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Level of influence: Traditional media on the web

Author Sandra Rodríguez is a public relations professional and former journalist.

“Primera Hora” is not the island’s best-selling newspaper, but it is the one with the greatest influence on the Internet. Meanwhile “TránsitoPR,” which is not a traditional news outlet but a service that provides traffic information to other media and the public, has more influence on the Internet than all news stations on the island and several major circulation newspapers.

In other words, traditional media outlets measure their audiences by ratings, readership surveys or studies, but the Internet is another world where they do not have the same level of power.

These are some of the findings of a study conducted by GTA Internet Marketing, Puerto Rico’s foremost firm specializing in programming, marketing studies and Internet data analysis. The company analyzed the 24 most influential news media outlets on the Internet over the past 90 days, so it includes data from the end of 2011 and the first weeks of 2012.

The study also revealed an interesting trend in that the public tends to believe more in cyber media — because they usually offer more specialized information — over traditional ones. Of the 24 media outlets on the list, nearly half are completely online.

The study was based on the number of followers on social networks, the number of people that they influence, and statistics compiled by the Klout online service. Founded in 2008, Klout monitors how much power or influence individuals or organizations have to convince others to think or act.

This in turn has an impact on public opinion previously formed exclusively by what traditional media — newspapers, radio and TV — reported. Now anyone can express opinions and engage in exchanges and conversations, connect with others and bring about changes in attitudes, preferences, and others.

The level of influence, among other things, is measured based on its credibility with others on the Internet, how active they are online, and on which topics are more credible, among other things. (For more information, go to http://klout.com/understand).

Thought-provoking findings
According to the study, “El Nuevo Día” placed second in terms of its level of influence in social media networks and the Internet with a Klout score of 68. “Primera Hora” got 69.

The most influential local TV channel on the Internet is Wapa-TV. Even though it had the same score as “Transitopr,” with 59, Wapa-TV placed third because it has more followers (37,939) and influences more people (6,000.)

In fifth place is “CaribNews” that can not be cataloged as a news medium in formal terms — its does not have reporters assigned to cover news and usually don’t do so — but instead is dedicated to republishing on Twitter the headlines or breaking news reported by other local and international media. We must consider that Twitter only has about 300,000 followers in Puerto Rico. CaribNews has a score of 58.

El Vocero”, which like the other newspapers has a broad circulation of about 200,000 daily copies, has the same score, at 58, and influences 5,000 people on the Internet. However, it should be noted that “El Vocero” launched its online presence after the other newspapers and other media and also has fewer people to perform online tasks, which is surprising since it has credibility and influence despite having a smaller staff.

Another interesting fact GTA Internet Marketing’s analysis revealed is that online sites that have only been operating for a year — like “Bonita Radio” or “Sin Comillas” — and often have only one or two reporters, have more credibility than entire traditional media newsrooms.

An example is the “News is my Business” website, run by Business Editor Michelle Kantrow, which places seventh on the list with a level of influence of 58, which is equal to “El Vocero” and “CaribNews” and is above Univisión’s score. This perhaps reflects the fact that it is a news site dedicated to business and economic issues that is usually more current than traditional media.

NotiCel,” an online daily with only one year of operations, has an influence of 57 and was eighth on the list above “Radio Isla” and “Mi Puerto Rico Verde,” “En Vivo PR” and the Univisión station (all of its programming.)

It was also interesting that almost all of the media with a score of between 30 and 40 are radio or television stations in the following descending order: WKAQ 580 Univisión Radio (48); Wapa Radio (46); the “Sin Comillas” website (46); the “Las Noticias Univisión” newscast (45); “Noticias PR” (43), Telenoticias de Telemundo (43); the “Bonita Radio” website (42); and Channel 6(41).

Media outlets with an influence level below 30 points were: “Wapa América,” “CyberNews,” “Prensa Comunitaria,” and “Pesquisa Boricua.”

Author Details
Author Details
Business reporter with 30 years of experience writing for weekly and daily newspapers, as well as trade publications in Puerto Rico. My list of former employers includes Caribbean Business, The San Juan Star, and the Puerto Rico Daily Sun, among others. My areas of expertise include telecommunications, technology, retail, agriculture, tourism, banking and most other segments of Puerto Rico’s economy.
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1 Comment

  1. Luis F. Rodriguez-Paz January 25, 2012

    Buen articulo. Buenas graficas!!!

    Reply

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