#journalism agenda: “Some of the most (and least) effective phrases for a killer headline for social…

Jostling for readers for your listicle on Facebook? Aim for the number “10” in your headline.

Trying to promote a story on Twitter? Emotion-based appeals popular on Facebook don’t translate to Twitter.

Findings from a BuzzSumotrigram analysis of 100 million headlines published between March and May of this year confirms a lot about the clickbait-y, competitive publishing environment of social media.

The analysis reveals nothing particularly surprising, for instance, about the headline phrases that generated the most likes, shares, and comments: “Will make you” was by far the most successful phrase, and emotion-based appeals like “melt your heart” and “make you cry” also do well. (Also, we reported that 10 was the most common number for a BuzzFeed list way back in 2013.)

Publishers beware though: Facebook says its algorithm is cracking down again on clickbait in its News Feed.


Facebook today teamed with Microsoft, Twitter, and YouTube to announce the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism. The unlikely alliance aims to crack down on terrorism and violent extremists by making “[their] hosted consumer services hostile to terrorists and violent extremists.”
Speakers from BuzzFeed, BBC, FT and Facebook discussed findings from the latest Digital News Report from the Reuters Institute in London today

The New York Times is now charging for its cooking site

The New York Times on Wednesday relaunched its NYT Cooking recipe site and app as a paid product, part of its continued push toward building a sustainable subscriber-based business.

A subscription to the app will cost $5 every four weeks. Users who don’t pay will still have access to a limited amount of Cooking content. At launch, the Times is offering 28-day free trials, and “for a limited time,” Times digital and print subscribers will continue to get complimentary access.

Google on Tuesday launched a redesigned desktop version of Google News that introduces a more streamlined design, highlights fact checking, and offers users additional personalization.

Salvador Adame. Image widely circulated on Twitter.

Three CNN journalists have resigned after the network retracted a thinly sourced scoop.

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