Crowdsourcing and Verification For Journalists

Mandy Jenkins @mjenkins#norcalsoc April 2012

Tap Into the Crowd

What is Crowdsourcing?

• When you call on your readers/followers to contribute to a story

• Calls for content, news tips and story sources

• Can be breaking or long-term• Involve a little or a lot of information

Before Crowdsourcing•Build engaged community (follow people, converse with them)•Build Twitter lists of key sources for breaking situations•Plan ahead when you can, have a plan for when you can’t•Include crowdsourcing in story-planning

During Breaking News• Open keyword searches • Monitor key Twitter lists• Have reporter or news org

start tweeting live to get and share info

Find Sources Fast

Ask for What You Want

Ask Permission for Photos

Breaking News Crowdsourcing•Say what you know•Say what you don’t know•Say what you want/need to know•Don’t spread rumors•Vet sources & information•Ask questions as you gather info•RT with context, note if it's verified

Search.Twitter.Com/advancedSearch by keywords, location, time

Search quickly - before the stream is taken over by reaction

When You Find Leads

• Connect with eyewitnesses, get contact info

• Have them wait for a reporter on scene

• Verify!

• Search venues on Foursquare.com• “Mayor” is great source for info

about a business or venue (employee or regular customer)

Crowdsourcing Everyday

Google Docs

•Gathering info using Forms

•Get results

•Results flow into a shareable spreadsheet

Crowdsourced map: Google Maps

Crowdmapping

Free, fast and reader-friendly

All Our Ideas

Feature Example - TBDNews Example - HuffPost

Ask Everywhere• Print callouts (Tell Us Your Story)• Social media promotion (reporter and

papers’ accounts)• Embeds into online stories• Word-of-mouth, IRL on the beat

Crowdsourcing Ideas• Ask for archival photos/stories from community anniversaries

• Is it raining/snowing/earthquaking near you?

• Build a source database for recurring themes (foreclosures, veterans, lost jobs, etc.)

Beware B.S.

Check the person's credibility• Check when account was created. • How frequent are updates?• Do they have a photo? • Do they have friends/followers? Do they

follow?• Check bio, links• Check Klout score• Google name and scam, spammer• Contact & interview

Follow up on the tip

• Ask for a phone number and call the person. 

• Ask if they witnessed first-hand or heard about it.

• Ask exactly what they witnessed, how they saw it and when.

• Ask who else may have the same info. 

Check credibility of the info• Check earlier tweets/updates: Anything leading up to the tip that makes sense?

• Do follow up tweets/updates make sense in context?

• Does it read authentically? Misspellings, bad grammar, typos can also be a sign of a real person.

• Corroborate the info

Evaluate your options

• How urgent is this information?

• How important is the tip to the overall story? Is there a story without it?

• Is it worth the risk if it is wrong?

B.S. Images

Photoshop Debunked by Reddit

East River Flooding! (Nope)

Scanned and tweeted photo from an older storm

Verifying Images• Check exif info: regex.info/exif.cgi 

• Check for edits to photos: errorlevelanalysis.com/

• Reference locations against maps and existing images from the area.

• Examine weather reports and shadows to confirm that the conditions shown fit with the claimed date and time.

• Check clothes/buildings/language/license plates/vehicles etc. to see if they support what the image claims to be.

Mandy Jenkinsmjenkins@digitalfirstmedia.com

@mjenkinsBlog: Zombiejournalism.com

These slides & more at slideshare.net/mandyjenkins

THANKS!