# What Is Newsjacking? Guide **Source:** https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-terms/newsjacking --- # What Is Newsjacking? Newsjacking is the practice of aligning your brand's content with breaking news or trending stories to gain visibility and relevance. When executed well, it positions your brand as timely and culturally aware while capitalizing on the increased attention around current events. ## What Newsjacking Is in Social Media Marketing Newsjacking, a term coined by marketing strategist David Meerman Scott, is the art of injecting your brand into a breaking news story or trending conversation. On social media, it means creating content that connects your brand message to what everyone is already talking about, riding the wave of existing attention rather than trying to generate it from scratch. The concept works because social media [algorithms](https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-terms/algorithm) amplify content related to trending topics. When a story is dominating conversation, posts connected to that topic receive dramatically more [impressions](https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-terms/impressions) and [reach](https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-terms/reach). [Hootsuite](https://www.hootsuite.com/research/social-trends) data shows that trend-aligned content can receive 5-10x the engagement of standard brand content. Newsjacking differs from simply commenting on news. Effective newsjacking connects the news story to your brand's expertise, product, or audience in a way that adds value rather than just jumping on a bandwagon. ## How to Execute Newsjacking Successfully **Monitor news and trends constantly.** Use [social listening](https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-terms/social-listening) tools, Google Trends, and Twitter/X trending topics to identify stories in their early stages. The most effective newsjacking happens within the first 2-4 hours of a story breaking, before the conversation becomes saturated. **Find the brand connection.** Ask: how does this news relate to my audience's interests or challenges? A cybersecurity company newsjacking a data breach story adds genuine expertise. A pet food brand doing the same feels tone-deaf. The connection must be natural and valuable. **Add unique perspective.** Don't just acknowledge the news. Provide analysis, data, or a practical takeaway that people can't get elsewhere. This positions your brand as a thought leader rather than a bandwagon jumper. Use your [AI content generator](https://posteverywhere.ai/ai-content-generator) to quickly draft multiple angles and select the strongest. **Move fast but carefully.** Speed is essential, but so is sensitivity. Use your [social media scheduler](https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-scheduler) to pause any pre-scheduled content that might clash with the news story, then publish your newsjacking content in real-time. ## Newsjacking Examples That Worked **Oreo's Super Bowl blackout (2013):** When the stadium lights went out during the Super Bowl, Oreo tweeted "You can still dunk in the dark" within minutes. This is considered the gold standard of newsjacking, generating massive earned media. **Aviation Gin and Peloton (2019):** Ryan Reynolds' Aviation Gin created a response ad within 48 hours of the viral Peloton holiday ad controversy, turning a competitor's PR crisis into a viral moment for his brand. **Industry-specific newsjacking:** When major platform algorithm changes hit, brands in the social media management space publish analysis and strategy guides within hours, positioning themselves as authoritative resources during the confusion. According to [Buffer](https://buffer.com/resources/real-time-marketing/), the best newsjacking combines speed, relevance, and a unique perspective. Missing any one of these elements turns newsjacking into noise. ## Newsjacking Risks and How to Avoid Them Newsjacking carries significant reputation risk when done poorly: - **Tragedy hijacking:** Never newsjack tragedies, natural disasters, or human suffering for brand visibility. This is the fastest way to generate a PR crisis. [Sprout Social](https://sproutsocial.com/insights/social-media-crisis-management/) recommends having an explicit list of topics that are off-limits for brand commentary. - **Political polarization:** Taking sides on divisive political issues through newsjacking can alienate significant portions of your audience unless your brand has an established stance on the topic. - **Appearing opportunistic:** If the connection between your brand and the news feels forced, audiences will call it out. The line between clever and cringe is thin. - **Timing failures:** Late newsjacking (more than 24-48 hours after a story breaks) often falls flat because the conversation has moved on. ## Building Newsjacking Into Your Content Strategy Effective newsjacking requires preparation, not just spontaneity: - **Pre-approve response guidelines:** Define what types of news your brand can and will respond to, who has authority to publish, and what review process applies - **Build template responses:** Create adaptable content templates for common news categories in your industry so you can customize and publish quickly - **Reserve calendar space:** Keep slots open in your [content calendar](https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-calendar) for reactive content. Brands that schedule every slot in advance can't respond to opportunities - **Monitor with tools:** Set up alerts for industry keywords, competitor names, and trending topics through social listening and [brand monitoring](https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-terms/brand-monitoring) tools Newsjacking works best as part of a broader [real-time marketing](https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-terms/real-time-marketing) approach. Use [cross-posting](https://posteverywhere.ai/cross-posting) to distribute newsjacking content across platforms simultaneously when time is critical, and track the impact with your [engagement rate calculator](https://posteverywhere.ai/tools/engagement-rate-calculator) to build a data set on which types of newsjacking perform best for your brand. ## Frequently Asked Questions How quickly do you need to react for newsjacking?▼Ideally within 2-4 hours of a story breaking for maximum impact. For fast-moving social media stories, even 24 hours can be too late. For industry news that has a longer discussion cycle, you may have 2-3 days. The key is being among the first brand voices, not the last. Is newsjacking ethical?▼Newsjacking is ethical when you add genuine value to the conversation through expertise or perspective. It becomes unethical when you exploit tragedies, mislead audiences, or force connections between your brand and sensitive topics purely for visibility. What types of news are best for newsjacking?▼Industry news and product announcements, cultural events and entertainment moments, positive trending stories, technology developments, and seasonal events work best. Avoid tragedies, political controversies, and any story involving human suffering. ## Related Terms [Real-Time Marketing Real-time marketing is the practice of creating and publishing marketing content in immediate response to live events, trending topics, or customer interactions. On social media, it requires fast decision-making, pre-approved workflows, and cultural awareness.](https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-terms/real-time-marketing)[Moment Marketing Moment marketing is a strategy of creating branded content around significant cultural, seasonal, or viral moments to maximize relevance and engagement. It blends planned and reactive approaches to connect brands with shared audience experiences.](https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-terms/moment-marketing)[Trending Trending refers to topics, hashtags, sounds, formats, or content themes that are experiencing a rapid surge in popularity and engagement across social media platforms — indicating what audiences are currently most interested in and discussing.](https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-terms/trending)[Viral Content Viral content is any social media post, video, or piece of media that spreads rapidly through shares, reposts, and algorithmic amplification, reaching an audience far beyond the creator's existing followers in a short period of time.](https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-terms/viral-content)[Social Listening Social listening is the process of monitoring social media platforms for mentions of your brand, competitors, industry keywords, and relevant conversations to gather insights that inform marketing strategy, product development, and customer service.](https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-terms/social-listening)[Meme Marketing Meme marketing is the use of popular internet memes, humor, and culturally relevant content formats to promote a brand, product, or message on social media. When done well, meme marketing generates high engagement and shareability at low production cost.](https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-terms/meme-marketing) ## Related Tools [Social Media Scheduler](https://posteverywhere.ai/social-media-scheduler)[AI Content Generator](https://posteverywhere.ai/ai-content-generator)[Cross-Posting](https://posteverywhere.ai/cross-posting)Used by 2,831 happy customers ## Stop reading about Newsjacking. Start doing it. Schedule posts, create content with AI, and grow your audience across 11 platforms, all from one dashboard. [Start free trial](https://app.posteverywhere.ai/signup)[Connect your AI agent](https://posteverywhere.ai/agents)[View pricing](https://posteverywhere.ai/pricing)7-day free trial · Cancel anytime Put this into practice Schedule, analyze, and optimize your social media with PostEverywhere. All platforms, one dashboard. 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