Nieman: Lessons of the Like Log
Nieman Journalism Lab has the results of a fascinating study into the news stories which gather the most ‘likes’ on Facebook. The study looked at 100,000 stories across 45 large news sites, including the New York Times, the Guardian, paidContent and Poynter.
It found that, of the top 40 most-liked stories of the past three months, many are related to “lifestyle, photo galleries, interactives, humor and odd news.”
Four of the articles in the top 40 are about “actual political news”; three are about celebrities.
The Like Log’s findings? In terms of overall popularity (total likes), The New York Times is “the leader of social engagement,” with some 2.3 million likes per month, 400 likes for a median story, and 13 articles in the top 40 most-liked overall. In terms of individual stories, the Wall Street Journal’s excerpt of Amy Chua’s (in)famous Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother — Journal headline: “Why Chinese Moms Are Superior” — comes out on top, with 340,000 likes.
Full report on Nieman Journalism Lab at this link
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