“Journos Lost The Breaking News Game A Long Time Ago”: HashtagOurStories’ Yusuf Omar
While attending the INFORM News Media Summit in Sydney yesterday, B&T pulled aside one of its speakers – Yusuf Omar, co-founder of HashtagOurStories and an ex-CNN social reporter – to talk all things mobile in the land of news media.
What are some of the latest trends you’re seeing involving news media companies and mobile engagement?
The first thing to appreciate is the big buzzword [or ‘buzzphrase’] at the moment, which is ‘pivot to video’, and specifically a pivot to video that is optimised for mobile devices. We’re finally seeing traditional news organisations explore formats as basic as vertical video, explainer stories, being able to sum up a video into a minute as opposed to a minute thirty or longer for television. They’re starting to appreciate the nuance that an Instagram story is not the same as a Facebook story or a Twitter or YouTube story – that each one has very specific audiences and ways of conceptualising those stories. I think that’s a shift playing out in media.
News organisations are also becoming more and more efficient at repurposing one piece of video for numerous platforms. I think the ability to do that efficiently with minimal resources largely influences the success or failure of your digital strategy.
Is there a standout social media platform for news organisations to use?
When we look at all the social media platforms, there aren’t actually that many. You have the Facebook juggernaut, which includes Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp; you have Google, which expresses itself through YouTube; you have Snapchat, which is a standalone entity; and then you have new, emerging social media apps coming out of Amazon and the likes.
News organisations can’t put all of your eggs in one basket – they need to diversify their social media as much as possible and be platform agnostic. If your business is based on the success of another business, it’s never a good position to be in. If Facebook changed their algorithms overnight, you’d suddenly have to jump in and re-adjust, but that’s the nature that we’ve got ourselves into. We have to play with Facebook – it is the biggest platform in the world, it has the biggest reach and audiences, and may soon offer the biggest monetisation potential. It’s about being nimble enough to respond to algorithmic changes and acknowledging that dotcom strategies are failing. We have to use this technology for what it’s good at, and Facebook is really good for distribution.
What are news media companies doing wrong when it comes to mobile engagement?
I think there are a few things that they could be doing better. We’re still exporting television formats and putting them online, and this is proven regularly not to succeed. I think they’re still thinking about engagement after they’ve done the story, but I think 50 per cent of the conversation before the story is produced needs to be about the engagement. The reporter should be telling their editor or producer which conversations are going to be sparked in the comments section and which Facebook groups are going to share the story. The onus should be put on the storyteller to build that relationship.
News organisations also need to better understand how to migrate audiences through social media. If they do a fantastic video on fly fishing, the next time they do another video on fly fishing, they can drop the link to it in the comments section of the first video, because they know they already have an audience that’s passionate about that subject matter and can easily migrate them.
I’m also seeing major news organisations trying to build mega social accounts with five or 10 million followers. We’re entering an age where the internet’s becoming smaller and they’re better off having 100 accounts with 1,000 followers each, and knowing specifically what those groups are interested in. That makes sense to marketers too, because then they can target. News organisations and brands need to be looking at social media on a far more granular level than trying to create these big accounts with massive followings that don’t mean anything anyway.
How do you rate Aussie news media organisations in terms of mobile engagement?
Australia is an island and isolated in every sense of the word, and that rings true to some of the media. I’ve seen some formats here online that I haven’t seen elsewhere. I think Aussie news organisations have their own style, and that traditional media houses like the ABC and Fairfax are navigating the same difficult journey that traditional media houses around the world are facing, but I think Australia will come out on top. Australian media houses have got cash that they can throw – they’re pivoting to digital not because they have to, but because they want to, and that’s a powerful position to be in.
I think here news organisations still have very loyal audiences on traditional platforms. You still have huge radio audiences in the rural areas, you still have people who are very loyal to newspapers. Australia is looking at the US and realising that it still has a couple of years to prepare, and hopefully they won’t make the same mistakes that other markets have.
Are there any other practical steps that Aussie news companies can take to future-proof their newsrooms for the digital age?
I think it’s about people and trust. I think they should be bringing in more young people who understand social media platforms to their boardroom meetings. There’s quite a bureaucracy in a lot of Australian news organisations, and you’ve got to sometimes have a bit of age behind you before making it to decision-making positions, when in reality, many of the people who have the best ideas in the room are not senior. We’ve reached the stage in journalism where being tech-savvy is just as valuable as being journalistically experienced. Today, you need technologists in your newsroom, and that’s why it’s important for news companies to surround themselves with Millennials who get it.
How do you see the role of a journalist changing over the next 10 years?
I think journalists lost the breaking news game a long time ago – 9/11 was the breaking point that where people with mobile phones were capturing the biggest stories of our time, not journalists with big cameras. I don’t think media should try to play the breaking news game either – it’s expensive, and it’s really boring. It should focus on commentary and analysis, and with so much video coming through from different social media platforms, it should focus on verification and authentication – making sense of what’s real and what’s not. That’s the value-add of news media in 2018 and beyond – the ability to be the voice of truth, but not try to be the sole arbitors of truth.
We have to acknowledge that social media has a huge place in the news cycle – we can’t keep writing it off as being non-sensical. In a time when we have fake news and media houses under such pressure to monetise, we see news media positioning itself as “we’re right, they’re wrong”. They need to work together. Social media needs journalists and editors to make sense of it, and editors and journalists need social media to find stories on the ground.
Please login with linkedin to comment
Advertising Standards Bureau HashtagYourStories INFORM News Media Summit INFORM News Media Summit 2017 Yusuf OmarLatest News
The Mars Agency Announces Latest Findings Of Retail Media Report Card
The Mars Agency has developed a scorecard that assesses the capabilities of leading platforms across key criteria required to optimally plan, execute, and measure effective retail media programs. The scorecard aims To help brands efficiently evaluate their spending options across retail media networks in Australia (and New Zealand). With spending on retail media advertising in […]
‘It’s The Lesser Of Two Evils’ – NRL Eyes US Betting Market As Aussie Regulators Circle
US betting firms will be delighted by the circa 50,000 Americans who could soon watch the NRL on their favourite app.
A-League In Deep Discussions With New Partner To Keep Games On TV After Production Company Enters Administration
The A-League's insatiable appetite for scoring own goals continues.
TV Ratings (27/03/2024): Jungle Members At War Over Concealed Lipstick
A heated argument between two jungle members did the numbers for Ten last night, with I’m A Celeb obtaining a total national reach of 1,282,000. Fans were delighted as Candice Warner and influencer Skye Wheatley got into it over a stick of lipstick, leading Warner to dub the Instagram star “selfish.” Wheatley, best known for […]
Is The Australian Music Industry In Trouble? Inquiry Launched Following Splendour Cancellation
Earlier this week, an inquiry was launched into the challenges and opportunities currently facing the Australian live music industry in the wake of multiple festival cancellations. On 25 March 2024, the Minister for the Arts, the Hon. Tony Burke MP, asked the Committee on Communications and the Arts to inquire into and report on the […]
Liana Dubois, Leandro Perez, Aimee Buchanan & More Gather For Inaugural Compadres Leadership Event
Didn't get the invite? Perhaps you're not as important as you thought.
Cathay Captures The Unforgettable Thrill Of Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Rugby Sevens, Via Publicis
Nobody does rugby like Hong Kong, apparently. Certainly nobody does it as badly as Australia.
Cocogun Nabs Christine Watts, Kirsty Reynolds & Shev Tan Bolstering Management & Creative Teams
Cocogun bolsters its team with new hires. Committed to purchasing a bigger sofa, too.
The Media Store’s Jacquie Alley & Sam Cousins Take The Plunge With Pro-Bono Work For Cure Cancer
B&T chats with The Media Store bosses about their great pro-bono work and sponsored swim.
Hawke’s Brewing Co. Taps Rocket Comms For PR Agency Following Competitive Pitch
We're expecting Rocket Comms productivity to crash in spectacular fashion following this win.
Spotlight On Sponsors: Patties Serves Up A Taste Of Home For Olympians & South Sydney Rabbitohs Recommit To Gambling Reform
While the Rabbitohs commits to gambling reform, B&T reckons the team should commit to a decent auto sponsor.
Google: “Inevitable” That Bad Actors Will Abuse Ads Platform As Advertiser Account Suspensions Double
Google maintains it's simply impossible for it to entirely stop bad people placing & paying for ads using its service.
Quantcast Expands APAC Sales Team With Appointment Of News Corp Account Manager
No pressure at all when you are appointed as a client success manager.
Publicis Sapient Tests Microsoft-Powered Gen AI Search Tool With Homes & Villas By Marriott Bonvoy
Given Gen AI's record for mangling stuff, B&T cannot see the problem with letting it decide your next holiday digs.
Volkswagen & DDB Group’s “Roo Badge” To Reduce Kangaroo Related Road Collisions
Watch out for RooBadge as Cannes Lions' most debated campaign this year.
Twilio Launches Unified Profiles & Agent Copilot Features To Boost Productivity & Engagement
Agent Copilot sounds like James Bond's less interesting cousin.
Reebok & Honda Among New Clients For onetwo agency
OneTwo finally lives up to its name with this double billing.
Ogilvy Report: Throw Out The Social Strategy Rule Book, The Rules Of The Past No Longer Apply
B&T was puzzled that all 'influencers' aren't, effectively, 'virtual', but here we are.
WhiteGREY & AKQA Merge In Australia, Lee Simpson Departs
Fortunately, the combined agencies aren't opting for a trite portmanteau for the new name.
Splendour In The Grass 2024 Music Festival Cancelled!
Music fans all over the country reportedly relieved they can pack away their rain coats and gumboots for another year.
TV Ratings (26/03/2024): “Fairy Bread, F***ing Disgusting”: Gordon Ramsay Slams Aussie Food In Food Stars Launch
Ramsay not one for mincing his words, even when it comes to minced meat pies.
Paramount+ International Boss Doubles Down On Aussie Content, Says Ad-Tier will Grow Audiences And Revenue
Good news as Paramount will not be binning I’m A Celebrity for re-runs of Frasier.
Brent Smart: Telstra Pushing For 50-50 Brand-Performance Split But Warns Numbers ‘Won’t Look Great’ Initially
The old brand vs performance debate continues. But here, Brent is firmly sitting on the fence.
Crowded House, Tones And I & Dom Dolla Win Big At The Shure Rolling Stone Music Awards
B&T staffer reports back with humdinger of a hangover & feeling seriously uncool after mixing with music types.
Opinion: Dyslexia “A Hidden Gem” For Brands & Agencies
Dyslexics offer underappreciated benefits in the corporate field, according to this op-ed.
David Jones Taps Criteo To Power Online Retail Media Arm
Want to see ads for things you probably can't afford? David Jones has got you covered with new retail media play.
oOh!media Sets Up Team To Target Business Audiences Across Airports & Offices
oOh! wants brands to harass you every minute of your next business trip.
QMS Launches Australian First DOOH & TV Partnership With Samba TV
Samba TV, of course, is not a channel dedicated to dancing. Much to our dismany.
Slew Of New Hires At Amplify
Four new faces join the Amplify offices. Team say desk scarcity becoming "acute".
Adobe Announces Content Authenticity Initiative Expansions To Counter Deep Fakes
Try as they might to enlighten them, we suspect Trump supporters will continue to watch and believe Fox News.
The PR Group Appoints TechCrunch Senior Reporter Catherine Shu As Director Of Content & Media
Catherine Shu makes the bold leap from journalism to PR. Says inevitable pay bump was "unrelated".
HERO Nabs Ebony Santin From AMPR
Rumours Santin cleared out the stationery cupboard before departing are as yet unconfirmed.
Karena Noble Checks Out Of EVT Hotels & Resorts To Launch Comms Consultancy
Noble still managed to squeezed in a continental breakfast before departing.
Canva Acquires Design Platform Affinity To Bring Professional Design Tools To Every Organisation
Canva & Adobe face off continues. We're not picking sides but keenly aware that Canva's office is next door to ours.
“Lean On Our Team To Help You Find An Audience”: Why Understanding Audience Engagement Is Essential In Journalism
Engaging the audience is critical to journos, apparently. We'd thought self-loathing & alcoholism were key.
Adobe Summit: Major Gen AI Developments, Data Concessions & Partnerships
What happens in Vegas stays there. Unless it's the Adobe Summit and then you get to read about in B&T.