Top online media stories of 2005

Here is CyberJournalist.net's annual list of the top online journalism stories of the year, based on the most popular entries on CyberJournalist.net in 2005.

The number one story might seem surprising, in a year in which Hurricane Katrina struck and the aftermath of the Asian tsunami was felt. But CyberJournalist.net's readers have spoken.

Top online media stories of 2005

1. New sites tap into Google Maps to create new ways of conveying information
2. Tsunami: Citizen videos and photos help tell story (Even though it occured at the end of 2004, major traffic in 2005 makes it one of year's top stories)
3. Hurricane Katrina: TV, newspapers rely on Web to distribute information
4. Online missing persons lists play major role in disasters like tsunami, Hurricane Katrina
5. Citizen media initiatives sprout up across the world and news sites begin soliciting citizen photos regularly. Here is CyberJournalist.net's growing list of Citizen Media Initiatives.
6. RSS goes mainstream
7. Podcasting takes off
8. Story broken online wins Pulitzer. And then Pulitzers change rules to include online entries in all categories.
9. Wikipedia loses trust
10. Fake tsunami photos fool media

Three other CyberJournalist.net classics - originally posted more than 4 years ago -- also continue to be among the site's top 10 posts:
• Online Storytelling Forms
• A dozen online writing tips
• A Blogger's Code of Ethics

Related:
• Top CyberJournalist.net stories of 2004
• Top CyberJournalist.net Stories of 2003
• Top CyberJournalist.net Stories of 2002
• Top CyberJournalist.net Stories of 2001

Dec 29, 2005 | E-MAIL | SAVE | PRINT | PERMALINK | DISCUSS(2)

Discussion

2 comments about 'Top online media stories of 2005'

Hi Jonathan -- it's misleading to equate the "top online media stories" with "most popular," especially with the ham-fisted approach to judging popularity you employ.

"Most popular" has several biases, and it would be more useful to your readers if you can also provide lists that filter out 1. Clicks from search engines and 2. Clicks from news groups, wikis and blogs. This will give a clearer picture of what your actual readers are interested in (it will filter out the clicks caused by the casual surfers).

Posted by freejoe76 at December 30, 2005 12:22 PM

Along similar lines, my first thought is that the later in the year the story, the fewer the clicks.

I was fortunate enough to get a product mention in the New York Times. The initial flurry was massive, but sales in the two following months equated to the initial flurry.

I'm sure the same principles apply to story popularity. Something to do with the long tail, I guess.

Posted by David Tebbutt at December 31, 2005 3:28 PM

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1 Weblogs reference 'Top online media stories of 2005'

Top Cyberjournalist Story: Google Maps
Trackback excerpt:   Steve Outing writing at Poynter.org notes that Jonathan Dube at Cyberjournalist.net cites the top online story (most popular from that blog) as the use of Googe Maps. It even topped the use of citizen images in the coverage of Katrina. Google reports 1,74 [Read More]

Posted on All Points Blog at December 29, 2005 8:52 PM

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