Social media and mobile tech have brought a sea change in news consumption
In the last 20 years digital technology has brought a series of radical changes to the news business, but none have been as fundamental as the shift in reader consumption, and consequently publication methods, brought about by mobile device ownership and the growth of social networking.
Today, readers use multiple devices to access news, consume a high number of stories at speed and share via a variety of social platforms and messaging apps.
SWNS Media Group’s recent Media Consumption Report found more than a third of people now access news through social media, while more than nine out of 10 people consume news on multiple devices, with a further seven out of 10 claiming social networks made accessing news simpler.
The survey also found that more than half of social media users watch videos on Facebook with almost half saying they share videos across the network.
In this climate of rapid consumption, says Jack Peat, head of digital at SWNS, the pressure on digital editors to supply a continual flow of multimedia news is unprecedented. In such a content-hungry world, quick and easy access to high-quality news is vital.
The recently launched Digital Hub is a news wire service that supplies editors with copy, images, audio and video in ready-to-use formats. The service has been designed with busy editors in mind as they can also download a single zip file containing story assets bundled together; vital items to support news and feature pieces like infographics, high-resolution imagery, video and viral games.
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