News organizations are increasingly integrating interactive methods in order to connect with audiences and enable audience members to collaborate in the process of determining and distributing the news. The Poynter Institute is on the front line of this movement and Ellyn Angelotti is leading the charge.
Angelotti, the Interactivity Editor of Poynter Online, joined us in class today via Skype. Among the topics of conversation was a communications model she has proposed that she has appropriately coined The New News Cycle.
The NNC outlines how “passive publications are becoming interactive applications.” According to Angelotti, new interactive technologies and capabilities have turned the old communication models on their heads. No longer is the news distribution process a closed circle that begins with the news broadcast and ends with a nice neat package landing in the consumer’s lap. The circle is now a never ending figure eight in which audiences are no longer audiences, but are instead shapers, contributors, and even creators of news content.
This new cycle has helped spark a rejuvenated emphasis on vetting sources and validating content. Online news videos are using less of the authoritative voice over that was prevalent in their offline predecessors. Instead, they rely more on organic story telling methods driven by natural sound. It’s an exciting time to be an online journalist, and Angelotti embodies that promise and enthusiasm.
In addition to her updated news distribution model, Angelotti shared some unique examples of the interactive spirit in action. Swivel is an online data visualization tool that allows anyone to easily convert a dry, granular spreadsheet into a dynamic visual representation. Swivel can construct graphs and tables and can even map data when appropriate. In true interactive fashion, the site also includes a collaborative component, making it possible for multiple users to contribute data to the same study.
She also introduced the class to Mixed Ink. Much like Swivel, Mixed Ink’s mission is to make data useful. Their adage is simple; many people, one voice. The site hosts a collaborative writing tool and invites users to “connect, collaborate, and be heard.” Users are encouraged to contribute to cooperative writings that range from The People’s Inaugural Address composed this past January to The Cases For & Against Sotomayor written this summer.
Angelotti suggested that Mixed Ink host the new health care reform proposal. Now there’s a bill we could all get behind. Literally.
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