The New York Times recently posted a debate about the importance of social media. Keith Hampton, a professor of communications at Rutgers, made the following point in his post:

“Only a small number of social media are used by a majority of Americans (i.e., Facebook), but many others have obtained a critical mass with niche populations. The biggest threat to discontinuance does not rest with the possibility that social media are a fad, but with their proprietary nature. The failure of a single telephone company does not undermine the value of the telephone. However, because social media are both brands and channels of communication, a significant strategic or technological failure is the most likely impetus to mass abandonment.”

Social media is not a fad. It will, like telephone networks, reach critical mass, and I guess, based on his analysis, stay on that plateau until the next big thing. I guess at critical mass, social media becomes a utility, like its traditional media kin …. at least until the next Facebook.

Seems like presumptive Republican Party presidential nominee Willard M. Romney has a ways to go to catch up with incumbent Barack H. Obama in terms of a social media presence, according to Investors.com. Mr. Romney allegedly has 251,000 followers on the micro-blog platform, Twitter. On the social networking behemoth, Facebook, Mr. Romney has 1.6 million “friends”.

Mr. Obama is doing better on both platforms. Mr. Obama has allegedly 14.6 million disciples on Twitter while his Facebook acquaintances number approximately 26 million.

It’s not surprising that Mr. Obama would have a commanding lead in the social media world. He has shown his preference for connectivity via technology ever since entering the White House and making arrangements for a special Blackberry that would allow him to stay connected while keeping people with ill will at bay.

Also given Mr. Obama’s relative youth and being a member of a minority demographic that makes disproportionate use of cellphones and Twitter, not only should we find Mr. Obama to be a proponent of social media use, but we should also expect him to exploit it to its fullest.

It’s not to say that Mittens can’t catch up. At this juncture it’s about how you leverage those social media resources versus how many Twitter followers are making you feel like Jesus.

I don’t think we are at the point yet where on your first date someone pops that question, but we may be getting their sooner than you think. Marketers are using Klout scores to identify social media users that are passionate advocates for services and products. Who better to push Starbucks coffee than a friend in your social network that actually drinks the stuff versus some sexy model actress that we know probably drinks mostly water, Propel, and Crystal Light (yuck).

I’m usually harping broadband as a means for production, but broadband can also provide access to how social media is being leveraged by the Madison Avenue side of American business. Broadband can make you an influencer and provide you access to a lot of perks from marketers.

It’s the 21st century. Let’s get with the program. And if you must know, my kind of lady has a Klout score no lower than 40.

The Wall Street Journal posted a piece about the failure of consumers to protect their online identities on their smartphones. Before we became smartphone users, we were cell phone users. We didn’t realize then that cell phones are really little radios. Today we are smart phone users (at least 46% of American adults) and don’t realize that our smartphones are not just little radios, but also minicomputers.

Because they are minicomputers that send and receive stored information over the air, it’s important that we use password protections and apply security updates when asked.

Programs designed to help increase broadband literacy will have to include an emphasis on security if we are to keep people online, especially those whose sole method of access is via mobile.

Just a couple of hours ago, President Barack Obama gave the Republicans and Americans a taste of the power of social media. In remarks regarding the standoff between House Republicans and everyone else it seems, President Obama asked voters to comment on what we could use $40 a paycheck on. According to the White House, quite a few of us vented.

According to Mr. Obama, over 30,000 people left comments on Facebook or Twitter. That’s about 2,000 people per hour, said Mr. Obama. Mr. Obama also encouraged citizens to leave comments at Whitehouse.gov.

For those of us without broadband, can we afford to be left out of this important exercise in democracy?