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How (and why) The Economist makes videos for social media

In 2016 a Facebook executive made the bold claim that users’ news feeds would become “all video” within five years. The Economist was never going to fire its writers and switch to all-video journalism, but our social-video practice has changed in the past two years. This post is about how.
Some publishers did perform a “pivot to video”, even laying off traditional editorial staff so they could better devote their attention to moving pictures on Facebook. And there is clearly an appetite for information in visual form. Instagram, which primarily focuses on visual content, now has 1bn monthly users — up from 700m in April 2017. It is more than twice the size of Twitter and it seems to be catching up with Facebook (which, handily, also owns Instagram). This year it launched IGTV, a video portal within the app, placing an even greater emphasis on moving rather than still images.
But the path to “all video” is not a straight one. Since Facebook’s “all video” claim, Safari and Chrome have blocked autoplay videos with sound. And Facebook itself now prioritises posts underpinned by “meaningful” interactions from friends and family over those from publishers, which has prompted many publishers who performed a “pivot to video” to rethink.
It’s a good job we’re not quick to charge into doing something on social media just because others are. We don’t like to be so beholden to the platforms because they change so much. That’s partly why we ended up inventing and then ditching the term “vimage”. (You’re welcome.) Instead, The Economist’s “vimage” slideshows have evolved into a new social-video format, thanks in large part to a deepening collaboration between our social media team and those colleagues who make our documentaries, Economist Films.
Here are the key elements of our unique collaboration.
Content is repackaged
Each social video is based on an article that has already been written for The Economist. We choose one or two main points from the piece to focus on and convert it into a concise script, breaking down the article into bite-sized chunks of the most important information. We try to provide as much detail as possible without overloading the viewer. This is particularly important when viewers only have five seconds or less to understand each slide. And this being video, we don’t have to explain everything with just words.
Pick a hot topic
There are three main things that make something a good topic for a social video. Firstly, the visual aspect is imperative. If a story can’t also be told visually, it won’t be successful as a video. Second, it has to be arresting. “The world’s deadliest cops” explains how American police kill around 1,000 people every year. We repost this frequently and it always performs well. A story that relates to the news agenda is far more likely have a high view count. After a self-driving car killed a pedestrian in March, we published a social video on why self-driving cars crash. Third, it must be original. It can be a topic that most people don’t already know about, or it should add something new to an existing discussion.

Editors are directly involved
This is the most important part of the process. The editor or the writer of the original print piece checks the script to make sure it truthfully conveys what the article has set out to do. This means ensuring that the video is factually accurate and in line with The Economist’s voice and previous coverage.
All change
Even if the algorithms suddenly change again, as they surely will, we think these short, concentrated doses of social video will still provide a great way for people to discover The Economist’s journalism. And that is ultimately why we make these videos: not to chase advertising revenue, but to reach new people and introduce them to our way of looking at the world. In many cases, social video will be the first place that new readers encounter The Economist brand. But for us to build on that initial contact, and encourage people to explore more of our output, our social videos have to be more than just engaging — it is also vital that they encapsulate our unique journalistic voice.
Alice Hearing is a social media writer at The Economist.

