Do you have a sharp red pencil & a passion for 'news applications' ?
Phillip Smith
Howdy folks,
If you have an interest in 'news apps' -- or experience developing, or dreaming about them -- I could really use your help to refine the final copy for "The Open Web's Killer App" challenge that will launch on May 23rd.
I've taken a shot at clarifying the intent of the challenge here:
http://etherpad.mozilla.com:9000/MoJo-News-Apps-Challenge
Would you mind taking a look and letting me know:
1. Do you 'get it' at a gut level? Is the scope of the challenge both broad and specific enough for you to see a possible solution?
2. Do you have better examples of existing traditional 'news apps,' new news 'web apps,' or HTML5 capabilities put to use toward news delivery? If so, could you add them to the bullet points in the document linked above?
Last but not least, if you're working on a new news app -- one that aggressively uses the building blocks of the open web -- and would be open to letting me interview you about it on Skype (your aspirations, frustrations, etc.), I would be grateful for the opportunity to highlight your story in a blog post. If that interests you, please shoot me a quick note off-list with a few dates and times that work for you.
Many thanks in advance,
Phillip.
--
Phillip Smith
http://phillipadsmith.com
http://twitter.com/phillipadsmith
http://linkedin.com/in/phillipadsmith
Carrie Oviatt
"Have a look at HTML5 demos from AP (http://html5.labs.ap.org/) and NYTimes (http://www.nytimes.com/chrome/)"
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Esteban Contreras
> links not accessible to general public?:
> "Have a look at HTML5 demos from AP (http://html5.labs.ap.org/) and
> NYTimes (http://www.nytimes.com/chrome/)"
>
Nice!
Wray Cummings
FTA: "HTML5 presents an opportunity to create entirely new ways of
interacting with journalism."
and: "HTML5 is being developed specifically to address these limitations,
and to enable true 'web applications,' applications that are both *on* the
web, and *of* the web."
Don't want to get all pedantic and stuff but "HTML5" in this context is the
visible piece of a bigger structure that includes CSS and JavaScript.
Together, these components (perhaps the "HTML5 stack"??) open a universe of
client-based possibility. Sure, as we figure out how to implement and use
<canvas>, local storage, local database, etc, our devices should appear to
get smarter. In the meantime CSS3 is here, now (for 80% of the main browsers
anyway). And CSS3 is *very* useful.
--
Wray Cummings
402.419.3889
Carrie Oviatt
Scott Klein
I'm not sure I understand the challenge. Is the end-product an individual piece of journalism like Mapping LA or Dollars for Docs, or an innovative story collection like the Times chrome app? I think they're quite different.
/s
________________________________________
From: community-mojo-bounces+scott.klein=propubl...@lists.mozilla.org [community-mojo-bounces+scott.klein=propubl...@lists.mozilla.org] On Behalf Of Phillip Smith [p...@phillipadsmith.com]
Sent: Monday, May 16, 2011 6:55 PM
To: Discuss the Knight-Mozilla News Technology Partnership
Subject: [mojo] Do you have a sharp red pencil & a passion for 'news applications' ?
Howdy folks,
If you have an interest in 'news apps' -- or experience developing, or dreaming about them -- I could really use your help to refine the final copy for "The Open Web's Killer App" challenge that will launch on May 23rd.
I've taken a shot at clarifying the intent of the challenge here:
http://etherpad.mozilla.com:9000/MoJo-News-Apps-Challenge
Would you mind taking a look and letting me know:
1. Do you 'get it' at a gut level? Is the scope of the challenge both broad and specific enough for you to see a possible solution?
2. Do you have better examples of existing traditional 'news apps,' new news 'web apps,' or HTML5 capabilities put to use toward news delivery? If so, could you add them to the bullet points in the document linked above?
Last but not least, if you're working on a new news app -- one that aggressively uses the building blocks of the open web -- and would be open to letting me interview you about it on Skype (your aspirations, frustrations, etc.), I would be grateful for the opportunity to highlight your story in a blog post. If that interests you, please shoot me a quick note off-list with a few dates and times that work for you.
Many thanks in advance,
Phillip.
--
Phillip Smith
http://phillipadsmith.com
http://twitter.com/phillipadsmith
http://linkedin.com/in/phillipadsmith
_______________________________________________
Nicholas Doiron
1) The challenge seems to be of two minds - one is making a news app which
is open, and one is creating an HTML5-centric app. There's plenty of
cross-over, sure, but what about interactive and open web platforms - such
as OpenStreetMap - that don't revolve around <video> and WebGL?
2) This paragraph is critical of maps and information mash-ups:
--->"News organizations are actively creating interactive tools, web and
mobile applications, and information visualizations that combine reporting
and data. But most of these news applications and tools -- like ProPublica's
"Dollars for Docs" or the LA Times' "Mapping LA" projects -- are confined to
a single web site or page, and a single platform or device"
Based on its placement in the problem statement, it implies that maps and
mash-ups (a) don't use HTML5, (b) do not work on mobile and tablet devices,
and (c) should be replaced by HTML5 web apps, which are webpages that can be
viewed on all devices. That interpretation doesn't make sense to me, but I
can't figure out what else it could mean.
3) The challenge asks us to make a page for all platforms
(browser/client-side). Then it compares the ideal app to Yelp, which is
more of a social network or API (server-side, and not HTML5).
4) The challenges are all very open and inspiring, and are based on real
products and progress by open web developers, but the barrier for submitting
an idea is too low. As a result, many submissions are not related to HTML5,
not possible technically, or not usable by news organizations. On a site
like Quora I could find useful answers based on people's qualifications,
interesting diagrams, or links to examples, but on the existing site each
submission looks like a run-on sentence. Please fix this so we can see more
of the well-supported ideas.
Regards,
Nick Doiron
Ian Hill
- Enable more coherent, elevated discussion
- Improve the signal-to-noise ratio in public news commentary
To be successful you're going to need to explain to people like me, and people a lot less tech-saavy then me, how your product accomplishes those goals.
Just something to keep in mind.
__________________________________
Ian Hill
Community engagement specialist
KQEDnews.org<http://www.kqednews.org/>
Phone: (415) 553-2216
Follow KQED on Facebook<http://Facebook.com/KQEDPublicMedia> and Twitter<http://twitter.com/#%21/kqed>
Share your knowledge and become a KQED News source by joining the Public Insight Network<http://www.kqed.org/news/publicinsight.jsp>
ih...@kqed.org
______________________________
*Sent from my iPhone. Please excuse any typos.
Mark Surman
bigger as Wray says.
Flipside, HTML5 is actually a useful marketing buzzword to catch
developer attention as long as you caveat / contexualize.
On 11-05-16 10:19 PM, Wray Cummings wrote:
> Hey Phillip,
>
> FTA: "HTML5 presents an opportunity to create entirely new ways of
> interacting with journalism."
>
> and: "HTML5 is being developed specifically to address these limitations,
> and to enable true 'web applications,' applications that are both *on* the
> web, and *of* the web."
>
> Don't want to get all pedantic and stuff but "HTML5" in this context is the
> visible piece of a bigger structure that includes CSS and JavaScript.
> Together, these components (perhaps the "HTML5 stack"??) open a universe of
> client-based possibility. Sure, as we figure out how to implement and use
> <canvas>, local storage, local database, etc, our devices should appear to
> get smarter. In the meantime CSS3 is here, now (for 80% of the main browsers
> anyway). And CSS3 is *very* useful.
>
>> _______________________________________________
>> community-mojo mailing list
>> communi...@lists.mozilla.org
>> https://lists.mozilla.org/listinfo/community-mojo
>>
>
>
>
--
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Executive Director
Mozilla Foundation
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commonspace.wordpress.com
Scott Klein
presentation, they're pieces of journalism. The description ought to talk
about gathering and analyzing data and reporting, etc.
/s
--
Scott Klein
Editor of News Applications
ProPublica <http://www.propublica.org/>
office: 917 512-0205
twitter: @kleinmatic
>On Mon, May 16, 2011 at 7:55 PM, Phillip Smith
Jonathan Eyler-Werve
They are costs, office politics, training, legal barriers, documentation
and other boring stuff.
Perhaps that's out of scope for this effort. But I'd like to see solutions
that reflect those realities - posting code to sourceforge does not finish
the job.
Perhaps asking participants to clearly describe the journalist end user (by
name!) and their pain points would help promote this thinking?
For context I just talked with some very smart people who do not use
spreadsheets when analysing reporting data because they don't know how.
Everything on a word doc.
On May 17, 2011 9:37 AM, "Scott Klein" <Scott...@propublica.org> wrote:
I share Nick's concerns. I'd also add that news apps are not just about
presentation, they're pieces of journalism. The description ought to talk
about gathering and analyzing data and reporting, etc.
/s
--
Scott Klein
Editor of News Applications
ProPublica <http://www.propublica.org/>
office: 917 512-0205
twitter: @kleinmatic
On 5/17/11 12:29 AM, "Nicholas Doiron" <ndo...@mapmeld.com> wrote:
>I'm a programmer and ...
Jonathan Eyler-Werve
http://getindaba.com
Jonathan
Phillip Smith
Many thanks to those that responded. I greatly appreciate your feedback toward getting the language of the 'news app' challenge right. Some quick responses are below:
On 2011-05-17, at 7:57 AM, Mark Surman wrote:
> Flipside, HTML5 is actually a useful marketing buzzword to catch developer attention as long as you caveat / contexualize.
I think that Mark's comment represents the essence of what we're trying to focus on for the challenge thus far: HTML5 the term is quickly becoming a generic umbrella for several technologies, e.g., Web Apps 1.0, CSS3, new JavaScript APIs, etc.
When you take a look at the "HTML5" demos from Google[1], Apple[2], or Mozilla[2], they each present more than just the new semantics and Web forms in the HTML5 spec.
[1] http://slides.html5rocks.com/
[2] http://www.apple.com/html5/
[3] https://demos.mozilla.org/
That said, I think the point is that we need to make this clearer. :)
On 2011-05-16, at 10:19 PM, Wray Cummings wrote:
> Hey Phillip,
>
> FTA: "HTML5 presents an opportunity to create entirely new ways of
> interacting with journalism."
>
> and: "HTML5 is being developed specifically to address these limitations,
> and to enable true 'web applications,' applications that are both *on* the
> web, and *of* the web."
>
> Don't want to get all pedantic and stuff but "HTML5" in this context is the
> visible piece of a bigger structure that includes CSS and JavaScript.
> Together, these components (perhaps the "HTML5 stack"??) open a universe of
> client-based possibility. Sure, as we figure out how to implement and use
> <canvas>, local storage, local database, etc, our devices should appear to
> get smarter. In the meantime CSS3 is here, now (for 80% of the main browsers
> anyway). And CSS3 is *very* useful.
"HTML5 stack" works for me. :)
On 2011-05-16, at 11:29 PM, Scott Klein wrote:
> Philip,
>
> I'm not sure I understand the challenge. Is the end-product an individual piece of journalism like Mapping LA or Dollars for Docs, or an innovative story collection like the Times chrome app? I think they're quite different.
Hi Scott,
You're right, of course, they are completely different. What I was hoping to evoke was a combination of the two, e.g.: What if Dollars for Docs was 'explorable' in the same way that the AP demo is? What if the Mapping LA project was presented as a Yelp-like experience on appropriate devices?
The challenge is not a journalistic challenge, to be clear, it's a technical one. Basically, the questions to ask yourself are:
+ If news app developers had unlimited time and resources, what would news apps look like?
+ Could that same journalistic content be experienced differently on different devices, in different locations, or based on when it was being viewed?
+ What is the experience like when news apps can run directly in the browser as a stand-alone application?
On 2011-05-17, at 12:29 AM, Nicholas Doiron wrote:
> I'm a programmer and I work with maps, so I'm approaching it from that bias.
>
> 1) The challenge seems to be of two minds - one is making a news app which
> is open, and one is creating an HTML5-centric app. There's plenty of
> cross-over, sure, but what about interactive and open web platforms - such
> as OpenStreetMap - that don't revolve around <video> and WebGL?
Hi Nicholas,
You're right. The challenge should make it clear that we're talking about all 'open web' technologies, not just HTML, JS, and CSS.
> 2) This paragraph is critical of maps and information mash-ups:
>
> --->"News organizations are actively creating interactive tools, web and
> mobile applications, and information visualizations that combine reporting
> and data. But most of these news applications and tools -- like ProPublica's
> "Dollars for Docs" or the LA Times' "Mapping LA" projects -- are confined to
> a single web site or page, and a single platform or device"
It's not meant to be *critical* at all, in fact. I'm using those two examples because I think they're *exemplary* of the current state-of-the-art in news apps. But, in re-reading it, I see how it could be seen as critical... the point is, however, that these examples are "limited" in that they can only be experienced 'as is' -- the same no matter what device I'm on, where I am, what type of viewer I've indicated I am, etc.
> Based on its placement in the problem statement, it implies that maps and
> mash-ups (a) don't use HTML5, (b) do not work on mobile and tablet devices,
> and (c) should be replaced by HTML5 web apps, which are webpages that can be
> viewed on all devices. That interpretation doesn't make sense to me, but I
> can't figure out what else it could mean.
Sorry for the confusion here. Maps and and mash-ups are big part of what we're asking people to think about in this challenge.
> 3) The challenge asks us to make a page for all platforms
> (browser/client-side). Then it compares the ideal app to Yelp, which is
> more of a social network or API (server-side, and not HTML5).
Not meant as a *technical* comparison, but a _conceptual_ one: e.g., What Yelp is to location, [Your idea here] is to news.
Many thanks for the feedback. Please keep the comments, edits, and examples coming -- either here, or on the Etherpad:
http://etherpad.mozilla.com:9000/MoJo-News-Apps-Challenge
Phillip Smith
On 2011-05-17, at 10:36 AM, Scott Klein wrote:
> I share Nick's concerns. I'd also add that news apps are not just about
> presentation, they're pieces of journalism. The description ought to talk
> about gathering and analyzing data and reporting, etc.
Hey there Mr. Scott,
I hear what you're saying, but -- and correct me if you think this is way off -- my gut says that 'gathering and analyzing data and reporting' would be stronger as a separate challenge.
When I was yammering-on about possible challenges last month (http://ps.ht/fbDhZ3 ), I discussed challenge ideas that focused specifically on 'Reporting news' (See: http://ps.ht/g59af5 ) -- ideas like working with data, working with sources, and so on. I'm still keen to get input on these ideas, as they will likely become part of the challenges that are run in early 2012.
Specifically, what this news applications challenge is seeking to do is to push the boundaries of the *presentation* of this new form of journalism that is being referred to as 'news apps.'
I think this is a particularly interesting challenge specifically because the field is relatively new and evolving so rapidly.
The outcome of the challenge would probably look more like Pro Publica's TimelineSetter (http://propublica.github.com/timeline-setter/) than Dollars for Docs.
Does that help to clarify the intent a bit? If so, what changes would you make to the copy in that light?
Many thanks for your comments, as always. :)
Nicholas Doiron
In the description you're setting the scene (current news info projects, the
HTML5 demos, the successful information hubs like Yelp) and asking how news
will fit into this new media space. Sounds like these projects will be
emblematic of the whole Knight-Mozilla partnership.
If you could emphasize in the description what you've said here, that the
task is about presenting stories and information across users' devices, that
would make it easier to start coming up with ideas.
--
Nick
> Phillip.
>
> --
> Phillip Smith
> http://phillipadsmith.com
> http://twitter.com/phillipadsmith
> http://linkedin.com/in/phillipadsmith
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
Phillip Smith
On 2011-05-17, at 10:59 AM, Jonathan Eyler-Werve wrote:
Hi Jonathan,
> Most of the barriers to technology adoption in newsroom are not engineering.
> They are costs, office politics, training, legal barriers, documentation
> and other boring stuff.
Indeed, that has been a key message that I have heard over the last few months. :)
Some thinking has been done with our colleagues at The Guardian to engage these barriers head-on:
http://www.pbs.org/idealab/2011/03/fresh-from-sxswi-6-ways-to-integrate-hacking-in-newsrooms075.html
... and, as we get closer to the time when the fellows will depart for their respective newsrooms, we'll be circling back to this question in more detail.
> Perhaps that's out of scope for this effort. But I'd like to see solutions
> that reflect those realities - posting code to sourceforge does not finish
> the job.
*Cough*GitHub*Cough*
It does not "finish the job," but it *does* at least make it possible for _other people_ to finish the job.
Just one example from Mozilla's recent history:
+ Processing (http://processing.org/) is a magnificent visualization language, but it's not very Web-friendly.
+ John Resig -- one of our upcoming learning lab lecturers, I should mention! :) -- decided to start porting the language to JavaScript (http://ejohn.org/blog/processingjs/) and to release it on Github (http://github.com/jeresig/processing-js/tree/master).
+ But John's a busy guy, so it would be unfortunate if the continued development of the language rested entirely on his shoulders.
+ Thus, when Mozilla started working with a local college here in Toronto, one of the projects that students worked on was the continued development of Processing.js (http://www.senecac.on.ca/media/2010/2010-12-15.html?page=1).
+ That work resulted in the recent release of Processing.js 1.0 (http://processingjs.org/blog/?p=250).
That's co-creation and peer-based innovation in action. :)
Phillip Smith
This is super-helpful feedback, Nick. Many, many thanks. :)
>> --
>> Phillip Smith
>> http://phillipadsmith.com
>> http://twitter.com/phillipadsmith
>> http://linkedin.com/in/phillipadsmith
>>
>>
>>
>>
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Erin Polgreen
have a support component--i.e. how can this product or tool be easily
integrated by a news organization? What are the entry points? Where does
education need to happen? I love that github exists, but how can we empower
newsrooms to actually implement and get forking?
Best,
E
On Tue, May 17, 2011 at 9:59 AM, Jonathan Eyler-Werve <
jonathan.e...@globalintegrity.org> wrote:
> Most of the barriers to technology adoption in newsroom are not
> engineering.
> They are costs, office politics, training, legal barriers, documentation
> and other boring stuff.
>
> Perhaps that's out of scope for this effort. But I'd like to see solutions
> that reflect those realities - posting code to sourceforge does not finish
> the job.
>
> Perhaps asking participants to clearly describe the journalist end user (by
> name!) and their pain points would help promote this thinking?
>
> For context I just talked with some very smart people who do not use
> spreadsheets when analysing reporting data because they don't know how.
> Everything on a word doc.
>
> On May 17, 2011 9:37 AM, "Scott Klein" <Scott...@propublica.org> wrote:
> I share Nick's concerns. I'd also add that news apps are not just about
> presentation, they're pieces of journalism. The description ought to talk
> about gathering and analyzing data and reporting, etc.
>
> /s
>
>
> --
> Scott Klein
>
> Editor of News Applications
> ProPublica <http://www.propublica.org/>
> office: 917 512-0205
> twitter: @kleinmatic
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On 5/17/11 12:29 AM, "Nicholas Doiron" <ndo...@mapmeld.com> wrote:
>
> >I'm a programmer and ...
> _______________________________________________
> community-mojo mailing list
> communi...@lists.mozilla.org
> https://lists.mozilla.org/listinfo/community-mojo
>
--
Erin Polgreen
Managing Director, The Media Consortium
@tmcmedia <http://twitter.com/tmcmedia> /
@erinpolgreen<http://twitter.com/erinpolgreen>
312.841.0553
Scott Klein
One way you might want to evolve this idea, if there's time: How about apps that "hack the core" in Matt Waite's sense<http://www.niemanlab.org/2011/03/matt-waite-to-build-a-digital-future-for-news-developers-have-to-be-able-to-hack-at-the-core-of-the-old-ways/>, by which I mean ones that rethink the story production process and make news stories themselves more useful and more of the web:
Imagine a crime story that had each location in the crime story stored, providing readers with maps that show not just where the crime happened, but crime rates in those areas over time and recent similar crimes, automatically generated for every crime story that gets written. A crime story that automatically grabs the arrest report or jail record for the accused and pulls it up, automatically following that arrestee and updating the mugshot with their jail status, court status, or adjudication without the reporter having to do anything. Then step back to a page that shows all crime stories and all crime data in your neighborhood or your city. The complete integration of oceans of crime data to the work of journalists, both going on every day without any real connection to each other. Rely on the journalists to tell the story, rely on the data to connect it all together in ways that users will find compelling, interesting, and educational.
Now take that same concept and apply it to politics. Or sports. Or restaurant reviews. Any section of the paper. Obits, wedding announcements, you name it.
I realize we're a little close to the deadline here so this might not be possible. But it's a thought.
Cheers
Scott
--
Scott Klein
Editor of News Applications
ProPublica <http://www.propublica.org/>
office: 917 512-0205
twitter: @kleinmatic
On 5/17/11 12:12 PM, "Phillip Smith" <p...@phillipadsmith.com<mailto:p...@phillipadsmith.com>> wrote:
On 2011-05-17, at 10:36 AM, Scott Klein wrote:
I share Nick's concerns. I'd also add that news apps are not just about
presentation, they're pieces of journalism. The description ought to
talk
about gathering and analyzing data and reporting, etc.
Hey there Mr. Scott,
I hear what you're saying, but -- and correct me if you think this is way
off -- my gut says that 'gathering and analyzing data and reporting'
would be stronger as a separate challenge.
When I was yammering-on about possible challenges last month
(http://ps.ht/fbDhZ3 ), I discussed challenge ideas that focused
specifically on 'Reporting news' (See: http://ps.ht/g59af5 ) -- ideas
like working with data, working with sources, and so on. I'm still keen
to get input on these ideas, as they will likely become part of the
challenges that are run in early 2012.
Specifically, what this news applications challenge is seeking to do is
to push the boundaries of the *presentation* of this new form of
journalism that is being referred to as 'news apps.'
I think this is a particularly interesting challenge specifically because
the field is relatively new and evolving so rapidly.
The outcome of the challenge would probably look more like Pro Publica's
TimelineSetter (http://propublica.github.com/timeline-setter/) than
Dollars for Docs.
Does that help to clarify the intent a bit? If so, what changes would you
make to the copy in that light?
Many thanks for your comments, as always. :)
Phillip.
--
Phillip Smith
http://phillipadsmith.com
http://twitter.com/phillipadsmith
http://linkedin.com/in/phillipadsmith
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Daniel Bachhuber
http://stdout.be/2010/04/22/we-are-in-the-information-business/
When I first heard about the challenge from Phillip, this is what immediately came to mind. It's 10% actual technology though, and 90% getting the workflow/organization/culture to adopt it.
Just two cents,
Daniel
Matthew Terenzio
make it queryable via API and machine readable via microformat and semantic
markup.
Stories get built with those atoms and automatically pull in related data to
fill out the picture.
Hope I'm not getting off topic.
Chase Davis
The challenge description talks about using emerging technologies to create
"applications that are both on the web, and of the web." As it is now, most
news apps are "on" the web. They function as discrete units of content, not
unlike stories, graphics, photos, etc. For better or worse, that's the
outgrowth of an old-school news production process that divvies things up by
content type. I think in an ideal world, we'd do exactly what Scott and
Daniel mentioned: Blow up those old boxes, realize we're in the information
business, and start structuring content in a way that makes more sense.
Obviously culture doesn't change overnight, so the nice thing about news
apps is that they function like little sandboxes. Most of the time, apps
operate outside of an organization's CMS and often run on their own
infrastructure. That makes it much easier to innovate and prove concepts in
small scale without having to worry about stepping over kludgy legacy
infrastructure or waging war against decade of established newsroom culture.
I call it the Mythbusters Method: Start in the small scale, use that to
justify full-scale, then ramp it up to overkill.
I think where this challenge could be hugely helpful is in demonstrating
real-life examples of the approach Scott and Daniel mentioned. Build a
portable crime app that tackles not just a cool HTML5/Node.js/whatever
interface, but also data entry and standardization -- then productize and
market it to small newspapers that still send their reporters to the cop
shop to jot down blotter entries everyday. Do the same with sports, or
elections, or whatever. Point being, I think it would be helpful to cover
the whole production process, from information gathering to display, if the
goal is to push newsrooms toward a smarter approach.
Just a thought,
Chase
--
Chase Davis
Director of Technology
Center for Investigative Reporting
Phone: 916-674-2482
E-mail: cda...@cironline.org
--
Chase Davis
Reporter
California Watch
Center for Investigative Reporting
Phone: 916-674-2482
E-mail: cda...@californiawatch.org
Rhiannon Coppin
There's a whole data collection / data entry / data sharing / data archiving
side of things that never really gets discussed, but is really at the heart
of making sustainable, truly useful (and even profitable) systems for this
'new' type of news.
Rhiannon Coppin
@rhiannoncoppin
Vancouver, B.C.
Phillip Smith
On 2011-05-17, at 2:55 PM, Scott Klein wrote:
> Imagine a crime story that had each location in the crime story stored, providing readers with maps that show not just where the crime happened, but crime rates in those areas over time and recent similar crimes, automatically generated for every crime story that gets written. A crime story that automatically grabs the arrest report or jail record for the accused and pulls it up, automatically following that arrestee and updating the mugshot with their jail status, court status, or adjudication without the reporter having to do anything. Then step back to a page that shows all crime stories and all crime data in your neighborhood or your city. The complete integration of oceans of crime data to the work of journalists, both going on every day without any real connection to each other. Rely on the journalists to tell the story, rely on the data to connect it all together in ways that users will find compelling, interesting, and educational.
>
> Now take that same concept and apply it to politics. Or sports. Or restaurant reviews. Any section of the paper. Obits, wedding announcements, you name it.
This is great. Very helpful to hear ideas expressed in this level of practical detail.
Phillip Smith
On 2011-05-17, at 3:03 PM, Daniel Bachhuber wrote:
> Following up on Scott's points, I've always thought Stijn's piece accurately summarizes the billion dollar opportunity:
>
> http://stdout.be/2010/04/22/we-are-in-the-information-business/
>
> When I first heard about the challenge from Phillip, this is what immediately came to mind. It's 10% actual technology though, and 90% getting the workflow/organization/culture to adopt it.
That's a curious take on Stijn's piece, IMHO.
Stijn says: "But we’re forgetting the most important point at issue: what should a news website look like in 2010 and beyond? The fundamentals of website design and information architecture somehow lack appeal as a topic for debate among journos."
When I read that piece in the context of this thread, I thought it drove to the core of what this third challenge is all about: How would you use the web to dramatically improve how we make & share news.
Stijn's piece goes on to say "That technology should reach right into the core of our journalistic endeavors, not just touch the periphery like yet another infographic or mashup" and "The news industry needs to start thinking about journalism in terms of information and the myriad ways in which we can present that information to our readers."
Yet, I hear a persistent hum from those working in newsrooms and those on this list of of "workflow, CMS, workflow, CMS!"
**Is that not thinking about re-tooling the printing press vs. re-tooling the system of news itself?**
What Mozilla brings to the table here is expertise in open culture, peer-based co-production, and -- most importantly -- *consumer* Internet experiences. Mozilla doesn't build corporate content-management systems, or corporate IT solutions -- they have little expertise to offer there. Mozilla focuses on those point where the Internet and people come together. That's where these news innovation challenges aim to land as well: the place where news & people come together on the Internet.
And herein lies one of the big tensions: Many news organizations are _still_ thinking about innovation (as pointed out frequently on this list) through the lens of corporate IT.
There needs to be a radical shift toward thinking about news as a problem of creating successful consumer Internet experience vs. filling column inches or news holes, press deadlines, and delivery trucks. That is where the innovation and potential lies, I would propose, not in a re-arrangement of the chairs on the deck of the corporate IT Titanic inside of news organizations.
"Innovation should be aimed at the heart of what we do. Innovation should allow us to do exciting things with everyday news. Innovation should be all-encompassing. " http://stdout.be/2010/04/22/we-are-in-the-information-business/
Two cents,
Phillip.
Jonathan Eyler-Werve
not enough.
For the purposes of this contest, I think many of these issues can be
addressed by* requiring developers to talk to the end users *before they
start writing code. Ask the applicants these questions:
*
What problem are you solving?
Who has this problem?
What kind of research have you done to understand this problem**? (ie, who
have you talked to; did you visit them on site?; have you recruited
potential users into your team?)*
I think that will create better software, and perhaps even build community
in the process.
This idea is as old as the Cluetrain Manifesto, but I don't see a lot of
attention to users in these contests. It's so top-down. It's all about the
data and the tech stack. I think talking to people will lead to adoptable
solutions. Ignoring them will lead to kickass demos being posted to Github,
and then not being adopted. We can do better.
Cheers,
Jonathan
**
Jonathan Eyler-Werve // Director of Technology and Innovation //
www.globalintegrity.org
*
GLOBAL INTEGRITY*: Independent Information on Governance and Corruption
Direct: +1-202-449-8123 // Office: +1-202-449-4100 // Fax: +1-866-681-8047
Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/globalintegrity
Matthew Terenzio
of these ideas about creating tools for news creators, not site end-users.
Journalists will need to be very technical for some time to come, or at
least have someone on their team that is. At least it seems to me that it
will be some time before a Journalist can create some of these end-products
in the way that they create a page with InDesign. I could be wrong, or
misunderstanding.
Jonathan Eyler-Werve
journalists/creators (defined broadly as people creating news content or
news-sharing venues), not the readers (people consuming information). We're
making tools for better story telling; we should talk to the storyteller and
ask what they need.
Daniel Chaffey
around an article, rather that something which addresses a journalism
lifecycle where public discussion is an integral part of the work - to me
this seems to be what you're saying.
But I see a slightly larger issue, in that you need three main reasons for
adoption
1. Institutional Benefit, both financial and externally / politically
2. Staff benefit for the editors and journalists
3. Public benefit
The most useful thing I could hear from a Journalist, when it comes to my
research on this topic, would be what the financial drivers were when they
last changed systems.
Is it advertising revenue? Harvesting user data through Facebook
integration? Analytics being channelled for marketing dollars? Lower support
costs?
After that I'll listen to points on public interaction features they'd like
to see, which as you rightly say, should definitely be a consideration. But
as I understand it this is what the internship section of the program is
intended to produce?
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Jonathan Eyler-Werve <jonathan.e...@globalintegrity.org>
Date: Wed, May 18, 2011 at 9:21 PM
Subject: Re: [mojo] Do you have a sharp red pencil & a passion for 'news
applications' ?
To: Discuss the Knight-Mozilla News Technology Partnership <