Links of Note: April 24, 2007
Journalism: MSNBC Of the Future Mock-Up (Scripting News)Dave Winer designed a mock-up of a theoretical, user-controlled version of MSNBC broadcasts. "The goal is to get the best news experience tailored to the interests of specific users. I don't want to interfere with people who want to see the Virginia Tech students go back to class, but I want to move on, and want my news provider to respect that," Winer writes.
I could make the old "anti-Daily-Me" argument, but really, who cares anymore? Serendipitous news exposure is overrated.
Long Tail: Are you making the most of your long tail? (Teaching Online Journalism)
Mindy McAdams uses recent traffic stats from her blog to illustrate the power of the long tail (if you don't know what it is, you need to find out). Brand awareness -- or site awareness -- increases each time your site pops up in a user's search results.
"The more often someone's Google search brings him or her to my blog site, the more likely that person is to bookmark the site, or add it to an RSS reading list," McAdams writes. "And the more interesting posts found by someone who comes to the site for the first time ... the more likely that person is to return in the future."
The long tail should be an essential part of any Web publishing operation. Obviously, hit articles, blogs and sections are always welcome, but archived "long tail" material is the key to day-after-day traffic.
And in those dark moments when you question the value of your work, it's nice to know that every post -- even that unpopular one sputtering at the bottom of your traffic stats -- contributes to overall growth.
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