4460 first post

I read this article at PR Daily today. The article states that 92 percent of journalists are using LinkedIn; more than any other social network. This is interesting to me because we were required to have a whole slew of accounts set up in prep for 4460. LinkedIn was one of those accounts, and at the time I couldn't understand why I needed such a visible online presence. I'm of an earlier generation, and while my peers have embraced social networking, I just haven't quite gotten on that bandwagon yet. This article helped me to realize just how necessary these social media sites are. I may not trust them, but I have to utilize them in the professional world, and I ought to start learning now.

It is reassuring to know that my professor actually understands the changing media landscape, however. I like the thought that we are getting as updated an education as possible. The article provides a lot of food for thought, stating that 24 percent of journalists were on Twitter in 2009, compared to 84 percent today. These statistics are not entirely surprising, but they are intriguing to see. I wonder what the percentage will be next year, or the year after, and what will be the next step in connecting to each other. Sites like LinkedIn have a good practical value; they allow people to make those personal and professional connections that are so valuable these days. For the PR professional, networking is a valuable currency, which is one of the reasons that social media sites have become so popular in the PR community. It makes networking so much more current and successful, and really enables people to connect worldwide.

The article doesn’t really describe anything that is earth shattering information, but this news is important to know. It is necessary to gauge how much we as professionals rely on social networking websites and how much we use them, especially for students about to go into the workforce. It’s one thing to have your teacher tell you how much you’ll need these tools; it’s another thing entirely to see proof of those words. It makes the lessons tangible and practical in the real world.

The article also says that the sites are used for more than connecting to other people. Social media sites help journalists gain story ideas from industry sources, and the scope of sources is much greater with the help of social media. Use of websites like LinkedIn and Twitter enable industry professionals to expand their reach and experience in an industry where being a jack-of-all-trades is a requirement and not an option. These websites are changing the shape of communications and journalism and journalists are changing with the times, whether they like it or not. I’m still not quite used to it, but I imagine that there were journalists grumbling when computers began to replace typewriters. Times change, and the requirements of the job are that we change with them.