Facebook’s early goal was to identify trending news and now wants to invest in local news over the next three years. It will focus on creating new tools and training to support the activities of local news organisations.
Last year, Facebook surveyed people to understand better what kind of stories they like to see in the news. The result was a clear answer; users want more local news and editors are looking for more support from Facebook. This is the motive of Facebook’s decision to invest in new tools for local news.
Facebook divides support into two key areas:
- Helping local journalists and editors with their journalistic needs
- Helping local news organisations with their business models
Facebook believes its investment will contribute to higher public engagement related to reading local news.
Facebook funds will be distributed among a variety of new projects, including a journalist education program. The reality is that the survival of community news in small towns depends on new models of community knowledge and engagement.
The funding from Facebook is the most significant investment ever made in the news industry. It builds on the “Facebook Journalist Project” that has been running for two years and has its own Facebook page.
More information on Facebook’s investment in local news can be found in the following link.
