Hurricane Nate made its second landfall as a Category 1 storm around 1:30 a.m. ET near Biloxi, Mississippi, with maximum winds of 85 mph, the National Hurricane Center announced.

Nate previously made landfall Saturday night as a Category 1 storm near the mouth of the Mississippi River on the southeastern Louisiana coast, resulting in significant storm surge along the Gulf Coast.

Concerns about Nate prompted officials in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida to declare states of emergency and evacuation orders.

Maximum flooding of 7 to 11 feet above ground level is expected in parts of southeast Louisiana and along the Mississippi coast, the National Hurricane Center said. A storm surge warning is in effect from Grand Isle, Louisiana, to the Okaloosa/Walton county line in Florida. And a tornado watch has been issued for parts of southern Mississippi, southern Alabama and the western Florida Panhandle.

As Nate races inland Sunday, it is expected to rapidly weaken and should barely be a tropical storm by Sunday night, weakening further to a tropical depression by early Monday morning. But heavy rain and flash flooding will still be a concern as the storm roars ashore and moves inland, according to ABC News meteorologist Dan Peck.

By 6 a.m. CT Sunday, the brunt of the heavy rain and strong winds are forecast to be over central Alabama. Areas of heavy rain will continue to move north from the southeast up through the Northeast on Sunday, Monday and early Tuesday.

Gerald Herbert/AP

Ahead of Nate’s landfall, the governors of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama all issued stern warnings to residents.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency on Thursday and warned residents to prepare for heavy rain, storm surge and high winds.

« No one should take this storm lightly, » Edwards said at a press conference Friday. « We do want people to be very, very cautious and to not take this storm for granted. »

Bryan Tarnowski/AFP/Getty Images

In New Orleans, the mayor said some areas outside of the levee protection system could see a 7-to-11-foot storm surge.

But the National Weather Service on Saturday evening cancelled the city’s hurricane warning and Mayor Mitch Landrieu ordered an overnight curfew be lifted. By Saturday night, the evening’s rain ceased.

The mayor’s office added in a statement that residents are still recommended to « shelter in place and use caution due to strong tropical force winds » and the « serious threat of storm surge for areas outside of levee protection. »

This is an awful sign it’s barely drizzling and this catch basin is already just gargling street water sometimes it looks like it’s throwing up more than it’s taking in #hurricanenate #followyournola #alwaysneworleans #catchbasin

A post shared by Marco Altamirano (@marcosien) on Oct 7, 2017 at 1:33pm PDT

Landrieu ordered a mandatory evacuation for the communities of Venetian Isles, Lake Catherine and Irish Bayou.

A Venetian Isles resident told The Associated Press that his wife evacuated to a hotel, but he is staying behind because an elderly neighbor refused to leave.

« I know it sounds insane, but he has bad legs and he doesn’t have anybody who can get to him, » Gabriel Black told the AP.

Bryan Tarnowski/AFP/Getty Images

Sean Gardner/Getty Images

The Associated Press

In Mississippi, Gov. Phil Bryant on Friday declared a state of emergency in several southern counties in preparation for the storm.

« If you are in an area that has flooded, I would recommend you evacuate that area until the storm has ended and the water has receded for your own personal safety and for the safety of the first responders that will be responding in the event you are trapped, » Bryant said at a press conference Friday.

All Mississippi coast casinos have closed, according to the Mississippi Gaming Commission. Some hotels will remain open to guests, while others will close to guests, according to the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency.

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey issued a statewide state of emergency that went into effect Friday morning. Ivey said that while the coast will experience the worst of the storm, Birmingham could experience strong winds and rain.

« It has become clear that Alabama, especially on our coast will experience some of the worst conditions from this storm, » Ivey said at a press conference Friday. « Alabamans, you must prepare and be vigilant. This is serious business. »

Jacob Kiper, Owensboro, KY/via Reuters

Florida Gov. Rick Scott also declared a state of emergency in some counties.

The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said dozens of offshore oil and gas platforms as well as drilling rigs in the Gulf of Mexico have been evacuated.

Prior to striking the U.S., Nate on Thursday brought deadly mudslides and flash floods to Central America as it traversed the western Caribbean Sea as a tropical storm. According to The Associated Press, 22 people were killed, including 15 in Nicaragua and seven in Costa Rica. Costa Rican officials said 15 people were missing as well.

The Associated Press

The Associated Press

Hurricane Nate made its second landfall as a Category 1 storm around 1:30 a.m. ET near Biloxi, Mississippi, with maximum winds of 85 mph, the National Hurricane Center announced.

Nate previously made landfall Saturday night as a Category 1 storm near the mouth of the Mississippi River on the southeastern Louisiana coast, resulting in significant storm surge along the Gulf Coast.

Concerns about Nate prompted officials in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida to declare states of emergency and evacuation orders.

Maximum flooding of 7 to 11 feet above ground level is expected in parts of southeast Louisiana and along the Mississippi coast, the National Hurricane Center said. A storm surge warning is in effect from Grand Isle, Louisiana, to the Okaloosa/Walton county line in Florida. And a tornado watch has been issued for parts of southern Mississippi, southern Alabama and the western Florida Panhandle.

As Nate races inland Sunday, it is expected to rapidly weaken and should barely be a tropical storm by Sunday night, weakening further to a tropical depression by early Monday morning. But heavy rain and flash flooding will still be a concern as the storm roars ashore and moves inland, according to ABC News meteorologist Dan Peck.

By 6 a.m. CT Sunday, the brunt of the heavy rain and strong winds are forecast to be over central Alabama. Areas of heavy rain will continue to move north from the southeast up through the Northeast on Sunday, Monday and early Tuesday.

Gerald Herbert/AP

Ahead of Nate’s landfall, the governors of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama all issued stern warnings to residents.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency on Thursday and warned residents to prepare for heavy rain, storm surge and high winds.

« No one should take this storm lightly, » Edwards said at a press conference Friday. « We do want people to be very, very cautious and to not take this storm for granted. »

Bryan Tarnowski/AFP/Getty Images

In New Orleans, the mayor said some areas outside of the levee protection system could see a 7-to-11-foot storm surge.

But the National Weather Service on Saturday evening cancelled the city’s hurricane warning and Mayor Mitch Landrieu ordered an overnight curfew be lifted. By Saturday night, the evening’s rain ceased.

The mayor’s office added in a statement that residents are still recommended to « shelter in place and use caution due to strong tropical force winds » and the « serious threat of storm surge for areas outside of levee protection. »

This is an awful sign it’s barely drizzling and this catch basin is already just gargling street water sometimes it looks like it’s throwing up more than it’s taking in #hurricanenate #followyournola #alwaysneworleans #catchbasin

A post shared by Marco Altamirano (@marcosien) on Oct 7, 2017 at 1:33pm PDT

Landrieu ordered a mandatory evacuation for the communities of Venetian Isles, Lake Catherine and Irish Bayou.

A Venetian Isles resident told The Associated Press that his wife evacuated to a hotel, but he is staying behind because an elderly neighbor refused to leave.

« I know it sounds insane, but he has bad legs and he doesn’t have anybody who can get to him, » Gabriel Black told the AP.

Bryan Tarnowski/AFP/Getty Images

Sean Gardner/Getty Images

The Associated Press

In Mississippi, Gov. Phil Bryant on Friday declared a state of emergency in several southern counties in preparation for the storm.

« If you are in an area that has flooded, I would recommend you evacuate that area until the storm has ended and the water has receded for your own personal safety and for the safety of the first responders that will be responding in the event you are trapped, » Bryant said at a press conference Friday.

All Mississippi coast casinos have closed, according to the Mississippi Gaming Commission. Some hotels will remain open to guests, while others will close to guests, according to the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency.

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey issued a statewide state of emergency that went into effect Friday morning. Ivey said that while the coast will experience the worst of the storm, Birmingham could experience strong winds and rain.

« It has become clear that Alabama, especially on our coast will experience some of the worst conditions from this storm, » Ivey said at a press conference Friday. « Alabamans, you must prepare and be vigilant. This is serious business. »

Jacob Kiper, Owensboro, KY/via Reuters

Florida Gov. Rick Scott also declared a state of emergency in some counties.

The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said dozens of offshore oil and gas platforms as well as drilling rigs in the Gulf of Mexico have been evacuated.

Prior to striking the U.S., Nate on Thursday brought deadly mudslides and flash floods to Central America as it traversed the western Caribbean Sea as a tropical storm. According to The Associated Press, 22 people were killed, including 15 in Nicaragua and seven in Costa Rica. Costa Rican officials said 15 people were missing as well.

The Associated Press

The Associated Press

It’s a weird day-and-age we’re living in right now, where “Nazis are bad” has become an actual political stance, as opposed to a bit of basic, obvious wisdom. And yet, there’s something shockingly brazen about seeing it stated so bluntly, as in a Twitter ad released tonight for upcoming Nazi-killing video game Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus.

We’ve written about The New Colossus—MachineGames’ follow-up to Wolfenstein: The New Order, and the latest incarnation of the Third Reich-slaughtering franchise—before, thanks to preview gameplay of B.J. Blazkowicz’s latest attempts to liberate America from a fascist occupying force. But the ad in question, which simply shows stormtroopers parading down an American street, as the phrase “Not My America” flashes on the screen, is the most direct the game’s marketing has been to date about its willingness to comment on our odd, frightening political times.

There are, of course, a small number of consumers actively pissed that the Nazi-killing video game included language about killing Nazis, claiming it’s unfair for the developers to take a swipe at the political faction they’re constantly claiming not to be. (The internet is having its usual fun at their expense.) What’s more interesting, though, is the ad’s existence at all, and its accompanying campaign; video games—and especially triple-A video games, published by big companies—are about as stridently apolitical a medium as you could hope to find, owing largely to the old “No reason to alienate half your audience” school of financial neutrality. The New Colossus ad is a bluntly political statement, and it’ll be fascinating to see how that willingness to embed the game in the modern political landscape will affect the game’s critical and commercial reception when it arrives later this month.

Shutterstock

This is going to be pretty straightforward: Video is — and will continue to be — the most dominant form of media there is. End of story.

So, why should you care?

Well, whether you’re a developing social media personality, business owner or marketing executive, understanding how people think and respond to messaging is vital to grow.

But you don’t have to take my word for it. Take a moment and look around. On the whole, contemporary media consumption tends to revolve around video. For example, of the average 10 hours and 39 minutes spent each day consuming media, watching television ranks the highest; the average American spends five hours and four minutes watching TV.

After television, the next four to five hours of our daily media consumption are spent on mobile, laptops and desktops (registration required), where users typically engage in TV-esque activities, i.e. watching videos on Snapchat, scrolling through Instagram or surfing Facebook and YouTube.

Today, it seems no matter where you look, video is present and fully represented.

A World Of Black Mirrors

Take a look at the dominant forms of social media and on-demand video (subscription services like Amazon, Hulu and Netflix) and watch how they’re moving — what they choose to focus on with each new update, feature and development. In most cases, there’s a strong emphasis on video. And year after year, the digital media industry has aligned itself with the idea that the most important form of media is video.

With Apple, it was the improvement of its cameras and its implementation of FaceTime to promote video calling. With YouTube, it’s the entire model, not only giving users a free platform to post their own video content, but allowing those users to effectively create a free digital entertainment network for the casual web browser. With social media apps like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat, these tech giants are increasingly using videos to promote overall user engagement and inspire daily and active use.

Rise Of The Cable Cutters — Looking At The Data

Let’s take a look at current consumer habits.

Did you know that an estimated 22.2 million Americans will cut their cable this year? That’s not even counting the other 34.4 million who have never purchased cable in the first place. And that number grows higher and higher every year as many young Americans — particularly millennials — are finding their day’s entertainment through digital streaming services, social media and platforms like YouTube and Facebook.

Currently, Facebook has more than two billion active users worldwide bringing billions of views to its video content every day. At present, it’s competing with YouTube — and its Google backing — to become the dominant online video platform on the internet. Although YouTube certainly has the name and appeal, Facebook has a commanding data-intensive infrastructure that favors native content to such a degree that it performs with 10x the reach of an embedded YouTube link.

Instagram — owned by Facebook — and Snapchat have audiences of over 250 and 173 million daily active users respectively. Both apps feature a story functionality that courts users into engaging with the app almost exclusively through video.  

So given the access these video platforms present, how can marketers use them to their advantage?

North Korea has come out strongly against the U.S.’s stated war on terror, accusing Washington of using it as a pretext to overthrow hostile governments, including an alleged plot to oust North Korean leader Kim Jong Un himself in May.

According to an article published Friday by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Pyongyang’s representative to the 72nd United Nations General Assembly sought to clarify his country’s “principled stand” on counterterrorism as laid out in the U.N. Office of Counter-Terrorism, which North Korea helped establish in June. While the report said North Korea remained committed to fighting terrorism, it said “the main reason international terrorism is not yet annihilated” was because of U.S. interference and claimed it foiled a U.S.-backed attempt to depose Kim earlier this year.

Related: North Korea says U.S. military using new base in Israel to take over Middle East

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“In May this year, a group of heinous terrorists who infiltrated into our country on the orders of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of the U.S. and the South Korean puppet Intelligence Service with the purpose of carrying out a state-sponsored terrorism against our supreme headquarters using biological and chemical substance were caught and exposed,” KCNA wrote.

“This palpably shows the true nature of the U.S. as the main culprit behind terrorism,” it added.

North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un makes a statement regarding President Donald Trump’s speech at the 72nd U.N. General Assembly, in this undated photo released by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang, on September 22. North Korea claims it foiled a joint CIA and South Korean plot on Kim Jong Un’s life and blasted Washington’s global war on terror. KCNA/Reuters

In the month prior to the time the alleged conspiracy played out, North Korea’s state-run North Side Headquarters of the Nationwide Special Committee for Probing the Truth Behind the GIs claimed, “The U.S. has fully revealed its criminal scenario to make no scruple of using biochemical weapons” to destroy North Korea and take over the world. For years, Pyongyang has accused the U.S. of developing “Plan Jupiter,” a biochemical operation designed to dethrone Kim, but these claims have never been substantiated.

Friday’s KCNA report also said the U.S. “changes its colors” like a “chameleon” to justify overthrowing governments, especially in the Middle East, where the article said Washington had used counterterrorism and nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction interchangeably to justify its invasions of Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya. All three countries remain at war today, and North Korea has cited the latter two as examples of governments that canceled their nuclear programs only to be later attacked by the U.S.

President Donald Trump addresses the 72nd U.N. General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York, on September 19. At his first-ever appearance at the international gathering, Trump suggested he would “totally destroy” North Korea if it didn’t surrender its nuclear weapons. Lucas Jackson/Reuters

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#UMSLproud students (from left) Madilynn Woodham, Jennie Lee and Rachel Simpson make an appearance in a new video that premiered Thursday at the university’s 26th annual Founders Dinner.

Over the last year, campus community members at the University of Missouri–St. Louis have been faced with quite a task. They’ve been asked to describe – in just one word – the kind of people who choose UMSL.

At first, it was a bit of a challenge. But once the answers started, they just kept coming.

Dedicated. Kind. Inspiring. Driven. In the end, well over 1,000 students, faculty and staff shared a word.

The effort, dubbed the “Choose Your Word” campaign, is all part of an internal branding effort launched by the university’s Marketing and Communications team. It’s mission? Get to the heart of what makes UMSL the vibrant institution that it is, and instill pride in the folks who call the university home.

To highlight the success of the campaign, 13 students recently gathered together to share their words and discuss why they chose UMSL.

Their answers, and the many others given, are the focus of a new video that premiered last night during the 2017 Founders Dinner and is now available to view on YouTube.

Though the video is just about two minutes in length, the answers these Tritons share in front of the camera offer so much depth and insight into what makes UMSL the remarkable institution that it is.

But don’t just take UMSL Daily’s word for it – hit play and see for yourself.

And like the students who volunteered their time to help create this video – including Sean Burkett, Jovan Colbert, Carli Hays, Sydni Jackson, Rouba Kaziz, Jennie Lee, Braxton Perry, Jonah Pfeiffer, Thomas Poon, Rachel Simpson, Parris Smith, Alaa Saffaf and Madilynn Woodham – share your own reasons for being #UMSLproud.

Short URL: http://blogs.umsl.edu/news/?p=70655

Video content has never been more ubiquitous, or more popular with viewers, than it is in 2017. In Q1 2017 alone, we surpassed 2.3 trillion online video views across the main social video platforms! Millions of videos are being consumed via social platforms, owned and operated websites, and across multiple advertising channels, and the medium is one of the most effective ways of reaching a target audience.

However, the proliferation of ad-blocking software installed by users poses a real threat to brands, publishers, and video advertisers. The software threatens traditional interruption advertising, such as pre-roll video, especially as mobile ad blocking reaches mainstream penetration. TV advertising is not exempt from these trends either. Younger viewers watching less TV than ever, and when they are tuning in, it’s either post-broadcast via a catch-up service, or via second screen viewing—both of which make it harder to deliver effective campaign results.

Sponsored Video is the Future

So what can video marketers and advertisers do to ensure their message reach as much of their intended audience as possible? Well, sponsored video is the fastest growing vertical in digital advertising today. According to an eMarketer survey, 48% of marketers anticipated increasing their influencer marketing spends this year to shore up their sponsored footprint, contributing to a sector that is rapidly growing and is currently estimated at $1.3 billion annually. Sponsored video content can also help bypass ad-blocking software, and help brands and publishers reach new demographics by sponsoring content from trusted influencers, and other partners.

Sponsored Video Insights: 2017

Sponsored video content has the ability to have a greater persuasive impact on viewers than a straight sales pitch. Advertisers need to cut through the noise, find the content opportunities, grow their audience, and successfully partner with brands to monetize video content. In our exclusive new insights report on sponsored video , we took a look at videos uploaded to Facebook and YouTube up to and including the March 31st 2017. Videos were selected where we believe there was an exchange of payment included in the creative and/or publishing process, i.e. there was a transaction where a partner was paid by a sponsor, to benefit the sponsor. (We consider gifts, like free products, or free hotel stays, as payment).

Download Our New Sponsored Video Insights Report Today! Get All the Latest Data on Sponsored Video Trends

There was significant growth of sponsored video content on YouTube and Facebook between April 2016 and March 2017. On YouTube, views of sponsored video content grew by 242% compared to Q1 2016, with a 57% increasing in publishers and creators uploading that type of content. On Facebook the numbers are even higher – views grew by 7390% YOY, with uploads also increasing by 4864%.

Growth of Sponsored Video Content on YouTube and Facebook – April 2016 to March 2017 (All data via Tubular)

Those numbers are incredibly impressive, but which industry verticals are pulling in the viewing and engagement numbers on the video content that’s being sponsored?

Top Sponsored Content Industries on YouTube and Facebook April 2016 to March 2017 (All data via Tubular)

On Facebook we are seeing the highest ROI in terms of views from sponsored videos via food and drink, home and DIY, and TV and movie content. In the last year, food and drink videos created in partnership with brands and publishers have averaged around 621K views. Think of publishers like Tasty,  Tastemade, or The Food Network who often collaborate with other brands, and influencers to reach a wider audience.

BuzzFeed’s Tasty US property has worked with Hersheys, Halo Top Creamery, Chobanis, Del Monte, and MMs over the past year to create and publish content that leverages Tasty’s 89M followers on Facebook. This collaboration with Hershey’s on this walkthrough for Marshmallow Kiss cookies generated over 17M views, and 155K shares for Tasty via Facebook. That’s nearly 17M views for a Hershey product beyond its own media properties!

Create Winning Brand Content Partnerships with Tubular DealMaker

Tubular provides independent analytics for the entire video ecosystem, allowing publishers, agencies, and brands to succeed together – growing organic audience and branded content partnerships. With our new product, Dealmaker, monetizing the social video marketplace has never been easier. DealMaker is the most comprehensive database of sponsored content on the market today, tracking over 140K sponsored videos, 30K campaigns, 15K brand sponsors, and 15K content partners. Built by Tubular for all media companies publishers, DealMaker arms you with the intelligence you need to sell more deals and grow revenue.

Download Our Sponsored Video Content Insights Report: You May Qualify a Free Trial of Dealmaker!

We’ll be taking a deep dive into the new Sponsored Video Insights Report over the next few weeks. If you want to get your hands on a copy right now – and find how you can use Tubular to determine which sponsors or partners to work with – just click the button below.

Download Our New Sponsored Video Insights Report Today! Get All the Latest Data on Sponsored Video Trends