A social media newsroom is under construction in Room 106 in Boston University’s College of Communication. It’s expected to be ready for testing in early March, COM Dean Thomas Fiedler said.
The new room, funded by Jordan Zimmerman, founder and CEO of Zimmerman Advertising, will be named after the Zimmerman family.
Zimmerman wanted COM to build a room for students that would reflect how advertising agencies, public relations agencies and newsrooms curate information, Fiedler said.
Zimmerman Advertising was one of the first agencies in the field to use new data and media technologies to “build ad campaigns grounded in the science that they were able to utilize to gather [information about] clients,” Fiedler said.
The room will include screens that display world maps, track social media activity and show wire news services.
Zimmerman, who has a daughter enrolled in COM, was willing to fund the school’s efforts to access cutting-edge technology for students, and Fiedler said his support will help COM’s efforts in staying ahead of the curve in an ever-changing field.
“This is part of the ongoing evolution of communication,” Fiedler said. “It is imperative that we do everything we possibly can to be on the forefront of the technologies that people in the professions [related to COM] are using.”
He said COM is committed to making sure current students will be familiar with the technology they will likely be using post-graduation. This will reduce the chance of COM students encountering unfamiliar technologies when they enter the workforce.
There are fewer than half a dozen schools in the country who have a social media lab Fiedler said.
He said the room will be useful to a variety of COM majors in serving their respective missions, including those in public relations, advertising and journalism.
“Advertisers can use it to help their clients,” Fiedler said. “A PR campaign can be done perhaps if you have a crisis on your hand. Journalists can use it in an early warning system for news breaking.”
COM faculty members are already being trained to work with the new software that will be available in the room. Both faculty and students will be able to use the room for class and research projects.
“I’m excited to be able to use this room,” COM professor Judith Austin said. “There’s a lot that’s going on during the classes I teach, so to have a room like this to actually allow students in a class to do a presentation or utilize this material in a presentation could be really awesome.”
Austin said the room’s development reflects COM’s efforts to keep students aware of evolving technology.
“[We want] to very much stay abreast of and current with what’s going on in the world,” she said.
Austin said she foresees the social media newsroom aiding her teaching.
“There’s a lot of that going on during the classes I teach,” she said. “To have a room like this to actually allow students in a class to do a presentation or utilize this material in a presentation could be really awesome.”
Several COM students said the room will be useful since their intended fields are increasingly social media driven.
Joseph Hemphill, a second-year COM graduate student, said he considers the room a signal for what lies ahead in COM.
“This is where the future is going, and it’s a powerful tool,” Hemphill said. “It’s only going to help the school increase its outreach and spread its message so I think it’s a great idea.”
Jimin Roh, a junior in COM, said the room indicates a shift in COM’s curriculum.
“I think COM is already [shifting],” he said. “Actually making a room focused on social media — I think that’s a huge step for the school itself.”
Huiyan Cheng, a first-year graduate student in COM, said she likes how the school is incorporating social media more in the classroom.
“Everybody is on social media now,” Cheng said. “That’s the trend; it’s the way things are going.”
