ABC’s ‘Facecast’ Debuts on Facebook

By Mark Joyella 

Screen Shot 2014-12-01 at 6.31.13 PMHey, kids, are you digging the “Facecast” yet? Monday evening ABC News posted its first “Facecast: The One Thing” on Facebook, which you could easily have confused with an extended promo for “World News Tonight,” but which the network called a first-of-its-kind “newscast” for social media.

So what is it, exactly? In a news release earlier Monday, ABC described the “Facecast” as “a one-minute news update…(that) will give Facebook users a round-up of the day’s top stories and trending topics shot behind the scenes at ABC News headquarters in New York City.” Well, okay. I’m not sure how many people would define “behind-the-scenes” as David Muir in a jacket–but no tie–anchoring not at the “World News Tonight” desk but in front of it.

The minute-long newscast ran over–total run time was 1:21–and made only a few fleeting references to social media. The “Facecast” led with the same story as “World News Tonight” (the St. Louis Rams and their “hands up” protest), and wrapped with a subtle suggestion to meet back soon for the network newscast on TV.

But the Facebook newscast did get about 60,000 views, 500 “likes” and over 100 comments in the first two hours after it was posted. The video didn’t quite “go viral”, with fewer than fifty shares. That’s a minor impact compared to a recent–and far more unique effort–an ABC “town hall” hosted on Facebook, that reached an estimated 10 million people.

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Have a look below and let us know what you think of the “Facecast.”

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