Can Audio Go Viral?

This week, Eric Athas wrote about NPR's experiments with creating shareable audio (which this blog has mentioned in the past, not that we're obsessed). Stan Alcorn also had a few things to say. And that's what we've been reading at AIRster HQ:

"4 types of audio that people share" | Eric Athas for NPR 
The sounds that light up social media, from storytellers to explainers.

"Is This Thing On?" | Stan Alcorn for Digg
Why designing an Upworthy for audio is easier said than done.

"How BuzzFeed mastered social sharing to become a media giant for a new era" | David Rowan for Wired
BuzzFeed employees receive a list of "Golden Rules" for social sharing. Example: "Don't use tricks. People don't like to feel stupid…" 

"How To Make That One Thing Go Viral. Just Kidding!" | Adam Mordecai for Upworthy
Upworthy's 2012 slideshare on going viral. Boiled down: Headlines, headlines, headlines.

"Public Media Goes Viral?" | Julie Drizin for AIR
From 2010 (a simpler time).

"Why Christian leaders are powerhouses on Twitter" | Amy O'Leary for the New York Times
Apparently the Bible is built for Twitter. All praise the short and pithy.

"The Six Things that Make Stories Go Viral Will Amaze, and Maybe Infuriate, You" | Maria Konnikova for The New Yorker
Two professors analyzed articles in 2012 and came up with a formula for shareability.

"Why Videos go Viral" | Kevin Allocca for TEDYouth 
Dated examples, but the advice still holds: 1. Tastemakers 2. Communities of participation 3. Unexpectedness 

Emily Boghossian is AIR's Editorial Ops Associate and a 2014 graduate of Carleton College.