Wall Street Journal Finds Interest in Pinterest

Alana Zak  published a post today in Media Bistro‘s blog, 10,000 WORDS.  She explains to readers how and why the Wall Street Journal has decided to embrace the social website Pinterest.  According to Zak, in her interview with Brian Aguilar, a social media editor for WSJ, the publication sees Pinterest as a new platform to reach a larger audience.

Aguilar states in the article, ““There are so many memorable soundbites out there, this gives you the opportunity to really highlight them and pique people’s interest in a story.”

Basically, the WSJ has created a Quotes board on Pinterest.   Various quotes taken from stories published by the newspaper and photo-shopped to appear as a pull-out quote in the middle of a real article.  Zak reports that WSJ is not worried about copyright infringements because they only publish what they already own.

When I first saw the title to this article, I was a little confused.  As a Pinterest user, at first I couldn’t understand why the WSJ would have any use for an online scrap-booking website.  Then I discovered after reading the article, the clever insight that exists at the Wall Street Journal.  Those folks are very much in tune with the digital wave.

Interestingly, a user commented on a quote by an intellectual property lawyer who stated that people should not post things on Pinterest if they don’t own the copyright.  The users response?  “Maybe he should never give advice about a platform he’s doesn’t understand.”

This story is a great example of how media organizations are adapting during the Internet evolution.  Survival of the fittest.  I wouldn’t be surprised if pretty soon we saw authors and even journalists using Pinterest to show clips or excerpts of their own work and include it on a résumé.  I’ve already seen photography collections posted, some of which I’ve been a part of myself.

There are many people who are left in the dark as to what Pinterest is all about, and there are people who give it a go and decide to abandon the internet site, because they “just don’t get it.”

I say to you:  The Wall Street Journal gets it and they’ve been around since 1889.  This may be the newest explosion in social media strategy.