News::Rewired, June 25, 2010

User-driven projects

What are the benefits of letting users become part of the editorial process?

& How can you use your audience to produce

better reporting and special features?

Me: Chris Taggart@countculture

✤ Former magazine journalist/publisher✤ Journo: The Face/Arena✤ Publisher: Sugar, Inside Soap, Junior✤ Sold magazine publishing company

just in time

✤ Developer of OpenlyLocal.com✤ Makes local data (esp govt) available

in consistent and accessible form✤ Scrapes council and govt websites✤ All open data✤ Hyperlocal directory

Me: Chris Taggart@countculture

✤ Former magazine journalist/publisher✤ Journo: The Face/Arena✤ Publisher: Sugar, Inside Soap, Junior✤ Sold magazine publishing company

just in time

✤ Developer of OpenlyLocal.com✤ Makes local data (esp govt) available

in consistent and accessible form✤ Scrapes council and govt websites✤ All open data✤ Hyperlocal directory

Me: Chris Taggart@countculture

✤ Former magazine journalist/publisher✤ Journo: The Face/Arena✤ Publisher: Sugar, Inside Soap, Junior✤ Sold magazine publishing company

just in time

✤ Developer of OpenlyLocal.com✤ Makes local data (esp govt) available

in consistent and accessible form✤ Scrapes council and govt websites✤ All open data✤ Hyperlocal directory

Me: Chris Taggart@countculture

✤ Former magazine journalist/publisher✤ Journo: The Face/Arena✤ Publisher: Sugar, Inside Soap, Junior✤ Sold magazine publishing company

just in time

✤ Developer of OpenlyLocal.com✤ Makes local data (esp govt) available

in consistent and accessible form✤ Scrapes council and govt websites✤ All open data✤ Hyperlocal directory

Me: Chris Taggart@countculture

✤ Former magazine journalist/publisher✤ Journo: The Face/Arena✤ Publisher: Sugar, Inside Soap, Junior✤ Sold magazine publishing company

just in time

✤ Developer of OpenlyLocal.com✤ Makes local data (esp govt) available

in consistent and accessible form✤ Scrapes council and govt websites✤ All open data✤ Hyperlocal directory

RDF JSON XML

Me: Chris Taggart@countculture

✤ Former magazine journalist/publisher✤ Journo: The Face/Arena✤ Publisher: Sugar, Inside Soap, Junior✤ Sold magazine publishing company

just in time

✤ Developer of OpenlyLocal.com✤ Makes local data (esp govt) available

in consistent and accessible form✤ Scrapes council and govt websites✤ All open data✤ Hyperlocal directory

RDF JSON XML

Me: Chris Taggart@countculture

✤ Former magazine journalist/publisher✤ Journo: The Face/Arena✤ Publisher: Sugar, Inside Soap, Junior✤ Sold magazine publishing company

just in time

✤ Developer of OpenlyLocal.com✤ Makes local data (esp govt) available

in consistent and accessible form✤ Scrapes council and govt websites✤ All open data✤ Hyperlocal directory

RDF JSON XML

Why?

✤ Journalists don’t generally know much about anything (but know a bit about lots of things)

✤ They aren’t really interested in subjects (but they are interested in stories)

All photos from His Girl Friday (sometimes just for the hell of it)

Which is fine for...

✤ Basic reporting

✤ Schedule-driven stories

✤ Many features

✤ PR rewrites

and in the past was OK for...

✤ Breaking stories

✤ Background features

✤ Investigative reporting

because only they had access to...

✤ Cuttings libraries

✤ Reference sources/directories

✤ Experience & skills

✤ A network of contacts

But the web has changed all that

✤ Cuttings libraries

✤ Reference sources/directories

✤ Experience

✤ A network of contacts

REPLACED BY WEB

REPLACED BY WEB

SOCIAL NETWORKINGKNOWLEDGE

But...

✤ The most important thing are still the stories (but readers are a great source – many good stories in plain sight to a small number of people)

✤ And also a focal point to have the conversation

✤ And it is a conversation

So how do you do it?

✤ There are few examples of mainstream media doing this – for them, reader/viewer contributions are mostly vacuous comments that’s treated as free content

✤ My favourite examples: ✤ Naked Capitalism – excellent financial blogger (Yves Smith) who asks her

knowledgeable audience as a core resource/sounding board. Asks readers with specific expertise for their opinion;

✤ FT’s Alphaville – great conversations; ✤ The Straight Choice/Democracy Club – excellent during the election.✤ Radio 4’s More or Less – knowledgeable audience, and prog acknowledges this

✤ Openly Local is starting to tie into hyperlocal site news, as well as getting users to contribute core info about councillors/companies