How Much Does It Cost to Support Web Journalism?

CoPress had an excellent discussion on the costs and equipment required to maintain web journalism: Investing in Online & the Future of Journalism

Data Mining Rescues Investigative Journalism

Re-posting slashdot's link to Deep Throat Meets Data Mining:

Now, though, the digital revolution that has been undermining in-depth reportage may be ready to give something back, through a new academic and professional discipline known in some quarters as "computational journalism." James Hamilton is director of the DeWitt Wallace Center for Media and Democracy at Duke University and one of the leaders in the emergent field; just now, he's in the process of filling an endowed chair with a professor who will develop sophisticated computing tools that enhance the capabilities — and, perhaps more important in this economic climate, the efficiency — of journalists and other citizens who are trying to hold public officials and institutions accountable.

College Radio Stations Must Comply with FCC Rules

A post from Warren Kozireski, General Manager of WBSU 89.1 FM at SUNY College at Brockport, to the Collegiate Broadcasters, Inc. listerv, mentions the following article:

Utica College's WPNR Paying $10K to Settle FCC Violations

"Students at Utica College’s WPNR are learning a lesson they’ll probably never forget: the importance of maintaining a complete and up-to-date Public File for the FCC."

Three ideas about online media and journalism

I just had an excellent discussion with Tyler Dukes about online media and journalism. Here are a few significant points that we discussed:

• The most important value that can be added to online publishing is credibility. This especially applies in social networking. Whether or not people follow your website, blog or tweets depends how much they trust you. If you are publishing junk people will pay not attention. So how do we improve our online credibility? One way is to understand our readers. What is relevant to the students, faculty and staff? The web, more than any other medium, provides a way to interact with our audience so we know what is important to them.


• Journalists need to be as tech-savvy as their audience. You will be a better journalist if you are familiar with web/technology trends (and listen to your IT guy's ramblings :p ). Where is our audience going online? We as journalists can't be expected to create social networking sites or online communities, but we need to be aware of where our users are already going online. They are on Facebook, Twitter, iPhones and who knows what else in the future. Go there to deliver news and solicit their input. This also implies that our systems of delivering news must as technologically open as possible. It must be possible to pull content from our site, blogs, etc. to be re-published elsewhere. The places where people are going online changes constantly, and we can't meet this moving benchmark without keeping our systems open.


• There is still no concrete way to monetize online news. At this point, anyone can create content with practically no cost. The media is competing with it's audience and has no control over the technology used to deliver or receive news. Readers are empowered and can receive information piece-by-piece based on their personal interests and contacts. The definition of "mass media" is evolving. It remains to be seen what business model arises from this evolution, but Tyler and I toyed with the idea that the value of news is in its readers. The profiles and personal habits of your readers provides a way to target ads very specifically. The more information you provide in your personal profiles, the more information collected about your browsing and shopping habits, the more valuable you are, and the more coupons you could receive according to your interests (think MVP card at Food Lion). Sound scary? Yes, but it will be much less scary, perhaps natural, to our children and grandchildren.

Why prohibit social networking in the workplace?

A colleague recently pointed out that some workplaces are prohibiting the use of social networking tools such as twitter and facebook, and made reference to an article entitled Millenials will Route Around IT departments. She asks:

What should we implement, how far should we go to get buy-in from the higher-ups, and what happens if we don't? Are we better off that way?

I completely agree that we should be embracing technology that increases the quantity and improves the quality of communication. Of course, there will always be non-work-related communication, but that doesn't occur because of technology. Take walk around the office to rest your eyes, or even while you're working someone will come up and you'll have a personal conversation. These conversations increase the quality of our relationships and, in turn, the quality of our communication. Besides, how can you understand how someone thinks and works without talking to them? In addition, I hope our bosses hired us because they have faith in our ability to adjust our personal communication when it interferes with work.

In relation to students, I think it is extremely important that we are familiar with what technologies they are currently comfortable with, rather than expecting them to adhere to a "foreign" user interface with a steep learning curve. As an advisor, my students can take my advice, or leave it. Listen to or ignore me. So that forces me to ask myself, "What can I do to earn their respect and trust?" One way is to participate in their social networks. Not only do I begin to understand how they communicate and what technologies they are comfortable with, but I begin to earn their trust. "He is like us! He is on our side!" This is invaluable and immeasurable. Plus it helps me forget that I'll turn 30 soon :o

There is no way I can keep up with technology and trends by myself, so I have to rely on the experts in my social network to keep me informed. If managers and admins feel they can't trust our participation in these social networks then we have to openly question their judgment while making our case with solid evidence. They should recognize our need for flexibility in a tech world that is constantly in flux. If they don't trust our decisions or respect our passion, then why were we hired in the first place?

Mobile podcasting with utterli

I spent the morning finding a way to podcast directly from a mobile phone while covering an event. gcast and gabcast worked well enough, but both required that I approve the podcasts through the web, which is just not practical.

I then found utterli which allowed me to preview, re-record and send pictures from my phone while in the field. During a local Proposition 8 Protest, I managed to make about 10 short podcasts (~30 seconds), along with 4 pictures. The only problems I encountered were the speed of my phone's menu & dialing, and my lack of journalism skills (had to re-record a couple of times, and was unable to keep up with the names of speakers).

I especially liked the fact that utterli will automatically combine your podcast with a picture if you send both within a ten-minute time frame. Knowing this allowed me to plan shots and updates. I was lucky enough to get audio and a picture of a rainbow flag being hoisted at a public building:



In addition to the functions I've mentioned, utterli also provides the ability to form groups that facilitate ongoing discussions using the system, and cross-posting, which automatically posts your "utter" to other blogging platforms.

I will definitely be recommending this tool to my students. The fact that they could podcast without having to record, convert and upload through a computer gives me hope that they'll be able to embrace this tool and improve their web presence.

Why use RSS?

The following question was posted on the Collegiate Broadcasters, Inc. (CBI) listserv:

How do you use RSS feeds? This question has at least two pertinent facets to it: How does your organization use the feeds and how do you expect the feeds to be used on the other end?

WKNC uses RSS feeds to promote our Rock Report: http://wknc.org/rockreport/

The Rock Report is a listing of shows at local venues. Many of the bands listed are in rotation at the station. The list is populated by a team of student staff headed by our Promotions Director.

The purposes of putting this list on the web are to promote local bands and to provide a centralized source of information on local music events. As we fulfill these purposes we provide a service to local bands, venues and listeners.

By making the Rock Report available through RSS, we allow anyone to subscribe and stayed updated on local events. There is a certain demographic that actually uses RSS feed readers; that demographic is small and has apparently peaked: http://www.micropersuasion.com/2008/10/rss-adoption-at.html

Aside from from this personal use, it is possible for other web sites to republish the Rock Report by parsing our RSS feed and then re-presenting it. Essentially this "opens up" the Rock Report. Someone may ask, "Why would you do this? All your hard work could be republished without credit!" The answer is: it promotes local music, and by doing this we get indirect and intangible benefits.

Another aspect of RSS feeds is the fact that they can be easily integrated into other applications. For example, we would like to make our play list available through RSS. If other stations did this too, someone could perform an analysis on the aggregate data and identify trends or unique attributes of each station. Or record companies could use it to determine when and where their bands are getting the most air play and promote accordingly. It's actually an interesting way to chart as well. The potential possibilities are limitless. I would argue that this should be the goal: to make your station's information widely available and therefore re-purposable.

So think of RSS feeds as a way to open up your web site and your station, as a female connector if you will, so that any new web technology that comes along can plug into it and provide unforeseen benefits to your station, listeners and local music scene.