KR: Should Media Engage Online?

There are, within my industry, at least two schools of thought regarding journalists and social media. Some of my colleagues really want to maintain a personal place on a site such as Facebook — a no-sources-allowed page where they can communicate freely with friends and co-workers. I can understand that point of view. But as readers of this blog already know, I’ve taken the opposite approach. I’ve decided to take a much more open approach, opening my social media sites pretty much to all comers. This explains why my Facebook friends list is populated by — among others — my mother, my teen-age sons, one of my college roommates, dozens of past and current newsroom colleagues and at least a dozen elected officials/ Kevin Richert , Idaho Statesman. More here .

• Monday morning coffee ; and: Second cup of joe /Treasured Valley
• Idaho, Montana downwinders have a case /Idaho Statesman
• Too many clueless drivers endanger too many cyclists /Twin Falls Times-News
• Olympia’s sunshine is Boise’s darkness /Lewiston Tribune
• Something has to give in Parma closure issue /Moscow-Pullman Daily News

Question: Should journalists seek to interact with readers via the social media?