6 posts and columns on High School Musical

Viral Video: "That's Why I Chose Yale" (Definitely Not to Learn How to Make Musical Videos)

in News on February 16, 2010 at 1:06 am PT

Hey kids, let’s put on a show! But in the case of Yale University’s newest admissions video, maybe not so much. An extraordinarily awkward effort to capture the attention of the Facebook generation, it appears to be a kind of homage to television hits “Glee” and “High School Musical” and clocks in at close to 17 minutes in length.

Bill Gates Follows Ashley Tisdale on Twitter–Geeks, It's Time to Meet Sharpay!

in News on January 20, 2010 at 7:04 am PT

Yesterday, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates finally started using Twitter, launching a verified account on the microblogging service and using the moniker @billgates. While BoomTown is thrilled to be selected by the tech legend as one of the 40 accounts he is following so far, I was far more excited that “High School Musical” star Ashley Tisdale was also among the chosen few. Yes, you read it right, Sharpay is totally in with the King of all Geeks.
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Liveblogging Fortune Brainstorm Tech: Disney CEO Bob Iger Has "One Hand in the Present and One Hand in the Future"

in News on July 22, 2009 at 4:55 pm PT

Bob Iger, CEO of the Walt Disney Company, is the kickoff interview onstage at Fortune magazine’s Brainstorm Tech conference, which is taking place over the next three days in Pasadena, Calif. The event is packed full of Web and media luminaries. So, BoomTown will be sitting in the front row and liveblogging some of the sessions here, including this one, titled, “Digital Kingdom: New Business Models for a Media Giant.” Translation: When you Twitter upon a star, makes a–big–difference what you earn. Which, right now, is not a whole lot, as Iger and others in the media business know all too well.
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Obama YouTubes and Techies Swoon (BoomTown Will Only Do So When There Is a National Broadband Policy)

in News on November 16, 2008 at 1:22 am PT

Is it just me or does the fact that President-Elect Barack Obama is broadcasting his weekly address on YouTube not seem like it should be the very biggest deal in the world? While it is a first for the Commander-in-Chief, I am more depressed that it is a first–after all, skateboarding cats made it to YouTube eons ago–than utterly thrilled that he is doing it. But, when it come to the glacial movement related to politicians and tech issues, disappointment seems to be a better stance than hope.

Yahoo's New Marketing Push: Purple Rain! (Actually, Purple Pain.)

in News on September 16, 2008 at 12:14 am PT

First off, as Digital Daily’s John Paczkowski pointed out to me today, you have to give Yahoo props for using Gogol Bordello as the soundtrack and–more to the point–actually knowing about Gogol Bordello in the first place. “Since when does [Yahoo CEO Jerry] Yang listen to gypsy punk?” asked Paczkowski in an email to me today. Since Bill Gates started eating churros with Jerry Seinfeld and adjusting his skivvies hands-free, that’s when! Oh dear, Yahoo has succumbed to the hipster, ironic thing–an unfortunate marketing virus that has hit Microsoft of late, too–in an under-the-covers “Start Wearing Purple” online marketing campaign.

Welcome Back to School, Techies: Now Get Back to Work!

in News on September 2, 2008 at 11:00 am PT

BoomTown is back from a seasick cruise vacation in the wilds of Alaska–official sightings: lots of icebergs, 16 glaciers, a passel of jellyfish and starfish, four lumberjacks, three orcas, two seals, one otter, no moose or bears and, yep, one Republican Vice Presidential candidate’s lovely house in Juneau–just in time for school. Or, more precisely, a little schooling for some of the tech companies that I cover in a mildly obsessive-compulsive manner. All of them, I predict, are in for a news-filled fall. Thus, here is a rundown of what to expect and also what some of those companies need to focus on over the next several months.