The Jerusalem Post has launched a
new range of free apps for Apple and Android
devices as part of an expanded digital focus.
Editor-in-Chief Steve Linde
hailed the plan as bringing the
Post to the forefront of the new digital
age.
“Integrating ourselves into digital media is an exciting journey for
The Jerusalem Post,” Linde said. “For the past 80 years, the
Post has reported
and recorded Israel’s most significant historic events in its printed
edition.
Thanks to digital media, we now can not only inform our readers
about the latest situation, but also engage them, receive feedback on our
reports and be more active in giving those who love our newspaper the stories
and information they need and want.”
The channels for news consumption
these days at the
Post are more varied than ever. While many consumers still
prefer to come straight to the source – the “classic” daily newspaper and its
website
www.jpost.com – millions of people use social media sites as news
aggregators, prefer apps over browsers, skim daily email bulletins for updates
or rely on search engines for the most relevant results.
That’s where the
easy-to-navigate apps for Apple and Android devices come in.
Readers can
now select the appropriate JPost channel wherever they are and enjoy the same
free online experience.
Like jpost.com, all JPost apps are updated 24/7
with breaking news from Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world. Original
current affairs analyses and feature pieces are also showcased on the new apps,
as well as Facebook, Twitter and email share buttons.
The
Post is also
developing its social media program to keep readers updated all over the
Web.
Its social media team – headed by Social Media Editor Ruth Eglash
and Social Media Manager Zohar Friedman – is intent on getting JPost updates and features out to readers on the Web.
According to Eglash, the
Post has a responsibility as the oldest and most widely
read English-language newspaper in Israel not only to keep up with the changing
times, but to lead the way forward.
“Digital media is the future of
journalism, and that includes utilizing social media platforms to engage the
audience like never before,” she says. “We are very excited to start using these
new platforms to interact with
The Jerusalem Post’s loyal readership and use
them to reach out to a new audience worldwide.”
The
Post’s
Twitter feed
provides minute-by-minute headline updates as well as live coverage from the
paper’s team of new-media-savvy reporters. On its Facebook page, a growing
community of users shares ideas, photos and stories, and debates the big issues
with users from all over the world.
JPostTV’s YouTube channel is now also
open for subscription, with email updates whenever a new video is uploaded,
including both breaking news clips from across the country and original feature
videos.
JPost.com, too, has been undergoing remodeling, with a recent
redesign streamlining the homepage to highlight more news and fewer ads in a
clear, easy-to-skim format.
New topical content areas covering the
ongoing violence in Syria, this week’s opening of the
London Olympic Games and
the
US Presidential race have also been introduced to provide the reader with
even more indepth coverage of the events shaping our time.