‘Citizen 2.0’ Will Impact 2008 US Election

An emerging segment of highly engaged, tech-savvy and vocal voters is poised to impact the outcome of the 2008 US national elections, according to new research from Yahoo!, HCD Research and Hall and Partners. The study, titled “The Rise of Citizen 2.0: Radically Rethinking Democracy in the Digital Age,” examines the changing role of the Internet in shaping political activity and discourse. “Citizen 2.0” represents a slight majority (51 percent) of Americans, who crave information about politics to a greater extent than traditional voters, and are much more likely to use technology to share their political views and opinions.

“More and more political candidates are discovering that the power of the Internet boosts their campaigns’ momentum by connecting them with engaged, committed voters,” said Carol Darr, an expert on new media and politics and an adjunct lecturer at Harvard’s School of Kennedy Government.

In identifying behaviors and characteristics of Citizen 2.0, the new research highlights the unique opportunity for candidates to help feed these voters’ insatiable appetite for political information from a variety of sources. Citizen 2.0 likes connecting, sharing opinions and discussing political views, and is more likely to volunteer time and contribute money to a candidate. Researchers also found that these voters rely on the Internet as their most trusted, and frequently used resource for gathering information, and communicating about politics:

• 87 percent use news websites to gather information and learn about politics;

• 82 percent use search engines;

• 56 percent use candidate websites;

• 51 percent use blogs and politically-based websites;

• 40 percent use online political groups.

In a recent example of Citizen 2.0 in action, Mitt Romney supporters created and posted online a total of 129 commercials, as part of a special campaign promotion inviting the public to use photos, videos and audio clips to create a video ad. The commercials were viewed nearly 100,000 times. Yahoo! has been heavily involved in US politics in recent months and has revamped and expanded its elections website (http://elections.yahoo.com).

HP to Seek New Business Model for Cameras

HP is seeking an alternative business model for its HP-branded cameras and shift resources toward its Print 2.0 growth initiatives. HP is currently working to identify an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) partner that would be licensed to design, source and distribute digital cameras under the HP brand. HP will continue selling its own cameras through December and intends to have the partnership arrangement in place in the first half of 2008. As a result of its new camera business strategy, HP will take a pre-tax charge of approximately $30 million in the fourth fiscal quarter ending Oct. 31, 2007.

This shift in strategy is intended to enable HP to accelerate its investment in Print 2.0 initiatives. These include furthering HP’s leadership position in home photo printing and online photo services, while accelerating the company’s retail photo-finishing business.

Work/Life Balance Not a Priority

Despite a growing awareness of the importance of a healthy work/life balance, workers and employers are often at odds when it comes to the issue, according to survey results released by online recruiter Monster. Among the findings of the 2007 Monster Work/Life Balance Survey, 89 percent of employees polled believe work/life balance programs, such as flextime and telecommuting, are important when evaluating a new job, yet only about half of HR professionals polled consider work/life balance to be an important initiative for their companies.

The survey findings revealed that only 29 percent of workers view their employer’s work/life balance initiatives as good or excellent; in fact, 58 percent say their employer encourages working too much. Furthermore, the long-term outlook does not look promising — only 56 percent of HR pros believe that general work/life balance will improve in the future.

More than three-fourths of workers believe that work/life balance initiatives result in more loyal and efficient employees, and 82 percent say that in the offer stage, a potential employer’s work/life balance initiatives are important or very important to consider. However, only half (49 percent) of HR professionals feel they acquire more qualified candidates because of their work/life balance initiatives.

Employees are stressed by work. Sixty percent of employees say they spend too much time working — with about one-third (35 percent) blaming their boss’ expectations and one-fourth (26 percent) saying they overwork to fit in with corporate culture. In addition, 91 percent of workers have worked directly with someone they would classify as a “workaholic.” Of this group, 51 percent say that doing so spurred working longer hours; 28 percent report giving up vacation days as a result. Image plays a part, as well — 25 percent of workers admitted to boasting about work/life imbalance to demonstrate commitment and hard work ethic.

Most employees think that technology has a negative impact on work/life balance. Workers believe that advances in mobile technology will actually damage their work/life balance, as evidenced by the following findings:

• 64 percent predict that employees will spend more time working due to the increased use of PDAs, while 72 percent say the same will be true due to the increased use of laptop computers.

• Of workers who currently have a PDA, 44 percent wish they could relinquish using it outside of work.

• Nearly one-third say their PDA limits the quality of face-to-face interactions with colleagues and/or people outside of work.

Northrop Grumman Signs Agreement

Injazat Data Systems has signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with global defense and technology company, Northrop Grumman Corporation to collaborate on a variety of high-technology programs and initiatives in support of the UAE’s economic development strategy. The MOA was signed at the Dubai Air Show by Ibrahim Mohamed Lari, CEO of Injazat Data Systems, and Duke Dufresne, president of Northrop Grumman ISS International, Inc. It was the second MOA signed by Northrop Grumman this week at the Dubai Air Show.

Injazat Data Systems is an Abu Dhabi-based joint venture between Mubadala Development Company, a wholly-owned investment vehicle of the government of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi; and Electronic Data Systems (EDS), a global IT and business process services giant.

A Guide to Your Virtual World

Second Life (www.secondlife.com) has been the talk of the tech community for a few years now, but it’s difficult for anyone who’s not a techie to understand how to become a part of this online world. A new book, “Second Life: A Guide to Your Virtual World” ($34.99; www.informit.com) by Brian White (known as Ansel Gasparini in-world) aims to help everyone become a part of the Second Life community.

The book provides a fast track to learning the basics of Second Life so visitors don’t come across as obvious newbies, and so their residence “in-world” is fulfilling and financially rewarding. White thoroughly explains Second Life’s mechanics, cultural norms and economy. He also helps readers unleash their creative sides by gaining an understanding of what is possible and how to use the building, texturing, and scripting tools to create their own objects and make their Second Life unique.