KING TV’s social media manager talks shop
In a time when local newsrooms are cautious about costs, Seattle’s KING TV was one of the first stations in the country to create a newsroom position dedicated to social media. A longtime journalist in the KING newsroom, Evonne Benedict was named social media manager in November, so we decided to ask her a few [...]
Tweeplayer plays tweets in sync with recorded TV
While Twitter is a great “social layer” for live TV events, what about all the other shows you watch on Hulu, Netflix or your DVR? That’s where Tweeplayer comes in — a new site that lets you play back a Twitter stream in sync with a TV show. Here’s a demo page that marries a [...]
Google rolls out its own ‘like’ button with +1
Google is starting to roll out a new social recommendation engine called +1. Think of it as a “like” button for search. Before you roll your eyes, remember that Google is still the largest referral driver for most media sites on the web. Ok, here’s how it works. Little +1 buttons will soon appear next [...]
When is the best time to tweet? Late
HubSpot’s Dan Zarrella has been studying tweets for two years, and he’s come up with some rules of thumb for the best frequency and timing to tweet. If you’re interested in driving new followers, for example, get ready to tweet an average of 22 times a day. Looking for the most retweets? Tweet later in [...]
Twitter giants talk tweets on Piers Morgan
As promised, Piers Morgan went “Twitter crazy” on Tuesday night. Twitter co-founders @jack and @biz were fixtures on the show, and Morgan spoke with Twitter heavyweights Martha Stewart, Cory Booker, Alyssa Milano, Nick Kristof (NYT) and Katherine Rosman (WSJ). “I get all my news via Twitter,” said CNN’s Morgan, who admitted that just months ago [...]
Cleveland station tops among local TV Facebook pages
Last week, we posted a story about how KUTV in Salt Lake surpassed 200,000 Facebook fans across all its pages. This week, we look at WJW in Cleveland, which is just a handful away from 200,000 combined fans as well. In fact, “Fox 8 News” is the largest single Facebook page for a TV station [...]
Conan, MTV, Bravo among Shorty Award winners
The Shorty Awards just wrapped up, and TV was well-represented in the annual event that honors the best producers of “short, real-time content.” For starters, the Daily Show’s Aasif Mandvi hosted the show. Conan O’Brien — who’s been on Twitter since February of last year — won the lifetime achievement award. Instead of an acceptance [...]
Dispute grows over cable TV iPad apps
Over the years, cable companies have criticized networks and studios for opening up too much content online. Now the tables are turned, as cable companies begin offering iPad apps that stream live TV for free. Time Warner is the first to offer a streaming app (below), running ads that proclaim, “Make any room a TV [...]
MTV to air mini-documentary on Facebook
If you want a glimpse inside Facebook, set the DVR for this one. MTV goes behind the scenes at Facebook HQ — the first TV crew allowed into its “hack-a-thon” event — in a 30-minute documentary that’s airing this Wednesday. Here’s a preview: Beyond the hack-a-thon, MTV crews also followed Erin Kanaley, who helps power [...]
NBC gets social for the Royal Wedding
NBC News is covering the Royal Wedding wall-to-wall, and there are several interesting hooks to social media, from Twitter and Facebook to an iPad-iPhone app. For starters, NBC plans to cover the big event on @royalwedding, a “hyperactive look at everything royal wedding,” says Ryan Osborn, NBC News’ social media director. “We’ll be posting links [...]
Oprah finally kicks Twitter into high gear
Since joining Twitter in August of 2009 — remember that show with @aplusk? — Oprah has attracted a whopping 5.4 million followers without even sending 200 tweets. That is, until Sunday night, when she kicked into overdrive to live-tweet along with a pre-recorded show on her new cable network, OWN. Leading up to the season [...]
Piers Morgan to air live Twitter TV show Tuesday
Update: In addition to the guests mentioned below, CNN will also have Cory Booker and NYT’s Nick Kristof on the show. “Send your tweets during the show using the hashtags #Piers and #OnlyOnTwitter (to tell something that could have ONLY happened on Twitter),” explain the producers, who are calling it “the first fully-interactive cable news [...]
GetGlue adds NBC Universal to check-in roster
The entertainment check-in service GetGlue has added NBC Universal to its growing list of media partners. Viewers of NBCU’s cable networks — including USA Network, SyFy and MSNBC — will be able to earn stickers for checking into popular shows via GetGlue’s apps. In January, GetGlue says it hit a record 900K unique users with [...]
TV station says Facebook helped with ratings win
Most local TV stations average around 15,000 to 30,000 Facebook fans, but a station in the nation’s 32nd largest market has more Facebook fans than some network TV shows. KUTV in Salt Lake recently surpassed 200,000 fans. And if that doesn’t impress you, the station’s news director says Facebook has helped KUTV 2News win big [...]
Apple may allow TV sets to tap into AirPlay
We’ve all wondered when apps would come to Apple TV, but over the last few weeks, Apple seems to be pursuing a “second screen” approach. For starters, iPhone and iPad app developers can now integrate AirPlay technology, allowing users to watch video from their devices on their TV sets, via Apple TV. Apple has even [...]
The social networking election begins…
Tim Pawlenty announced via Facebook on Monday that he is forming a presidential exploratory committee, one of the first big steps toward a presidential run. That video followed a series of “action movie”-themed teasers that Pawlenty has been posting to his YouTube channel for the last several months, hinting (strongly) at a 2012 bid. It’s [...]
March Madness live streams skyrocket on mobile
Three rounds of March Madness are in the books, and it’s all good news for NCAA, Turner and CBS. So far, fans have racked up 47% more visits over last year — 26.7 million in total — to the March Madness on Demand live streaming service. But the truly amazing stats are with the NCAA’s [...]
EveryBlock.com relaunches as community site
The local news site EveryBlock.com rolled out its first-ever redesign with a new focus on community. Up until now, the site has been a “news feed for your block,” but it’s expanding to become a platform for discussion and recognition around neighborhood news. (Full disclosure: In my job at msnbc.com, I’ve worked with EveryBlock on [...]
