Huffington, NewAssignment.Net Plan Swarming Campaign Coverage
It's going to get even more crowded out there on the Presidential campaign trail. I'm not just talking about what would happen if Fred Thompson or Michael Bloomberg declares he's in the race.
No, Arianna Huffington is seeking to recruit -- not hire -- large groups of citizen journalists from around the country to cover the major presidential candidates. "Each volunteer reporter/blogger will contribute to a candidate-specific group blog -- offering written updates, campaign tidbits, on-the-scene observations, photos, or original video," she said.
Their coverage will be seen on HuffingtonPost.com as well as NewAssignment.Net, a journalism project being overseen by Jay Rosen of New York University's department of Journalism.
"Our volunteer reporters will aim to provide an authentic counter-narrative to the lockstep consensus we often get from the mainstream media," Huffington said, announcing the project.
Rosen expects as many as 40 or 50 people will track individual campaigns. The larger campaigns could have as many as 100 people. Their work will be reviewed by an editor to find "the best and most original stuff."
Despite my own, perhaps biased skepticism about amateurs, I think this is an exciting idea -- as long as it doesn't result in the antagonistic, candidate-baiting behavior we saw from bloggers in the Joe Lieberman primary campaign (Blog Wars).
People who want incredible depth of coverage, position papers, transcripts, audio, and video will be able to get it. The time pressures and space restrictions of broadcasting and print no longer matter. The Web is a bottomless pit, for better or worse.
It will be especially interesting to see how long these volunteers will stay on duty. If you've ever been on a campaign trail, you know how hectic and tiring -- and ultimately boring -- it can be to cover one candidate. Without a bi-weekly incentive, like a paycheck, it can be doubly challenging.
There will be some who have "stick-to-it-tiveness." Odds are a few of the passionate and hard working will get noticed and, what do you want to bet, get hired by, oh, say Politico.com? Huffington's recruits can think of this as something that is like the gauntlet Donald Trump lays out for "The Apprentice." The smart ones will figure it out, do good work, and succeed.
Newspaper editors confront identity challenge
People attending the American Society of Newspaper Editors conference in Washington this week may have to think about tweaking the section of their resumes where they list "Memberships."
The group's President thinks it is worth studying whether to drop the word "newspaper" from its name. ASNE president Dave Zeeck told the group its "very identity" must be considered.
"Do we work for newspaper companies or news companies?" he wondered. In a world where reporters write for online, do blogs, record podcasts, and deliver video stand-ups, "Does the single word 'newspaper' really define who we are?" He showed a new logo for the group which reads, "ASNE - Leading America's Newsrooms."
Judging from the program for the four-day conference, the Internet is clearly on the editors' minds. At least half a dozen panels are addressing what's called "the digital revolution."
The Web and Online will be front and center at Thursday morning's sessions when Interactive Corp.'s Barry Diller, the Washington Post Co.'s Donald Graham, and Huffington Post co-founders Arianna Huffington and Kenneth Lerer will be on a panel.
Too bad, despite all the talk about interactivity and online, the ASNE Web site does not have a blog, but the ASNE Reporter is doing good coverage of the conference's program.
Verizon into the TV News business in DC market
Verizon Communications will add "hyper local" news and information Friday to its fiber optic service in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. The company said FiOS1 will be "a whole new bree of TV channel."
About two months ago, Verizon announced it hired Michelle Webb, a former ABC News producer to oversee what would be its first "hyper local" channel, FiOS1. Verizon said it planned similar channels in its other markets.
Viewers will see "original features shot and produced by citizen journalists using high-definition camcorders and provide a platform for local user-generated content," the company said in January. The Associated Press reported today that programming will include traffic, weather, local news and coverage from the Capitol's CBS affiliate, WUSA-TV. FiOS1 may also carry local high school and college sports.
Partnering with WUSA makes sense, and will add credibility to the programming. The market's ABC affiliate, WJLA-TV, is owned by Albritton Communications which also owns NewsChannel 8, a 24/7 local news cable service.
Microsoft opened its kimono by blogging
A Microsoft Web site for uber-geeks went live in April 2004 and, according to Wired magazine, immediately it became clear: "The fears of lawyers, marketers, and PR consultants would, in fact be realized -- and it would be good for the company."
Thanks to the launch of Channel 9, featuring video interviews with company developers, Microsoft's reputation as a secretive and insular has been softened, the magazine said.
"The 71,000 employee company now has more than 4,500 bloggers posting on every imaginable tech topic," explained writer Fred Vogelstein. Some of them, like Mini-Microsoft, are anonymous, fearing reprisals from the bosses, while others like Larry Hryb are public and prolific.
Wired argues that the company's interest in Channel 9 and Microsoft's bloggers is to "reestablish Microsoft as a cool progressive enterprise that appeals to customers, investors, and top job prospects."
The company's relatively new Channel 10 video channel is very consumer focused and, in fact, has video this morning of the company's new XBox 360 Elite.
Headlines for Wednesday
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Sirius/XM
What a (SIRI) (XMSR) merger could mean for you. ()
Google's
An insider's look at (GOOG) radio ad service. ()
FCC testing Web access over-the-air. ()
By Frank Barnako