Social media: Entering the conversation

Abstract

A major duty of Western journalism is to tell people what
is happening in the world so they can make informed choices about
how their democratic institutions and leaders are and should be
operating. Today, the road to informing younger people — and a
growing number of those older — runs through social media. Yet
news-related information delivery is only one of many reasons
people use social media. Competition comes from personal uses such
as conversations with friends and family, sharing information about
restaurants people may be thinking about frequenting, or simply
publishing snapshots of the day. This makes the effort to connect
with and engage the audience through social media channels all the
more important. This paper focuses on steps involved in engaging
people online, from finding and listening to the people you want to
connect with, to being prepared to enter conversations, to actually
engaging people. This paper proposes ways to develop a coordinated
social media approach that could help enhance an organisation’s
brand image.