Facebook taking over newsrooms?

Facebook is fast becoming a news tool. Yeah, this one surprised me too. The once-known site for social networking is now becoming a news alert site for many newspaper across the country.

In this Poynter column found on http://poynter.org/column.asp?id=101&aid=134855, the writer looks at how news has evolved onto the modern forefront amongst today's youth.

Facebook is wonders among the youth movement -- which typically has low readership -- and newspapers are taking notice. The Chicago Tribune has an alert system set up so that members receive constant updates on news happenings.


News sites such as roanoke.com are even going as far as encouraging Facebook users to share the stories and multimedia they view in their original context.

The New York Times, which has more than 10,000 fans to its application, has more than 500 posts to its page and has thrived in the area of multimedia with its users sharing photos, videos and stories.

These applications, which have been bogging down many Facebook profiles since its inception about year ago, have created content for users to interact with the newspaper.

Users can test their knowledge about current events by playing the New York Times' News Quiz. They can test their brains against other users and rack up points. Who is on top of the leaderboard now? Add the application to find out.