Dan Ciccone

Articles by Dan All articles by Dan

• ESports - Time To Unionize in Marketing: Sports on 09/06/2016
  

  This past week, ESPN published Activision CEO Eric Hirshberg's remarks on Call of Duty's eSports efforts. He attributes much success to the pro players - "They give you the momentum of a story: a beginning, middle and end. Those narratives are what fuel an interest in sports. People love watching the best players in the world play the game they love."

• What ESports Athletes (And LeBron James) Know About Content Marketing in Marketing: Sports on 12/01/2015
  

  Picture this: a superstar athlete enters the arena to thousands of screaming fans, millions more watch at home, legions following along on second screens or live-weeting the experience - high stakes, high engagement. You wouldn't be faulted for calling to mind an image of LeBron James, but you wouldn't be inaccurate in thinking of a superstar competitive gamer like Seth "Scump" Abner, either.

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• Google AI Search Tries To Act Like ChatGPT, But Missing Links Will Tank Web Traffic by Laurie Sullivan (Performance Marketing Insider on 03/25/2025)
  

  If you used Google 25 years ago, just two years after it launched, it would be lacking 95% of what it offers today. There is an unrealistic expectation for AI search to provide 100% of what we've come to expect from Google when AI tools have only really become available to the public within the past year.  And arguably, most of the public is still in the dark about how to access it, how it works, and how to use it. Patience, grasshoppa.

• Great New A&E Show Reveals Atrocious Behavior Of NFL Fans by Adam Buckman (TVBlog on 03/14/2025)
  

  I cut the cord well over a decade ago, otherwise I'd be curious to watch the show.  But after going to my third Chicago Bears NFL game in 2017, that was enough for me and my family and friends.  Thousands of people show up by 7AM in the parking lot to tailgate (which really means get drunk before the game even starts). The behavior I witnessed and unprovoked threats we were subject to were far and above any MLB, NBA, or NHL event I ever attended.  Surprising to me, the UFC events I attended, while the fans were very boisterous, had some of the most respectful and courteous fans I have come across. I've only been to two NASCAR and two Formula 1 events and fans were quite pleasant as well - but behavior of NFL fans in the stadium insured that we would not return for another game at the stadium.

• Pulitzer Board Gets Trumped: President Wins Motion In Defamation Case by Ray Schultz (Publishing Insider on 03/12/2025)
  

  How is this different than filing a claim to prove someone was doping during a major tournament and they should have their cycling or baseball (or whatever sport) title taken away?  It seems logical that if you can prove a Pulitzer was awarded to people who used unanimous sources and subsequent discredited information, then why not? How many people have lost their job or title or award when it was proven they plagiarized or literally, just made stuff up?

• Trump, The Media, And The Problem Of 'Pretty Good' by Gord Hotchkiss (Media Insider on 03/11/2025)
  

  "The plain facts are that at no time in history have people eaten more, had more, did more or lived longer than right now. And that is doubly true for the U.S...but things are pretty good. Especially in the U.S. of A." For the first time in decades, Americans are going to live shorter lives than their parents and are unlikely to be as wealthy as their parents.  And Americans are obese and unhealthy from a very early age compared to the rest of the world.  The U.S. has consistently lost its ranking (quite dramatically) in terms of healthcare and education and safety vs. the rest of the world. That's not "pretty good" by any means.  And when Americans were told for four years that "inflation is transitory" and "you don't know how good you have it, look at the numbers," 77 million Americans decided that one candidate's version of "pretty good" was not as appealing as someone else who wanted Americans to feel "great" and feel optimistic again. It doesn't matter what anyone thinks about Trump and I remember that famous quote "People don't remember what you say, they remember how you make them feel." The majority of Americans don't feel "pretty good," and when you say "The media -- especially social media -- also planted the false notion that we deserve better than “pretty good.” It has fostered the nonsensical equation that all of us should have the same as the richest of us." it illustrates that you are ignoring that America wasn't built on the belief that everyone will be rich - it was built on the belief that if you work hard and are an upstanding citizen, that it's at least possibility and you are given the opportunities to be rich. America became America because its people want to be the best, not pretty good.

• With Companies Killing Their DEI Programs, What Happens To Ad Imagery? by Barbara Lippert (Mad Blog on 03/08/2025)
  

  There is a lot of conflation here. DEI is not going away.  It's the "equity" that many companies struggle with (and society in general) as it's not quantifiable.  There is not a single company, nor the U.S. government, that is doing away with trying to achieve a diverse and inclusive workforce - but it is the equity arm that is being challenged and causing angst and confusion.  Equity purports "systemic disadvantages" and you'd be hard-pressed to find universal agreement on what "system disadvantages" exist from group to group. As far as ad imagery, is there some kind of study or proof that brands are now not going to cast people of certain races or sexual preference?  The Nike girl power ad is a perfect example - half the audience who saw it thought it was great and the other half thought it was 20 years behind and belitting. No product can be everything to everyone.

• These Dangerous Days: The Raw Truth About Social Media And Political Activism by Steven Rosenbaum (Media Insider on 03/03/2025)
  

  It's disingenous to state that the right or left have "consolidated strong positions" across any platforms.  Any movement is an organic outgrowth of its audience - not some corporate or political party organizing to overtake a social platform - although you can argue that's exactly what the Biden administration tried to do by forcing FB and Twitter to shadow ban individuals who were promoting factual information.  I doubt very much that Zuck became a right wing zealot.  But he no longer has to worry about the U.S. government knocking on his door and threatening him with what content FB can and cannot promote.

• No Joy At MSNBC As Left-Leaning Media Assesses Life Under Trump by Adam Buckman (TVBlog on 02/26/2025)
  

  It's odd that the left keeps saying "we need a Joe Rogan" like the right has a magic want to just spit out personalities that resonate with the audience. The left had a Joe Rogan - they actually had Joe Rogan.  He is unapologetically progressive and was all-in on Bernie.  But people like Rogan and Bill Maher aren't afraid to call out progressive nonsense, which is why both personalities pull in audiences from all political spectrums and remain popular and neither of them need a corporate overlord to dictate and nonsensical talking points. The majority of people in this country are in the middle politically and would love news without the politcal commentary injected into everything.  So if you want audience, project and communicate with truth and common sense instead of placating the far right wing and far left wing nut jobs. 

• Political Winds Shift, And So Do Networks: Changes At MSNBC by Wayne Friedman (TV Watch on 02/25/2025)
  

  "The new Trump administration has directly affected TV news networks..." Yet, you did not cite a single example of what/how the administrations is directly affecting TV news networks. These changes are taking places because ratings are in the tank for these programs and many Americans are tired of being called nazis and racists and unfounded hateful rhetoric.  They want news - they don't want to be scolded after a long day at work. As for anything "sticking" going forward - probably not if you keep calling people names and telling them they are nazis.

• Now They're Just (Hiccup) Trolling Us by Joe Mandese (Red, White & Blog on 02/17/2025)
  

  @Mandese - you have seriously jumped the shark or you've read Trump's book The Art of the Troll and are implementing what you read to get more clicks. The "amber" color is shadow/reflection - how does the liquid start as clear and turn amber as he raises it to his mouth?  I read that if you zoom in by 47x, you can see Elon over his left shoulder giving a Nazi salute.  Did you notice that too? You always dodge facts.  The people 60 Minutes interviewies were contractors - these are facts - not conflation (and look up the definition by the way as you don't seem to actually understand what the word means).  Your column, your opinion.  I get it.  But you have a habit of amplifying the nonsense and "misinformation" you proclaim to detest and conveniently avoid facts when they are presented to you. And clearly, you need new glasses. Do better.

• Now They're Just (Hiccup) Trolling Us by Joe Mandese (Red, White & Blog on 02/17/2025)
  

  Hegseth took a sip of water during a press conference and that's against the norm somehow?  This is somehow breaking a norm that has you triggered?  60 Minutes gets caught again fabricating another story (Kristina Drye did not work for USAID - she was a speechwriter who was a contractor hired by USAID.  She wasn't handing out blankets and medicine to babies in poor countries. There are real things to get upset about - no need to make stuff up. You sound like you are mad at the people who show you how the sausage is made instead of being upset about how bad the sausage is...judging by recent poll numbers, the American public has decided it doesn't want anymore sausage now that they know how it is made.

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