As reported by the Wall Street Journal today, Facebook is reallocating resources to focus on the Creator economy and away from Facebook News and a newsletter platform it created ala Substack.
The Creator economy is us – if you’re a legal media producer. Blogger, video producer or podcastor.
Facebook invested millions, if not billions, in News, which I accessed via a tab on the bottom of my Facebook iPhone app.
Although the Journal reports that News included news from major news publishers, I found mostly news written on blog like publications by Facebook reporters to be fair at best. Most of it was far inferior to what I read on blogs – legal blogs included.
Campbell Brown, a former journalist who leads Facebook’s global media partnerships, told the Journal that Facebook is shifting engineering and product support away from News as “those teams heighten their focus on building a more robust Creator economy.”
Lawyers and law firms shouldn’t dismiss this news as being “only Facebook,” a network not used by professionals and business people.
One, professionals and business people network as much on Facebook as anywhere. Your media, personal or professional, is your currency for networking on Facebook.
A Meta spokeswoman told the Journal that Facebook “remains committed to the success of creators, and is doing even more to ensure they can find audiences on Facebook and grow engaged communities there.”
Audiences and engaged communities for your media.
Two, Facebook is a Goliath when it comes to media in this country. Facebook not only moves the news, it monitors and sets trends – here, a growing trend like the Creator economy.
Facebook’s focus on the Creator economy is great news for you.
A further signal that you and your media – blogs, video and podcasts – are the future. You’ve equaled, if not surpassed, traditional legal and business media.
Traditional media is not covering the niches you are. Traditional media is shrinking with newspapers folding. Traditional media is not moving socially across social networks in the way your media is.
Welcome to your growing Creator economy.