Chicago Tribune: “Taking Google News out for a test drive”
October 30, 2002
“It basically gives people a quick glance of what news sites around the world are determining are the top stories,” said Jonathan Dube, publisher of CyberJournalist.net, a site that explores the intersection of technology and media…. Many times, links refer to the same Reuters or Associated Press account posted by different sites. The sheer volume of links can make it harder to sort through and find a unique take, let alone the most interesting one. Dube said without the ability to sift out repeats, “right now, it’s just kind of a novelty.” … Dube said the search engine is more powerful than its competitors and probably the most useful part of the site.” — Raoul Mowatt
Behind the Scenes: Gotham Gazette
October 30, 2002
The Gotham Gazette, an independent Web news site about New York City, recently won the Online News Association’s award for Independent Service Journalism for an exhaustive package about Rebuilding NYC in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, including an interactive game where users could design their own vision of how to rebuild lower Manhattan. In an essay for CyberJournalist.net, Gotham Gazette Editor Jonathan Mandell describes how the tiny staff of Gotham Gazette put together this award-winning package. Continue reading…
‘Two Cents’ Worth a Lot
October 28, 2002
The San Francisco Chronicle has discovered a great way to use technology to improve reporting. The newspaper has a built a database, called Two Cents, that lists more than 1,600 residents of the nine Bay Area counties served by the Chronicle, including each person’s address, telephone number, photo, e-mail address, birthday, occupation, interests, hobbies and other facts. Chronicle reporters and editors used Two Cents to find sources for stories, reader reaction to news events and “man-on-the-street” opinions on everything from organ transplants to the Pledge of Allegiance. “You can search by anything,” said Heidi Swillinger, who created the database, “[whether] you want to talk to 20-year-olds, people who live in a certain town, or people named John.” How did the newspaper build this invaluable database? The newspaper recruits Two Cents sources using its Web site, http://www.sfgate.com.
The Bali Bombing, Sydney Morning Herald
October 24, 2002
Incredibly deep coverage of the October 2002 terrorist bombing on the Indonesian island resort of Bali. Includes in-depth reporting complemented by photo galleries, audio and video clips live from the scene, a Flash piece looking at eyewitness accounts and a gallery of touching reader tributes to the victims.
SEC to File Charges Against Stewart, WSJ.com
October 22, 2002
Kudos to The Wall Street Journal, which broke the news on the night of Oct. 21 on its Web site that “The Securities and Exchange Commission’s enforcement staff has informed Martha Stewart that it intends to recommend filing civil securities fraud charges against her in connection with her controversial sale of ImClone Systems. . .”
Pitfalls of Technology
October 21, 2002
When WashingtonPost.com posted a letter from the serial sniper in PDF form, it blocked out certain details, like the owner of a stolen credit card. But because it used Adobe Acrobat software to block it out, people with the software could remove the black marks and read even those details, according to Kurt Foss, editor of Planet PDF.
Documents on the Beltway Sniper, The Smoking Gun
October 20, 2002
The Smoking Gun was the first news organization to get its hands on an audio tape of sniper suspect John Allen Muhammad’s April 2001 appearance in Pierce County District Court to change his name from John Allen Williams. After the audio was posted on the Web site, CNN broadcast the clip, crediting The Smoking Gun. For those continuing to cover the case, the Web site also has one of the most comprehensive collections online of documents related to the case.
Top News Sites for October
October 20, 2002
Behind the Scenes: ‘Amtrak: All Aboard?’
October 17, 2002
The Christian Science Monitor’s ‘Amtrak: All Aboard?’ is a wonderful multimedia look at Amtrak’s troubles, incorporating audio, Weblogs and interactive maps. In an essay for CyberJournalist.net, News Producer Ben Arnoldy explains how csmonitor.com produced the package, which is a finalist for the Online Journalism Awards that will be announced this weekend. Continue reading…
September Net Traffic Numbers
October 16, 2002
The Nielsen//NetRatings top Current Events & Global News Sites numbers are out for September. The Associated Press, Belo and the Drudge Report dropped off the Top 20, while the Boston Globe, McClatchy Newspapers and the WorldNow network of local television sites joined the list. If you’re not familiar with WorldNow check it out — the company now has partnerships with 143 local television stations. Continue reading…