WRAL Tech Wire

MCNC to celebrate broadband expansion with Twitter 'town hall'

The first phase of the Golden LEAF Rural Broadband Initiative is complete. To celebrate this achievement, MCNC will host a live Twitter Town Hall on Friday to answer questions about the project and the state of broadband connectivity in North Carolina.

Smart tweets for deals: Spring Metrics launches new tool

Seeking to capitalize on the social media boom and Twitter mania, Durham-based Spring Metrics is rolling out "Smart Twitter offers" for merchants wanting a different spin on daily deals.

Cisco eyes iPad opportunity; Facebook personalized news; Twitter ads; AT&T selling a Yellow Pages stake?; South by Southwest changes gears

Inside the Bulldog blog: Cisco sees opportunity in new iPad; Facebook is personalizing news; Twitter making branding changes; AT&T reportedly mulls selling part of Yellow Pages; South by Southwest conference shifts away from social media.

Tweet this: Buying ads on Twitter is getting easier

The popular social media messaging service is unveiling a long-awaited automated system that will enable advertisers to manage their marketing campaigns and budgets without having to deal with sales representatives.

Who won 'Social Bowl'? Super Bowl ads paying fans to play

Ad agency McKinney and social media data firm EvoApp tracked and are now analyzing tons of social media data "buzz" generated by Super Bowl-related advertising campaigns. The early analysis shows brands that paid their fans with contest offers harvested the most benefit.

Social Bowl early winners

In Super Bowl of social media, Patriots win, Triangle firm says

iContact tracks the Giants and Patriots in use of Twitter ahead of the Super Bowl and declares the AFC champs are No. 1.

Pats vs. Giants in social media (iContact graphic)

Censoring tweets is overblown issue, says Twitter CEO

Twitter's reasoning has been mostly lost in a barrage of comments -- many from Twitter users themselves -- that the company is caving into attacks on free speech, especially in countries with repressive regimes.

Censoring at Twitter - How it will look

Tweet this: Teens moving to Twitter where posts are more private

Teens tout the ease of use and the ability to send the equivalent of a text message to a circle of friends, often a smaller one than they have on crowded Facebook accounts. They can have multiple accounts and don't have to use their real names. They also can follow their favorite celebrities and, for those interested in doing so, use Twitter as a soapbox.

Tracking Internet use by age

Twitter's censorship plan ignites global uproar of protests

It was a stunning role reversal for a youthful company that prides itself in promoting unfettered expression, 140 characters at a time. Twitter insisted its commitment to free speech remains firm, and sought to explain the nuances of its policy, while critics -- in a barrage of tweets -- proposed a Twitter boycott and demanded that the censorship initiative be scrapped.

Twitter

Twitter may censor tweets in individual countries

Twitter said Thursday that it has refined its technology so it can censor messages on a country-by-country basis.

Twitter Censorship

Getting social: The GOP race and lessons for businesses

While it's never a one-size-fits-all approach, as we see here, the common takeaway remains that social media presence can lead to increased engagement and a return on investment," iContact says.

iContact tracks GOP candidates and social media impact

Tweet this: SC firm sues ex-writer for taking Twitter followers

PhoneDog LLC fsues Noah Kravitz, a writer who worked for the company from 2006 until last year. Attorneys for the website, which reviews mobile devices like phones and tablets, said Kravitz owes them $340,000.

PhoneDog's logo

Ky. middle school teacher using Twitter in classroom

A Kentucky middle school teacher decided to use Twitter as a teaching tool rather than swim against the tide.

Tweet this: Twitter taking on whole new look, adds features

A redesign is supposed to make Twitter easier to navigate. It offers more accessible features that customize the experience for each user. The service is also expanding users' profile pages to accommodate more detailed information about brands in text, photos and video as Twitter tries to convert more companies into advertisers

Talecris boosts Grifols; Apple's battery fix; iPad sales slowing?; WordPress reaches 60M; Playbook adds newspapers; Twitter exec exodus

Bulldog blog headlines: Merger with RTP-based Talecris helps Gfriols; Apple has released a battery fix for its new iOS; meanwhile, Apple shares drop due to concerns about iPad sales; WordPress over 60 million in blogs; BlackBerry's Playbook beefs up content; exec exodus continues at Twitter.