Social Media Newsfeed: AIDS Tweet Apology | 'Fast & Furious' Facebook Announcement

[emailonly]{{{ sbox300x250 }}}[/emailonly] Click here to receive the Morning Social Media Newsfeed via email. Exec Apologizes for AIDS Tweet After Social Media Storm (USA Today) Justine Sacco, a public relations executive who gained almost instant infamy — and unemployment — for an insensitive tweet about AIDS in Africa, issued an apology Sunday. Sacco was in London on Friday, headed for a vacation in South Africa, when she tweeted "Going to Africa. Hope I don't get AIDS. Just kidding. I'm white!" (USA Today) The Guardian In her statement, the PR executive said that she was in “anguish knowing that my remarks have caused pain to so many people” in South Africa where she was born and where her father still lives. "Words cannot express how sorry I am, and how necessary it is for me to apologize to the people of South Africa, who I have offended due to a needless and careless tweet.” The New York Times/The Lede Whatever its genesis, the furor over the tweet – and IAC’s quick response – showed social media’s power to propel a story, in this case turning a previously little-known executive into a figure of notoriety while raising issues of free speech and tolerance. The Twitter message was deleted late Friday night, E.T. time, which is early morning Saturday in South Africa. And shortly after midnight, E.T., Sacco’s entire Twitter account was gone. VentureBeat The tweet went viral and a hashtag related to it became the No. 1 trending conversation item on Twitter on Friday evening. Many were shocked because Sacco was a PR professional. She worked as communications director for Barry Diller’s IAC, but the media company said it “parted ways” with Sacco on Saturday after her tweet. New York She then announced a new life plan: to spend the rest of her life raising awareness about the AIDS epidemic. Just kidding — she'll probably end up getting another PR job somewhere down the line. You can still check #HasJustineLandedYet for reactions. Vin Diesel Announces April 2015 Release Date for 'Fast & Furious 7' on Facebook (The Verge) Vin Diesel has confirmed that "Fast & Furious 7" will be released on April 10, 2015. The movie was originally set for release in July 2014, but its fate was in question after the death of star Paul Walker. Diesel — who will produce and star in the film — used Facebook to announce the date, posting it alongside a picture of the last scene he and Walker filmed together with the comment "P.s. He'd want you to know first ..." It’s New Year’s Eve, Do You Know Where Your Husband Is? (SocialTimes) “Life is short. Have an affair,” says social networking service Ashley Madison. Since its launch in 2001, the site has grown to more than 21 million members in 30 countries, with most new members signing up around New Year’s Eve. [emailonly]{{{ jodslot01 }}}[/emailonly] Facebook Post Brings Out the Christmas Spirit in Gardner (Worcester Telegram) From one friend to another, on Sunday afternoon Facebook helped bring out the Christmas spirit and gifts for needy children in northern Central Massachusetts. At 2 p.m. Sunday, Dan White of Athol set up a horse trailer in a bank parking lot in downtown Gardner and collected gifts he hopes to distribute to 49 children from 16 families. He called it a flash mob, but the mob showed up a few at a time with bags of gifts, urged on by one of White's friends dressed as Santa Claus. Infographic: Facebook Misery Index (SocialTimes) There are Facebook posts by friends that make you feel good, and there are others that, well, make you feel maybe not so good. Tech content aggregator TechHive rated the reactions to different types of posts in its Facebook Misery Index infographic. Maine Mom Uses Social Media to Spread Son’s Ashes (CBS News) For 3.5 years, a black stone urn of C.J. Twomey's ashes has sat on a shelf in his parents' Maine home, not far from the door he walked out of one beautiful April day shortly before shooting himself. Now, his mother is using social media to enlist the help of strangers to scatter his ashes from Massachusetts to Japan in the hope that her adventure-loving son can become part of the world he left behind. [emailonly]{{{ sbox01 }}}[/emailonly] Three Things You Can Do to Keep Your Twitter Account Active During the Holidays (AllTwitter) You don’t want your whole social media presence to completely collapse because you’re off enjoying a well-deserved hot chocolate! Here are three tips to keep your Twitter account active during the holidays. White House Tries to Prevent Ruling on NSA Surveillance (CNET) The Obama administration has filed papers to prevent a federal judge from issuing a ruling on whether the government's warrantless surveillance programs are constitutional. In a pair of filings late Friday with the Northern District of California, the White House acknowledged for the first time that NSA's bulk data collection on American's Internet and phone activity was authorized by President Bush in the weeks after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. 2013 Was a Social Success for VH1 (LostRemote) VH1 saw social media success in 2013, with its Monday lineup of programming and original movies generating strong conversation online. Other than sports, “Love & Hop Hop: Alanta” ranked as one of Monday’s top tweeted about shows on cable from April through August, according to Nielsen SocialGuide, with its premiere episode being the number one tweeted show on April 22. [emailonly]{{{ sbox02 }}}[/emailonly]

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Social Media Newsfeed: AIDS Tweet Apology | 'Fast & Furious' Facebook Announcement

A now-fired public relations executive has apologized after posting an insensitive tweet about AIDS. The "Fast & Furious 7" release date is announced on Facebook. These stories, and more, in today's Morning Social Media Newsfeed.

Tim Sohn

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