I have a new blog I've started using the Serendipity blogging software. I really like it and I've been able to do most everything I've wanted to. One thing I don't understand is how I can have my blog featured in CNN's "From The Blog".
As you can see at the bottom of CNN's stories ( Like this one: http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/10/21/teache ... index.html ) there is a link, "From The Blogs". I've emailed CNN, who hasn't offered any assistence, and spent about 3 hours on google trying to figure it out. I've already tried using pingback and tracebacks, however this does not work.
It looks like you have to get a good ranking on Sphere.
I've never looked into getting on CNN, but its powered by sphere which tells me you have to be a top site there to get listed on CNN.
The bad thing about sphere is to get highly ranked there you have to be a fairly massive site. Most of the sites I see listed are the NBCs and ABCs of the world.
It's easier to get onto the BBC news site, and I think they're bigger than CNN although I could be wrong. I've actually been listed on the BBC several times, and even now they're still part of my backlinks.
How I did it, and please understand I'm not going to give away specific details, is you have write with authority about the subjects they're interested in. For example I wrote a review of IE7 when it was released in beta and got interviewed by the New York Times, and I've written some authority articles on artificial intelligence quoting some of the major thinkers in the industry, and before long I was quoted by the BBC.
Another way to get recognition, write a rebuttal of one of their stories, then comment on the journalists blog. Those are easy to find, and it's an easy story for the reporter to follow up on since you've given them much of the research they need.
But I want to ask why you want to be on CNN? Why not pick one of the other big PR9 sites that are easier to get into? Don't forget the power of About.com. One of my sites is listed on one of their pages as a resource where a certain group of people can freely download a zipfile containing pdf's for their work related activities and this catapulted a brand new site from 0 traffic to over 1,000 unique visitors per month.
Don't forget wikipedia if you have something worthwhile to offer, ie an authority page you might find you get more traffic from their link.
chickens: Well, it looks like I won't be linked on CNN anytime soon then. I don't have a massive site by any means, and my hosting company leaves a lot to be desired in terms of speed.
carl_galloway: I hadn't really though of bbc yet, I mostly read the CNN and ABC news sites, and I write a good deal of articles based on CNN's news stories. The tip on a rebuttle articles is a good one, thank you! The main reason I want my blog listed on CNN is because I'd like the traffic and a lot of my blog posts are based on their articles; you can see some of the posts at http://letstalkstraight.com/ ( any advice on layout/easy of use would be wonderful also ). What are the PR9 sites you're talking about ( I'm fairly new to this but a fast learner, please excuse my ignorance ).
A google search for a list of PR9 sites will produce a fair few results for you so I won't go into detail about these, except to say that About.com is a biggie, and it's parent company is the New York Times, and their reporters are always hungry for good quality material. Many of their reporters also moonlight (shhh don't tell) for reuters...
Then you should never forget the other major news media companies like News Corp, DW, Al Jazeerah, New Delhi Times, China News and so many more. Even the Huffington Post is a good option at times. Rebuttals are good, but you need to provide the info that they need to do the followup otherwise they'll just go and quote another authority.
Lastly, I don't want to sugest spending money, but if you're going to chase high traffic, get a good host.
