The new WTOP (www.wtop.com) website is a lot more user-friendly with cleaner, easy-to-read text and a lot of pictures which is the way the web is headed these days. WTOP (103.5 FM) which is the number one radio station in the Washington, DC area and top-billing in the country says it is growing its web presence at WTOP.com to rival its broadcast success and provide additional news services to its audiences. WTOP General Manager Joel Oxley (pictured) is on the upcoming cover of Radio Ink magazine to be released on August 22nd. WTOP Radio has served the Washington region since 1926 and has been Washington?s all-news radio station since 1969. WTOP is the most widely listened-to radio station in the nation?s capital.
Over the past nine months, WTOP.com has doubled its staff and restructured the online department under the leadership of Director of Digital Media, John Meyer. ?We are in the process of transforming our operation into a digital news organization. Whether it is radio, web, mobile, text, photos, video, social, or whatever comes next, we are using all these tools to best further the story across as many platforms as we can,? said John Meyer.
?We are striving to provide our audience with interesting and actionable information so WTOP becomes part of their DNA, in order to accomplish this we must continuously reevaluate traditional roles and restructure how our news room operates,? said Digital News Director Mike Gartell.
WTOP has focused on growing its traffic coverage with two full-time staff members dedicated to tweeting about incidents, closures and delays while also writing a daily traffic blog on some of the wide-ranging issues affecting motorists in the DC area. Online visitors can also access a ?custom commute? tool that allows them to monitor traffic cameras along their chosen route so that conditions can be seen before hitting the roads. A mobile version of wtop.com was recently launched allowing users to access all the benefits of the website on any mobile device. Mobile has grown to one of the top 10 sections of the website in just the two weeks since the launch.
In addition to WTOP?s efforts with its own website, the station is also growing its presence in the social media world. WTOP?s Facebook page recently enjoyed a 500% growth in ?likes? and many WTOP reporters are sharing updates regularly on Twitter. Facebook and Twitter, along with text messages and e-mails, are utilized as alternative ways of communicating and distributing information and breaking news.
WTOP Radio has been widely recognized for its writing, reporting, and overall excellence as a news station, including multiple awards for ?Best Website? from organizations such as the Associated Press Broadcasters Association and the Edward R. Murrow Awards. For more information visit WTOP.com or check out WTOP on Facebook and Twitter.
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