World news agencies launch Facebook page on climate debate
Press Association and ten other international news agencies have launched a joint Facebook page to interact with news consumers across the globe during the United Nations Climate Change Conference on December 7-18 in Copenhagen.
The Facebook fan page, called The Climate Pool, will bring the news agencies together in an unprecedented collaboration to spark a global conversation about climate issues. The purpose of the Facebook hub () will be to engage readers in direct communication with the world-class journalists covering the U.N. conference.
Besides the UK national news agency, other participating agencies are Agence France-Presse, ANP of the Netherlands, The Associated Press, APA of Austria, APcom of Italy, Canadian Press, dpa of Germany, Kyodo of Japan, Lusa of Portugal and RIA of Russia.
The climate page on Facebook will feature a blog format, providing a behind-the-scenes view of the event and linking out to important coverage of the talks from the agencies and the media outlets they serve. Twitter also will be used to attract followers for the blog and related coverage.
Chris McCormack, head of digital development at the Press Association, said: “Everyone is wondering whether there are new opportunities for news and information flow across social networks, and that's what we are exploring with this blog and fan page. It's about being where the conversation is and engaging with it, it's about exploring what we need to do to position our businesses for future years, and it's about discussing a global issue on a global scale.
“Social networks are where the digital conversation is, so that's where we need to be but we are also counting on the Facebook fan page to direct a highly engaged global audience to the best news stories and analysis among our UK media customers. We'll be linking out to Press Association stories across the web, and the best articles, analysis and comment that our fellow UK media companies produce.”
The agencies have come together for the Copenhagen project under the auspices of MINDS International, a global news agency network.
Wolfgang Nedomansky, managing director of MINDS said: “The climate summit in Copenhagen will affect the lives of billions of people, and it is likely to grip the attention of news consumers all over the world.
“The Climate Pool will provide a unique outlet for Internet users to discuss climate change with some of the world’s most experienced journalists covering the conference.”
The Climate Pool page will be produced in English and will incorporate blog posts and multimedia content from the participating agencies, along with links to coverage from around the world.
Find out more on Press Association's news wire service.
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