Social Media and Journalism

The New World Of Wired
Journalism
Leveraging online tools to drive innovation
Client: MediaQuest Corp, Middle East
Trainer: Akanksha Goel, Bhavishya Kanjhan, Socialize
Date: 8th March 2010

Socialize
www.socialize.ae

The Agenda
What is social media: It‘s evolution and the objectives of using
social tools
Why a social media
policy is important and
templates to create your
own
When in a publications lifecycle
should a journalist get online
Who is using wired journalism
well ? Looking at some examples
and case studies
How to approach the key tools strategically to maximize the time
spent online and measure/monitor ROI

8/3/2010 2

The R/evolution of Information

8/3/2010 Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4CV05HyAbM 3

Old Vs. New Journalism
Old: We controlled the information and the publishing
platform
New: Data is shared; publishing platforms are cheap and
ubiquitous and many citizen bloggers cover news on the
hottest topics

This isn't just a kind of fad from someone who's an enthusiast of
technology. I'm afraid you're not doing your job if you can't do
those things. It's not discretionary.

Peter Horrocks, the BBC's director of global news

8/3/2010 http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2010/02/10/bbc-journalists-commanded-to-use-social-media 4

Networking Publishing Information Collaboration

Tumblr
RSS Wave
Facebook Twitter
Buzz DropBox
LinkedIn Picasa
Maktoob Ping.fm
Intheloop.me YouTube
UAETweets
Foursquare Slideshare
Stumble Upon
Blogger
Delicious
Scribd
Docstoc

Social Media is an umbrella term for online tools and
platforms that allow content publishing, information
gathering and networking between and by individuals,
globally.
--Socialize.ae
8/3/2010 5

Objectives Of Social Media Usage
For Journalists
From Inspiration:
Find and cultivate sources/story ideas
Follow news and events in real time

To Publication:
Reach readers where they are
Drive traffic to your publication
Promote your work and yourself
Create a loyal and engaged reader community
8/3/2010 6

ACHIEVING THE OBJECTIVES
A strategic approach to understand the tools involved and the
action plan for each : Using COAST Process

The COAST Process
Customers: Understanding the reader‘s social activities on the
chosen social platform

Objectives: Prioritizing what you want to accomplish from the
campaign/strategy

Actioned by: Resources/People within the company wh0 will
take ownership of the activities

Strategy: Ideas and approaches to reach readers and have
sustainable impact

Tools: Free online tools to monitor the campaign and increase
productivity

8/3/2010 Created by the Socialize team, for strategy sessions and in-house training 8

[C] Twitter: UAE Readers
According to the MENA Twitter Survey, 59%
of respondents said they interacted
frequently with journalists and over 85% of
Twitter users surveyed said that they used the
service to find news or stay updated, while
55% actively use the service to research new
opinion and information.

In Sept 2009, UAE (5778) accounted for
majority of Twitter users in the MENA
(14296)…and that number is growing.

8/3/2010 Source: http://www.spotonpr.com/menatwittersurvey/ 10

8/3/2010 11
Journey of a tweet, by NGOnline

[O &A] Twitter: Objectives & Resources

Get real-time reports from sources
Report a scene/story from your phone real-time
Push traffic to your story and publication‘s site
Use Twitter #hashtags to track specific subjects and
meetings remotely

Personal accounts for journalists (with
corporate association)
Connect publication‘s account to RSS feed
from the main site (only if needed)
8/3/2010 12

[S] Twitter Strategy for Journalists
See who follows you and others, then follow people,
post a message, then check @replies and direct
messages
See a discussion and contribute to it, ―re-tweet‖ others
Share links to your news/ articles and welcome
reader feedback. Use the 80-20 rule, for every link you
post, talk to/reply or re-tweet 4 readers
Monitor traffic and your stats to see the customers
readers that interact with you the most
Personality to adopt: Personal with corporate
association
Editors to take lead and create a ‗mastermind
community‘ amongst all other writers

8/3/2010 13

[T] Twitter Tools
To track trends:
Tweetstats.com/trends
Trendistic
Create a twitter dashboard:
Tweetdeck/Hootsuite
Local tweeps:
Search.twitter.com/Advanced
Localtweeps/Twellow

To Monitor: Twinfluence, TwitterGrader, Twittorati or Tweetstats

To post pictures and videos: TwitPic / Twitcam
Also look at: MuckRack/ Breaking Tweets

8/3/2010 Read: http://techcrunch.com/2009/02/19/the-top-20-twitter-applications/ 16

[C&O] Facebook: Objectives
End of 2009, UAE had over 1 Million active users and
more than 10 million users in the region.

Local is people. Our job is not to deliver content or a
product. Our job is to help them make connections with
information and each other.
--- Jeff Jarvis

An opportunity to interact with your most committed
readers
Build a community and reach a larger audience
Build your brand
Finding sources/generate leads

8/3/2010 http://www.nickburcher.com/2009/12/facebook-usage-statistics-by-country.html 17

[S] Facebook: Strategy & Ideas

Create a combined group for all Media Quest
publications. Eg: Middle East Business News. Focus on
the strength of the publications and pool in articles.
Invite sources/readers to join the group
Make all editors admin, so that they can react to
comments/questions on their articles (tag journalists
on posts)
Recommended Publishing Schedule: 2 selected news
pieces per day
Put up customer polls and create a story around the
results
Try to mix up different update types – a status update,
a Link, a Note, a Photo or video update.
8/3/2010 19

1: Name
Middle East
Business/Marketing
News
2: Picture: Logos of
publications/collage of
magazine cover pages
3: Thumbnail
4: Vanity Url:
MediaQuest
5: Schedule : 1 post/day
6: Mix it up!

8/3/2010 20

[A&T] Facebook Resources & Tools

Head of digital content/online publications to take lead
to pick the hot articles of the day, post on Facebook and
thus drive traffic to the publication‘s online site
Monitor reader comments on the site and flag relevant
comments to journalists
Recording all activity on a schedule, it‘s easier to map it
against exported stats data from your page‘s insights.

Profile picture: 200 px (12 gutter)
Set up http://facebook.mydomain.com to point to your
Fanpage/ Get a Vanity URL after you have a 100
followers

8/3/2010 21

Social Media Revolution

8/3/2010 23
Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIFYPQjYhv8

[C&O] Uses of LinkedIn
Business networking at it‘s best : however, under
utilized by most
All 500 of the Fortune 500 are represented in
LinkedIn and 499 of these are represented by Director
level (and above) people

Get noticed for the work you do, increase
visibility/Google Page Rank
Find an expert, fast
Network without making it a full time job
Promote your publication‘s site
Create thought leadership

8/3/2010 24

[S] LinkedIn: Strategies to adopt
Control who makes it to your in-box by going to
LinkedIn's Accounts & Settings page to alter your
notification preferences.
Have a profile that‘s a 100% complete
Join key industry/business groups in the region
and initiate pre-story discussions
Update your profile with the article/subject you‘re
writing about
Post your publication‘s top articles as ‗news‘ on
groups
Answer industry specific questions and create
thought leadership
8/3/2010 25

RSS Tools for Crowd sourcing
The Old Way The New & Smart Way

8/3/2010 29
RSS: Really Simple Syndicate

A Look At RSS: COAST
Customer: You
Objectives:
Collect information from various sources in one place
Let the information come to you
Consume greater, quicker.
Track and monitor extensive information.

Actioned by: Individual journalists with personal
accounts

Tools: Make RSS readers the HUB

8/3/2010 Example used: Customized Google Reader Account (Click on RSS icon) 30

Bring it all home: Website

Share this story on Twitter / Facebook /
Buzz / Email
Twitter / Facebook / RSS icons
Facebook and Google Connect
User Profiles – increase Personal Branding
Embed supporting Multimedia content
with SlideShare, YouTube, Qik, Scribd,
BlogTalkRadio etc.
8/3/2010 http://drupal.org/node/718804 31

A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A:
Wired Journalist
Digital Content Leader/Marketer

A day in the life of: Wired Journalist

1: Use crowd sourcing to get a story idea
2: Follow up on leads and write story
3: Let tweeps know what you‘re writing about, ask
questions and get comments
3: Publish on magazine‘s online site
4: Tweet the link, put it up as your LinkedIn profile
note (perhaps, share it on Facebook)
5: Follow up with reader comments and suggestions
6: At a press conference ? Why not Tweet from there
if the news is not confidential ?

8/3/2010 34

A day in the life of a:
Digital Director / Marketing Manager
1: Check website analytics and see where the
traffic is coming from. Once a month, let
journalists know which of their activities is
bringing in most traffic
2: Select top stories from publications and post
up on Facebook Fanpage and relevant
LinkedIn groups
3: Monitor/Track online conversation
happening around your various brands –
track which stories got the most interest, why
and how
8/3/2010 35

A summary: To gain fans, followers
and connection
Be human. You‘re not a detached observer, but a participant
who need to share and give back instead of just taking.
If you‘re using Facebook/Twitter just to just publicize stories
you‘ve written, you‘re using it wrong. It is about sharing, not
about broadcasting.
It‘s all about karma. The community won‘t share with you
unless you‘ve shared (your experiences, your thoughts, your
passions) with them.
Take it offline, promote your social platforms along with the
monthly editors note.
Create badges on your email signature and websites
Commit: Don‘t put a toe in the water and expect to create
more than a ripple. Dive in.
Experience in the best teacher

8/3/2010 36

SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY
A social media policy outlines for employees the corporate
guidelines or principles of communicating in the online
world.

Must-haves for your policy
Introduce the purpose of social media
Be responsible for what you write
Be authentic
Consider your audience
Exercise good judgment
Understand the concept on community
Respect copyrights and fair use
Protect confidential and proprietary info
Bring Value
Promote Productivity

8/3/2010 http://mashable.com/2009/06/02/social-media-policy-musts/ 38

Companies have existing communications policies,
directives that spell out the company‘s expectation
when employees use the phone or email.

Since the conversation has moved to the Web, it‘s
important for organizations large and small to
acknowledge that and extend their existing
communications policies to include online sites.

Scott Monty, Ford Motor Company

8/3/2010 42

War 2.0: Micro Reporting from the Front Lines

8/3/2010 43
Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndB9VhEoqCw

CRISIS COMMUNICATION
Good news travels fast online, but bad news travels
faster. Discussing a framework to approach negativity
generated online.

Keys concepts and constructs
Pay attention: Use online tools (Google alerts etc) to
track what is being said about you and follow reader
comments
Be calm. Be concise. Be clear
Timing is important: address promptly and
proactively
Be authentic: Acknowledge their viewpoint first,
then explain yours
Don‘t over think: Fix the problem/article
Every journalist is responsible for his/her piece

View: Handout on web posting response assessment

8/3/2010 45

TWO (More) EXAMPLES

UAE Publication | International Journalist

Shufflegazine
Shufflegazine is an Apple lifestyle print magazine with content posted
online on their website as well.
They can be found on a variety of Social platforms but this case study
focuses on their use of Twitter and Facebook.

Shufflegazine uses Twitter and Facebook for the following objectives:
• Drive traffic to website articles by posting them on Twitter and
Facebook
• Publish Local and International Technology news
• Building a relationship with fans by engaging them on various
platforms
• Keeping them updated on Magazine activities
(upcoming features, presence at Press conferences, )
• Gathering feedback on their coverage and activities.

Shufflegazine on Twitter and Facebook
8/3/2010 47

Daniel Victor
Daniel Victor, 25, is a reporter for The (Harrisburg, Pa.) Patriot-News.
Is active on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and has a blog of his own at
www.bydanielvictor.com
Uses his blog to write about how he uses blogging, social networking
and the rest of the Web as a reporter.
Use Cases:
Needed seek out a little-known charity or organization to feature..
So he asked a question of Twitter and Facebook and got 21 recommendations
from 19 people.
Responses in less than an hour.
Typing two sentences resulted in support and solutions from the community.
http://bydanielvictor.com/2008/10/22/another-twitter-testimonial/

Needed to cover a political story, on a weekend, in an area not his expertise.
Made a few calls and dropped some emails, but they went unanswered.
He posted the query up on Twitter: 2 minutes later, responses started coming in and helped him
connect to the contact needed.
Result: Daniel got the interview his piece desperately needed.
http://bydanielvictor.com/2010/01/11/in-a-pinch-twitter-found-a-longshot-source/

8/3/2010 48

MEASURING AND MONITORING
FOR JOURNALISTS
What metrics to consider, the tools to measure the metrics
and and discussing associated ROI

Measurement Myths
Stop confusing ROI with results, and measurement with counting

―Measurement is not counting. Or monitoring. It is
not the number of followers, friends, rankings,
or scores. Measurement is a process that
requires you to compare results against
something— either with your competition or
with your own results over time. You note the
change, analyze the reasons why, and improve
your program accordingly.‖

8/3/2010 Source: Stop confusing ROI with results, and measurement with counting, KD Payne 50

Tracking & Monitoring
Digital Content Director Journalists

Metrics to track Metrics to track
• Number of visitors via • Facebook Fans / Twitter
platform(source) followers
• Pageviews and Pages per visit • Twitter and Facebook shares
• Time spent on site (ReTweets and ―Via shares‖)
• Search Engine Keywords • Traffic via platform
• Facebook fan interactions (Likes, • Mentions on Blogs / Websites
Shares and Comments)
• RSS Subscribers Tools to Use
• Brand Mentions • Facebook and Twitter Profiles
• Twitter clients (Tweetdeck,
Tools to use Hootsuite)
• Website Analytics • URL Shortener statistics
• Facebook Insights • Google Alerts
• FeedBurner
• Twitter Search and Google Alerts

8/3/2010 51

Make It A Part Of The Job
You‘re not going to find out by reading about it. You
need to just do it.
To create a compelling story, you need people who are
directly affected by the story you‘re reporting on. Use
social media to find those real people. They‘re out
there tweeting. The beauty of these social media [sites]
is they‘re searchable.
Through the course of a day a reporter comes across a
lot of information. Share it.
Find what you‘re good at and something you can be
consistent with. Make sure you‘re doing it every day.
Reporters have to become more than a by line. They
have to become a person.

8/3/2010 52

One Lake Plaza, 15-01
Jumeirah Lake Towers
Dubai 124628

Tel: +971 4 4308575
Fax: +971 4 4308574

Twitter: @SocializeUAE
Facebook.com/SocializeUAE
Blog: blog.socialize.ae

8/3/2010 53

Resources
Five Barriers to Journalists Using Twitter
http://sarahhartley.wordpress.com/2009/02/15/five-barriers-to-
journalists-using-twitter/
Top Twitter Tools for Journalists
http://savethemedia.com/2009/03/27/top-twitter-tools-for-journalists-2/
The Ultimate Guide to Twitter
http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2009/03/the-ultimate-guide-for-
everything-twitter/
The ROI of Journalists and Twitter
http://danblank.com/blog/2009/02/20/the-roi-of-journalists-and-
magazines-using-twitter/
How Journalists Can Use Twitter
http://markmedia.blogs.com/markmedia/2009/02/how-a-journalist-can-
use-twitter.html
Tweeting the Future of Journalism
http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2009/01/30/twittering-away-
standards-or-tweeting-the-future-of-journalism/

8/3/2010 54

Resources 2
Follow by example:
–@anamariecox (75K) – Snarky White House correspondent
–@ricksanchezcnn (56K) – CNN on-air personality incorporates
Twitter into his reports. Facebook fan page has 151K fans.
–@newmediajim (23K) – NBC News cameraman and blogger
–@mathewi (6K) – Communities manager, Globe & Mail
–@LATimesNystrom (2.3K) – Senior producer, social media, LA
Times
–@bridgetcarey (629) – Miami Herald tech reporter, engages her
readers directly and is fun (watch her go ‗Christian Bale‘)

•Journalism & Social Media blogs:
http://eatsleeppublish.com/twitter-to-journalists-heres-how-its-done/
http://beatblogging.org/2009/02/16/leaderboard-for-week-2-16-2009-
access-edition/
http://mediageeks.ning.com/

8/3/2010 55

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