Dive Brief:
- Student journalists at the University of Florida are using the controversial, anonymous social media platform Yik Yak as their latest publishing platform.
- The Chronicle of Higher Education reports the initiative came out of the university’s Innovation News Center and features 10 to 20 student-composed yaks each day about local and campus news, as well as national and international topics.
- While Yik Yak has gotten more attention for its enabling of cyberbullying and rumors, the University of Florida journalists liken the platform to a modern town square, where reporters should be reaching local audiences, according to the article.
Dive Insight:
Yik Yak launched in late 2013, quickly becoming one of the most popular social media apps in certain circles, including on college campuses. The app lets users post messages anonymously, which has proven fertile ground for hate speech of all kinds. However, because Yik Yak connects people in geographic spheres, showing users only what is posted within a 10-mile radius of them, it is a prime tool for hyperlocal reporting. And on college campuses especially, where students are already turning to the app for local gossip, getting curated news seems like a logical extension.