Snapchat blew everybody’s minds when it was first released in 2011. The immediacy of seeing short, funny clips made it hilarious, and it also made it more private because you can set how long you want each picture to show for. As with every new social app, it came with problems. People were screenshotting and misusing the app for some not-so-decent reasons, but now it’s changed again.
Snapchat brings you the news, first
Because so many things happen all over the world on a daily basis, news wires and agencies scramble to get the first scoop, but there is nothing more immediate than people already at the scene. More and more people’s first reaction in a breaking news event is to grab their phones and capture it on film. Snapchat provided a new way of filming it and publishing it to the world immediately. They’ve utilised the fact that Citizen Journalism is a thing and have made Live Stories interactive.
Live Stories was introduced last year. It shows an event, the most recent one being “Pray for Paris” for 24 hours, and in that story you can see relevant snaps from all over the world, or potentially at that one particular event, like a festival for example. They have now introduced an “explore” button on the Live Stories, meaning with one simple swipe you can read more stories and news about that topic.
The feature, called Story Explorer is only being rolled out in New York City and Los Angeles to begin with, but it will be available in more cities in the near future. It allows users to see breaking news from more perspectives than just the one aired on live news channels. It’s a new way of seeing news and sometimes, being a part of it too.
You too can be the first!
RS Digital can ensure your site gets to the top of rankings in search engines, so if you’re a news publisher, we can get your pieces to the top! For more information on the services we offer, visit our main site today!
Natalie Simm
RS Digital
Copywriter
