The race for Instagram likes is a thing of the past. Goodbye to mentions from Twitter users we don’t follow back. While public opinion seems to be losing ground, our desire for genuine peer-to-peer recommendations has never been more pressing. From Pitchfork’s charts to Télérama’s reviews, cultural media have long served as trusted third parties. Now that it’s just us, the time has come to show off our tastes… and share them.
At So Press, recommendations are based on ratings. While opening Twitter to check out memes about the Koh-Lanta contestants has become a ritual at the end of each episode, many also rush to the So Foot website to find out the scores given to the contestants. Posted online right after the live commentary of the show, these scores include the editorial team’s rating as well as the readers’ average—readers who are already accustomed to rating Top Chef contestants just like they do the French national soccer team after every match. Charmed by the puns and tongue-in-cheek humor characteristic of So Foot, nearly 6,000 of them add their two cents whenever the opportunity arises to boost the average score of their favorite player. And there’s no special treatment for the hosts. Brogniart, Rotenberg, Lizarazu… let’s just say that for some of them, it’s going to take a lot of hard work to make it onto the honor roll.
At *Les Others*, a magazine dedicated to adventure and nature enthusiasts, the editorial team’s top picks take center stage, and their recommendations are an integral part of the editorial line. It’s a great way to keep the journey going for those who’ve already devoured the entire print magazine. On rainy evenings, we recommend checking out their Sunday movie recommendations on Instagram. And to keep you busy during sleepless nights, the team is sharing its ultimate reading list: the 100 travel and adventure books you absolutely must read. A series of 5 articles, each featuring 20 books, “from Homer’s epic tales to Jack London’s chilling stories, including Alexandra David-Néel’s invitations to travel.” Because these journeys are written together with our readers, the “Others” community was invited to help create this treasure trove of articles. And you—what’s your favorite adventure book? Ours is *Night Flight* by Saint-Exupéry, without a doubt.
Print magazines share this same ambition; on their final pages, we’re seeing more and more recommendations presented as advice from friends, as an invitation to explore the topic further. In *Pays*, “the magazine that surrounds us,” the “Let’s Go Further” section offers readers resources and guidance for delving deeper into a topic through supplementary articles. Journalists thus take the time to explore a specific point raised inone of their articles or to profile a person mentioned earlier. A similar column in the feminist magazine *La Déferlante* summarizes, in a few key points, books or programs that explore the topics discussed in depth. Handy!
Whether they take the form of top stories, notes, or short links, recommendations help media outlets reinforce their editorial stance by offering a fun and interactive extension to articles, videos, or podcasts. This helps advance the discussion of media as a service provided to its readers… and as a participatory space, where each individual could, in one way or another, share their opinion. What if we start to become objective by clearly owning up to our preferences? It’s up to you to tell us.
