Entering social media conversation via The New York Times
The New York Times can be an excellent point to enter the conversation when blogging and using social media.
Rather than looking at blogging as writing an article, something you could have done thirty five years ago, look to blogging as entering a conversation. Read relevant news and commentary, reference what is being said and provide your take.
Social media, via Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn is much the same thing. Share what you find of interest, provide your take, and engage (converse) with those folks who respond to what you shared.
Doing so as a professional, you demonstrate that you are staying abreast of news and information relevant to your practice. You are also networking with reporters, bloggers and the subjects of the story, post or report.
Generally, I stay abreast of relevant news and commentary via my RSS reader, Feedly. I subscribe to blogs, news publications and Google News RSS feeds of subjects. By referencing what I am reading, I not only learn as I process my thoughts and ideas, but I meet a heck of a lot of people — especially those who I reference in blog posts and in items shared.
The New York Times is an excellent of a place from which to enter the social media conversation as well.
If there is a better user media interface for digital than the Times’ I haven’t seen it. Their iPhone and iPad apps are outstanding. In addition to a wonderful reading interface, they enable easy sharing and commentary to Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Buffer. You can set the apps to prioritize the news you want to see. Technology and business are the top two for me.
The journalism from the Times is strong. As their editors have said, they may have lost some distribution points with the net, but they haven’t lost high quality journalism.
The Times’ stories reach just about every matter of the law, business or social affairs. Their editorial commentary does much the same. If you grabbed just one piece a month from the Times as a jumping off point for a blog post you’d be doing well.
Engaging Times reporters and editors makes you relevant to the news of the today. Relevancy is one of the keys to ssauccessful blogging – be timely. Taking on the view of an editor or commentator on something they penned to the editorial page puts you square in today’s conversation.
There are of course much more niche focused publications than the Times. With blogs, we now have legal publications covering just one federal regulation. Following these publications is critical if your focus of the law lies.
Following The New York Times gives you an elevated view on a myriad of subjects. Leveraging their journalism demonstrates you stay abreast of news, have a take on issues in the news and expands your network.
Not all bad for about nineteen bucks a month.
Image courtesy of Flickr by Victor Asensio