The concept of getting one’s news on Facebook sounds like a joke. It’s not, though, and following a partnership between them, both ABC News and the social networking site are hoping the idea will take off.
Videos, polls, and ABC headlines are all bundled (among other items) into an application called US Politics. While it doesn’t exactly pander to young people, the app’s layout is fairly “infographic” in style, and should elicit better responses than a bunch of text-only coverage.
An article from ABC News itself also demonstrated that it’s serious about reaching different demographics; according to the division, “Discussions and reactions by Facebook members will play into how ABC News approaches its coverage of campaign events.”
At this point, a person still might interpret the arrangement as a case of old media trying to adapt to the times. It’s important for Facebook, too, however – Brian Stelter reports that this is the company’s first deal with any news organization, and the development should help the site be taken more seriously.
Keep an eye out for more deals along these lines, as well – there appears to be nothing exclusive about Facebook’s relationship with ABC News.
