adplus-dvertising
Connect with us

Media

P.E.I. bunny hops to over 20,000 social media followers from around the world thanks to owners' creativity – The Guardian

Published

 on



MORELL, P.E.I. —

A local rabbit has become a global star on social media.

Scott and Faith Dockendorff bought their daughter, Chloe, a free-run Holland lop dwarf rabbit in 2016 for her 15th birthday.

Chloe named her three-pound pet Winston (she wanted to give him a human name) and began to post numerous pictures of him on her Instagram account.

300x250x1

“I was obsessed with him and was taking pictures of him all the time and putting them on my own Instagram and it started to occur to me that my friends were getting sick of seeing pictures of my bunny every day,’’ Chloe laughs.

So, she gave Winston his own account and called it @winston.snugglebunny. And, thanks to the creative writing of Chloe and Faith, who also take pictures and videos to post (Chloe’s brother, Seth, helps with the pictures and video), the account had 20,600 followers as of Jan. 3. Winston’s exploits are followed by people all over the world. 

One devoted follower in Australia, whose bunny died, put together a collage of pictures of Winston from Winston’s Instagram account, had them imprinted onto a pet blanket and mailed it to the Dockendorffs in P.E.I. Another follower, from Portugal, sent them a fuzzy bed that Winston sleeps in.

Chloe, who is studying dance at the Maritime Conservatory of the Performing Arts in Halifax, struggles to find the words to explain the phenomenon.

“It’s partly the way we write him,’’ she said. “We write things in the captions that are sort of fun and whimsical and then (followers) respond and we play off them and they play off us.’’

Chloe Dockendorff, 18, of Morell decided when she got her bunny three years ago as a birthday present to get creative and give him his own Instagram account. As of Jan. 3, Winston has 20,600 followers. – Dave Stewart

But, it’s not just exchanging messages with followers. Faith said Chloe’s gift for creative writing (the youngster has won literary competitions) has turned the account into something out of a Hollywood move.

“There’s a lot of suspension of disbelief that goes on with (Winston’s) account,’’ Chloe says. “We try to be very creative.’’

When it comes to writing the captions for Winston’s pictures and video, Chloe has given Winston a personality, a voice that includes words they come up with on the fly and adventures created for him that sometimes include illustrations and music. The family has dubbed its fur baby the “self-entitled king of Winstonia’’, a rabbit who is endlessly annoyed by the shortcomings of his human caretakers.

Chloe said the account is strictly monitored at all times to ensure it remains “family friendly, a safe space for people to come to see things that will make them happy.’’

Although Chloe lives off-Island during the school year, Winston’s paws remainly firm planted in Morell.

Chloe said she misses him a lot when she’s away, but her mom sends her lots of pictures and videos and “we Facetime every night”.

Faith said the bond between Chloe and Winston is amazing.

“She might not see him in person for a couple of months, but the instant she walks in he knows her and the second she touches him he just melts into the floor. When he hears her voice on my iPad during Facetime he usually comes over sniffing it,” Faith said. “I don’t think he can figure out how she gets in there.”

Chloe Dockendorff created an Instagram account for her pet rabbit, Winston, three years ago and it has since grown to 20,600 followers around the world. One of the followers in Australia sent her this pet blanket which features pictures of Winston taken from the account. - Dave Stewart
Chloe Dockendorff created an Instagram account for her pet rabbit, Winston, three years ago and it has since grown to 20,600 followers around the world. One of the followers in Australia sent her this pet blanket which features pictures of Winston taken from the account. – Dave Stewart

Faith said it’s been very rewarding for the whole family, adding that they didn’t go into this looking to solicit anything from people. It was just meant to be fun and has since grown into something bigger than they imagined.

“Not a week goes by that we don’t get a comment or a (direct message) from someone saying ‘I was having the worst day’, ‘I was really sad’ or ‘things weren’t going well and I opened my phone and there was Winston’s account and it just made my day better’. Just getting messages like that are encouraging for us,’’ said Faith.

Seth said outside of his social media-created character, Winston is a very loving bunny, even if he does chew through cords and constantly eat the buttons on the remote.

Twitter.com/DveStewart

Want to join the conversation? Comments are open on this story at SaltWire.com.


Who is your favourite famous rabbit?


Let’s block ads! (Why?)

728x90x4

Source link

Media

CTV National News: Social media giants sued – CTV News

Published

 on


[unable to retrieve full-text content]

CTV National News: Social media giants sued  CTV News

728x90x4

Source link

Continue Reading

Media

India’s media – captured and censored

Published

 on

Across almost every form of media in India – social, broadcast and print – Narendra Modi and the BJP hold sway.

With India amid a national election campaign, its news media is in sharp focus. Until recently it was believed that the sheer diversity of outlets ensured a range of perspectives, but now, India’s mainstream media has largely been co-opted by the Bharatiya Janata Party and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Just how did the media in India get to this point and what does it mean for the upcoming elections?

Featuring:

Ravish Kumar – Former Host, NDTV
Shashi Shekhar Vempati – Former CEO, Prasar Bharati
Pramod Raman – Chief Editor, MediaOne
Amy Kazmin – Former South Asia Bureau Chief, Financial Times
Meena Kotwal – Founder, The Mooknayak

300x250x1

Adblock test (Why?)

728x90x4

Source link

Continue Reading

Media

Social media lawsuit launched by Ontario school boards

Published

 on

Premier Doug Ford says that lawsuits launched by four Ontario school boards against multiple social media platforms are “nonsense” and risk becoming a distraction to the work that really matters.

The school boards, including three in the Greater Toronto Area, have launched lawsuits seeking $4.5 billion in damages against Snapchat, TikTok, and Meta, the owner of both Facebook and Instagram, for creating products that they allege negligently interfere with student learning and have caused “widespread disruption to the education system.”

But at an unrelated news conference in Ottawa on Friday, Ford said that he “disagrees” with the legal action and worries it could take the focus away from “the core values of education.”

“Let’s focus on math, reading and writing. That is what we need to do, put all the resources into the kids,” he said. “What are they spending lawyers fees to go after these massive companies that have endless cash to fight this? Let’s focus on the kids, not this other nonsense that they are looking to fight in court.”

300x250x1

Four separate but similar statements of claim were filed in Ontario’s Superior Court of JusticSocial media lawsuit launched by Ontario school boards pervasive problems such as distraction, social withdrawal, cyberbullying, a rapid escalation of aggression, and mental health challenges,” Colleen Russell-Rawlins, the director of education with the Toronto District School Board, said in a news release issued Thursday.

“It is imperative that we take steps to ensure the well-being of our youth. We are calling for measures to be implemented to mitigate these harms and prioritize the mental health and academic success of our future generation.”

The school boards are represented by Toronto-based law firm Neinstein LLP and the news release states that school boards “will not be responsible for any costs related to the lawsuit unless a successful outcome is reached.”

These lawsuits come as hundreds of school districts in the United States file similar suits.

“A strong education system is the foundation of our society and our community. Social media products and the changes in behaviour, judgement and attention that they cause pose a threat to that system and to the student population our schools serve,” Duncan Embury, the head of litigation at Neinstein LLP, said in the new release.

“We are proud to support our schools and students in this litigation with the goal of holding social media giants accountable and creating meaningful change.”

Adblock test (Why?)

728x90x4

Source link

Continue Reading

Trending