Crowdsourcing and Journalism Seth C. Lewis School of Journalism, UT-Austin [email_address]

Crowd-what? White Paper Version: Crowdsourcing is the act of taking a job traditionally performed by a designated agent (usually an employee) and outsourcing it to an undefined, generally large group of people in the form of an open call. Soundbyte Version: The application of Open Source principles to fields outside of software. Source: Jeff Howe

White Paper Version: Crowdsourcing is the act of taking a job traditionally performed by a designated agent (usually an employee) and outsourcing it to an undefined, generally large group of people in the form of an open call.

Soundbyte Version: The application of Open Source principles to fields outside of software.

Source: Jeff Howe

Crowdsourcing “trailer” ( online version )

Key principles The crowd is dispersed The crowd has a short attention span The crowd is full of specialists The crowd produces mostly crap The crowd finds the best stuff Source: “ The Rise of Crowdsourcing ,” by Jeff Howe (2006)

The crowd is dispersed

The crowd has a short attention span

The crowd is full of specialists

The crowd produces mostly crap

The crowd finds the best stuff

Source: “ The Rise of Crowdsourcing ,” by Jeff Howe (2006)

Crowdsourcing and Journalism

A spectrum of input From the simple … Reading documents (a la Dallas Morning News case) Sending in photos (of polling places, for instance) … To the more challenging … Researching and writing articles The point The collective efforts of non-specialists can add up to more than one expert individual Dan Gillmor: “my readers know more than I do”

From the simple …

Reading documents (a la Dallas Morning News case)

Sending in photos (of polling places, for instance)

… To the more challenging …

Researching and writing articles

The point

The collective efforts of non-specialists can add up to more than one expert individual

Dan Gillmor: “my readers know more than I do”

Crowdsourcing, in journalism , is the use of a large group of readers to report a news story. It differs from traditional reporting in that the information collected is gathered not manually, by a reporter or team of reporters, but through some automated agent , such as a website . Source: Robert Niles

Crowdsourcing, in journalism , is the use of a large group of readers to report a news story. It differs from traditional reporting in that the information collected is gathered not manually, by a reporter or team of reporters, but through some automated agent , such as a website .

Source: Robert Niles

How it works Lend us your eyes Help us gather data Submit your photos/videos The keys … Keep it simple Keep it directed Provide an easy, automated interface

Lend us your eyes

Help us gather data

Submit your photos/videos

The keys …

Keep it simple

Keep it directed

Provide an easy, automated interface

Lending Us Your Eyes Dallas Morning News and the JFK files “ Given the volume, we haven't been able to review most of the files. That's why were calling on you. Here's your chance to review never-seen-before materials related to the JFK assassination.” RocDocs “ We’re inviting you to help us be watchdogs” Work of TPM Muckraker (Hat tip: JP Digital Digest )

Dallas Morning News and the JFK files

“ Given the volume, we haven't been able to review most of the files. That's why were calling on you. Here's your chance to review never-seen-before materials related to the JFK assassination.”

RocDocs

“ We’re inviting you to help us be watchdogs”

Work of TPM Muckraker

(Hat tip: JP Digital Digest )

Gathering ‘everyday’ info WNYC “ Are you being gouged ?” Gas-guzzlers on the street GasBuddy Problems at polling stations in Cincy ?

WNYC

“ Are you being gouged ?”

Gas-guzzlers on the street

GasBuddy

Problems at polling stations in Cincy ?

And more Full articles written by users … Example: NowPublic … or edited by users Example: Wikinews Beyond journalism Google Image Labeler Amazon Mechanical Turk

Full articles written by users …

Example: NowPublic

… or edited by users

Example: Wikinews

Beyond journalism

Google Image Labeler

Amazon Mechanical Turk

Like citizen journalism, but … … crowdsourcing is easier Users are given bite-sized tasks to accomplish Time commitment can be small Unlike more traditional notions of “citizen journalism,” crowdsourcing does not ask readers to become anything more than what they’ve always been: eyewitnesses to their daily lives .

… crowdsourcing is easier

Users are given bite-sized tasks to accomplish

Time commitment can be small

Unlike more traditional notions of “citizen journalism,” crowdsourcing does not ask readers to become anything more than what they’ve always been: eyewitnesses to their daily lives .

Is crowdsourcing the future? “The failure of one citizen journalism Web business after another this year ought to be showing news publishers that a business model based on readers doing reporters’ jobs for free isn’t working.” ( Robert Niles ) But be warned … Open-source journalism is tough You have get the division of labor just right

“The failure of one citizen journalism Web business after another this year ought to be showing news publishers that a business model based on readers doing reporters’ jobs for free isn’t working.” ( Robert Niles )

But be warned …

Open-source journalism is tough

You have get the division of labor just right