A little bit of lying can be good for metrics. But facts can fight back.
In today’s polarized climate, both facts and fiction reward publishers with measurable traffic and engagement. So who’s winning?
On one side, a BuzzFeed analysis found that hyper-partisan Facebook pages with millions of fans saw the most engagement with overtly partisan, misleading or opinion-driven posts. On another, NPR’s ambitious real-time fact checking of the first presidential debate produced its highest traffic day ever with more than 5 million visits.
In our next #MetricShift chat, we will discuss the metrics of fact and fiction and how we can measure an informed society. It will take place Friday, October 28, at 9 am PST/ 11 am Central/ noon EST.
The chat, which you can find by searching for #MetricShift on Twitter, will be moderated by Tim Cigelske, associate metrics section editor for MediaShift. Guests will include Claire Wardle, Research Director at the Tow Center for Digital Journalism at Columbia Graduate School of Journalism; Rebecca Harris, co-founder of Purple; Jane Elizabeth, Senior Manager of the Accountability Journalism Program at the American Press Institute; Tom Kertscher; PolitiFact reporter for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel; Alexios Mantzarlis, Director of The International Fact-Checking Network at Poynter; Jean Hodges, Senior Director of Content at GateHouse Media News & Interactive Division; and Jason Alcorn, MetricShift editor.
Icons by Arthur Shlain from the Noun Project.
A Storify recap is posted below: