We’ve seen traditional media adopt social media in many ways – some wholeheartedly and some with just a proverbial toe in the water.  Either way, we take notice to all and measure results.  The most recent one we’re reviewing is NBC’s ‘The 20′ campaign.  Two  of NBS local television news stations (New York and Washington D.C.) are taking part in the networks test that incorporates news found on Twitter, with their organically found news content.  They plan to follow 20 local news influencers on Twitter and use content and stories tweeted by ‘The 20′.  We don’t, by any means, think that these two NBC stations are the first to incorporate social media content into their published news segments, but they are the first to make it into it’s own special segment with a solid group of local contributors.

In the end, the concept is a good one, as it gets the station the hyper-local content they all pine for, for free.  Using content from ‘The 20′, also builds a level of authenticity and realness to the news hour, as if done properly, viewers should walk away with a sense of true and unbiased content that means something to their neighbour and in turn, them.

The New York stations list of 20 include handles such as @NYCityMama, @moneyries and @thecajunboy.  How was this cast of characters selected you ask “Our editors select the 20 people worth following in your community right now. We identify them based on social media metrics and the local news trending at this moment” – this was found on the NBC New York site. Based on the selection process, the sense is that ‘The 20′ could change, as trends change.  At any rate, NBC’s ‘The 20′ is a campaign worth watching.