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Module 3:Livestreaming & Crowdsourcing

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Livestreaming• One definition: Producing and pushing

out content to users in real-time

• Examples: live blogging, live tweets, live chats, live forums, live video (other names: lifestreaming, storystreaming)

• Applications: Blogs (WordPress, Blogger, Tumblr, Posterous), Twitter, CoverItLive, Ustream.tv, Justin.tv, Twitcam, Facebook Live Stream Box, Nurph

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Tips on live blogging1. Make sure you have enough battery

power or plug in to a power outlet.

2. Internet access must be reliable

3. Time-stamp updates and post above the previous one, freshest take at the top.

4. Follow sports-style reporting: a mix of play-by-play reporting with analysis and colour.

5. Attribute information and maintain accuracy

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Tips on live blogging6. Tell readers when you are working to

verify something as factual.

7. If in doubt, leave out

8. Tone: c asides okay for a lifestyle event but not a murder trial

9. Posting audio clips or digital photos fast requires practice

10.Best used for controlled events – a seminar, court case, parliament, public forum, concert, sports event in which little movement required

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Live blog: Virginia Tech Massacre

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Live blog: Haiti Quake in Guardian

http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/blog/2010/jan/13/haiti-earthquake

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• Emerging as one of the best tools to liveblog

• Uses: Minute-by-minute live blogging an event, Q & A, sports coverage, weekly chats

• Can embed anywhere• Allows for moderation

or instantly publish commentary

• Quick polls

Features• Upload pics, audio and

video.• Newsflash and

scoreboard• Instant replay when

done

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Examples of use of CoverItLive

• The Star: thestar.com.my/livechat

• Sacramento Bee:

http://www.sacbee.com/live/

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Example: anilnetto.com

http://anilnetto.com/democracy/live-perak-state-assembly-sitting-2/

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Exercise 1: Live tweeting• Fire up Twitter

• Live tweet event

• Use hashtags given

Exercise 2: CoverItLive

• Go to designated site

• Try commenting on screen

• View various ways to customize app

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Crowdsourcing

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Social media news curation tools

Example 1: Joplin before and after the tornado: http://bit.ly/joplinstory Example 2: Rory McIlroy win at US Openhttp://bit.ly/rorymcilroy

Example 1: Covering a firehttp://bit.ly/storifylahExample 2: Saudi Arabia’s women drivers http://bit.ly/saudidrive

Emerging curation and aggregation tools ie Storify, Storyful, Keepstream, Curated.by being used to pull together a stream of tweets, status updates, pics and videos on the fly.

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1.Capture Cincinnati: Engaging community through pics

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Crowdsourced photo project• Project started in 2007 by Cincinnati

Enquirer. Readers submitted photos to be published in a coffee-table book and DVD.

• Successfully sold out, repeated in 2008 and 2009.

• 1,396 photographers submitted 24,395 photos, and 2,473,484 votes cast in ‘09

• Those who submitted/voted were given discounts on book, eligible for prizes, asked to promote pics/site to family and friends via email, blogs, Twitter and Facebook.

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2. The Guardian and MPs’ expenses

Invited readers to dig through 458,832 pages of documents of British MPs' expenses to flag up individual claims, or documents that merit further investigation. Over 25,000 took part and to-date sifted through over 200,000 pages.

The exercise uncovered various suspicious claims of seeming extravagance or over-claiming of items of furniture, electrical goods, refurbishments and food.

http://mps-expenses.guardian.co.uk/

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3. Mumbai attack: Victims list using Google Docs

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4. SeeClickFix• Allows anyone to file a report and track non-

emergency issues (potholes, graffiti, broken street lights, vandalized playgrounds, etc) anywhere in the world via the internet.

• Instantly informs local councils, community groups, media organizations and governments to “fix” issue

• Empowers communities to improve their neighbourhoods.

• News sites use it to draw visitors and fish for stories.

• Similar:http://www.fixmystreet.com

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Example of SeeClickFix in action

Residents point out suspicious activity in neighborhood. New Haven Police Dept Tactical Narcotics Unit alerted, conduct surveillance and sting operation. Police arrest heroin dealer and buyer and seize 10 packets of heroin.Link:http://www.seeclickfix.com/issues/3998

Pothole problem resolved

Link: http://www.boston.com/yourtown/newton/seeclickfix/

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5. http://www.malaysiacrime.com/

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FRESH IDEAS: EveryBlock: Hyperlocal news database

• Created by journalist-programmer Adrian Holovaty (chicagocrime.org), funded by Knight Foundation, bought by MSNBC

• Filters an assortment of local “news” by location

• Keeps track of what’s happening in your neighborhood, searchable via zipcodes – crimes, events, street closures, restaurant inspections, lost and found postings

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Experiments in new models• NewAssignment.net: Pro-am, open source

reporting projects with media partners. • Spot.us: Public commissions journalists to do

reporting on important and perhaps overlooked issues. Contributions are tax deductible and if a news organization buys exclusive rights to the content, the donation will be reimbursed.

• Explainthis.org: Ask and rate questions to which “reporters standing by” may have to investigate to answer well.

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• Yoosk.com: Public can ask key figures from local councils and gov’t depts questions, then rate their answers, fuelling further debate.

• HelpMeInvestigate.com: Start an investigation, invite other people to help you investigate it, collaborate and share answers.

• Growthspur.com: Offers tools, training, networks and other resources to hyperlocal and local media websites to help them make money and thrive.

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Case study: GroundReport• GroundReport is a global citizen

journalism platform• Enables anyone to publish news reports

and videos and earn a share of ad revenues.

• 4,000 international contributors report from the scene of world events to add local angles, on-the-ground insight.

• To establish trust, volunteer editors are deputized and rated via community feedback.

• Contributors retain rights to their work, and can choose from a range of Creative Commons licenses.

Rachel Sterne founder and CEO, GroundReport

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Case study: Ushahidi• Aggregates information

from the public via SMS/MMS/email and visualizes the data on a map or timeline

• Useful when real-time responses needed: eg crisis or disaster, flu outbreak, election watch.

• 1st used to map reports of violence in Kenya after the post-election fallout at the beginning of 2008; used by AlJazeera for War on Gaza in 2008-09; used in Indian election in 2009 for voter reports.