New CNN Trends dashboard transforms news discovery

CNN launched a news discovery dashboard Oct. 18 that enables users to track and explore the Web’s hottest stories.

Powered by technology from Zite, CNN Trends identifies the most conversation-provoking news topics to pair with a CNN story and content from up to 10 additional sources. The cable news network acquired Zite, now a wholly owned subsidiary of CNN, in August 2011.

“A healthy media diet consists of news, analysis and perspectives from more than one source,” said Kenneth “KC” Estenson, senior VP CNN Digital. “CNN Trends embraces that concept and expands on it by allowing the social Web to determine which stories are featured. It’s the perfect place to discover new content and advance the narrative of a trending headline. ”

CNN Trends democratizes the editorial process through the social curation of news content. By matching the moment’s top news trends with additional sources and new perspectives, users can advance and expand their understanding of the topic. The result is a collaborative media experience.

Using technology from Zite, CNN Trends monitors conversations through the social Web and surfaces the topics of greatest relevancy. To provide context for the user, each trend is anchored by a piece of content from CNN.com.

CNN Trends matches to each trending topic up to 10 additional sources, providing users a launch pad to explore new perspectives and related analysis.

As the news cycle progresses, CNN Trends unearths new content and analysis to complement the evolving storyline.

Available on the CNN.com desktop site and through mobile Web at www.cnn.com/trends, CNN Trends will also be featured in modules on the CNN homepage, U.S. and World sections of the site.