Arketi Group has released findings of a study on how journalists use the Internet. The web provides a great many resources to both online and offline journalists. Here are some ways that most journalists use the web:

- 95% say search
- 92% say reading news
- 92% say emailing
- 89% say finding story ideas
- 87% say finding news sources
- 75% say reading blogs
- 64% say watching webinars
- 61%say watching YouTube
- 59% say social networks

Social Media and Sources

88% of journalists say they spend at least 20 hours a week on the Internet. 85% have a LinkedIn account, 55% have a Facebook account, and 24% tweet.

92% say they get story ideas from news releases, 85% say they turn to industry sources. 85% also say they turn to PR contacts. Surprisingly, only 12% turn to Twitter for sources or story ideas. I find this particularly interesting, because it seems like Twitter is mentioned very frequently by reporters in all forms of media.

Another interesting stat according to Arketi Group is that over half of journalists surveyed consider citizen journalism to be a positive thing.

What Businesses Should Pay Attention To

The findings should be considered by companies looking to gain exposure from media coverage. Being visible and available for comment can be key to a story about your business getting picked up by a publication.

"While high-profile social media tools like blogs, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter are of interest to journalists, our findings indicate BtoB marketers should not discount tried-and-true Internet technology," said Mike Neumeier, principal of Arketi. "Search engine optimization and building media-friendly websites site remain vital to reaching the business media."

In fact, Arketi says that corporate websites make a difference in how journalists view an organization. 80% of those surveyed say that companies without a site are less credible. This is not such a surprise. I would go a little further and suggest that poorly designed and maintained sites can have the same effect.

If you read WebProNews, you more than likely have a site. Still, there are a great many businesses out there that do not, and are missing out on tons of opportunities. Even with regards to just media coverage, there are a lot more people to potentially write about your business online than there are offline, and it’s a lot easier to network with them.

Of course, if you’re looking for media coverage, it helps if your company does something newsworthy. Do something worth talking about and somebody will talk about it.