Social Media and the Local Television News Audience

Social media has transformed the relationship between the local TV news station and the viewer. Once a form of one-way communication, local TV news is now an interactive experience. Viewers now regularly use social media to communicate with the newsroom and share stories with their social networks. Positive interaction between the news outlet and the audience can result in engagement and other forms of social media sharing that boosts the station's visibility beyond its traditional viewing audience.;In order to implement a successful social media strategy, news directors need to know what the audience wants and what they do not want from the experience of interacting with their local station on social media.