Thursday, September 17, 2009

Newsrooms using Facebook and Twitter to build audience

From InsideRadio.com

Young-targeting morning shows aren’t the only ones using Twitter and Facebook to interact with listeners. While cutbacks have reduced the size of newsroom staffs, citizen journalists are helping pick up some of the slack. More than half (56%) of radio newsrooms rely on listeners for story leads.

Nearly half of newsrooms (45%) now use social media to build audience loyalty and keep listeners tuned-in, according to a survey of 50 radio newsrooms in the top 50 markets conducted by PR firm News Generation.


And while cutbacks have reduced the size of newsroom staffs, citizen journalists are helping pick up some of the slack. More than one-third (34%) of newsroom employees say they also serve as possible information sources for news stories. However all of the producers surveyed said the words, pictures or video provided by amateur news gatherers must be carefully vetted against reliable sources before hitting the air.

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1 comment:

  1. I'm beginning to believe citizen journalists will be all that's left in the not-too-distant future. Clearly, "real" journalists are becoming endangered species.

    http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2009/09/18/18622386.php

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