Social media has quickly become an indispensable source for news. According to one report, three out of ten adults turn to it for news content. Although people may be used to consuming news via traditional television channels or websites, social media makes accessing it simpler than ever.
However, social media’s rising prominence has also given rise to misinformation – false statements or misstatements of facts that create unwarranted hype or create fake news stories that distort reality. Misinformation often spreads via algorithms that reward popular posts.
As such, social media news can be difficult to filter effectively, which presents newsrooms with an additional challenge as they seek to balance audience needs with accurate and engaging content production. Social media platforms like Snapchat, TikTok and Instagram that focus more heavily on visuals make discerning between true and false news that much harder.
Even in spite of its challenges, some newsrooms are successfully experimenting with social media news. By producing authentic content tailored to specific demographics on networks that reach a broad audience, newsrooms can create effective yet unique ways of delivering news – for instance the Washington Post’s TikTok Guy Dave Jorgenson regularly publishes amusing satires about current events via TikTok; this approach offers lower barriers to entry than traditional journalism while more closely mirroring how people once received news prior to printing presses: word of mouth.
Social media allows audiences to provide instantaneous feedback that can be used to verify the accuracy of an article and offer additional perspectives that might not have been considered before. Such feedback can help identify any current trends or inspire a follow-up article.
Social media news also plays a valuable role in spreading awareness for various causes and organizations, like Lou Gehrig’s Disease (ALS). A successful example would be the Ice Bucket Challenge that helped raise money and bring awareness.
When considering using social media trends as inspiration for their newsroom’s content creation process, it is crucial that they carefully consider their brand and how the trend fits within it. A mix of news and humor may work effectively as long as its tone matches that of the site as a whole.
As with any trend, using it to push products or services onto users can come across as pushy and annoying if done improperly. Instead, consider using the trend to highlight a cause or charitable organization supported by your company like The Mannequin Challenge as this type of content tends to go viral faster because its benefits extend far beyond just being an attention-getting gimmick.
