Localising disaster reporting and making best use of user generated content

Attended a session this afternoon at the International Journalism Festival on reporting on disasters, and how the media work with NGOs and the military in these areas. While it made me consider foreign reporting, it also raised questions about the use of user generated content (UGC).

It struck me during the talk about how NGOs need to do more to engage the regional media. We have large audiences, and audiences who care about what happens beyond their doorstep - but need a local way into it.

How many NGOs hook up volunteers/staff who are from a local area e.g. Cardiff, and invite a journalist from the regional media out to see what happens in that disaster zone. Yes, getting the BBC along might get you a broadcast on the 6'o'clock news but allowing a regional journalist the chance to tell the story of Zara from Cardiff who is out in Japan battling to stop disase spreading after the earthquakes and tsunami will have a huge impact on the local community - and create compelling content.

We found on WalesOnline there was a tremendous demand and interest in the situations in Libya, New Zealand and Japan, and this was only upped when a local was involved e.g. in the New Zealand earthquake a survivor called Barnaby Luck was from Pembrokeshire, immediately localising the situation.

While the panel were snobbish about the media always trying to localise stories - saying we only care if a British tourist is killed - this is because that provides an entry point to often big and challenging topics which both our readers and the journalist can understand. What's wrong with that? As another of the panelist rightly pointed out, once you start quoting this figure and that figure the reader loses interest and is not interested in the bigger picture.

The discussion also touched on the importance of verifying where information comes from, and how the role of the journalist on foreign reporting has changed. Giovanni Porzio, from Panorama, made an excellent point about user generated content. He said: "Anyone can wave a cameraphone at a situation and get a picture or video. The journalist is the one who gives the context. The images need to be interpreted and this is where media can be a trusted source and give accreditation to the images in a wider context. That is what they should be doing." See this great post from Dave Lee about how the BBC used user generated content in some of their reports from Libya.

This brought me onto a great chat with the guys at Citizenside who are taking 'citizen journalism' to a new level. Working with media organisations - note, they've just signed up with British regional publisher Archant to work with them - they take the 'send us your photos and stories' on a lot further than an email with some JPEG attachments.

They've built an awesome system which allows users to register and submit their content - in some cases getting paid for it - but also building up profiles and rankings based on their trust rating. This is how media, particularly regional media, should be working with their audiences to understand more about them and also source content for their print and digital products.

The key thing about the Citizenside project is the gaming feature. It's probably snobbishly overlooked by many, but people love getting points for stuff - and what do points make, prizes. If I get photos from someone who has regularly submitted them and they are good photos, their ranking will be higher than someone we've never heard from before. The best thing about their site is the interface, making it quick and easy to plug into existing websites and the back-end is superb.

So, in summary. Should regional journalists be pushing NGOs more for ways into reporting on disasters, as we know there's interest from our local audiences. Also, how do regional media improve their user generated content - not just getting it from their audience, but also increasing participation and publishing more of it. Not so much a case of 'you, the journalist', but 'you, the journalist, with a lot of help and us learning more about you'. Plenty of food for thought.