Diane Hoffman
Social Media & Community Engagement Specialist
RESUME
Professional
info
Social media has directly changed the way newspapers get news to readers. With the 24 hour TV news cycle, breaking news developing in real time on Twitter, and then shared all over Facebook, newspapers have had a lot to catch up on over the last few years.
I started my career in journalism in 1998 designing newspaper pages for a weekly newspaper. In the years since, I have redirected my skill of drawing readers into a story from using page design to using social media. Today I am the digital editor at The Mercury newspaper in Pottstown, Pa. In this position, I am responsible for maintaining The Mercury's website, pottsmerc.com, by posting stories written by reporters, the Associated Press, as well as articles written by our sister papers in the tri-county area. I also manage all of The Mercury's social media sites, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Tout. I also manage our community bloggers on our site, TownSquare. In addition to these responsibilities, I edit copy from our reporters, help plan special projects and occasionally write short stories that appear on our website. I also produce a web show called "Off the Presses.” I have been the keynote speaker for the TriCounty Area Chamber of Commerce Women of the Workforce Luncheon for a discussion with local small business owners about how to effectively use social media in their business.
Through the years, I have helped The Mercury become a successful online news outlet in addition to keeping its position as a successful print paper.
As a long distance triathlete, I am no stranger to hard work, determination and a healthy lifestyle.
Mercury Links
Pinterest Most Wanted
Career Highlights
The Mercury
2000 - present
The Mercury introduced a weekly web show that recaped the top news, features and sports stories from the week and previews upcoming stories at the beginning of 2014. Along with hosting the program, my responsibilities included script writing, video recording and post-production in Final Cut Pro. As the program progressed, we decided to create long-format videos that would compliment in-depth newspaper articles in lieu of a weekly show. The new format brings in a larger audience and helps the writer add a visual aspect to their stories. I now produce all content, including recording interviews and all program footage, edit and produce the entire program. Our most recent example, a piece on high school marching bands, can be seen here.
Heroin: A Fatal Addiction (March 2013)
Heroin use has become wide-spread throughout the suburbs and recently hit the Pottstown area hard. The Mercury did a series on its use and profiled the mothers of two young men who died from overdoes. Here is a link to the blog we put together as a supplement to the print series that includes videos I helped produce.
Hurricane Agnes 40th anniversary site (June 2012)
Since there was little in the way of archives or even good information available online on the damage caused by Hurricane Agnes in 1972, we decided to create this site which would live permanently online as a reference for the community. We chose to use Blogger so the project would not disappear or be lost if we changed website platforms, as has happened in the past.
Pinterest Most Wanted board (July 2012)
Sparked by an idea by our police reporter, this board was created as a way to better inform the community of criminals that were sought by police. Past most wanted boards we'd attempted didn't work out because of our website's limitations and archiving methods. Pinterest allows people to increase the picture size and more easily share photos, and also makes it easier for our staff to update the site. This project has gotten a lot of media attention.
Links to articles published about this endeavor can be found to the right.
Education
Cabrini College, Radnor, Pa.
Bachlor's Degree in English and Communication - 1998
I worked as a reporter at the college newspaper during my junior year and was elected editor-in-chief by my peers during my senior year. During that year, I was selected by the Anti-Defamation League for a study mission to Israel and Poland with college newspaper editors from the Philadelphia area and across the United States. During the trip we visited Holocaust sites in Poland and major cities in Israel, including Jerusalem, Gaza and Nazareth. I met Jewish and Arab leaders to discuss tensions in the area. I spent a day with the Israeli Army discussing their primary goals.
Activities and Societies: Editor-in-chief of the student newspaper, member of the National Honor Society for Collegiate Journalists, Certificate of appreciation from the chairman of the English and communications department for outstanding service.
Extra circular
Clubs and extra circular activities
Clubs: Full, current member of the Philadelphia Triathlon Club and the USA Triathlon Association
2015 Triathlon race schedule:
May 17, 2015: French Creek Triathlon - sprint distance
June 28, 2015: TriRock Philadelphia Triathlon - olympic distance
Beginner 5K Group Coach
Lead coach for a free community, Mercury-based beginner 5K group that trains runners and first-time runners for their first 5K in a pressure-free environoment with scheduled weekly group runs and Facebook group support.