todd m. sweet

We have been studying media use during extraordinary circumstances — the kind that generate flashbulb memories — and saw an opportunity to study those dynamics in relation to the death of Osama bin Laden. Three weeks after his killing, we conducted a study of American Affluents (defined as those with annual household income of $100,000 or more), as well as a general population sample (less than $100,000 HHI), hoping to collect quantitative data and qualitative recollections of the event that were relatively uncontaminated by the cognitive biases that creep up over time.

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AdAge studied how people learned about the death of bin Laden, which illustrates how the media world is changing.

Affluency: Media Use in Extraordinary Times | Ad Age Stat - Advertising Age

The move is part of the Times’ efforts to more fully integrate its print and digital operations. It’s also an acknowledgment that social media needs to be — and is already — a shared responsibility. “Social media can’t belong to one person; it needs to be part of everyone’s job,” Preston said. “It has to be integrated into the existing editorial process and production process. I’m convinced that’s the only way we’re going to crack the engagement nut.” Preston expressed these sentiments in a memo to News Managing Editor Jill Abramson last August and made the case that the job of a social media evangelist was no longer needed. She said she believed that Times’ reporters and editors really understood the value of social media for reporting, delivering real-time news updates and engaging with users.

- Why The New York Times eliminated its social media editor position | Poynter.