University News: Getting the scoop on the Web

Bob Finnerty

They say the best public relations begins at home. So let me introduce you to the new University News Web site. Start by bookmarking www.rit.edu/news.

We rebuilt the University News site so that it prominently showcases academic news (e.g. research, scholarship, science, technology), while featuring new media tools such as a blog, podcasts, videocasts and RSS (online subscription) feeds.

University News’ primary responsibility is to get RIT good press. With all that is happening on campus, we are fortunate to promote many diverse newsworthy stories to the media. RIT will have more than 8,000 news placements in 2006. But with the continual erosion of traditional media (including declines in both newspaper readership and TV news viewership), University News must not sit idle. We need to have a parallel strategy where we pitch stories to the media, while at the same time attract constituents and target audiences to our own news site.

More than 50 million Americans received news online daily, according to a recent study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project. Many broadband users now use the Internet as their primary source of news. The study also found that 73 percent of high-speed users search for news about science and technology online. And users are looking for non-traditional media Web sites to find such information. This is an opportunity for University News to be a leader in information exchange in new ways.

Even prior to launching our new site on Dec. 6, traffic on the University News site has been growing rapidly. Through November of this year, we had more than 1.5 million sessions on the site and 3.2 million page views. By comparison, for all of 2002 the site had 336,000 sessions and 802,000 page views. We also know that the majority of this traffic comes from outside RIT. We expect this trend to continue with the new site and we encourage you to promote our site to your friends and colleagues outside RIT.

We also need your help in promoting RIT in general. The Web site features an area showcasing RIT “In the News,” which is an archive of news placements featuring RIT experts in national and local media outlets. When we receive a prominent placement, make sure you capitalize by marketing the publicity to constituents in your area.

And if you haven’t done so already, get to know the writer who covers your area and tap into University News as a reliable resource. University News is fortunate to have a diverse team with years of experience in journalism, broadcasting and public relations. Many on the team held upper-level editor, producer and reporter positions within news organizations before joining RIT. We can connect you with reporters and provide media guidance ranging from how to handle a TV interview to writing an opinion piece for a local or national newspaper.

One final plug: Get your daily dose of RIT news today. Sign up for RSS feeds, subscribe to a podcast, bookmark www.rit.edu/news, and pass along our site to a friend.