I have trouble believing this article..... Well I'm sure it is true using the stats they used but I find it hard to believe... (e:strip), Buffalo Rising, and Skunk Post (never been but I assume local and still around) are 3 sites that quickly come to mind.... I know there are others like there is a blog that is only Buffalo sports and know a lot of the news station people have there own blog but not sure where and I know there is at least another 2 (don't have the names sorry) Buffalo Blog sites..... I think that to figure this out they went by facebook and myspace and then used other sites that maybe they heard about..... That being said I didn't read the article I just read the new piece about the article don't think they have a link to it though......
Updated: April 12, 2011, 7:01 AM
If Buffalo were a person, she would have 26 Facebook friends, 17 Twitter followers and three LinkedIn connections.
That’s according to Men’s Health, which gave the Queen City a D+—and the No. 72 position — in its ranking of the nation’s 100 largest cities based on social media savviness.
The magazine was trying to find America’s Most Socially Networked City.
Some of this area’s most devoted users of social media say Buffalo deserves a higher grade.
“There’s a lot of great people out there who are doing a lot of great things. To see that ranking really disappointed me,†said Jason Mollica, public-relations manager for Carr Marketing Communications, who has sent more than 18,000 Tweets as @JasMollica on Twitter.
Men’s Health said it based its ratings on data that included the number of Facebook users per capita and the percentage of households that visit blogs.
But Nicole Schuman was among those here who questioned the magazine’s ratings and said Buffalo has a large and active social-media community.
“I just feel like we’re right up there with everybody else,†said Schuman, the Web editor for Roswell Park Cancer Institute and president of Buffalo’s Social Media Club.
Men’s Health anointed Washington, D. C., as the Most Socially Networked City, with the nation’s capital joining Atlanta, Denver, Minneapolis and Seattle as A+ social-media cities.
El Paso, Texas, sat at the bottom of the list, with midsized cities from Texas and California receiving the six “F†grades.
The ranking appeared at least as scientific as any of the lists that assign superlatives — from “most livable†to “best sports fans†— to various cities throughout the year.
A researcher collected data on the level of usage of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace, chat rooms, blogs and other social networks.
No matter what Men’s Health found, Schuman and Mollica said Buffalo has a dedicated community on these sites.
If you don’t believe them, check out all of the Tweets that fly around in response to every momentum turn of a Sabres game. Use the hashtag #sabres.
“I think if Men’s Health had gone onto Twitter during a hockey game, they’d see something different,†said Schuman, who is no slouch herself with 24,000 Tweets as@Buffalogal .
A lot of local companies, politicians, nonprofit groups and sports teams have set up shop on these sites to reach potential customers and supporters.
Someone even sends out tweets as the neckwear of the Sabres coach,@LindyRuffsTie .
Buffalo’s Social Media Club is one of the largest in the country, Schuman said.
“We have to get a new space for our meetings, because we’re running out of room,†she said.
Local social-media users regularly get together offline, holding everything from tweet-ups to Foursquare Days, and area companies are hiring social-media experts.
Maybe there’s a perception problem, Mollica said, and this region can work harder to get known as a social-media hub.
“I think it’s sort of a clarion call for us in Buffalo,†he said. “How can we change it? How can we make ourselves better?â€
If nothing else, at least we beat Honolulu, at No. 73. We can send a tweet to brag.
swatson@buffnews.com
That is a good point..... I also don't know do they count just the city and where the city ends... One thing that goes back to your point is that many people have left Buffalo for Burbs and towns that we call Buffalo but they might not like West Seneca and Chektovegas areas...
While it does seem like there are a lots of off the grid social networking venues, you have to consider the huge number of really poor people that might not even have computers or an internet connection. Maybe they factored that in.