Finding Sources on Social Media

By Dianne Moore

As a reporter, you have to do more than hit the streets to find sources for your story.

As a reporter, you have to do more than hit the streets to find sources for your story. You have to participate in social media websites as well. It may seem creepy or contrary to your training in journalism, but finding sources on social media websites is a great way to enhance and enlarge your reach into the community. While younger journalists grow up using social media websites, the more seasoned reporters usually have a crash course introduction into the medium.

If you’re fairly new to social media and want a quick how-to then this guide was created just for you

• Get in the Game. One way to find sources is to hang out in the neighborhood. In this case, the neighborhood is the internet and social media sites are the homes. So, pack your bags because you’re getting ready to move in. First, set up a Google, Twitter and Facebook account. It doesn’t take long and once done, you’re officially part of the online community. Second, join a conversation or two. After all, you can’t find sources if you’re not part of the discussion.

• Make a Play. Take a look at how Adam Smith of the Tampa Bay Times used his Twitter account to get feedback from followers. Smith leads his tweet with a question that will allow his followers, potential sources, to become part of a conversation with him.

In her article for the Poynter Institute, Mallary Jean Tenore suggests having conversations about your work    and the work of others will strengthen your voice. After all, you’re a reporter and talking to people is what you do. Just take a look Jay Rosen’s, NYU journalism professor, Twitter conversation starter.

If you’re on Facebook, best practice suggests that you don’t “Like” the sources you find. It may cause issues with your credibility and objectivity. However, you can post questions and link your stories to your Facebook wall to generate conversations that will lead to new sources and possible story ideas.

Check out Sree Sreenivasan’s video about “friending” sources on Facebook.

• Update the Playbook. You may not have time to monitor your Twitter or Facebook account. You’re a reporter so you do have to write, quite a bit. So remember when I told you to set up a Google account earlier? Well, this is where it comes in handy. If you’re looking to expand your sources or looking to see who’s interested in a story you’re researching, set up a Google alert. The best thing about Google Alerts is that you can set up more than one. You can set up the alert to deliver everything to your Google email account or depending on your needs the alert can be set up to deliver just the news or videos. Check out the video below on how to set up your Google Alerts.

• Winning the Game. Finding sources through social media isn’t difficult; it just takes time and effort. As a journalist, your world is much bigger now than it was in past decades. Your community is local and global.