We are in the middle of watching Hurricane Gustav probably hitting New Orleans by Monday and I’m watching Rick Sanchez on CNN use Social Media in the greatest way that I have ever seen by a traditional media outlet. Rick has setup his own Twitter page at Twitter.com/ricksanchezcnn and is on the air reporting on Gustav and answering “tweets.”

Beyond Rick there seems to be a movement growing online to activate volunteers, spread the message on Twitter, Facebook, Ning. If you are looking for a site http://gustav08.ning.com, seems to be a great spot to help out.

Hill Harper recorded a video message on our very own Youtube channel and on his website/social network.

Let’s join in and help these folks, this storm is supposed to be a lot worse then Hurricane Katrina.

My guy, Scott Oneil has been named President of Madison Square Garden and that’s a good thing (and not just because I now get to sit behind Spike at Knicks games.) I’m sure this was a shock to many in the sports business world, as O’Neil, who was SVP, Team and Business Marketing Operations was tracking for David Stern’s job in about 20 years. O’Neil is just one of those guys that when around him you get that he is extremely polished, poised and positioned for great things. I had an opportunity to work with him indirectly during his days at Hoops TV and I was at UBO (co-founded by his buddy Seth Berger who founded And 1) and have kept in touch with him ever since. His reputation inside the league office was stellar and his tenacity, smarts and relationships make him an obvious choice to head up MSG. The position was held by Steve Mills who unfortunately was caught up in the recent Isiah Thomas scandal. Mills will now report to O’Neil and you gotta hope that all goes well. Hats off to Scott O’ and the recent announcement.

Last Friday, TheKeyinfluencer.com and Blackweb2.0 held an afternoon Blogger mixer/meetup & live streaming chat whrere we had a suprise visit from MC Lyte who talked about her digital strategy, current career/voiceover work, new group “Almost September”, and the launch of her new blog called OkaySister.com. Our conversation which was a little bit of a chat and a little bit of a working session where many of us gave Lyte best approaches to her web strategy. We had about 60 bloggers both in our offices and online in what some are calling a “historic event.”

CHAT WITH MC LYTE

We have some great things planned at this meet-up, some surprise guests, stop through to watch live or chat w/ us on uStream.  The event will be projected on a wall so that we can all interact!  We are super excited and can’t wait to see everyone! Oh an one last thing before I forget, parking will be validated.  If you haven’t heard yet about the even, check the details.

Between 3pm and 6pm view the Stream and chat w/ us, or embed the code on your own site below:

Feel free to embedd on your site as well for your readers, just copy and paste the code below:
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On Monday, July 21st at 12pm EST on www.carolsdaughter.tv,  I will have an opportunity to host a live web chat with Carol’s Daughter founder Lisa Price live from Florida where she is taping HSN. This is my second time hosting a conversation with her, the first was a few weeks ago while she was in New Orleans during Essence. We will talk to fans of the brand, bloggers and maybe even a few suprise “guests” may join us (who knows!) Feel free to call in and ask questions about the brand, the mission and how Lisa maintains her calm demeanor while running a multi-million dollar business.

Her story is an amazing story of a strong grassroots almost “cult-like” following that finally was noticed by the likes of a Steve Stoute led investment group that includes Jay-Z, Mary J. Blige, Will & Jada Pinkett Smith, Will’s partner James Lassiter, Tommy Mottola and a few others. The success of the business has secured them distribution in Sephora, Macy’s as well as their own Carol’s Daughter flagship stores in the U.S. This week they embark on their second opportunity to sell products in a partnership with HSN.

Bloggers Robert Scoble via the aid of Andrew Feinberg contribute to the breaking of a NYT piece today on the usage and issues around the usage os microblogging and life streaming tools Twitter and Qik. The controversy is around whether or not members of congress should be allowed to use these new social lifestreaming tools. The focus of the piece is on Representative John Culberson, Republican of Texas, who is an avid Twitizen and wrote on his Twitter.com profile, “I just learned the Dems are trying to censor Congressmen’s ability to use Twitter Qik YouTube Utterz etc — outrageous and I will fight them,” The way the article is written one would have to believe that the democrats are in favor of regulating the usage while the Republicans are all over Twitter! However Nancy Pelosi came back with a ‘friend me’ type response, and replies, “I have a blog, use YouTube, Flickr, Facebook, Digg, and other new media to communicate with constituents” and that the Dems proposal would “relax rules that prohibit members from posting on sites other than the House.gov domain.”

One of the best and promising parts of the article is the involvement of Culberson’s followers. NYT says,

But Mr. Culberson, after taking suggestions from hundreds of online “followers” on his Twitter site, drew up a counterproposal on Friday, calling on House leaders to lift nearly all restrictions on external content.

Qik Video by Feinberg with Culberson

As more and more digital technologies are used in video, film/tv there has been a public outcry for the cosmetic industry to create products that address the depth of your pores that these HD media tends to  capture. While this is addressing the cry of those that work in traditional media, fashion and entertainment, this is actually a breath of fresh air for “civilians” too. Cargo, a new brand which sells blu_ray HD Powder ($30.00USD) in Sephora describes the powder as “created to provide flawless results while looking completely natural during high-definition filming.”

According to Spektra Beauty News

Photochromatic pigments adjust with the lighting so that you have natural looking makeup no matter what the setting, while ultra-fine micronized minerals fill the look of fine lines and reduce the appearance of imperfections.

According to the website, there is a whole backstore on the founder, Hana Zalzal

Nearly ten years ago, Hana Zalzal had a mission: to create a professional color cosmetic line that top makeup artists would covet, yet would be easy enough for all women to enjoy. She recognized that makeup is an intimate part of a woman’s identity; it’s her “cargo.” It should serve as a form of self-expression, as well as make her feel good and look great. So in 1996, after seeking input from some of the biggest names in the business, Zalzal launched CARGO, a line of invitingly wearable products that were both practical and portable.

Cargo’s Line At Sephora

While I don’t have the official Nike press release nor has Que called me personally, we are here to report that by way of some very credible sources, Henry “Que” Gaskins has joined Nike in some sort of “Big Dog” position in NYC. Since I don’t have his official title, I do know that it must be a big role because Que is no slouch. Gaskins is most notably known for his work at Reebok and Allen Iverson and according to his linkedin profile describes himself as “Marketing Maven of Pop Culture, Entertainment, Fashion, Sports, Urban and Young Adults”

We recently reported on an amazing viral video The Additive, his marketing agency and team created and now it seems as this long time expert in urban culture has joined the rest of my NIKE familia at the Swoosh. Further solidifying my opportunity to always be dressed in the flyest AF1’s or rare kick, this move on behalf of Nike, Trevor Edwards and Mark Parker is a big one. Simply put Gaskins “gets it”, is super duper connected (he knows me afterall…..oh and Uncle Wes of course) and now that he finally works for a great brand (sorry Reebok) will no doubt do great things for the brand. I tried to wait to send this post till I got some sort of “official call” but had to get this out. I also selfishly want one of these Alife Tee shirts and know when Que reads this he will have his “people” add me to the Nike NYC “influencer” list and will make sure I have this fresh tee and my 10.5’s in my mailbox on a regular basis!!

Congrats Nike/Que…..

Loved the post by Darryl Ohrt at Brandflakesforbreakfast about Twitter’s recent failures and issues with bandwith that have turned into Fail Whale an online phenomenon and current web 2.0. cult following of the moment. If you have not been a part of the Fail Whale madness lately, well maybe you…….actually have a life! What is brilliant about this little “moment in time” for Twitter is that they are being celebrated for their failures.

Possibly the most wonderful thing in the world that a brand can achieve is love so strong that users worship your failures. (Brandflakesforbreakfast.com)

This is what I preach to my clients in my sermons to them. Just get in the game, don’t be afraid to take a risk. Not being in the game is worse than not at least trying something. For a brand like Twitter, they are so revered and loved right now that their failures have become a “viral movement.”

I had an opportunity to interview Lisa Price, founder of Carol’s Daughter today,  the show was syndicated on various blogs, websites and ultimately lives in Carolsdaughter.tv.

Lisa is in New Orleans to run a “pop-up retail store” (it’s hardly that when you see it) that will coincide with the timing of the Essence Festival. The focus of our interview was to highlight the charitable element of the weekend which includes both an online and offline opportunity to fight hunger and help rebuild the region. Starting at midnight tonight Carol’s Daughter will make a $10 donation on behalf of every new membership to the Carol’s Daughter ‘Friend of the Family’ group. In addition to donating $10, Carol’s Daughter will send new members a free gift.

For those not familiar, Carol’s Daughter is a line of beauty products such as fragrances and products for hair, skin, and hands.  The creation of the brand came about as Lisa concocted organic products in her kitchen, including pure oils such as sweet almond, jojoba and soy. Beginning as a mail-order and an online business in 1993, Carol’s Daughter opened its first store in Brooklyn in 1999. Several other stores have opened since then, with more stores opening in the future. In 2005 the company brought in $10m in funding from investors like Will Smith & Jada Pinkett Smith, Jay Z, and Tommy Mottola. The round of financing was orchestrated by Steve Stoute and was the cataylyst for the brand’s national growth and push into stores like Sephora and Macy’s.