Buzzfeed | Social Chatter & Other Observations

Doing what I do for a living and working towards a Masters Degree in Social Media, I am often asked “What’s your favorite app or social platform?” The typical ones roll off the tongue but in the top three or four, you’ll find Storehouse. I’m always a little stunned when people say, “Store-what?”

Storehouse is the most awesome social app you apparently aren’t using.

When you combine talent that comes from Facebook, Apple and The Daily, you are bound to come up with something not only beautiful but user-friendly. Storehouse doesn’t disappoint. It’s the brain child of co- founders Mark Kawano and Tim Donnelly. They began their start-up in 2013 but didn’t launch the app (only on iOS devices) until January 2014.

I’m not a coder, a designer or a professional photographer so I can’t dive deep into any technical flaws or brilliance but I am a storyteller. With Snapchat, Instagram, Buzzfeed and the increasing presence of video and photos on Facebook, we are moving towards more visual communication at the speed of light. As a journalist, this pulls me to Storehouse.

Co-founder Mark Kawano told TechCrunch “We’re not targeting just photographers; we want to teach everyone that they can tell stories…We want Storehouse to be the really easy way to share and create stories. From photographers…to everyone, this is the shift in visual communication.”

As with all social platforms these days, Storehouse starts with a profile.

While I am a lover of Storehouse, I admit I tend to be more voyeur than participator and creator. It’s such a beautiful experience that I sometimes wonder if what I have to share is worthy. My contributions to date number three: Kelly’s Storehouse: @kfg5Horizons

The process really is quite simple. You import photos and videos. You position them. You choose a title. That’s where the must-dos end. You can choose to add text, captions or just let the pictures speak for themselves. Layouts vary but the best part is that you have options. You can clearly see Kawano’s inside knowledge of Apple as you manipulate your stories. For the end user, the layout options and beauty of the app are flawless.

In Storehouse, you follow and can be followed but note that all you do is public. You don’t have to be following someone to see all their work and anyone can follow you. You can search for people or use the almighty hashtag. Yes, Storehouse wisely aggregates topics using hashtags. Unlike Instagram, Storehouse is built for sharing. You can republish.

There aren’t many Community Rules in Storehouse outside the obvious copyright ones which makes it a space ripe for creativity.

If you need a little hand-holding, Storehouse has created communities to address what it calls “your moods.” It’s a collection of interests you can follow to publish and republish stories from like-minded souls. Take a look:

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Storehouse is not without its critics and the fact that it is not available on Android devices will hamper the start up from maximum reach. That said, I would expect nothing less from the mind of a former Apple designer.

A couple other highlights worth noting. When you publish, you immediately receive an email to the account you set up your profile with. In it is a web-responsive link to your story ready to be shared to all.

The world of Storehouse isn’t just comprised of parenthood, travels and selfies (but you can find that too). It has a little bit of everything and for those who question whether journalism can move with the times, check out this offering from the landmark gay marriage ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court.

Others have taken to Storehouse to share their most intimate moments but in a way that can’t be captured on Facebook or Instagram or even Tumblr. One could argue that albums allow similar aggregation but they don’t allow the user to tell a story. This is where Storehouse breaks from the pack. Take a look at One Last Year with My Father. It’s visual communication at a profound level.

While Storehouse is web-responsive, I strongly encourage you to visit it on your phone or iPad. It was created for those devices and doesn’t disappoint. In fact, given the mass exodus to all-things mobile, it’s quite brilliant Kawano and Donnelly were so mobile focused. It makes sense given the world we live in. Have phone, have camera, will travel, will tell stories.

Author Note (August 2021): Storehouse shuttered in 2016. All employees migrated to Square. I removed all links. It’s a shame. It was beauty while it lasted.

Assignment Snapshot: Use social media to source a news article or piece of social media news content that engages you. Why does it engage you? How has the story been told? Consider the written journalism and any multi-media content. Do you recognize story telling techniques as discussed in our lecture?

When in doubt…just turn to sex.

Much of my research and reading for my job is serious. It’s not the “if it bleeds it leads” mentality but sometimes it can be. It’s also politics and corruption and national disaster and train wrecks and police-shootings -and that was just this week. I follow many news organizations on my social platforms from the pinnacle New York Times to what some consider low-brow Buzzfeed, Upworthy and Vice. I do it to be on top of vast amounts of information for work but I also do it for fun. So that brings us to this week’s assignment:

13 reasons every woman should masturbate regularly

In my down time, I tend to gravitate to the lighter side of the info-spectrum. I like edge. I like different. I like things that teach me something I didn’t know-and let’s be real, I like sex! Who doesn’t? So when I was trolling Twitter I came across this little Huff Po nugget and stopped and stayed awhile.

Why Did It Engage Me

This is pretty simple. It’s a straightforward title on a (sadly) taboo topic with a black and white photo that could have come right out of my mother’s 1963 yearbook (minus the book titled: “Masturbate”). Clearly I was not alone based on the 139 favorites and the 109 retweets after only being on Twitter for an hour.

I also read… a lot.

It’s part of my job so when I am not on the clock, I like spoon-fed nuggets. In other words, don’t make me work for it. When I see this social post, I know at first glance, I am going to have a nice, tightly packaged list of 13 reasons I need a little more “me time.”

How It’s Told

Lists are easy. Lists are familiar. We make them to organize and order chaos. They find their way into everything from classrooms to newscasts. (Have you ever seen a morning show that gives you “the five things you need to know before you go out the door?”). In my Social Media & News class we read Jeff Hodson’s 12 Tips For Producing Strong News Stories. The story here captures several of the tips Jeff recommends: It’s interesting and has some color and good quotes (“…a little menage a moi”…C’mon!). It’s clearly structured and organized and in the end it ACTUALLY has expert information. You probably know masturbation feels good but did you know it’s because of dopamine and oxytocin? Did you know masturbation is an actual sleep aid? What about the fact that it’s good for your health?

Is this really news…journalism?

There is no real inverted pyramid here. Huffington Post isn’t fighting for justice (although an argument could be made for feminism!). This isn’t going to clinch a peabody, lead a newscast or change laws. In today’s world though, much of what I call “social news” is about an experience. It makes us feel. It makes us laugh. It makes us smarter. It makes us want to share. A constant conversation in my newsroom is the ever-changing face and the ever-moving lines that define news, journalism and what we do every day. That’s a conversation to keep on having. The one for this week though, is about how to engage. Huffington Post did the ol’ “when in doubt, sex sells.” It did. I clicked…and I now have 13 reasons to engage more often.

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