Connecting to the community is more important to journalism today than ever before. As readers are falling off in droves, newspapers nationwide are seeking new ways to connect to the community and remain relevant to readers. One concept in its trial stages is the idea of crowdsourcing for journalists.
Essentially, this means that newspapers are turning to readers for information and tips and then using those to develop investigative stories. Why didn't we think of this before? It makes perfect sense, especially since good tips often come from anonymous whistleblowers interested in making a difference in their community.
While journalists live in the communities they cover, they are not the recognizable faces from the nightly broadcast, and are often somewhat mysterious to readers. It takes effort to find out what your favorite writer looks like, and they can't be everywhere all the time. To find out what people are talking about, what easier way than to ask them in a way that makes it possible to ask many at once?
In this article from American Journalism Review, proponents of the concept make it very clear that the need for professional journalism is not diminished by the concept of asking readers for information. In fact, the need for editing content, especially reader produced, is in some minds more apparent.
Robert Niles argues in "Why journalists make ideal online community leaders" that journalists should embrace the idea of being discussion moderators on the Web. He suggests that the skills journalists cultivate such as asking open-ended questions that inspire thought and knowing how to choose your words carefully make them naturals for developing user-generated content.
Crowdsourcing isn't just for journalists:
1 comment:
Hey! You got the video to work!
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