Last night, I watched the live stream of #journchat from SXSWi. The brainchild of PR wunderkid Sarah Evans, #journchat is "an ongoing, open dialogue between journalists, bloggers and public relations professionals" that takes place on Twitter. I generally enjoy these chats--it's a great way to share with peers and build relationships in the virtual space.
Last night's session was a little bit different than the usual Monday night chat--no engagement or participation from the masses, just a pretty basic Q&A with some of CNN's social media heavy hitters. And the more I listened the more I thought...
When will we STOP reporting social media as "news?" Yes, one of the CNN panelists joked that someone joining Twitter isn't newsworthy, but I have news for you: Neither is the fact that you can build relationships via Twitter. Or pitch a story in 140 characters. Or that you should vet your sources carefully. Or be there before the pitch. That stuff is PR 101, just translated to a different medium.
Yes, we get it. You're on Twitter. We're all on Twitter. And foursquare and YouTube and Facebook and dozens of others. So what and now what?
It won't matter because the social media mavens - news, PR, et al - will never stop.
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