Kahzmir turned 10 years old today. In celebration of his decade, Kahzmir started a video series called “10 in 10”. I think he has been inspired by his mom, Minaz, who has been blogging at http://50in50days.blogspot.ca/.
You can find Kahzmir’s YouTube channel and his video series at www.kahzmir.com.
Finally. The one Kickstarter product I’ve been waiting for finally arrived earlier this week. The Dash by Bragi.
The Dash reminds me of “comm” that Jack Bauer used to place in his ear to talk with and listen to CTU (Counter Terrorism Unit) when he went on his missions to save the world.
I’m getting used to the gestures to control The Dash as well as all it’s features. I’ve already used it to store and listen to music with (independent of my phone), listen to podcast from my phone as well as track my workouts.
The music sounds clear and crisp. The preset instructions are also clear enough. I’m really excited about my new Dash! Thanks Bragi!
Winter Stations returned to Toronto after the success of the 2015 edition. Maybe it was the uniqueness of Winter Stations last winter but this year’s edition was less than awe inspiring when compared to 2015.
Click the image above for some more photos of the 2016 edition of Winter Stations.
Many of you may have already heard. But it’s now official (meaning the company has made an announcement): I have a new job.
I recently left Catalyst/Maxus (part of GroupM) where I was managing the paid social business for Nestle Canada to join iNvolved Media (part of Active International). At iNvolved my title is Director, Social Media Strategy. What this means is that I will be leading the efforts to grow the social media leadership and business for the agency.
I’m really excited about flexing these muscles in my new role.
You can read the official press release here.
If you haven’t heard about or seen Facebook’s Instant Articles you will be very soon. Especially if you’re in Canada.
Instant Articles have been around for a little while now. It basically allowed publishers to post Facebook exclusive content to the social media giant’s platform. By accessing the more than 1 billion active users, the publisher would, in essence be exposing their content to more available readers.
Earlier this month, Facebook opened Instant Articles up to all publishers. Currently, Canadian publishers on the Instant Articles platform include Chatelaine, Diply, The Huffington Post Canada, Journal de Montreal, Maclean’s, Sportsnet, The Canadian Press and TVA Nouvelles.
According to a Facebook blog post:
We built Instant Articles to solve a specific problem—slow loading times on the mobile web created a problematic experience for people reading news on their phones. This is a problem that impacts publishers of all sizes, especially those with audiences where low connectivity is an issue. With that in mind, our goal from the beginning was to open up Instant Articles to all publishers and we’re excited to be able to do that in a way that makes it fast and easy for all publishers to reach their audiences on Facebook.
Here’s what Instant Articles looks like (on my Android device specifically):
See the “lightning blot” circled in red? That denotes an Instant Article. In this case, it’s from Slate.com. When a user clicks on the image in this unit they see:
For the user, it’s a much better experience than clicking through and reading the article on the Slate website. Once done, the reader would then close the mobile browser and re-open Facebook. With Instant Articles, the reader doesn’t have to leave Facebook.
For the publisher, they get more eyeballs on their content. And with more eyeballs comes the potential of increased revenues. However, this revenue is shared with Facebook. And more eyeballs on their Facebook content doesn’t necessarily mean more eyeballs on their own websites/blogs. What does this mean for the future of publishers if they continue to rely heavily on Facebook for their revenues?
For Facebook, it make their platform more sticky. Facebook always wins.
The following article was originally posted on Girth Radio.
On Saturday February 20, 2016 Khadija Cajee joined Welcome’s Karim Kanji at PodCamp Toronto for a special one our interview in front of a live audience.
Khadija Cajee’s six year old son, Syed Adam Ahmed, has been on Canada’s DHP (Deemed High Profile) for as long as she and her husband, Sulemaan Ahmed, can remember.
During this conversation Karim and Khadija discuss the following:
– How a single tweet led to a series of tweets that led to real public discourse.
– When did Khadija and her family find out their son was on the DHP list?
– How many kids under 18 years old are on the DHP list in Canada?
– What is Khadija doing to shed light on this issue?
– Will kids under 18 ever be off the DHP list?
– What is #NoFlyListKids and how can people become involved?
– What liberties are we willing to give up for the sake of security?
– What is Minister Goodale doing to ensure that children are not on the DHP list?
For more information on #NoFlyListKids please visit the website.
Listen below:
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The following article was originally posted on Girth Radio.
Published on: February 14, 2016
Segun Akinsanya is a motivational speaker and community activist. Formerly the Executive Director of Bright Future Alliance, Segun is now the founder and CEO of Currant. Currant is a co-operative looking to build sustainable businesses and communities.
Segun also happens to be a convicted criminal having served time for manslaughter.
Listen to this inspiring conversation.
Enjoy!
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#RoadToRedemption
The following article was originally posted on Girth Radio.
Published on: February 11, 2016
Adam Mintz is the founder, President and CEO of Toronto-based apparel company, Athletes Collective.
In this episode we chat about Adam’s foray into entrepreneurship, his background in fashion, why he has always wanted to own his own business, how Athletes Collective began, his failed Kickstarter campaign and how he rose from the ashes to build an advisory board and obtain some seed money.
Enjoy!
Listen below:
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TuneIn
You can also subscribe to the podcast via RSS Feed if you’re so inclined.
A few days ago I noticed a new GIF button on my Android Twitter app. I thought nothing of it until I started using it. In sort: It’s amazing! It allows users to add animated GIFs (from Twitter’s GIF library) too any tweet (and DM). This will help regular users “spice” up their tweets and increase engagement. It will be interesting to see how brands hop on this new functionality.
The above shows where you can see the animated GIF button. Below you’ll see a tweet from earlier today using this new feature.
3.9 million tweets were sent during the halftime show of #sb49 #twitterhosts pic.twitter.com/KRRWesQguY
— karim kanji (@karimkanji) February 25, 2016
I came across this historical building just outside my new office near the intersection of York Mills and Yonge in Toronto. It’s the former residence of one of Canada’s most well-respected artists: C.W. Jeffreys.
Born in Rochester, England, Jefferys arrived in Toronto, Ontario (after living in Philadelphia and Hamilton, Ontario) with his family around 1880. After attending school, he apprenticed with the york, Lithography Company from 1885 to 1890. From 1889 to 1892 he worked for the Toronto Globe as an illustrator and artist. From 1893 to 1901, he worked for the New York Herald. Returning to Toronto, he became a magazine and book illustrator. Along with Ivor Lewis and other artists, Jefferys co-founded the Graphic Arts Club (later named the Canadian Society of Graphic Art), which by the 1940s became the primary artists’ group in Canada. As well, from 1912 to 1939 he taught painting and drawing in the Department of Architecture at the University of Toronto.
During World War I he was commissioned by the Canadian War Records department to paint soldiers training at Camp Petawawa and Niagara. [1]
Jefferys had an intense interest in history and his reputation rests principally on his accurate and meticulous portrayal of early Canadian life. The best known collection of his historical sketches is “The Picture Gallery of Canadian History”.
He was made a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts.[1]
