Jason Townsend Online space communicator by day who craves good friends, food + wine by night
News Clips
"NASA’s Super Smart — and Awesome — Instagram Take on Cosmos" - TIME
"And watching and posting was just what was happening: Jason Townsend, deputy manager for NASA’s social media team, tells TIME that last night’s Instagram posts were NASA capitalizing on a moment of high interest in space, not any sort of official tie-in with the show. NASA’s Instagram feed launched last September and now has about 700,000 followers; […]
"NASA’s Jason Townsend on technologies used for engagement" - FedScoop
Jason Townsend, deputy social media manager at NASA, talks in this FedScoopTV interview about tools NASA uses for both internal and external engagement. Read more: http://fedscoop.com/nasas-jason-townsend/
"Internet 'word of mouth' is best marketing" - Yahoo!7 News
According to Jason Townsend, NASA's deputy social media manager, the goal in building this community was to share NASA's people, missions and programs with as many people as possible - especially audiences that NASA wouldn't be reaching on its own. NASA has not forced these communities. They have grown organically through word of mouth since […]
"Twitter blasts off at NASA social event" - Twitter Blog
...“The best thing about the social, was that we launched on time, and our guests got to experience MAVEN lifting off Earth toward another planet,” Townsend said. “There’s nothing like it.” Of course, guests were encouraged to share their experiences beyond the walls of the Space Center. “There isn’t a requirement to post anything,” Townsend […]
"Social media: The next generation of archiving" - Federal Computer Weekly (FCW)
Jason Townsend, NASA's deputy social media manager, said the agency's retention policy covers all records generated by the agency and is based on the content and use of the individual record, regardless of format. However, he noted, not all social media posts are created equal. "Our NASA records officials have determined that social media posts […]
"Word of mouth is powerful marketing" - Lexington Herald Leader
According to Jason Townsend, NASA's Deputy Social Media Manager, the goals in building this community were to share NASA's people, missions, and programs with as many people as possible — especially reaching out to audiences that NASA wouldn't be talking to on their own. NASA has not forced these communities. They have grown organically through […]
"To boldly go where no social media fan has gone before (and then post selfies about it)" - Digital Trends
These aren’t some just-out-of-college tweeters in their first media jobs; this is a massive operation maintaining a bigger social footprint than plenty of major brands. But, beyond the actual social channels, the events remain central to everything NASA Social is about. There two types of events; the first is a lottery open to anyone who […]
"Can Social Media Save NASA—And The Rest Of The Science World?" - ReadWrite
NASA's long been known for planting flags on unexplored turf. It's been quick to colonize social networks, including the launch of an Instagram account two weeks ago, where it quickly amassed almost 200,000 followers. The space agency’s long-established Twitter account has a following of almost five million. NASA also uses video platforms like Google+ Hangouts and YouTube to bring scientists and astronauts into classrooms and living […]
"NASA Offers Tips To Startups: Staying Relevant and Making People Passionate About Your Product" - NextShark
Now as a startup or entrepreneur, how can you apply what NASA has managed to achieved to your business? Well you’re in luck because we recently had the pleasure of interviewing Jason Townsend and John Yembrick of NASA’s social media team. We discuss how NASA fundamentally had to change as an organization to stay relevant and how they’ve managed […]
"Sound-activated camera was used to capture that airborne frog" - Houston Chronicle
One of those photos included a frog, no doubt surprised to be airborne, backlit by the rocket's glare. "It's a real photo and a real frog," said Jason Townsend, NASA's deputy social media manager. Thanks to the Internet, the photo quickly went viral, giving the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) spacecraft more exposure than […]
"Sharing the mission at Wallops Island; NASA gives social media followers a look behind the LADEE launch" - Cape Gazzette
The occasion marked the 71st in-person NASA social media event since 2009 and the second one held at that facility since 2011. They were originally called Tweetups. “If you aren’t a space geek now, come on out to a NASA Social. We’ll make sure you go home a space geek, that’s for sure,” said Jason […]
"Instagram goes into orbit with new NASA profile" - VatorNews
"We'll be sharing images that look at everything NASA is doing. Followers should look for images from NASA's programs and people including crowd-favorites like the Hubble Space Telescope, the International Space Station, satellites that are studying the Earth, historical imagery, and so much more. The universe is our only limit," Jason Townsend, Deputy Social Media Manager […]
"These NASA superfans won a chance to watch a rocket take off for the moon" - Washington Post
Do you love space? Great. Do you want to go to a rocket launch? Great. NASA has a program for that, at least if you’re active on social media. In the NASA Social program, online followers can apply to attend NASA events and nerd out with their fellow space fans. The program started with a […]
"NASA shares lessons learned from Google+ Hangouts" - Fierce Government IT
After hosting 24 Hangouts on the social media platform Google+, NASA has learned a few things. It shared its tips for using the tool July 30 at the General Services Administration's Federal Social Media Community of Practice Event. Hangouts, which allow up to 10 people to join a virtual conversation while thousands watch via Google+ […]
"Agencies trade ideas on getting a message to go viral" - FCW
The space agency recently began using Google+ Hangouts to broadcast conferences, shuttle launches and meetings to anyone with an Internet connection. "It kind of humanizes what's going on with your government organization," said Jason Townsend, NASA's deputy social media manager. "A lot of people think we're nameless, faceless, big, behemoth entities, and so we're able […]
"Meet NASA’s 150-Person Social Media Team" - ProFitGuide.com
Social media gave NASA a chance to engage its audience on a much deeper level than it could through press releases and other traditional PR methods. In the words of Jason Townsend, NASA's deputy social media coordinator, social media offers people "a little bit of space in their own backyard." Read more: http://www.profitguide.com/manage-grow/technology/meet-nasas-150-person-social-media-team-54195
"NASA’s Twitter Rules: Ten “Out of This World” Social Media Tips" - Bulldog Reporter Daily 'Dog
Over 61% of consumers say they feel better about a company or organization that delivers custom content online—especially via social media—and are more likely to buy from that organization, according to the Custom Content Council. But what type of social media content works best? What ideas can you borrow from the most-followed brands—whether on Twitter, […]
"How digital platforms are changing the way science reporters find & tell stories" - Poynter
NASA’s many social media products point to an uncomfortable new reality for reporters: the space agency doesn’t really need them to break news. “We have an obligation to authentically share NASA on social media,” Jason Townsend, deputy social media manager for NASA, said in an email interview. “When we have news — a big discovery […]
"NASA, Chris Hadfield's YouTube "Oddity," and Zero-G Tweets: Social Media Lessons from Space" - Fast Company
It's hard to believe there's anything that astronauts can't do. But for many people in NASA's orbit, Jason Townsend is the go-to guy for guidance on tweeting, hanging out on Google+, and friending on Facebook. As Deputy Social Media Manager, he and his team oversee more than 450 social media accounts over nine different platforms. […]
"Space, Man: From a New Cosmos to Galaxy-Print Leggings, the Heavens Are Having a Moment" - BetaBeat
“Everybody, when they’re a kid, wants to be an astronaut,” said Jason Townsend, who works on NASA’s social media team. “When [people] see our content, they look at it and they go, ‘Oh, yeah.’ It clicks, and it re-emphasizes that connection people have with their childhood wonderment and everything.” Read more: http://betabeat.com/2013/05/space-man-from-a-new-cosmos-to-galaxy-print-leggings-the-heavens-are-having-a-moment/
"How Brands Can Build Engagement on Twitter, According to NASA's Social Media Stars" - Huffington Post
NASA was recently named one of the most engaged brands on Twitter, from among the 100 most followed. I recently caught up with NASA's Social Media Manager John Yembrick and Deputy Social Media Manager Jason Townsend to find out what exactly they are doing to engage their audience, and what other brands can do to reach […]
"NASA wants to tweet with Justin Bieber to boldly go where no space agency has gone before" - Financial Post
Certain aspects of Jason Townsend’s job are quite literally out of this world. As the deputy social media editor for NASA (The National Aeronautics and Space Administration), Mr. Townsend helps oversee more than 480 online accounts belonging to NASA, and is responsible for coordinating how the American space agency communicates its people, missions and programs on […]
"NASA's Google+ and Social Media Marketing" - Social Marketing Blog
Jason Townsend, Deputy Social Media Manager at NASA and Georgia Cross, Co-founder of Social Media Club Nashville, discuss NASA's Google+ and social media marketing content strategies at the #moonbuggy #NASASocial event at NASA Marshall Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, AL (April 2013) Watch interview: http://georgiacross.blogspot.com/2013/05/jason-townsend-on-nasas-google-and.html
"Winning Shorty Awards In Space: 5 Questions With NASA’s Social Media Managers" - Marketing Land
“The beauty of our decentralized model is that you have subject matter experts who oversee many of our accounts,” says NASA’s Deputy Social Media Manager Jason Townsend. “Social media isn’t their full-time job — it’s maybe five percent or 10 percent of their job and they are scientists, engineers, technicians and others who are full […]