By Matt Chaban 9/18/12 8:30pm

FIREWORKS

Securing the subways... (Getty)

Burn After Reading: How Some Tech-Savvy Firefighters May Be Putting New Yorkers in Danger

The Fire Department’s promotional exams may be the most challenging civil service tests in the city. The guys who take them certainly think so. “The fire exam is definitely the toughest there is, ten times harder than cops or anything else,” Captain Joe Loftus told The Observer recently.

In the past few years, a cottage industry has sprung up to help firefighters study for the exams that allow them to rise through the ranks. Capt. Loftus and a group of his colleagues were at the forefront three years ago when they launched LtQuestions.com, a simple WordPress site that offers fellow firefighters sample tests—16 for only $96.

Unfortunately, LtQuestions.com and similar sites meant to help firefighters better serve the city also appear to be imperiling it at the same time.

Ah, the Internet. It makes life easier, it makes life harder. Like this, hate that. Share baby photos, kiddie porn, revolutionary Tweets, fatwas, bomb plans. All from the convenience of a keyboard. Read More

By Foster Kamer 6/14/12 5:07pm

WELL PLAYED

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Shell Oil Currently Under Assault by Social Media Pranksterism, Gone Viral

In the summer of 2010, besides yielding enough oil to effectively kill off part of the Gulf ecosystem permanently, B.P.’s oil spill also yielded some decent satire. This manifested most famously in the form of the BP Global PR feed on Twitter, which ended up in the oil company’s aggravated sight-lines. Especially upsetting to the company was the fact that people were mistaking the satirical feed for an actual B.P. feed from their communications department.

Well now, Shell’s getting it, too. Read More

By Drew Grant 4/10/12 2:37pm

Webby Awards

Video

Webby Awards announced (WebbyAwards.com)

16th Annual Webby Awards Announce Nominees (Video)

The Webby Awards, which is in its 16th year of honoring the best of the web with five words allotted for winning speeches, announced their nominees today.

The websites and individuals honored are determined by the  International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, with the actual ceremony closing out New York’s Internet Week on May 21. Past hosts have included B.J. Novak and last year’s Lisa Kudrow, and this year marks a return to the standup scene as geek god Patton Oswalt takes the stage as the M.C. Read More

By Drew Grant 9/22/11 12:19pm

Celebrity Twitter

rushdie

Update: Irrepressible Salman Rushdie Responds to Twitter Handle Win

Congratulations to Salman Rushdie, who finally gained his official Twitter handle after shaming another person off of it. Mr. Rushdie joined Twitter this week but had to take the handle @SalmanRushdie1 because some goofball had already been tweeting out from @SalmanRushdie. As of yesterday, it was still being reported that Mr. Rushdie was verified at @SalmanRushdie1, but had sent a message to the faux-tweeter: “Who are you? why are you pretending to be me? Release this username. You are a phoney. All followers please note.” Read More

By Foster Kamer 6/14/11 5:39pm

Media Criticism

Aaron Sorkin Still Hates Bloggers: New York Times Edition

The Social Network screenwriter, West Wing creator, and Making Movies playwright Aaron Sorkin has taken every available chance to assail bloggers that he’s been given. Incredibly, he’s been given many, and he continues to use them to take the opportunity to reiterate his tired anti-blogger rhetoric time and time again. Yet: his latest swipe—backhanded, sniveling, and skeptical of a proven New York Times reporter if only because of said reporter’s background as a blogger—is especially impressive. Read More