Social media encompasses a number of different websites, but they are all primarily user driven. As a journalist, this is a gold mine of information for you, and it provides you with a quick and accurate way to gather relevant news pertaining to what people are talking about. If you are hoping to get noticed as a journalist or even enhance your already existing content, it pays to find out the latest news from the mouths of real people.
Of course, there is no better way to do that than through social media venues on the Internet. One of the most popular is Digg, which is a user driven website where visitors can vote on the most well-liked blogs, articles, or webpages. As a journalist, you can regularly visit Digg.com, type in a specific keyword, and find out the most significant content online relating to that subject.
To take it a step further, Twitter cannot be overlooked. Yes, you may have heard the buzz about Twitter lately, but this is a social media website that can give you data about the most discussed topics, especially those that are news related. If you are hoping to uncover news and content before anyone else, Twitter can be used with a number of tools that allow you to sort based on keywords. Every Twitter profile also has an RSS feed at the bottom of the page that you can subscribe to so that you maintain updates on any news and happenings.
CNN is one of the most followed profiles on Twitter for a reason, so don’t overlook this social media hit as a relevant source for news and in demand topics as a journalist!