'New Media' takes center stage in corporate America.

• Author: Dimattia, Steve
• Position: TECH STRATEGY

New media isn't exactly new. While blogs and sites such as Facebook have only popped up in the past decade, the idea of forming communities online to find and share information dates back to the 1990s - when computer geeks and their professors were the only ones who knew how to "dial-up" the World Wide Web. But slowly, others began catching on - and within a few years, high school kids, college students and even their parents were going online to look for facts, send email and connect with friends.

It's only been recently, however, that this "new media" - which includes everything from blogs, research sites like Wikipedia and social networks such as Linkedln - have truly gone mainstream. In the past few years, there has been a trend within corporate America, particularly among the risk-averse in-house counsel, toward realizing the advantages of new media.

According to the "In-House Counsel New Media Engagement Survey," a recent study conducted by public relations firm Greentarget, consultant Zeughauser Group and InsideCounsel magazine, nearly three-quarters (73 percent) of in-house counsel are using new media tools, compared to only 57 percent just three years ago.

On a broader scale, "Social Media Risks and Rewards," a survey of senior-level financial executives at public and private companies conducted by Financial Executive Research Foundation (FERF) and accounting firm Grant Thornton, revealed that more than half of respondents feel that going forward social media will be an important component of corporate marketing efforts.

As corporations, their executives and employees begin to engage more and more in new media both for personal and professional purposes, it's important for companies to understand the risks, the benefits and the opportunities that accompany this new territory.

ON THE RISE: NEW MEDIA AND THE LEGAL INDUSTRY

If there's only one take-away from the "In-House Counsel New Media Engagement Survey," it's this: New media in the legal realm is here to stay. Since 2010, when the annual study was first conducted, year-over-year results have revealed a significant and consistent increase in in-house counsel's use of new media - and three types of media rise to the top: Linkedln, blogs and Wikipedia.

According to the study, Linkedln is considered the "serious" social network and while there had been some drop off among older users, the heart of the market - future legal leaders-use Linkedln often. In fact, two-thirds of...