New Futurist Says Journalists Should Be "Story Guides" on Social Media

Working as a journalist and want to build trust with audiences on social media platforms? Turn yourself into an identifiable story guide—that's the view of news futurist Dr. Marie Elisabeth Mueller.

In the next episode of the Making the Media podcast, Dr. Mueller says that this is crucial if news teams want to be credible on emerging platforms, especially those with a younger audience profile, such as Snapchat or TikTok.

"In this noisy environment, with the problems with fake [news] we face everywhere, it is very important that you show your face. What I tell people is that we don't talk about heroes any longer. It is not the hero's journey which is the best metric for our stories; it is guides."

Dr. Mueller tells host Craig Wilson of different storytelling techniques that can be used, ranging from recording audio on a mobile phone to be shared on a community radio station, to using 360 video or gaming engines or even using behind-the-scenes footage to build audiences.

Dr. Mueller also says that journalism is under threat but can be a force for good in a changing world.

"You can't ignore and say social media is just for gossip and for hate and we don't want it. You have to turn it into something positive. On social media, starting the conversation is very important. Because it is like in business we have this customer journey; we have a user journey in journalism as well. You have to have a holistic approach, like a strategy from the beginning."

You can hear more on the next episode of Making the Media on Monday, June 14.

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