The Economist newspaper plans to acquire 500,000 fans on Facebook and 750,000 followers on Twitter within six months, in another sign that traditional publishers are looking to social media as a substantial source of web traffic and new readers.

Readers of The Economist's website will soon be able to log in and make comments using their Facebook identity, through Facebook Connect. Economist.com will also take on features similar to social networks itself, allowing readers to create profile pages and earn a reputation through other users' recommendations of their comments on the site.

Ben Edwards, publisher of Economist.com, hopes that Facebook will help his site acquire new readers and develop a “deeper level of engagement” with existing ones.