Jim Liebelt's Youth Culture Watch

What's Hot? 3/30/12

Google Hot Internet Searches - 3/30/12
    1.    anchorman 2
    2.    earl scruggs
    3.    faith hill
    4.    zimmerman
    5.    ron burgundy
    6.    millenial media
    7.    spike lee
    8.    carson daly
    9.    uc berkeley
    10.    autism
Source: Google

Top 10 U.S. Websites - 3/30/12
    1.    Google
    2.    Facebook
    3.    YouTube
    4.    Yahoo!
    5.    Amazon
    6.    Wikipedia
    7.    eBay
    8.    Twitter
    9.    Craigslist
    10.    LinkedIn
Source: Alexa

iTunes Top 10 Singles - 3/30/12
    1.    Boyfriend - Justin Bieber
    2.    We Are Young (feat. Janelle Monae) - Fun
    3.    Somebody That I Used to Know - Gotye
    4.    Wild Ones (feat. Sia) - Flo Rida
    5.    Call Me Maybe - Carly Rae Jepsen
    6.    What Makes You Beautiful - One Direction
    7.    Glad You Came - The Wanted
    8.    Starships - Nicki Minaj
    9.    Eyes Open - Taylor Swift
    10.    What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger) - Kelly Clarkson
Source: Apple iTunes

Top 10 TV Shows in Prime Time - Week Ending 3/30/12
    1.    NCIS
    2.    Dancing with the Stars
    3.    American Idol - Wednesday
    4.    NCIS: Los Angeles
    5.    American Idol - Thursday
    6.    Criminal Minds
    7.    The Voice
    8.    TOUCH
    9.    Castle
    10.    Two and a Half Men
Source: Nielsen Co

Top 5 Most Viewed Videos on YouTube - This Week - 3/30/12
    1.    Boyfriend (Official Single) - Justin Bieber
    2.    Opera Duo - Charlotte & Jonathan
    3.    Comedoz
    4.    Chrome - um ano de namoro
    5.    Bonus - Le Bide - Cyprien
Source: YouTube

Top 5 Movies - Week Ending 3/30/12
    1.    The Hunger Games
    2.    21 Jump Street
    3.    Dr. Seuss' The Lorax
    4.    John Carter
    5.    Act of Valor
Source: Variety

Report: Teens are Watching More TV, not Less

The perception of today's teenagers is that of antsy kids bouncing back and forth between their computer screens and cellphones as they update their Facebook statuses and look at videos on Hulu and YouTube while texting their friends. The reality is that for all the time teens spend staring at small screens, it's still the television screen that gets most of their attention.

"There is a popularized notion of the typical teenager constantly digitally connected.... In fact, teens consume the vast, vast majority of their video content via traditional television," according to Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. senior analyst Todd Juenger in a new report titled "Why the Internet Won't Kill TV."

Juenger, who follows traditional media companies including CBS and Time Warner, scrutinized data from Nielsen to show that "consumption of television by teens has stubbornly continued to grow, even as new devices have permeated their lives."

Currently, teens watch almost four hours of television a day. Although that is about two hours less than most adults, it is up from the roughly three hours they spent in front of the television in 2004. Adults have always watched more television than teens — even though it is generally assumed that kids, not their hard-working parents, are wasting their time in front of the boob tube.

This is not to say that teens are not embracing new platforms, but rather that those platforms are in addition to television. Teens on average watch only three minutes of video a day via computer or cellphone, which is less than 3% of their overall video consumption.

Source: L.A. Times
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-ct-teen-tv-study-20120309,0,4052902.story

Electronics Top Distractions for Teen Drivers

A new study of teen driving behavior has found that the use of electronic devices is the leader among distracted driving behaviors, and that teenage girls are twice as likely as boys to use cell phones or other electronic devices while driving.

The findings, from a study of video taken of young drivers, were released by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.

Talking on the phone or texting while driving was the most common behavior that distracted young drivers, more so than adjusting controls, grooming, eating or drinking, or engaging in horseplay or loud conversations with passengers.

"This new study provides the best view we've had about how and when teens engage in distracted driving behaviors believed to contribute to making car crashes the leading cause of death for teenagers," said AAA Foundation President and CEO Peter Kissinger.

In nearly half (45 percent) of the abrupt driving events which triggered the data recording, the driver looked away from the roadway at some point within the 10 seconds preceding the event. Most did only briefly - two seconds or less - but 12 percent looked away for at least four seconds. Also, females looked away more often than males.

The reason for looking away? Drivers were three times as likely to be looking at an electronic device than anything else.

Source: CBS News
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57403935/electronics-top-distractions-for-teen-drivers/

Doctors See "Cinnamon Challenge" as a Recipe for Disaster

It is known as “the cinnamon challenge.’’ You try to swallow a spoonful of cinnamon without drinking water - or vomiting - preferably as a video camera is rolling. It may sound like silly fun, but health professionals and a growing number of local school systems are warning parents that the practice can cause health problems including respiratory distress and choking.

The YouTube generation finds the trend hilarious. How else to explain the more than 10.9 million hits for a video of a woman with big gold earrings spewing cinnamon after a failed attempt? Or the 30,000 cinnamon-related videos on the website? The challenge has been around for years, but a video posted by two NBA players, and the growth of social media and camera-enabled smart phones, have sent it viral in recent months.

Doctors aren’t laughing. They say the practice can cause serious injuries.

“The biggest problem is that the powder dries your mouth and throat, which makes it easier for it to enter your lungs instead of your stomach,’’ said James Mojica, a pulmonologist at Massachusetts General Hospital.That, in turn, can inflame the lungs, and lead to breathing difficulties, an acute lung injury, an aspiration pneumonia, or lung scarring.

Youths - the very people most commonly ingesting the cinnamon - are at particular risk, Mojica said. “Young patients can generate such high pressure when they cough that their lungs can collapse.’’

Source: Boston.com
http://articles.boston.com/2012-03-24/community/31234565_1_cinnamon-lungs-challenge

What's Hot? 3/23/12

Google Hot Internet Searches - 3/23/12
    1.    chipper jones
    2.    marquette university
    3.    al sharpton
    4.    matt forte
    5.    etch a sketch
    6.    ncaa
    7.    erika van pelt
    8.    hunger games
    9.    trayvon martin case
    10.    the host
Source: Google

Top 10 U.S. Websites - 3/23/12
    1.    Google
    2.    Facebook
    3.    YouTube
    4.    Yahoo!
    5.    Amazon
    6.    Wikipedia
    7.    eBay
    8.    Twitter
    9.    LinkedIn
    10.    Craigslist
Source: Alexa

iTunes Top 10 Singles - 3/23/12
    1.    We Are Young (feat. Janelle Monae) - Fun
    2.    Somebody That I Used to Know - Gotye
    3.    Eyes Open - Taylor Swift
    4.    Glad You Came - The Wanted
    5.    Wild Ones (feat. Sia) - Flo Rida
    6.    What Makes You Beautiful - One Direction
    7.    Starships - Nicki Minaj
    8.    Call Me Maybe - Carly Rae Jepsen
    9.    Drive By - Train
    10.    What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger) - Kelly Clarkson
Source: Apple iTunes


Top 10 TV Shows in Prime Time - Week Ending 3/23/12
    1.    American Idol - Wednesday
    2.    American Idol - Thursday
    3.    The Voice
    4.    NCIS
    5.    CSI
    6.    Criminal Minds
    7.    NCIS: Los Angeles
    8.    60 Minutes
    9.    Missing
    10.    Modern Family
Source: Nielsen Co


Top 5 Most Viewed Videos on YouTube - This Week - 3/23/12
    1.    Palaye Royale - Morning Light
    2.    2 Year Old Dancing the Jive
    3.    Katy Perry - Part of Me
    4.    2 Yr Old Makena Sings Adele
    5.    Kristin Chenowith Gets Dance Dared
Source: YouTube


Top 5 Movies - Week Ending 3/23/12
    1.    21 Jump Street
    2.    Dr. Seuss' The Lorax
    3.    John Carter
    4.    Project X
    5.    Act of Valor
Source: Variety

92% of College Students Have Lied on Résumés

If you want a more accurate picture of a job candidate’s experience, take a gander at his or her LinkedIn page. According to researchers at Cornell University, people are less likely to lie about their past experience on the social network than they are in a traditional résumé.

But lying is still common among job seekers, with 92 percent of respondents saying they’ve lied at least once on a résumé. The study, published in the journal Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking, followed 119 college students ages 18 to 22.

The study says that websites such as LinkedIn can lead to greater honesty when it comes to résumé claims such as experience and responsibilities. That’s because claims are more easily verified in a public, online setting, so liars are more likely to get caught.

Source: PRDaily
http://www.prdaily.com/Main/Articles/11143.aspx

Here Comes "The Hunger Games"

With so much breathless anticipation awaiting the release of The Hunger Games this Friday, lost in the shuffle may be whether the film, based on Suzanne Collins’ wildly popular young-adult novel, is actually appropriate for young adults. The core story, after all, is 24 teenage kids literally killing each other as a brutal national television spectacle.

Yet, the movie only gets a PG-13 rating. Great for the boxoffice, but maybe not for the kids. So, what's a parent to do?

Common Sense Media, the independent, not-for-profit, non-partisan group that has been rating films’ appropriateness since 2003, gives The Hunger Games a "Pause 13+." What's this mean? “When we rate something ‘pause,’ it’s really a know-your-kids situation,” said CSM managing editor Betsy Bozdech. “It’s iffy for the age, but some 13-year-olds may be able to handle it, and some may not. You need to know your kid and your family and take it from there. We all have vivid imaginations, that’s for sure, but it’s very different to see a kid spearing another one, breaking another one’s neck, smashing their head in, than it is to read about it. It’s just a more visceral experience.”

For parents who allow their children to see The Hunger Games, Bozdech sees the film as a fabulous conversation starter for families.

Source: Inside Movies
http://insidemovies.ew.com/2012/03/20/hunger-games-common-sense-media/

 

Study: Teens Prefer Texting to Phone Calls

Perhaps in the not-too-distant future, teens will be flummoxed when it comes to how to make a phone call. That's because there's more texting going on than ever, while voice calling continues to decline, says a new report from the Pew Research Center’s Internet and American Life Project.

Three-quarters of teens use text messaging, Pew says (it's a little surprising the figure isn't higher), and the "volume of texting among teens has risen from 50 texts a day in 2009 to 60 texts for the median teen text user" in 2011, said Pew in "Teens, Smartphones and Texting," which looks at changes in teens' communication habits over the last five years, with a focus on mobile devices.

Pew reports: "Much of this increase occurred among older teens ages 14-17, who went from a median of 60 texts a day to a median of 100 two years later. Boys of all ages also increased their texting volume from a median of 30 texts daily in 2009 to 50 texts in 2011. Black teens showed an increase of a median of 60 texts per day to 80."

While 63 percent of teens say they exchange text messages every day, only 39 percent actually use their phones for voice calling. Only 14 percent of all teens say they talk daily with friends on a landline, down from 30 percent who said so in 2009.  Nearly a third (31 percent) of teens say they never talk on a landline with friends (or report that they cannot do so).

Source: MSNBC
http://www.technolog.msnbc.msn.com/technology/technolog/teens-texting-voice-calling-down-report-484645

Synthetic Marijuana Can Cause Side Effects

Teens who use synthetic marijuana, also called K2 or spice, could end up in the emergency room experiencing some serious side effects, according to a new case report.

Researchers looked at three cases of teens admitted to the emergency room who they suspect were using synthetic marijuana. In each case, they found that teens showed signs of unexpected behaviors, ranging from agitation and increased sweating to an inability to speak and hallucinations.

"These drugs are unregulated," said study co-author Dr. Joanna Cohen, a pediatric emergency physician at the Children's National Medical Center. "Symptoms can be unpredictable because the drug is mixed with other types of chemicals and substances."

Because synthetic marijuana products vary enormously in terms of the ingredients they contain, recognizing the signs of use may be especially difficult.

Synthetic marijuana contains a blend of plants and herbs which are then sprayed with an active ingredient, JWH-018, a synthetic cannabinoid. The ingredient is similar to cannabis in that it gives a marijuana-like high.

The drug is legal, and kids can easily access it at convenience stores, gas stations and on the Internet. It has grown increasingly popular over the past several years.

In 2011, poison control centers reported handling nearly 7,000 calls about K2, nearly double the calls they received in 2010.

There is a growing body of evidence reporting the complications of synthetic marijuana, but it's still not known how many people are using it and not having complications.

The report is published in the journal Pediatrics.

Source: My Health News Daily
http://www.myhealthnewsdaily.com/2367-synthetic-marijuana-unusual-side-effects.html

What's Hot? 3/16/12

Google Hot Internet Searches - 3/16/12
    1.    derek fisher
    2.    gallagher
    3.    ncaa
    4.    blagojevich
    5.    ides of march
    6.    rod blagojevich
    7.    ashley judd
    8.    missing
    9.    ncaa basketball
    10.    south dakota state
Source: Google

Top 10 U.S. Websites - 3/9/12
    1.    Google
    2.    Facebook
    3.    YouTube
    4.    Yahoo!
    5.    Amazon
    6.    Wikipedia
    7.    eBay
    8.    Twitter
    9.    LinkedIn
    10.    Craigslist
Source: Alexa

iTunes Top 10 Singles - 3/16/12
    1.    We Are Young (feat. Janelle Monae) - Fun
    2.    Glad You Came - The Wanted
    3.    Somebody That I Used to Know - Gotye
    4.    Wild Ones (feat. Sia) - Flo Rida
    5.    Starships - Nicki Minaj
    6.    What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger) - Kelly Clarkson
    7.    Drive By - Train
    8.    Call Me Maybe - Carly Rae Jepsen
    9.    Part of Me - Katy Perry
    10.    What Makes You Beautiful - One Direction
Source: Apple iTunes

Top 10 TV Shows in Prime Time - Week Ending 3/16/12
    1.    The Voice
    2.    American Idol - Wednesday
    3.    The Big Bang Theory
    4.    American Idol - Tuesday
    5.    The Big Bang Theory - special
    6.    Person of Interest
    7.    Survivor
    8.    New Girl
    9.    Once Upon a Time
    10.    Amazing Race 20
Source: Nielsen Co

Top 5 Most Viewed Videos on YouTube - This Week - 3/16/12
    1.    I Love Taylor Swift
    2.    TheReplyGirl an
    3.    Jeffery Sparon - Go Go Go Cover
    4.    Pokemon Rack City
    5.    Pitbull Exposed
Source: YouTube

Top 5 Movies - Week Ending 3/16/12
    1.    Dr. Suess' The Lorax
    2.    John Carter
    3.    Project X
    4.    Act of Valor
    5.    Silent House
Source: Variety