When I chat about media, all too often people gloss over the digital tier, opting to stay with traditional avenues of television, radio and print in magazines and newspapers.
But with the technology allowing us to consume more media on the go through tablets, smart phones and open wifi connections, more outlets need to pay attention to what messages are being sent through the non-traditional streams.
One outlet that has gotten pretty good at it is the Milwaukee Brewers. The baseball organization was one of the most-searched sports teams on Google in 2014. The search engine’s "Year in Search," formerly known as "Zeitgeist," released its annual list of most searched topics in 2014. The Milwaukee Brewers ranked third among teams in Major League Baseball and eighth among all teams from any sport in searches through Google within the United States.
The Brewers were the most searched team in sports during April 20-26. Milwaukee had won five of six games during the stretch and was quickly off to an 18-6 start, leading the National League Central. Users searched several terms related to the team that helped the Brewers become one of the most talked about teams on the web. Earlier this month, the team reported that "Brewers Schedule" and "Milwaukee Brewers Schedule" were the top two searches, followed by "Milwaukee Brewers Baseball," "Brewers Baseball" and "2014 Milwaukee Brewers." The terms that gained the most ground regarding the team in 2014 were "Hank Milwaukee Brewers," "2014 Milwaukee Brewers" and "Milwaukee Brewers Dog."
Leave it up to the team’s four-legged lucky charm to bring in some the clicks.
Milwaukee represented the marketing area where the largest majority of searches took place. According to the Google numbers, Wausau-Rhinelander, Green Bay-Appleton, Madison and La Crosse-Eau Claire rounded out the top five.
It is well known throughout the U.S. that fans in Wisconsin, no matter the sport, are extremely loyal to their teams. The numbers back this statement up. The Brewers have one of the most impressive and active audiences on social media platforms. According to the Brewers, the team’s Twitter, Facebook and Instagram platforms account for almost 1.5 million combined likes and follows.
LINCOLN SPECIAL: Fox News Channel will present the film "Killing Lincoln" from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m., on Tuesday, Dec. 30.
Before the film, Bill O’Reilly will host a special edition of "The O’Reilly Factor" at 7 p.m. to preview the film with special guests, including the co-author of the book Martin Dugard, Glenn Beck, Fox News contributors Juan Williams and Mary Katharine Ham, Fox Business Network’s Don Imus and "The O’Reilly Factor" correspondent Jesse Watters.
"This one-hour program will offer a behind-the-scenes account of the creative process that transformed a pivotal moment in American history into a New York Times best-seller and feature film," Fox News Channel reported.
"Killing Lincoln: The Shocking Assassination That Changed America Forever," by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard, chronicles the events surrounding the final days of U.S. president Abraham Lincoln and his assassin, John Wilkes Booth.
Narrated by Academy Award-winning actor Tom Hanks, "Killing Lincoln" features Billy Campbell as Lincoln and actor Jesse Johnson as John Wilkes Booth. The film documents the events leading up to April 14, 1865, and delves into the mind of Booth and what led him to assassinate the 16th president. From executive producers Ridley Scott and the late Tony Scott, "Killing Lincoln" was National Geographic Channel’s first original docudrama and drew a record 3.4 million viewers.
Joining the Fox News Channel in 1996, O’Reilly continues to be one of the most provocative and discussed television commentators today. With five best-selling books and a memoir, his program continues to be the highest-rated program in cable news for 168 consecutive months in total viewers. According to Nielsen Media Research, The O’Reilly Factor averages nearly 3 million viewers.
Media is bombarding us everywhere.
Instead of sheltering his brain from the onslaught, Steve embraces the news stories, entertainment, billboards, blogs, talk shows and everything in between.
The former writer, editor and producer in TV, radio, Web and newspapers, will be talking about what media does in our community and how it shapes who we are and what we do.