Josh Hallet runs the Hyku social media practice and Hyku blog. An internationally recognized thought leader in the convergence of social media and corporate public relations & marketing, Josh provides social media consulting and development work to Fortune 500 firms. He’s also the creator and organizer of BlogOrlando (Sept. 27-29). We asked Josh some questions about the unconference and a little about what it’s like to be Josh Hallett.

BB: What made you create BlogOrlando?

JH: The idea started last year (2006). I was on the conference circuit on the West Coast and thought, “Why am I always traveling to California or the Northeast for events? Why can’t everybody come to Florida?”

Originally though it was going to be a private event. I was going to invite 15 or 20 close friends within the industry to Florida for a few days. We’d hang-out and talk shop for a day, then spend the rest of the weekend at Disney. I started planning things and figured I’d just open up the event to everybody. BlogOrlando was born.

Last year was the first event and we had just under a 100 people attend. The audience was a mixture of local bloggers/pr/media and friends from outside of Florida.

BB: What can attendees expect at BlogOrlando?

JH: It’s a hybrid event, mixing the session style of an un-conference, with a bit of the structure of a traditional conference. There is a set schedule that will be known ahead of time, but the sessions themselves are open ended. There are discussion leaders for each session. The session leaders are there to set the topic and then facilitate the conversation. There are no long powerpoints or talks or panels. For those not familiar with the format it can be a bit of an adjustment, but in the end I think many folks prefer it.

This year we have four distinct tracks to match up with the diversity of the audience. The tracks are: PR/Marketing, Media, Technology and then Life/Local/.

BB: Tell us about the unconference format and why it’s useful.

JH: Like I said previously, BlogOrlando is a bit of a modified un-con format. Typically at events like BarCamps there is a true open-grid format where session leaders sign-up the morning of the event, or shortly beforehand via a wiki.

With the audience in our market I needed to have most of the sessions mapped out in advance. BlogOrlando has session leaders that are all experts in their fields, so there is a great opportunity to learn from them in an interactive session. Rather than the standard present for 90% of the time and 10% for Q&A, we do the opposite. The majority of the time is Q&A. That format allows participants to get what they want out of each session, but they have to participate.

BB: How geeky will the trip to Epcot be?

JH: Not that geeky. Last year we went to the Magic Kingdom and had a blast. Of course this year there is Twitter, so there might be some activity as we walk around the park :-)

BB: You’ve have an impressive track record in the social media world? What?s been your greatest experience?

JH: It’s hard to say. The ability to travel around the country has been an exciting part of it all. However, the travel does become draining, especially when you might be spending the night in Reagan National because of canceled flights.

From a work standpoint it’s been great to work with a number of newspapers as they adapt to the world of social media.

BB: What do you think of the participation is marketing meme?

JH: I think it’s right-on. Last year at a WOMMA event Jake McKee presented on some of his LEGO experiences, specifically their hands-on events. Jake’s mantra was ‘Control via participation and not directive.’ Corporations are always looking for control, but they don’t really have it. However, by being part of the community they have a say in what goes on. The human element goes a long way :-)

BB: What’s next for Josh Hallett and Hyku?

JH: More of the same I hope. As soon as BlogOrlando was over last year people were asking, “How about next year?” I’d love to plan a BlogOrlando 08, but I need to think about where it goes.

We mentioned that Jeremiah Owyang had a tour de force last week with his Social Network Digest. Well it looks like this may be a weekly feature. Check it out on Web Strategist. One highlight, “There’s a flurry of commentary this month about the need for a Social Graph, a tool that would help transport the relationships of one social network to the next.”

Looks like Comcast is the latest company to get busted astroturfing. The PR agency of record had an employee post a pro Big Ten network statement as a Michigan State fan. David Waymire of Martin Waymire agency (agency responsible for astroturfing) posted in the comments of this entry that it was an employee who is also a Michigan State student. Waymire added, “That doesn’t excuse our failure to identify that the posting was done by our company advocating for a particular position. Again, my apologies. Go Spartans…at least until they play my Northwestern Wildcats!”

Looks like an innocent error to me. Still companies really need to embrace transparency, and disclose exactly who they are and what they are doing.

Nationally syndicated astrologer Jacqueline Bigar’s forecasts have been read, seen and heard by millions of people via the Internet, television, radio, telephone and national newspaper columns. Syndicated by King Features Syndicate, Inc. in 1991, Ms. Bigar’s newspaper column, Bigar’s Stars, which originated in the Philadelphia Daily News, now appears in more than 200 daily national newspapers. Her newspaper clients include the Atlanta Journal, Cleveland Plain Dealer, Denver Post, Kansas City Star, Los Angeles Daily News and San Francisco Examiner, as well as various international newspapers in other English speaking countries like India, Kuwait, and Australia.

She’s here to predict the 2008 presidential election. And how did we arrange that? Easy. Jacqueline Bigar’s my personal “mommy blogger.” Every client, acquaintance and friend always asks for a free reading. Unfortunately, cannot do. However, Nettie Hartsock asked who would win the election, and we all thought it would be fun. So here it is. And if you like it, please visit her blog.

Inning One of the 2008 Presidential Campaign: The Elephants vs the Donkeys

by Jacqueline Bigar

The game is simple. Each team has several declared pitchers and catchers.

As a curious astrologer and encouraged by some friends, I pulled the potential players’ charts. I compared them against the dates of significant stepping stones, i.e. The Donkey and Elephant Debates, Super Primary February 5, each respective team’s convention dates, and finally the day- Election Day November 4, 2008.

Next year has some remarkable happenings and transits, none of which totally make any candidate clearly the winner. History also plays a role. Did you know we have had only one Virgo president? John McCain is a Virgo. The transits for Virgo are karmic this next year yet difficult. For the Senator in Arizona, his destiny will have nothing to do with the political dates, but with his life karma.

Of the immediate Elephant players, Rudi Guliani, John McCain, Mitt Rommey, I ask: Are any of them great enough or strong enough to go against the incredibly powerful charts of the Democrat candidates, notably Hillary, Obama and Bill Richardson? These sluggers carry Presidential planetary signatures.

No matter how you cut this election, it is a noteworthy one. It is the first since 1952 that an incumbent is not running. The Democrats true to their essence have a woman, a black man and Hispanic all in the running. Step back, everyone, we are going to make history, one more time.

The Donkeys win and who is their Babe Ruth? You don’t have to guess hard. A Babe: Hillary Clinton.

Hillary Clinton will lead the Democrats to their Presidential Victory.

We all know from the years of watching her, she has the strength of steel which comes from a very powerful yet difficult chart. If she loses her self-discipline as the many hurdles appear in the next year, she could spin into disaster. Her will and her strength will determine the outcome. “You can do it, Hillary.”

The planets can give you what you need but you must work with the energy .Hilary does. My concern with Hillary falling in a very difficult and rugged seven months period astrologically is less than with many other charts. She is strong, she is powerful. Let us not forget her Spiritual Manager “Bill” who absolutely knows what he is doing. Bill Clinton proved impossible to beat. Hillary Clinton with Bill behind her will prove the same.

The trail will be fraught with problems but the ultimate call will be the planets on the final Convention Night. They wave hello to Hillary. They kiss Hillary’s chart. Meet The Democratic Presidential pick.

So don’t laugh at the steamroller who is coming down the path. It is Hillary. And it is her Victory March. Two presidents for the price of one. So all American… Just like baseball.

Increasingly, bloggers are emailing me asking for comments on their blog posts.To date, I have grudgingly obliged. Now, it’s time to stop. Solicited comments hurt the conversation, rather than helping it.

Here’s why:

1) No or infrequent comments are a great indicator that readers did not find the post to be worthy of further conversation. That’s great feedback, which in turn can spurn you to look back over prior successful posts and recover some of that “secret sauce.” Or go create some new secret sauce.

For example, yesterday we ran a post on the presidential primaries. It got a big ole donut in the comment column. Every once in a while, we do feature a post on political PR and it’s always the same result. Buzz Bin readers are telling us something. This is invaluable feedback, because you’ve trusted us as readers. We want to meet that trust with great content.

2) Solicited commenting cheapens the conversation. You got it. The post conversation means less because half the people commenting do it as a favor to you, not because the content was inspiring. This also leads a blogger to deny that the content is uninspiring.

3) Solicited commenting cheapens the commenter. Meaning Geoff’s comments mean less when they are not naturally inspired by the subject matter itself. Quite frankly, I don’t want to be that guy.

If you want other bloggers to look over your content, then just send them a link. Even better send them a link to content that they’ll find interesting. Don’t ask for a comment. If you do this, then the result may not be the desired one, but it will be the right one.

Newer bloggers should not be disheartened. Many experienced bloggers are hesitant to comment on new blogs. Most of them disappear within a few months. It’s hard to get a blog going. Longevity and increased readership help quite a bit in the comments arena. But most importantly, great content is the true elixir.

Jeremiah Owyang gave a virtual tour de force last week with his new monthly, “Digest of the Social Networking Space.” This piece sums up all of the many trends over the past month, including Facebook’s growth, corporate adoption of social media (Wal-mart’s Facebook app.), and the mobile necessity of social media apps.

Here’s some choice advice for cos,”Some of these companies not to be around in 5 years, there will be a shake-out, acquisitions, and fall-offs.” If you haven’t read Jeremiah yet, this is a great way to get introduced to a master.

It’s good to read a variety of blogs. Telecommunities Ian Martinez noted Barach Obama’s incredible social media campaign yesterday. This is powerful:

5,000 groups have been created through the networking website and about 15,000 are blogging. “This technology allows people to participate in the process who didn’t have a chance before even if candidates wanted them to,” [Obama advisor Julius Genachowski] said.

Tribal Seduction had a great write-up a few days ago on how to make someone look like a leader via a blog. These are some essential tips for corporate bloggers looking to become known as subject matter experts.

We mentioned a few days ago that the Ad Age Power 150 may have a flaw in it. Well the Friendly Ghost just dished out his August PR index late yesterday afternoon. Guess what? No questionable bloglines stats, making the index a pure “What have you done for me lately” measurement. I like it. So do Kyle Flaherty and Eric Eggertson.

Speaking of, Eric Eggertson continues his hot streak with a great write up on the American Red Cross vs. Johnson & Johnson lawsuit. I’d have to agree with Eric. This is a no win for the Red Cross.

The team at Viget Labs wrote up the upcoming New, New Internet conference here in Washington DC this Nov. 1. Confirmed speakers include Confirmed speakers include James Surowiecki (author of The Wisdom of Crowds), Ted Leonsis, Om Malik, and Tim Ferriss (author of The 4-Hour Work Week) as well as DC’s own Rohit Bhargava (Ogilvy), Frank Gruber (AOL), and yours truly. Host organization ExecutiveBiz has launched their own blog.

Every year ad execs are rewarded with the Super Bowl. Every four years, PR pros are treated to an even greater event — the presidential election.

It’s like baseball (thanks to Ike Pigott for the metaphor suggestion), a great tournament to find our world series representatives, and then the battle royale. PR heroes are made, brilliant strategies and tactics are used, which eventually trickle down into the larger profession. Yes, if you can separate yourself from the issues, the PR playoffs and world series can be a time of awe and professional growth.

Washington is dead right now. But it’s the quiet before the storm. Two weeks from now, the race for the earliest primary season will begin in earnest. And then it’s on. Positioning begins. And it will occur in many of the early primary states. Nothing will get done this fall in DC.

Playoff Lore

Bill Clinton was a goner in 1992 — due to Gennifer Flowers and accusations of draft-dodging — with Tsongas leading the field. But Clinton literally wrote off Tsongas’ win in the NH primary by claiming that Tsongas’ home in Massachusetts actually meant Tsongas should have won. A sick, brilliant move flipped the Arkansas governor back into the heart of the campaign. Newsweek lampooned the moment featuring Clinton (and Buchanon) on top of the victory stand with second place metals. The rest is history.

Just in case you think front-runners have it wrapped up, here are some other historical primary moments (vis a vis Wikipedia):

• Harry S. Truman ended his re-election bid in 1952 after losing the New Hampshire primary.
• Lyndon Baines Johnson dropped his 1968 reelection bid after performing far below expectations in the New Hampshire primary.
• Jimmy Carter, the little-known governor of Georgia, took a surprise win in 1976 and rode it to the presidency.
• John McCain, a senator from Arizona, defeated George W. Bush in the New Hampshire primary in 2000, making it a close contest.
• John Kerry won both the Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary over heavily favored Howard Dean to win the 2004 Democratic nomination. It didn’t help that Dean had a couple very public meltdowns, including this one.

Of course, then there are the big PR moments in the World Series, the general presidential election.

• The clean shaven Kennedy versus the swarthy Nixon
• Swift boat veterans
• The Dukakis tank photo
• Al Gore’s inability to resonate as a human being
• Bob Dole falling off a campaign platform
• Reagan’s “Stand on Principle”

In all of these cases, a master of spin has deftly guided his or her champion with advice, thoughts and suggestions. Politics is the major leagues of PR. October legends include Mike Deaver (RIP Mike, we’ll miss you), James Carville and Karl Rove.

2008: The Fireworks Start Now

The current administration’s problems with Iraq has created an early election season. So the fight for the pennant begins now. And there are some interesting insights for readers to consider.

• Most notably is the incredible strength the Democratic party has this time, the first time the Blue team has appeared this strong since the post World War Two era.
• The fight for the pennant between the blue league’s two strongest candidates, Hillary Clinton and Obama, signifies a significant moment in history. Either a woman or an African American could be the presidential candidate for one of the parties.
• The top two candidates in the blue league are dominating. Edwards and the rest of the pack are vying for a wild card. But history shows weaker candidates like Bill Richardson can make a surprising run. And history also shows that wild cards can win.
• The first major social media election is on its way. YouTube debates and Hillary’s campaign song have been the big moments. More exciting events are sure to come.
• Will there be a social media bullet? Last year the Macaca incident spread on the blogosphere (compliments of Webb team bloggers) and took out presidential hopeful, George Allen.
• According to former Perot pollster Frank Luntz says corruption in corporate America is the #2 issue in this election after the war
• Healthcare will be another big domestic issue, which in turn could become Hillary’s Achilles heel.

The Other League

The Republican Party is much weaker this year, thanks to Bush’s follies. However, the real World Series last year was won by the St. Louis Cardinals with the worst regular season record ever by a champion. Don’t discount the underdog!

In the red league, there’s a big free agent on the loose. His name is Karl Rove, the Barry Bonds of PR pros. You may have heard of him.

In a year of weaker candidates — an unknown governor Mitt Romney, a flawed mayor Rudy Guiliani, a Washington Senator in decline (McCain), and a looming judge, Fred Thompson — a free agent pick-up of a Rovian nature can make a big, big difference.

Don’t underestimate Fred Thompson. Video killed the radio star, and big-time politicians Ronald Reagan and Arnold Schwarzenegger have demonstrated that acting charm can yield great political results. If he really does enter the race, Thompson is a very dangerous candidate.

Still the red team must face it’s biggest demon: The current administration. If only the president can quietly disappear and let other red team members have the limelight…

On Wednesday, my personal “mommy blogger,” nationally syndicated astrologer Jacqueline Bigar has agreed to drop by and predict the election results. Fun, but in 2000 she accurately predicted on TV that the Bush-Gore election was going to get tied up, and that neither would win on election day.

So get out your popcorn. The masters are about to show us the finest craft in the business. Enjoy the fireworks.

A special edition of Great Blogs of Fire! Last month a post noted the five bloggers that were influencing me the most at that time. It seems like a good idea to recognize influencers, so this will be a continuing monthly feature to be hosted on the Now Is Gone blog.

Quick recap: Last month’s top five in order were Brian Oberkirch, Chris Heuer, Kevin Dugan, Jeremiah Owyang and Kami Huyse.

This Month’s Top Five Influential Bloggers

1) Valeria Maltoni: Great writing from a master. Valeria is witty, demonstrative and poignant. Her work causes breakthroughs for many, many bloggers, and her dialogue with me has been very enjoyable, helpful and intelligent. I was so impressed by Valeria, that I asked her to keynote a conference I’m chairing.

2) Rich “Gumballs” Becker: My counterpart in the BlogStraightTalk initiative, Rich is a very subtle and brilliant public communicator. Back channel conversation over the past month has really shown me how smart and deft Rich’s copy can be, and also how a delicate hand can be as effective, if not more so than my “gonzo-esque blogging” style. Hats off to you, Rich.

3) Shel Israel: On and offline I find Shel to be a very powerful influence right now. It will be great meeting Shel at BlogOrlando.

4) Toby Bloomberg: I call Toby my blue-chipper because she is always reliable and helpful. She and Rich are probably the most linked-to bloggers on my site the past month. Read the Diva and watch an experienced master at work.

5) Eric Eggertson has been on an absolute tear for the past week. Great posts include China’s spin war, the Bush administration’s PR failures, and “Apology Interruptus.” Eric’s thoughts have been provocative and brilliant. It’s great reading someone on a hot streak like this.

Honorable mentions: Ike Pigott, Jeremiah Owyang, Cam Beck

The Ad Age Power 150 has four primary metrics Google Page Rank (SEO), Bloglines subs (RSS), Technorati score (links), and a subjective ranking from Todd And. You probably think I’m referring to Todd’s ranking. Au contraire.

This is about Bloglines. Bloglines is an older RSS reader, yet it is used as a primary metric in the 150.

The Buzz Bin has more RSS subs than some of the other blogs on the Power 150 (not naming names, these lists are silly and I’m making an observation, not kvetching). This is because said blogs post how many feedburner subs they have on their blog. Feedburner stats include Bloglines subs.

Yet the Buzz Bin is not ranked in the top 150 (209 currently), in large part because we only have 14 Bloglines subs. Because I also use Feedburner, I can tell you this comprises a single percentage point of our overall readership. By far Google Reader is the preferred feed reader of my subs, by almost 6 to 1.

Bloglines predates Google Reader, which creates a reward for longevity issue. Since its release, Google Reader has become extremely popular, dominating the RSS marketplace (as noted by Problogger). Bloglines’ defeat was pretty much declared six months ago in February.

In informal polling most people say they don’t use Bloglines anymore. Yet isn’t it likely that their Bloglines accounts have old subs to many feeds, still measured as active hits? Maybe some still use Bloglines. But those who are new to RSS probably prefer Google Reader.

The Buzz Bin became popular in April after we changed the name from “Diary of an Ad Man” to the Buzz Bin. This change occurred to allow the entire team at Livingston to blog (instead of just a man). We have been blogging since April, 2006 (yesterday was entry # 350). Yet, almost all of our RSS subs have come to us in the age of Google Reader. Hence a low Bloglines sub rate.

The Bloglines Reward

Our RSS subs demonstrates the point. Older blogs who were popular in 2006 and years prior are rewarded for their longevity thanks to Bloglines. I’m not sure whether rewarding older blogs or measuring RSS subscriptions was Todd And’s intent, but that’s the result.

These lists are silly, flawed memes that really are great for attracting the bloggers listed to such and such sites (not to mention garnering links). None of them are completely accurate. What really matters are the actual readers. Specifically, whether or not they find your content to be worthwhile, and are loyal.

Lists are great ways to discover other blogs. Of all the lists, I prefer this one because it’s hosted by a neutral party (unlike Edelman’s joke). So we’ll leave it at that.

This is my post for the day. We lost a dear sweet friend this week [he's the one with the tattoos] who will be deeply missed by so very many. Check out his band King Giant. Goodbye, Bob.

The Cavemen show comes out on October 1. The award-winning commercials are hilarious. ABC is using social media to promote the show. And sure enough, a fake Caveman twitter blog has suddenly appeared. We approached our fake neanderthal friend and scored a very revealing interview, including discussion on fake-blogging and the Caveman’s identity.

BB: OK, why Twitter? Is it so easy a caveman can use it?

FCM: I’m not 100 percent liking your tone, Geoff. That’s not a very nice thing to say after the very public ordeal we’ve had with GEICO. Your own comment policy says you don’t condone personal attacks.

BB: Uh, well that was designed for a particular person. But, good point. I was wrong. Can you answer why you chose Twitter as compared to Pownce or Jaiku or a conventional blog?

FCM: I wanted to microblog. It seemed better for one liners, and after all Cavemen is supposed to be a sitcom. Plus I didn’t want to invest too much time writing, but wanted to interact with the community. Twitter has the most users, so there you have it.

BB: You promised to tell who you are…

FCM: I’m GigaOm. Om Malik.

BB: No, you’re not. Your writing styles don’t match.

FCM: Darn. OK, I’m Seth Godin.

BB: Right, we’re coming back to this later. Your fake microblog is only a week old. Why now? Why the Caveman?

FCM: Well if Dan Lyons can do it without repercussion from Forbes, why can’t I? And that’s really the point. Forbes celebrated the Fake Steve Jobs — written by one if its senior journalists — when in actuality that journalist committed an ethical blunder. Lyons has slammed blogging in the past, and reports on technology.

Yet, because it’s a parody and openly fake, it’s OK. Nevermind, the ethics or the obvious issues behind Forbes’ possibly compromised masthead.

In a far more serious example, Whole Foods CEO John Mackey used a false identity to comment on his competitors. Controversy ensues, yet is he held accountable by the Whole Foods board, the SEC or his investors? No. Instead he just stops blogging. So what does that tell you?

Both of these recent events tell me that America thinks it’s OK to use a fake identity to attack or ridicule people. And that we don’t value privacy or respect personal values like standing behind our name and other aspects of integrity. It’s Ethics 2.0. Enter the Fake Caveman.

Now, onto your second question. The Caveman was an easy choice. It’s a funny character, and it’s hot with the show coming out. Unlike Lyons and Mackey, I don’t think anyone in their right mind will take the Fake Caveman seriously. In that sense, it’s a true lampoon.

BB: It’s not OK to use a fake identity like that.

FCM: Please don’t criticize me for ethics. You’re a PR guy. PR and ethics, isn’t that an oxymoron? “Trust me, I’m in PR?” Please, that’s so obvious, that yes, even a caveman gets it. Time to get off the high horse, Geoff.

BB: Moving on, moving on. We received some questions from our readers for you. Thanks Toby Bloomberg, Nikki Brochner (via Pownce) and Scott Monty (via Twitter) for your input.

BBR: Who do you think is more interesting: The real you or your fake self?

FCM: Definitely, the fake me. The real me is a nerd blogger. The fake me is a pimpin’ Hollywood star.

BBR: What will you do for work now that you’ll probably lose your job?

FCM: I’m not worried about losing my job. I’m the CEO. Again, it’s the new ethics thanks to Forbes and Whole Foods. Fake commenting and blogging is cool, right?

BBR: What sign are you?

FCM: Gemini.

BBR: What was the “twitter” of the Neanderthal days?

FCM: There wasn’t any until we invented fire. Then there were smoke signals.

BBR: What’s it like to be the newest sex symbol?

FCM: Great!!!! Women used to run away from me, now they flock to me. It’s good to be the Caveman.

BBR: What will you wear at the next red carpet event?

FCM: A Hugo Boss suit, no tie (because I’m a neanderthal)!

BBR: How do 21st women compare to the chicks in the caves?

FCM: Great question. The few 21st century women who approach me want a brute. You know, a caveman!!!! Rough guy! But I’m really quite a sensitive man so many women who are attracted to Cavemen find themselves turned off by my “metroness.” It can be quite disappointing.

Chicks in the cave hated being dragged around by my friends, so they liked me more. Sensitivity worked back then.

Maybe a Harley would help…

BB: OK, that’s it from our readers. Now you promised. Who are you?

FCM: Why, I’m you, of course.

In memory of Hunter S. Thompson.