Reporters’ Lab signs up more journalists for open-source tools

Reporters' Lab logoWith the beta release of its Video Notebook application, the Reporters’ Lab is providing journalists with an easier solution for annotating and analyzing unsearchable audio and video files. By tapping into social media and closed captioning, reporters can use the tool to match audio and video to existing content. They can then layer in their own notes and transcriptions, using it all to navigate and search quickly through hours of material to find what they’re looking for. The tool is just one of several the lab created as part of its mission to reduce the costs of investigative journalism. Although the open-source code powering the tool is available for anyone to download, the lab is also signing up beta testers for a user-friendly version journalists with no technical experience can use in their reporting.

Open Courses!

Incoming freshmen and all others still shopping for courses, space is still available in the following seminar courses:

  • PUBPOL 366s.01, Magazine Journalism with Prof. Bob Bliwise, MWF, noon-12:50 pm, Sanford 102
  • PUBPOL 385s.01 Higher Education & News Media with Prof. John Burness, Th 4:40-7:10 pm, Sanford 150

    • Cohen on Journalism and the Open Government Movement

    In her recent article Shared values, clashing goals:  Journalism and Open Government, Knight professor Sarah Cohen identifies five emerging issues that “make some journalists worry about open government initia­tives and open government advocates worry about journalists.” Cohen provides background on the evolution of the modern open government movement and investigative journalism, and draws upon recent examples of accountability reporting and government transparency initiatives to examine the similarities and differences emerging between these social actors.  Cohen’s article is published in XRDS: Crossroads, The ACM Magazine for Students – CS in Service of Democracy, Volume 18 Issue 2, Winter 2011.

    Cohen & Hamilton Research Featured

    In the Fall 2011 edition of Sanford Insights, Jay Hamilton’s research with the FCC is featured in Closing the Gap in Public Interest Journalism (p. 16), and Sarah Cohen’s new research program is introduced, along with new researchers Tyler Dukes and Charlie Szymanski, in Reporter’s Lab: Support for Public Affairs Journalism (p. 17).  In the same issue, John Burness is interviewed on  Leadership & Higher Ed (p. 19).