What New Media Covered Last Week

The PEJ New Media index reveals once again that new media is “much less single minded” in its coverage compared to what is covered in traditional media.

The No. 1 subject was still politics, in particular critiques of Obama’s early performance in office, though it was a much smaller subject than in the mainstream media.

But a good many bloggers and others were also focused on a policy change made and then withdrawn at Facebook, which demonstrated the power of social media.

As for the top stories covered in new media for the week of Feb. 16-20

1. Obama’s First Month – 16%
2. Financial Crisis – 10%
3. Facebook “Terms of Use” – 10%
4. Buffalo Beheading – 8%
5. Shopping for Eyeglasses – 7% (The NYTimes story was kept alive by fans of the retailer Zenni Optical)

Join Baratunde Thurston (left), The Onion’s Director of Digital and author of How to Be Black, for an entertaining look at creative social media campaigns in our Social Media Marketing Boot Camp starting February 16. Other speakers include Morin Oluwole (Facebook), Tim Devane (bitly), and SocialTimes' writer Devon Glenn.   Register now.