A number of stories and posts from the long weekend took a close look the media transformation in progress along with calls to action in the ad and PR community to get with the program or risk being left behind. A few places to check out include:

Jeff Jarvis comments on Bubble Generation’s overview of Media 2.0. If you can get past all the buzzwords in Bubble Generation’s post, you may better appreciate the implications of micro-media (blogs, podcasts) content services (mySpace, Flickr) and aggregation services (RSS) on information consumption (media, entertainment, advertising).

Business Week’s December 5^th profile of R/GA’s Bob Greenberg and his call for agencies to re-invent themselves from top to bottom. As he sees it, as bad as the current unraveling is for TV and newspapers, it’s potentially worse for ad agencies. He claims ad agencies have to be better conversant with information architecture, play in the world of personalized media, and create totally immersive brand experiences.

Steve Rubel’s post on his upcoming PR Week article calling for the PR industry to act in addressing new media trends. He says, and I very much agree, that we need to get in the game by mobilizing and training our people to work hands-on in this new world. No so much through more surveys or seminars, but showing our teams how to set up and read feeds, write posts and monitor blogs to better understand how to best counsel clients on traditional and non-traditional strategies.

Technorati Tags: Public Relations, advertising, media, blogs, social media, social marketing, media 2.0.

Corey Stringer writes in today’s Detroit Free Press about the auto industry’s use of contagious media tactics. As with other sectors auto companies are dedicating more marketing dollars to appeal to consumers via the Internet with nontraditional and often controversial clips.  Stringer labels these as viral ads, which would leave you to believe that ad agencies are taking the lead role is establishing this media format (enter Crispin Porter).  But BK ’s antics could also be viewed as online media stunts that drive press coverage and buzz through the web. If you look at it from that perspective shouldn’t PR people have a greater focus on this game?

Technorati Tags: PR, Social Marketing, Buzz, Contagious Media, Viral Marketing

Jaffe posted yesterday on the BK Crying Game film. According to Ad Age, this has been one of the most viral clips ever shown on Heavy.com, with over 4.1 million downloads since November 1st. Beyond talking about the role BK and CPB may have played in its creation, he makes a great point about “the 99.9% of us that don’t understand or get it,” that related to content spread on the web. What we do know, as Carls Jr. and more recently Napster show, sex is still the #1 sell.

Technorati Tags: PR, Social Marketing, Buzz, Contagious Media

New York Times Sunday paper remains a must-read to stay up to date on all things media and culture. A sample of great articles today – all which showcase the force of social and technological advances:

In Sunday Styles: Warren St. Johns covers the curious rise of a personal favorite, Bill Simmons – AKA “The Sports Guy.” With no formal journalism training, and shunned from traditional newsrooms, Simmons created a site that today gets a half a million monthly readers and is described as something between a freewheeling blog and a traditional newspaper column.

In Business: Saul Hansell profiles that latest Shawn Fanning venture called Snocap – this one a peer-to-peer media space that functions like Napster, but willl allow music sellers to name their price for tunes shared on the network.

Also in Business: Randall Stross writes about Google’s impact in transforming web-based advertising. 

In Sports: Selena Roberts’ front page piece highlights the rise of Internet hit artists blogging about wrong-doings of college players, coaches and university officials.

Actually it doesn’t matter. Jones Soda , the company that generated much buzz with its turkey -and-gravy-flavored soda, is at it again with a orange-hued fish-flavored drink. The launch of the smelly soda made the front page of CNN.com this morning and is firing up the conversation online. Today’s coverage follows on the heels of a great write-up in the current Business Week that celebrates the irreverence and social marketing prowess behind the brand. Founder Peter Vpon Stolk says he literally gave brand away to young consumers who have serious say in both product development and marketing of the beverage. Younger consumers cynical of traditional advertising gather at the company’s website to chat, blog and download stuff as part of the Jones community. Jones adds that the company is the first “audience participation” player in the beverage space. The payoff beyond the buzz – 30% annual growth in a flat market, great distribution through partners like Starbucks and Target, and $30 million in revenues (not to mention favored status on eBay where Turkey-flavored sodas fetch over $60 a pop).