Jewish News recently joined a number of local Jewish organizations on Facebook, an online social network.
"Our goal is to extend our reach," said Jewish News Publisher Flo Eckstein. "Our Web site, jewishaz.com, is generating nearly 1.5 million page views a month and growing. Facebook will enable us to connect with still more readers interested in news about the Jewish community and the Jewish world."
Jewish News' Facebook page features highlights of each weekly issue and additional content.
"We invite Facebook members to visit our page and become fans," Eckstein said.
The Young Leadership Division of the Jewish Federation of Greater Phoenix set up its page in 2006 and this month reached 1,000 members, or "friends," to use Facebook's terminology. YLD, a group for young adults ages 22-45, uses the page to provide information on events, missions to Israel and other Jewish happenings in the Greater Phoenix area for adults in that age group.
"We are reaching people we never would have imagined using Facebook," said Adam Pilder, YLD director. "Now we have a way to move further out to the young community with the simple technology we have online."
The Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center launched its Facebook page earlier this month and has more than 500 "friends." The JCC site features information on membership, youth activities, league sports and photographs.
Other local Jewish groups with Facebook sites include Chabad and Hillel at Arizona State University and young adult social groups Arizona Adventurers, Jewish Sisterhood, L'Chaim AZ and Tribe. Some have restricted access. National Jewish sites include JDub Records, a nonprofit record and event production company for up and coming Jewish artists founded by Phoenix natives Aaron Bisman and Jacob Harris.
Facebook was founded by Mark Zuckerberg, Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes, who launched it in February 2004 from their dorm room at Harvard University, according to Facebook.com. Later that year, the base of operations moved to Palo Alto, Calif., where it is today. Membership was first limited to Harvard students, then expanded to other Ivy League colleges; the following year it became available to all university and high school students.
According to the Web site, it now has more than 80 million active users and more than 55,000 regional, work-related, collegiate and high school networks. More than half of Facebook users are out of college, and the fastest-growing demographic of users are those 25 years and older.
- Leisah Woldoff
A sample of local Facebook pages:
Facebook members may visit Facebook.com and enter the following keywords:
Alliance 4 Israel
Arizona Adventurers
Arizona Jewish Network (AJN)
AZ YLD
JCC Scottsdale
Jewish Federation of Greater Phoenix
Jewish News of Greater Phoenix
L'Chaim AZ
Sisterhood Arizona
Tribe Arizona
