The Post Adds Facebook Send Buttons to Articles And Blogs
News is being increasingly shared through social media, so The Washington Post is making it that much easier for you to share your favorite Post stories with your friends. We are among the first news Web sites to now offer Facebook’s new Send button. With this one-button addition to Network News, the Post’s social platform, we’ve made it seamless for you to send content to a select group of Facebook friends, if you want to.
This new Send button takes sharing to a different level: a more private level. Washington Post readers can now send content directly to individuals or small groups of friends on Facebook from an article or blog page where they can also publicly recommend a story to all of their Facebook friends. And the decision to send or recommend is still entirely up to you.
As with all new features we add to the site, we want to answer any privacy concerns you may have up front. Please read the Q & A below and let us know if you have more questions by e-mailing us at [email protected].
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
1. What is a social plugin?
Answer: A social plugin is an application that Web publishers use to allow their users to see what their “friends” have “liked,” commented on or shared on social networking sites across the Web.
2. How is the Send button different from Facebook’s other social plugins?
Answer: It’s not. The Send button is a new addition to the Facebook social plugin suite of products. Like all the other social plugins Facebook provides (Recommend and Like buttons, Activity Feeds, etc.) the Send button can be added to a site by pasting in codes like the ones listed on Facebook’s developer page: http://developers.facebook.com/docs/plugins/.
3. With the addition of the Send button, does The Washington Post now have access to my Facebook e-mail address book?
Answer: NO. A social plugin is basically a Facebook window on our site. We are allowing you to use Facebook tools to send and share our stories back to Facebook. All your information is controlled and contained by Facebook.
4. Does The Washington Post get access to my Facebook information?
Answer: NO. Even though your profile image and the ability to type ahead email addresses from your Facebook account is happening on our article and blog pages, the code Facebook provides means that information is residing only on Facebook.
5. What kind of data does the Post get around the Send button?
Answer: Because the button is brand new we don’t have any data yet. Facebook says it will eventually provide real-time analytics around very general button usage: how many times a story is sent, the times stories are frequently sent, etc. We don’t receive any data on individual’s sending patterns.
6. How do I block all social plugins, including Network News, on the Post?
Answer: If you’re a Facebook user you can block social plugins by going to your privacy settings (http://www.facebook.com/settings/?tab=privacy) and selecting the “Apps and Websites” link in the bottom left-hand corner.
This section controls what information is shared with Web sites and apps, including search engines (apps and websites you and your friends use already have access to your name, profile picture, gender, networks, friend list, user ID, username, and any other information you share with everyone). You can view your apps, remove any you don't want to use, or turn off platform completely. Turning off platform means you won't be able to use any platform apps or websites and we won't share your information with them.
7. How am I logged into Facebook plugins for Network News if I didn’t actively sign in?
Answer: If you haven’t blocked social plugins in your privacy settings, there are two ways you can be logged into social plugins on The Post. First if you have Facebook open in another browser then you don’t have to log in to a site that has Facebook plugins because a cookie will log you in to Facebook plugins (remember plugins are Facebook windows displayed on participating sites. The host site has no access to your info). The second way you can be logged into social plugins is if you’ve logged into that site via Facebook connect.
8. Can I ignore this Send button entirely and continue to use your e-mail button to send stories as I did before to anybody I want?
9. How do I block Network News on the Post?
Answer: You can disable the activity feeds on the homepage and article pages by clicking the “X” in the top right hand corner of the Network News modules. You also have to block social plugins in your privacy settings as described in the answer to question 7 above.
If you have more questions or comments about the new Send button please e-mail [email protected].
Katharine Zaleski / Executive Producer and Head of Digital News Products
