The Guardian, one of the UK's top broadsheet newspapers has on many occasions benefited from crowdsourcing. Whether it involved investigating the financial affairs of Prime Minister Tony Blair in the Blair Rich Project, getting readers involved in uncovering the scandal of MP's expeneses, and more recently taking the pulse of the country following the UK riots in August, the Guardian has turned to the wisdom of the crowd for that all important lead. In a bold step the Guardian now is considering the use of crowdsourcing to help determine certain aspects of editorial policy.
The initial plan is to launch an experimental scheme in which carefully selected portions of the the news lists featuring stories from all over the world to be posted on a daily blog. Readers can browse through the lists and then convey their ideas to the paper's reporters and editors via Twitter. There are a number of concerns, most notably stories of a sensitive nature and embargoed sources possibly being made available for public perusal. Obviously, we're not planning to list all our exclusives or embargoed content and we'll also have to be careful not to say anything legally sensitive or unsubstantiated - Dan Roberts, Guardian National News Editor
Inviting the crowd to help shape editorial content is a bold move by the Guardian yet one of the most frequent comments made in conversation relates to the content of news feed. Numerous times people have uttered or heard how the newspapers are either riddled bad news or sensationalist trash. Now the crowd has the opportunity to put their convictions into practice and to shape the news. The blog is due to launch on Monday 17th October 2011 and no doubt other news outlets will be monitoring the Guardian's efforts with interest.
Source Article; The DrumImage Credit; Michael Bruntonspall
The Tottenham riots in London, escalated following a peaceful protest over the shooting of Mark Duggan by armed police. Shops were set alight and looted, homes were destroyed, and many people were injured during the ensuing violence. As on the scene reports are posted on-line and on social networks, reasons as to why the riots broke out in the first place seemed unclear, shrouded in passionate outbursts, and speculation. The Guardian newspaper therefore launched a crowdsourcing survey of those who witnessed the riots, and Tottenham residents in the hopes of providing another dimension to the news reports.
The results of the survey, compiled by data journalist James Ball have been posted on the newspaper's DataBlog page. The survey was conducted alongside onsite reporters who interviewed witnesses, residents and even participants, all of whom were anonymously cited in the report. Views as to what started the riots have included police conduct, criminal and thuggish behaviour, yet a common concern seems to point to the socio economic situation in Tottenham. The level of poverty and disenfranchisement believed to have been amplified by poor employment opportunities are seen as the powder and Mark Duggan's shooting, the spark that lit the fuse.
Despite a call to communities to maintain calm, riots continue to break out (even as this article is being compiled) in various parts of London, including Peckham, Hackney and Lewisham. The Guardian has indicated that it would continue to examine the causes of the riots with a crowdsourced survey to take into account the latest outbreaks. You can read James Ball's report by clicking here.
Image Source; Michael Bruntonspall
