Print This Post Print This Post

Dec

20

More media get how to leverage citizen journalism


MTV got $700,000 from the Knight News Challenge for their effort:

As part of its quadrennial “Choose or Lose” youth voting initiative, MTV has announced a “Street Team” of 51 young amateur journalists, one from each state and the District of Columbia, who have been selected to cover the 2008 election and emphasize issues important to the younger generation.

[snip]

The citizen journalism project has been funded by a $700,000 grant from the John L. and James S. Knight Foundation’s Knight News Challenge. Each member of the team has been provided with mobile equipment–laptops, video cameras, mobile phones–and software provided by Adobe as part of the company’s Adobe Youth Voices philanthropy program.

[snip]

[Vice president of public affairs and strategic partnerships and MTV, Ian] Rowe explained that a passion for politics in general, not any particular affiliation, was the goal. “We’ve recruited a very diverse population,” he said. “Some are more ardently conservative, some are more ardently liberal, but they weren’t chosen for their political views. For all of them the goal is to produce objective reporting.”

Efforts will focus on not only traditional coverage of political primaries, but also how national issues play out locally in each state. Additionally, there will be a focus on the 18-35 demographic: how the election will affect young voters, issues of relevance to youth that are underreported by mainstream news, and how politics are shaped by new technology.

Readers benefit.  And those “amateurs” get a great experience, let’s hope.

Hattip to PJNet.org.

By Jill Miller Zimon at 10:22 pm December 20th, 2007 in Blogging, Campaigning, Elections, Media, Politics, Tools, WH2008 

Comments

Leave a Reply




"));