Steven Russell Davy

The Explosion of Social Media and the News

Steven Davy — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 15:56:15 +0000

Hi everyone, ahead of our discussion on social media and news I thought I would pass along a few conversation starters.

Professor Detjen and I thought it might be good to talk about some of the background on the growth of social media and perhaps provide a some interesting examples of the many ways it is being used.

SOME BACKGROUND:
A great place to start (if you haven’t seen it yet) is this TED talk from social media researcher and NYU prof Clay Shirky.

Shirky (author of some very good books, here and here) gives the background on the media landscape of the 20th century and suggests:

The Internet is the first medium in history that has native support for groups and conversation at the same time. The phone gave us the one to one pattern; TV, radio, magazines, newspapers gave us the one to many pattern.

The Internet is the many to many pattern.

The Internet has disrupted media and created a landscape where everyone has the power of publication. It’s a two way conversation for the first time in history. Dan Gillmor has famously called this shift in the audience, the “former audience”.

NYU J-school Prof and “future of news” thinker Jay Rosen elaborates on the former audience here.

QUESTIONS:
What kind of interaction with users (readers/listeners etc) have you had with your journalism? What benefits or problems could result with more user engagement?

It turns out the former audience has a lot to say. Not only are new voices being heard, but people can now find one another and organize.

Where I work we have been actively covering the uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East. It’s truly been a remarkable year first with Tunisia, then Egypt and now Libya. Social media has played a major role in facilitating conversation and organization.

Social media tools like Facebook and Twitter have been tremendously important tools for journalists covering the uprisings. One journalist I wanted to highlight is Andy Carvin. During the Arab Spring Carvin has been aggregating and curating streams of information about the protests across the Middle East and North Africa.

Internet thought leader and researcher Ethan Zuckerman spoke with Carvin about Twitter in the Arab Spring.

QUESTIONS:
Is curration journalism? What role does curration have in journalism? What challenges arise with source verification using social media?

Another interesting example of the use of social media and storytelling is the @MayorEmanuel Twitter account “deftly satirizing Rahm Emanuel”. @MayorEmanuel was written by Dan Sinker. Take a look at Alexis Madrigal’s piece on how Sinker took the 140 character platform to new heights.

QUESTIONS:
How can social media tools help improve storytelling?

One last little exchange about social media that is fodder for more conversation was what former NYTimes Executive Editor Bill Keller called “The Twitter Trap“. Also take a look at the response from Bits blog Nick Bilton.

QUESTIONS:
Does social media make you stupid? What impact could this have on journalism?

There’s probably too much here for a 20 minute conversation but I thought I would put these few examples forward to see what you think. It you have questions or want to get a jump on the conversation, add a comment below.

I’m looking forward to chatting with you.

-Steven

[Photo: Spencer E Holtaway]

Tagged: @mayoremanuel, Alexis Madrigal, Andy Carvin, Arab Spring, Bill Keller, Clay Shirky, Dan Gillmor, Dan Sinker, Ethan Zuckerman, Facebook, Jay Rosen, New York Times, Nick Bilton, Social Media, twitter

Integration and Naheed Nenshi’s social media election

Steven Davy — Sun, 19 Dec 2010 16:47:33 +0000

Naheed Nenshi was elected mayor of Calgary in October. His campaign was unique for a lot of reasons but perhaps most significantly it was his use of social media that was most distinctive. I spoke with his online campaign strategist Stephen Carter about how they used the internet to gain an advantage over rival candidates. Check out what Carter had to say.

Tagged: Calgary, Canada, Naheed Nenshi, Stephen Carter

Geosocial and the 2010 U.S. election

Steven Davy — Sun, 19 Dec 2010 16:25:59 +0000

Before the fall elections Mark Glaser called for posts that would contribute to a big pre-election series at PBS MediaShift. It got me thinking about what social media technologies would play a role for campaigns.

Obviously Facebook is the elephant in the room following the success Barack Obama had with the platform in 2008. The presidential campaign also gave rise to the importance of Twitter for politicians.

Both platforms have seen significant growth in user adoption since 2008. But all year it seemed geosocial, or GPS-based social media, might become the latest buzz for political campaigns. It turns out that the popular geosocial platforms Foursquare and Gowalla didn’t play a big role in the election but they do show promise for 2012.

What do you think? Will we see a “Foursquarian” candidate running for president in 2012?

Read my PoliticalShift post here

Tagged: Facebook, Foursquare, Foursquarian, geosocial, Gowalla, GPS, twitter

Washington rides west

Steven Davy — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 23:33:48 +0000

There were lots of people strolling Boston Common today. It was certainly one of those perfect autumn days. As I wandered over to the Public Garden on the west side, there was George Washington looking a bit more regal that usual. Not bad for a bronze statue dedicated back in July 1869. Here are some other photos I have taken recently.

Tagged: Boston, Public Garden, Washington

A Sunday walk in Beacon Hill

Steven Davy — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 23:39:24 +0000

Took a little walk around Beacon Hill today. Here’s a couple of shots (with a few from Downtown crossings) that I thought I would share.

Tagged: Beacon Hill, Boston

Political candidate websites: What works and getting the basics right

Steven Davy — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 16:16:37 +0000

It’s the simple things in a website’s construction that support a political candidate’s strong web presence. However getting those little things right surprisingly poses a serious challenge for politicians even in the wake of the 2008 Obama campaign. I spoke with several web savvy folks for my latest PoliticalShift post at PBS MediaShift to find out what works (see the Harry Reid website pictured above) and what doesn’t.

Tagged: Colin Delany, Harry Reid, Joe Rospars, MediaShift, PBS, PoliticalShift, Rob Willington, Scott Brown, Tim Hysom

Kalamazoo’s Devastating Tornado, 30 Years Later With Blake Naftel and Chris Killian

Steven Davy — Thu, 13 May 2010 16:23:14 +0000

On May 13, 1980, Kalamazoo faced an unprecedented F3 tornado that carved its way through the downtown central business district destroying everything in its path. The devastation resulted in several deaths and millions of dollars in damages to practically every downtown business.

Journalist Blake Naftel has been collecting video and other data on the tornado for more than a decade. The tornado served as the impetus for Naftel’s career aspirations and has resulted in a sprawling documentary project.

Naftel and fellow journalist Chris Killian stopped by the Nonchalant Café Hour to discuss the tragic events that took place 30-years ago on this day.

Click on the media player below to stream, download and share.

See a video web extra with Blake and Chris here

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(Photo: RaGardner4 /Flickr)

Tagged: Blake Naftel, Chris Killian, Kalamazoo

Ben Lando from Iraq Oil Report Discusses Reporting in Iraq, Complex Energies Market

Steven Davy — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 11:36:54 +0000

Journalist Ben Lando, the Iraq bureau chief of Iraq Oil Report, stopped by the Nonchalant Café Hour recently for a conversation about the challenges of covering the oil energies market in the heart of the Middle East.

Lando, a former general manager at WIDR FM during his studies at Western Michigan University, is also regularly featured in The Wall Street Journal and TIME reporting on events in Iraq including a moving first hand account of the recent Baghdad hotel bombings which he discusses during the interview with NCH host Steven Davy.

Click on the media player below to stream, download and share.

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(Photo: Luodanli/Flickr)

Tagged: Ben Lando, Iraq Oil Report

Smart Phone Apps, Open Government and a Technology Revolution For Elections, Transparency

Steven Davy — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 21:05:31 +0000

My latest piece for PBS MediaShift explores a new movement in technology and how smart phone apps have the potential to change how campaigns are run, how governments can make data accessible and how democratic initiatives can be pursued. Click on the picture to read the article or click here. Let me know what you think in the comments section. I look forward to hearing from you.

Tagged: Apps, campaigns, democracy, elections, iPhone, Smart Phones, transparency

USA Curling Nationals Set To Throw Rocks at Houses in Kalamazoo

Steven Davy — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 23:19:52 +0000

Got your curling fix yet? Don’t worry, shortly after your Olympic fever subsides, Kalamazoo will host the 2010 USA Curling Nationals March 6–13 at Wings Stadium. Jason Hall, Kalamazoo Curling Club VP, stopped by the Nonchalant Café Hour recently to discuss the inner workings of curling and the growing popularity of curlers throwing rocks at houses.

Click on the media player below to stream, download and share with all of your Facebook pals.