TODAY Facebook

Team members: Jen Brown - Site Director, Sarika Dani - Managing Editor, Steve Veres - Editor

About this entry

TODAY debuted a "Window to the World" 60 years ago – one of the first times a broadcast let viewers peer into the inner workings of a TV show. About 40 years later, TODAY was first to feature a plaza where visitors could share their biggest news and interact with our anchors.

TODAY's Facebook page continues in this storied tradition. On our virtual plaza, fans from across the world can weigh in on the day's top stories, meet our personalities, and connect with and inform the show. TODAY’s nine niche brand pages, focused on topics from Food to Parenting, Money and Entertainment, are each cultivating their own communities.

The case for why this entry should win a Shorty

Here’s how TODAY gets results:

TODAY Facebook has high-profile friends:
Ann Curry launched Facebook Timeline and spent the day guest-editing the TODAY page. http://on.today.com/wRefUk and http://on.today.com/y1Q8eq

TODAY Facebook puts viewers in touch with TODAY experts:
TODAY nutritionist Joy Bauer interacted with users during live chats to answer viewers' weight-loss questions. http://on.today.com/xM1Ybz and http://on.today.com/rsmruQ

TODAY Facebook connects users to the show and beyond:
A post on the TODAY Moms' Facebook page about the Duggars, a family with 19 kids, generated a massive response that helped inform a TODAY broadcast segment. http://on.today.com/yiwxw6

TODAY Facebook gets users in the game:
TODAY’s Home Chef Challenge, launched in July, allows users to submit recipes, get votes and win a spot in TODAY's celebrity chef recipe database. Some winners later made it into a show segment. http://on.today.com/ntmALx

TODAY Facebook loves your babies as much as you do:
Kathie Lee and Hoda’s Cutest Babies Contest – hosted on their Facebook tab – allowed viewers to submit photos of their adorable babies. Every mother’s dream came true: The fourth-hour hosts cooed over these pictures on air for two weeks, and the five cutest babies as voted by fans won a trip to New York City. Clip starts at 9:50: http://on.today.com/yG0uyE

TODAY Facebook pulls back the curtain:
TODAY highlighted the humans behind the cameras, letting users get to know the characters who make the morning magic in Studio 1A. http://on.today.com/xfYjNf

TODAY's main page alone increased in fans more than 157 percent in 2011. Most section pages were built from scratch.

Numbers don't even tell the whole story: Our hyper-engaged community is building our brand, every single day.

Links to TODAY’s Facebook pages:
TODAY: http://www.facebook.com/today
KLG and Hoda: http://www.facebook.com/klgandhoda
TODAY Moms: http://www.facebook.com/todaymoms
TODAY Food: http://www.facebook.com/todayfood
TODAY Health: http://www.facebook.com/todayhealth
TODAY Money: http://www.facebook.com/todayMoney
TODAY Entertainment: http://www.facebook.com/todayEntertainment
The Clicker: http://www.facebook.com/TODAYClicker
Scoop: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Scoop/164862400192064
Hip2Save: http://www.facebook.com/Hip2Save