Who are the best, brightest, and most innovative social media users in Texas? The Austin American-Statesman, my hometown newspaper, wants to know — and will share the community’s recommendations as part of its first-ever Texas Social Media Awards.

To find out more about the awards, as well as the Statesman’s own efforts in social media, I sent along a handful of questions by e-mail to Rob Quigley, the newspaper’s Internet editor. Rob is the man who’s directed the Statesman’s impressive foray into Twitter (including the inaugural Statesman-led tweetup last week) and who continues to lead the charge for an enriching online experience for Statesman.com readers.

Q [Bryan Person]: What’s the inspiration behind the Statesman Texas Social Media Awards?

A [Rob Quigley]: As I’ve pushed to get the Statesman deeper into social media, I’ve discovered a lot of great work being done out there. There are people who really use social media in a refreshing, inspiring way. Obviously, social media is becoming a bigger force in communications, so I wanted to recognize the leaders who are on the cutting edge. Texas happens to be one of the top places in the country, in my opinion, for social media. We’re in a unique position of being an establishment organization that is pushing deeper with social media. I think that mix gives us some credibility to recognize others’ work.

Q: The Social Media Awards are certainly a way to recognize the efforts of Texans; is there also a business benefit for the Statesman?

A: Like just about everything else in social media, direct monetary benefit isn’t the goal. We see our efforts in social media as a way to be more involved and in touch with our community. Giving out awards and then throwing a big party is just a way to amplify that. For more than 100 years, the Statesman pushed news out to our readers, and the only real info flowing the other direction was in the form of Letters to the Editor. With social media, we are no longer that big institution that can’t listen. We understand that and want to take advantage of that.

Q: Without asking you to give away the names of anyone that’s already been nominated, what are the kinds of social media projects by Texans that have impressed you?

A: This is a bit hard to nail down with specifics. There are so many great bloggers, Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, Diggers, etc. There are also a lot of people out there who are willing to teach others (often just through giving out opinions). Social media is such a new (and rapidly changing) field, that the criteria almost has to be “we’ll know it when we see it.” I hope to recognize the big power players but also some of the lesser-known users who are using social media in new and interesting ways.

Q: Apart from these awards, the Statesman has already been making a clear push toward social media and more online engagement with its readers (blogs, multiple Twitter accounts, article commenting, etc.) and Central Texas residents. How necessary is this push for the ultimate survival of the Statesman?

A: More and more people are communicating through social media. I’ve even heard from several people that Twitter is their *only* source for news. Since we are in the communications business, we’d be foolish to not pay attention. “We” being the industry. On top of that, mobile use is increasing at an exponential rate. We think that’s the future of news delivery. Most of the new, exciting mobile apps I’ve seen use some aspect of social media. I think that’s a trend that is going to continue. With the huge growth in the use of social media, the old media establishment faces the possibility of becoming somewhat irrelevant. I want to avoid that.

Q: You blogged on Media Bullseye this week about the need for traditional journalists to learn how to use digital channels such as social media. Will media professionals who don’t adapt have jobs for much longer?

A: It’s already pretty ugly out there. Even people who get it and do everything right are losing their jobs (obviously, not just in media). I don’t think there are any guarantees or sure things anymore. Our industry’s business model was largely based on classified advertising, which fell through the floor for various reasons. Combine that with an exponential increase in competition for advertising dollars and one of the worst economies most of us will see, and it’s a recipe for tough times in our industry. The best we can do as individual journalists is adapt quickly and innovate.

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Get your nominations in!
To nominate a Texan for a Social Media Award, visit the Statesman’s submission page. The nomination deadline is 11:59pm, CST, on January 9. Twenty-five winners will be named on February 18 and one grand-prize Texas Social Media Award winner will be announced and honored at a ceremony on March 15.

Follow Rob Quigley online
Rob tweets daily from his @RobQuig account and is also the primary voice behind the @Statesman account. He also blogs at Old Media, New Tricks.

(Electronic hat tip to John Johansen for pointing me to the Statesman Texas Social Media Awards yesterday morning. He nominated me.)

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