How do Altmetric track attention to blogs?
Altmetric tracks attention to research outputs across a curated list of blogs. We automatically search each blog for references (specifically links) to scholarly outputs.
When a new blog is indexed in our database, we scan the blog’s RSS feed and collect any current and future posts from the feed as long as they contain a direct link to a research output in the main body of the post.
How are blog mentions collected by Altmetric?
In order to collect a mention to a blog post, we need the following:
Blog is already tracked by Altmetric
RSS feed is correct and functioning (e.g. updating regularly)
Blog posts that mention research outputs include a direct link to research output/s, in the main body of the text so it appears in the RSS feed. We cannot collect blog mentions from sidebar content, for example.
Can I suggest a new blog to be indexed?
Yes. You can suggest a new blog to be indexed to our database by completing this form. You’ll need to be able to provide the following information:
Blog title
Blog homepage URL
RSS feed - we track blogs via their RSS feeds so do make sure that the site's feed is available and functioning properly. More information on how to find an RSS feed can be found here.
Once we receive the form, we'll consider your blog for inclusion in our curated list of tracked blogs. We are primarily looking for scholarly blogs that discuss research. This curation process usually takes approximately one week.
Blogs tab on the Altmetric Details Page
You can view all of the blog mentions to a specific research output on the output's Altmetric Details Page. The Blogs tab lists all blog posts by time of publication in descending order with the most recent at the top. You can see which blog mentioned the research output, a snippet of the content and click through to the original blog post to find out how it's being discussed.
The colours of the Altmetric donut each represent a different source of attention: blogs are yellow.
