Better, deeper Sourcing
FROM THE GRASSROOTS, to the galaxy
TO THE group
Finding people
• Our Previous reporting (C-)• Asking people ‘on the ground’
(“who else?”)• Other publications
• Considering a fresh perspective will draw you to new voices (diversity in sourcing= better journalism)
• Trade publishing• Noticing ‘gatekeepers’• Cultivating officialdom
• Social media (like twitter & facebook) 29% 2009-2008
• COMMENTS ON NEWS STORIES• Places where people chat on line• Blogs!!
• Google scholar (studies)
• First hit:
Other experts
• Brookings institute• Heritage foundation• lexis-nexis
Finding data, studies and statistics
Vetting sources & Stats
• SourceWatch.org (liberal, but…)• politifact• Try googling; weigh the evidence• Understand the numbers• Know qs to ask about polls• Cultivate healthy skepticism
Some sites
Crowdsourcing
• The White Paper Version: Crowdsourcing is the act of taking a job traditionally performed by a designated agent (usually an employee) and outsourcing it to an undefined, generally large group of people in the form of an open call.
• The Soundbyte Version: The application of Open Source principles to fields outside of software.
— Jeff Howe, contributing editorWired magazine
Examples of crowdsourcing
• Asking readers to submit their photos from a news scene (from a house fire, to a festival)
• Asking readers to share their knowledge of a situation and/or experience (Pro Publica)
• Bringing readers into newsrooms to work as experts on watchdog projects
How The Boston Globe Crowdsourced Its World Cup
Coverage
• Created an online questionnaire for boston-area readers going to the cup in south africa
• Set up a special email address for receiving submissions
• Made contact with the best• Explained what kind of material was
desired….
Team watchdog: ft myers
“The News-Press Watchdog team is supported by our civic journalism project, which calls upon an extensive resource in our community — retired professionals with a cache of expertise. A group of volunteer citizens living in Southwest Florida serve as consultants, research data, work side-by-side with the professional reporting saff and interact with readers.”
How they did it
• Decided on retirees with no conflicts• Ran house ads & promos on web site
and in the paper• Reporters did background checks;
eds did interviews
Did some ‘bonding’
• Held a reception for the 20 people chosen & their partners
• Held a workshop to train them in gannett’s ethical standards
• Got them together with reporters to brainstorm topics
Sample of accomplishments
• A few weeks later, ft myers published its first Team Watchdog story – an A1 lead-centerpiece about the decreasing capabilities of the Florida National Guard. The idea was one that bubbled up in the initial workshop.
• A team watchdog member worked with our child welfare reporter on building a database of day-care inspection reports.
• Another requested, received and analyzed government documents which led to an exclusive story about how a street-lighting district had so much taxpayer cash on hand it could get by without charging any new taxes.
• A watchdog member with experience in school administration consulted on an education-beat story about teachers’ use of “time-out rooms” to discipline disabled students.
• A former FBI agent has helped a columnist Tell Mel track down sources and investigate consumer fraud.
Mobile location-based:allow ‘the crowd’ to contribute to a
story instantly