Hi, I’m Patrick O’Brien, and I’m behind this personal blog at OBrienMedia.com , which is mostly articles around media with the occassional reviews about audio or mobile technology. Like most blogs, they seem to evolve, and this is my attempt to try and put all my content into one place, so you may see photos from Instagram or Twitter posts. It’s looking more like a Tumblr or Pinterest page, but I think that fits my style a bit better, since I don’t want to be bogged down with writing 250 words just to post something. Ultimately, this will be a way to keep on top of my digital trail, sharing some of my experiences along the way.

POB

This blog does not represent the views or opinions of my employer.

I’m an Emmy-Award winning web producer turned Social Media Manager for Gannett, the media company that owns USA Today and more than 100 print and broadcast properties throughout the country. I help oversee all social media initiatives and work with social experts at each individual site with their social strategies. I’ve been in media for 17 years, and of those, 13 years in web operations. I spent more than 3 years as a Digital Development Director at WUSA9, the flagship broadcast station for Gannett in Washington, DC and prior to that I had several years in morning radio and a year as the Chief Audio Engineer for a recording studio.

My main contact points are through LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Foursquare.

Running my first marathon in Alaska

While here in Washington, some of my success stories have been:

• Growing our sites traffic substantially in both uniques and page views Y-o-Y.
• Creating additional revenue opportunities beyond banner ads using social media and mobile apps.
• Building the largest group of Twitter and Facebook followers for local TV in Washington, DC.
• Leading social media experimentation on various local levels, such as Foursquare ‘Earn Your Badge’ parties, Twestivals and Foursquare Day.
• I also host meetups in Washington for mobile products such as Foursquare and Evernote.

Outside of work, I enjoy making new friends and building relationships through social media. You can find me running a few miles in a nearby park, jumping around at some great concert, or attending events around social media and journalism.

My hometown is St. Louis, Missouri, where I lived for more than 30 years before moving to Washington in 2008. I’ll trade frozen custard and toasted ravioli for cupcakes any day. Go Cards!