According to Hitwise last week, people are starting to get more and more of their news from Facebook (I assume that's by people posting links to news stories). I have noticed that I'm seeing more and more "hey, look at this!" status updates on Facebook, something that I'm more used to from Twitter. I wonder where Twitter is trending on the whole "where do you get your news?" scale?
I have one friend who lamented the fact that people are posting "breaking news" stories to Twitter that seem redundant because everybody's going to hear about those stories from somewhere else (like Corey Haim's death today, which I actually missed on Twitter because I wasn't on at the time). The thing is, as more and more people use Twitter and Facebook, and more and more of their friends and people they follow post these stories, the more likely it is that you're going to hear about a breaking news story from Twitter and Facebook rather than from CNN or Fox News.
So how many of you get your news from TV or newspapers? And how many of you get your news from friends telling you about it, and then watch/read other news outlets to get more information after the initial breaking of the story?
And how many of you think that CNN is making this claim because they've already conceded that they can't compete with Fox News?
An interesting sidebar to the Mashable article is where it says:
"For example, in recent months we’ve seen the ratings of award shows skyrocket; part of the ratings bump correlates with web denizens experiencing the televised broadcast with their friends, family and followers online. It would seem logical then that TV and online can coexist in a mutually beneficial relationship."
It looks like social media, especially "live-blogging" and Twitter, is actually affecting how often we watch popular shows as well. Do you find yourself tweeting or chatting with friends while you're watching something, so it feels like you're watching it in the same room? Do you find yourself watching something you might not have otherwise because you want to be discussing it with your friends on some form of social media?
I have to admit that I sometimes do "live-tweet" Canucks games, but not generally any other shows, though that's mainly because I'm watching the recording of them.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on all of this.
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Ok I admit to status conversations during the only TV show I watch: Big Bang Theory. I also admit to being the person who lamented the constant RT's of fresh news that is growing older and older. IT could be my list, but I see 100 RT's of the same, and it annoys me. Tweet it once and let it go, don't keep RTing it every two seconds. THAT was my witch about it. LOL To answer your question, yes, I get my news local, national, and international (canada) from Facebook, Twitter, and my fave: google. I don't watch TV (rare minus my big bang show), and I refuse the local paper *coughtrashcough* so social media is my only sourse.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment, Lisa! I didn't want to name names, but since you raised it yourself... LOL
ReplyDeleteI have to admit that I did misinterpret your complaint. Though I like to think it led to an interesting blog post. I can now go back to *one* RT of a breaking news story, then? :P
Oh HECK yes! LMAO! I told you that night I was not point at you. I have/had some people on my list that RT'd breaking news like they wrote it themselves..over and over and over..THAT is what I was twitching over! LOL You, my dear, are GOLD! I pay attention to your tweets! You are correct though, it did make a great blog!
ReplyDeleteDave, I am one of those who find myself getting news from FB more than from traditional news outlets (newspapers, TV, and even Web sites) but it's because I am ALWAYS on Facebook thanks to Digsby -- an IM plugin that always feeds me new status updates on my desktop. I have hundreds of subscriptions in Google Reader to read news items but I am able to get to that only at the end of the day, by which time I already know what the news is. So, the way it works for me is get the headline/brief information from Facebook friends' status updates and read a more detailed analysis later (either through the links FB friends have shared or via my own subscriptions in Google Reader). And then follows engagement about the news item either online or in person. Twitter, for me, is more noise than anything else, even after them having introduced lists.
ReplyDeleteI get breaking news from FB & Twitter & if it's interesting I'll Google it to find out more. I also watch Fox News from time to time. I think it's dumb that CNN sees FB as a competitor. If it wasn't for these news programs breaking the news in the first place, there'd be nothing to post on FB or Twitter. Shouldn't they be looking at is as a help rather than competition?
ReplyDeleteMansi: I understand your point, though I definitely disagree about Twitter. I guess it depends on how often you check it, though. :)
ReplyDeleteAnahid: I think it's dumb too, but that may be their concession to Fox beating their butts. :)
I get most of my news from the newspaper. I don't like the way TV news portrays most of their stories. To me, they are always edging for sensationalism & I don't like that. For breaking news I usually get it on twitter & if I'm interested I'll Google it to find out more.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your thoughts.
Bill
P.S. I still haven't figured out what I'm going to do with all my winnings from last week!! =D
Hey Bill
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment!
You may want to check the exchange rate on those Quatloos before getting too excited...