Facebook allows anti-Islamic sponsored post

This ad appeared in my Facebook newsfeed this afternoon.

The ad is from a group called Worshipers Who Spread the Fire. Indeed.

Facebook thinks I have a type

I recently read that Facebook was trying to encourage users to friend more people. I can’t remember what evidence that author’s article cited though…

Related: I don’t know any of these people.

Louisville.com picks up 6,000th Twitter follower, 5,000th Facebook fan

Like Lance Armstrong speeding through the Tour de France finish line, in the last two weeks Louisville.com shattered the 6,000 Twitter followers and 5,000 Facebook fans milestones (wait, is that Armstrong metaphor no longer a good one to use?). When I began my gig as part-time editor-in-chief of the site in January 2010, those numbers were 1,800 and 100 respectively.

Unlike a lot of outlets, Louisville.com’s social media presence isn’t just about branding or vanity (as in, “Hey potential advertisers, look at how many people like us!”). All of Louisville.com’s articles automatically post to both of those social networks within 15 minutes of appearing on the mother site. In the last 30 days, Facebook was the site’s fifth highest source of traffic (it was third before Facebook cut back on the reach of fan pages that don’t advertise with it) and Twitter is eighth.

Congrats to our writers for putting out content that so many Louisvillians find valuable. And thanks to our readers for being followers and fans!

Louisville.com: 1 million visits

Some time this evening Louisville.com will have it’s 1 millionth visit since I became editor-in-chief at the beginning of 2010. So I figured now’s a good time to recap the site’s accomplishments since I started this part-time job (with the exception of Derby and Breeders’ Cup weeks, at most I spend 20 hours a week on the site):

• Gone from two writers (one of whom was me) to 38.
• Increased site visits from 45,000 during my first 31 days as editor to 97,700 in the most recent 31 days.
• Increased the site’s Facebook presence from 100 to 2,007 fans. Every post from Louisville.com appears on its Facebook fan page, making that social networking site Louisville.com’s fourth biggest source of traffic.

For more details, read this description of my duties.

In the next few months, we expect to

• upgrade the site’s operating system from Drupal 5.x to 6.x, improving both its stability and usability
• launch an iPhone application
• double our monthly visitors yet again
• become profitable (we’re close!)

Thanks to the site’s owners, readers, and writers. All three groups have been great to work with.

Shalom from Israel

Good morning Tel Aviv.

Shalom! (Yes, I’ve used that word twice because it’s the only Hebrew I know.) I’m in Israel this week, specifically Tel Aviv, Galilee, and Jerusalem. I’m a bit tired, but my fatigue probably owes more to a nightcap than jetlag (a 5 p.m. arrival time is actually quite agreeable: land, eat, drink, sleep).

Assuming I don’t go up in smoke during my visit to the Holy Land, there will be articles about my trip shortly. In the meantime, follow along in real time on

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Tumblr

Thanks to the Israeli Ministry of Tourism, El Al, the Dan Hotels, the Scots Hotel, and Weill for hosting me.