whether you are aware of it or not, is to choose your actions such that your mind can rest knowing you are a decent person in your own personal view of what is right.

Problems occur when we have morals that are not our own that we disagree with, yet follow. This is the source of back biting, vengeful actions, gossip and random anger which often come out of jealously that we want to do what the other person is doing but do not allow ourselves due to it infringing on our morals. Because these morals are not really ours, but pushed on us, our inner conflict is expressed outwardly.

Find out what your morals are. Decide if these make sense to you. Do you agree with them or not? You must be totally honest about what YOU feel is right or wrong or you will stay the same. Then live your life according to your own rules and you will find a lot of your emotional frustration with yourself and other people dissipates.

If you do not, you will have to shut your heart and distract your mind from remembering your actions and then you will just live in self-attacks, self-destructive actions, self-pity, misery, lack of success and most importantly, lack of true friends or love because friendship and love are the most valuable things we can have in our life and they are absolutely not worthy of an evil person who commits sins against their own highest morals.

When you discover your morals, yet find that you do not adhere to them, this is a clear indication that they are not your morals but ones you have acquired. This is the reason we find it hard to do what we believe in, because we don't really believe it to begin with, we are just taking someone else's word that this is good.

We are all unique individuals, and so we must each have our own set of unique morals. I know, some of you are thinking that I am condoning the thief who feels nothing is wrong with stealing. In a way that is correct, but I do not expect many thieves and evil people to be reading my work, and so I write for the type of person who seeks a higher level of being and consciousness. This type of person I assume will naturally have less destructive natural tendencies. As for the crook, we will just have to leave him to find his own path.

You can trust yourself, you will not be able to do horrible things without feeling guilty, if you have read this far, your essential nature is good and seeking to live without harming anyone which is why you are reading material for self-improvement. All you have to do is define your own morals and follow them.

This will eliminate all guilt and self-deprecation, and will build your self esteem such that you will become a happy, balanced, and positive person.

It is not through reforming the world, but rather through reforming oneself, that one makes any practical improvement.