How to Use Facebook as a Journalist to Find Sources

By Ta'Rikah-Marie Jones

Social media is taking over the multimedia world rapidly. News gets around quickly with the click of a button. As journalists we have to learn how to use it to our benefit. Before you can promote your story, you have to find sources to back your story up.  Searching for people on social media is easy because it allows you to search for people based on their location, school, job and interests. One click of a mouse leads you to information that you would have never stumbled upon. 

Facebook is one of the fastest growing social media websites. Content is posted daily. It not only allows journalists to share their stories with the world but it helps us to connect with people that we might not have ever reached out to.  Facebook also helps journalists to come up with questions for their interviews and learn about upcoming events that might be newsworthy. It can also help you to cover timely events. Tools such as People Search and Group Search help journalists to find relevant sources for their stories

If you are looking for a local event to cover, Facebook is a good place to look for an event. There are always things going on and the best place to advertise your event is Facebook. It helps to spread the word fast. Having a Facebook account would be very helpful if you are going to search for an event. After you have logged on to Facebook, you can start searching for local events either by typing something into the search bar or looking at a friend's page to see what is going on. When you find an event, you can see a list of who is going, who might be going and who is not going. This is a good way to message people for prospective interviews once you are at the event. It is also a good way to engage with your audience. You can also find the event's organizers on the event page based on who created the event. 

The event page usually has a description of the event, which is useful. You wouldn't want to cover an event that you don't know anything about. This section should also included when and where the event is taking place at. Once you confirm that you are going to the event, you will receive a notification if anything changes or if someone writes on the event's wall. This is a good way to stay up to date with what is going on. On the right side of your Facebook news feed, you will see a calender button that lets you know what events are taking place that day, week and month. Facebook is also a good way to keep in contact with the organizers of the event. You never know when that contact may come in handy again. 

If you are still unsure about how to use Facebook as a journalist, this slideshow may be helpful. It shows you how to set up a personal or public account. There is also a slide on how to set up a journalist page and some basic tips when it comes to finding sources. 

Social media not only makes our job easier but it makes it fun. You never know what you are going to come across. Journalists need to keep up with the current trends in the social media world to stay on top of their career. 

Sources:
The Journalist's Guide to Facebook