DU 'ground reporters' and 'online editors' needed? An Idea.

[kansasblue]

An Idea:

There are events happening world wide. Whether they are disasters, press events or protests, DU follows many of them closely. Because of the size of DU most times there is a DU member at or near the event.

Recently DU was following the Rep Conyers DSM hearing. I've been at events like the DSM Rally and I have camera phone. I've text-ed friends with updates on the events, sent pictures or spoke to them about what's going on.

There are 70,000 DU members. There are most likely
DUers at every major event that happens in the country
and at many around the world. If someone wanted to update DU they need to rush off to try and post some info to DU. Most of the time DU is forced to reference other sites.

Let's harness the power of DU. How would you like to be a DU Reporter? DU could then be the site with the info. Let's discuss the idea of adding a phone interface to the DU. An easy way for DUers on the ground to send text messages, pics or even leave voice messages or talk directly to other DUers such as moderators or DUers volunteers who could quickly post to the site.

1) DUers could receive text messages from DUers on the
ground and then post the updates to the site

2) Email address could be set up in advance and loaded
into phones for DUers on the ground to send camera phone pics to real time.

3) DUers could volunteer to work with a person on the ground to take voice info and post it to the site.

70,000 reporters world wide. Nearly every event covered from the DU point of view.

Imagine in the future: What's happening? Check DU! They have people on the scene! And events ignored by MSM now covered. DU is onsite.

We just need some administration behind this idea and DU would be the place to be for all cutting news of every event. We'd need database of volunteers or a thread to hook up a 'reporter' with and 'online editor'. Maybe some kind of schedule, event tracker, DU based email addresses for photos to be sent to, viewed, reviewed, posted, etc.

I've mentioned this to Skinner. He's asked me to run it by DU.
What do you all think?

Update: Maybe you all could respond noting if you are interested in being one of those reporters or someone who would be available online to be editors.

[ewagner]

1. I think it's a great idea

probably need a separate forum for it but I think it's a great idea that should be pursued.....

[Sydnie]

2. Sounds good to me n/t

[jokerman93]

3. This idea's time has come

I'm fully behind this and want to support/participate in any way possible. I'm a technical writer/illustrator living in Silicon Valley (San Francisco Bay Area). Have a degree in English and a black belt in dissent. ;-)

Sign me up.

[jasmeel]

4. Grassroots reporting. If this caught on it could really make the

corporate media obsolete.

[SoCalDem]

5. Why not.. It worked for Jeff Gannon

Skinner should be able to get Day Passes..He's in DC :)

But is he williing to "buff-up, shave his head, and offer services to men?

[kansasblue]

6. Just report what you see.

You won't necessary need to have anything official. Just report what you see.

[Scout1071]

7. I think it's a great idea.

Good work fellow Kansan!

[kansasblue]

8. I think this could be lots of fun

[Beam Me Up]

9. Not only reporting, but making history. INFORMATION WANTS TO BE FREE

n/t

[eleonora]

10. great idea!

I think it'd work.

[kster]

11. I'm in

:thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[Hapameli]

12. I'm more qualified than JimmyJeff & I go to everything I can - IN!

[NJCher]

13. I'd love to be a DU reporter

I'd be on site in a heartbeat!


Cher

[hnsez]

14. Available and on the ground in Tampa Florida

[kansasblue]

15. It sure won't take much to start.

At the very least we could just build a thread for the next major event and work with anyone on the ground to get it going.

What's coming up?

For exampe the Houston conference next week.

http://www.electionassessment.org/aboutus.htm

Election Assessment Hearing
Wednesday, June 29 2005
The Garden Center at Hermann Park
1500 Hermann Drive
Houston, Texas 77004

[are_we_united_yet]

16. It is a good idea!

[brook]

17. Definitely.

An idea whose time has come. I'm in the tullies and not likely to ever 'experience' an event in rt - but it's a project I'd support any way I could.

[sunnystarr]

18. Awesome idea!!

You need a small planning committee to set up the structure and get things organized. I'd really love to see this come in fruition and not just be an idea posted and forgotten.

[paineinthearse]

19. Great idea

We do this now, in a delayed fashion. I like to cam phone interface idea.

[Mythsaje]

20. I like it

though I wonder if I'd be much use at all. I've got a digital camera and next month I'll be getting a new laptop, but I live just far enough from the centers of anything important going on in Washington State to be superfluous.

It's a great idea, and I carry my digital with me everywhere anyway, just in case something pops up that's news-worthy. Tomorrow I'm going to the Pride parade in Seattle...but that's not news.

Where I think this idea will pay for itself is when the protests start in earnest. Even if the Corporate Media decides not to cover them, we can still get the stories images out there ourselves.

[ray of light]

21. The Democracy Cell Project already has done this but....

The Democracy Cell Project already has done this at 3 major events this year. BUT the Democracy Cell Project is slightly different in that they have a mission to encourage people to participate in democracy--by providing information, tool kits, and a means to organize locally. The democracy cell project will help all of us be able to teach, educate, empower, and activate people locally.

The partnership with D.U. and the DCP can reach thousands of people and bring new people in as effective activists. Please join that site too. List your group or join a group. Talk to people here and there--learn, talk, activate! And look at their front page each day for a mere 5 min. minimum per day to save our democracy.

Please join! http://www.democracycellproject.net

[sandboxface]

22. I like the idea...

But I think it really needs an organizational system. If it's not organized, then it will never reach it's potential. You could have great reporting, but it maight only hit 10% of the DU community.

A suggestion would be to see if DU would create a special page for posting these reports. It probably shouldn't be a forum page, just a simple 'blog type page' with RSS activated so people can subscribe to it. This page will also have archives of previous reports. When a report is posted, we could set it up so it automatically makes a post to the appropiate forum.

Another suggestion is for someone to start up a DU podcast. If needed, I could help set it up. Don't know what a podcast is? Check out the wiki:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podcast

There are a lot of possibilities.

[ray of light]

23. Democracy Cell Project has podcasts already too.

But as I said, the mission is slightly different.

[redacted]

24. KICK and recommended!

[whatever4]

25. Yeah, I'd be happy to report

Like yesterday, heck I almost hopped back on here just to tell someone, we had a HUGE fire. For us, it's not a huge town. But it was, well oxygen and nitrogen tanks exploding, and there were *some* chlorine, but thank goodness, they didn't catch. We didn't hear it where we live, but the explosions were big. The witnesses said the first few were like gunshots, and then they got bigger, sounding like bombs. It was quite a sight, to catch on the news. It was hot too, hot anyway at 94 and humid, but the news helicopter pilot said he could feel the heat from the fire in the air. Whew. There were, last I checked, no fatalities and no injuries. Isn't that wonderful though? It could have been so awful.

My kid yells up at me, hey, there's a fire downtown!! And I'm all like, oh sure, okay honey, we'll check it out. Yeah, don't worry, it's not close. Next it's on the national news, gas tanks being blown hundreds of feet, the fire like 200 feet tall, they're evacuting. And I thought he was being silly; ever pick that ONE time to ignore your kid?? It's funny.

So, near as I could figure, the national news was completely correct in the 15 seconds they did on it, and I saw it reported on multiple stations and many witnesses spoke to the cameras. Nothing fishy about how it happened that I'm aware of.

Picture of it


The story on local news
http://www.ksdk.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=81101
Explosions, Fires at Praxair Distribution Facility In South St. Louis
created: 6/24/2005 3:30:27 PM
updated: 6/25/2005 2:06:43 PM

(KSDK) -- Explosions estimated as high as 100 feet have been ripping through the Praxair Company site at 2210 Chouteau and south St. Louis Friday afternoon. Flames continue to burn as fire crews work to contain the explosions. Reporters in the area heard explosions every 5-10 seconds. The company is located near Jefferson & Chouteau. The main fire seems to cover an area the size of a block.

Chopper 5's Bill Houska reports seeing tanks fly through the air as fireballs jump several hundred feet into the air. Also, the flames and explosions started fires across the street

[kansasblue]

26. Harness the power of DU

[AmBlue]

27. I'm definitely interested....

This is a great idea.

[Liberal In Texas]

28. I like it. n/t

[tinfoilinfor2005]

29. I could do the fishing reports from the florida keys...

seriously, though, a great idea. And I am running for county delegate to attend the state convention in December. Could be some news worthy events happening there...

[lala_rawraw]

30. Can we first get me the researchers

and freelance writers that Raw needs and then do this? we are going batty.

[Catrina]

31. You do great work

what kind of help do you need?

This is a great idea. Would it include the ability to call, say, a polician on the phone and ask him for his opinion on an issue? I know MSM reporters can do that, but would it be possible for bloggers to get through, if they said who they were working for?

Eg. our governor, Pataki of NY, just said that he backs Karl Rove's comments about Democrats being soft on terrorism. I would like to ask him how he expects to be re-elected now, since he needs Democrats to vote for him? I will call and ask anyway, but I doubt I'll get him on the phone.

What I mean is, if we could say 'I'm calling from the DU blog and would like to ask Gov. Pataki some questions about Karl Rove's comments on Democrats?' Would it have any impact on getting through? If it would, how great would that be? We wouldn't have to be frustrated by the questions the MSM doesn't ask anymore, and politicians would be on notice that we in the blogosphere don't take orders from the WH and will ask them difficult questions.

[lala_rawraw]

34. Well

I am not a blogger, although I am sure some bloggers can call many types of people very easily.

DU is a forum, but also, I am sure some people have access. I am talking about for Raw Story. I have to post a help wanted, but have not had time.

I am not so interested in someone calling to get comment. I usually do that. Unless, of course, the person works as a freelance writer for me, with a commitment of one article a week, then depending on their story and on their background, they would call for comment.

The researcher is busy researching and in some cases making calls, but not for statements. Mostly, if any calls are made, they are made to staff who might work for someone... staff to staff type thing.

But DU should partner with alternative press as "people on the ground" or "on a story". I have always thought that.

[Merope215]

32. Great idea. Sign me up.

I'll be in D.C. through the end of August, and I live across the street from the Supreme Court. I can do committee hearings, and I've been doing work on a potentially big situation in Ecuador. Where do I sign up?

[kansasblue]

33. please take a look

kick

[kansasblue]

35. Houston Election Conference?

At the very least we could just build a thread for the next major event and work with anyone on the ground to get it going.

What's coming up?

For exampe the Houston conference next week.

http://www.electionassessment.org/aboutus.htm

Election Assessment Hearing
Wednesday, June 29 2005
The Garden Center at Hermann Park
1500 Hermann Drive
Houston, Texas 77004