Media interactivity on Facebook, a pending link for digital newspapers in Ecuador, Colombia and Peru

Abstract

The media convergence has generated a new discourse between the media and its readers. At present, the channels for disseminating the information are linked to external platforms, such as social networks. Newspapers have gradually turned a certain type of content to their social media pages. Because of this, virtual dialogue channels are opened due to the immediacy of the flow of information. In the present investigation the Facebook accounts of three major newspapers of the Andean countries were studied. The objective was to measure their degree of interactivity with the readers. The type of information shared by the media, the number of daily updates, the multimedia material used, and the media response to user comments are part of the analyzed indicators. In general terms, the findings show that the consumption of news in social networks is given as a menu, depending mainly on the liking of netizens, and also the participation of the media in the debate generated by the publications shared by Facebook. However, the social network is an important channel when it comes to massaging information without being able to insert itself into a real communication process.