If you guys know who these groups really are (group numbers, institutions, etc), let me know so I can update these posts. - PTL
(1) geoalerts - each news story will be tagged with coordinates for
where the story took place. (possibly more than one set of coordinates
could be used if a story has more than one relevant place) The user
can create a customized map (by drawing shapes on a map) of areas he/
she would like to receive stories about - for example home, work,
school, former homes. When stories happen in those areas, the user
will receive an alert (email or SMS) in the Google Alerts style.
(2) storynodes - a new method of providing instant context to a news
story. The idea is that readers or reporters will link together
existing articles, so that you can trace the history and evolution of
a news story. The path of a story may fracture, and you'll be able to
trace those divisions. When a reader or reporter links a story with an
existing one, the new story will be displayed as an off-shoot of the
previous story and be connected with the context of that story as
well. The relationships between stories will be displayed visually in
a sort of node matrix. Rolling over a node will pop up a text box
displaying the first paragraph of the article and link to the full
text. Visually, stories with many links will become larger,
identifying them as major nodes. It's a bit difficult to explain (and
to think about and develop), but here's a rough sample of a screen
shot created using the powerful image software Paintshop:
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c249/BoomerPetway/storynode.jpg
(3) virtual news quiz - creating a system for news quizzes than can be
implemented at multiple levels (children, teens, general adults, adult
trivia buffs). It rewards users for paying attention to the news, and
offers prizes from sponsors. It could also be a competition between
friends or among all the players. (Many details to be worked out...).
Would most likely be in a virtual world - Secondlife, etc...
(4) Cellphone and web-based citizen journalism app. I envision this as
a free, downloadable app that walks citizens through the citizen
journalism process, prompting them to upload a photo or video, write a
headline, transcribe a quote and provide relevant information. The
program should have a bit of flexibility - allowing advanced cit
journalists more freedom in the process. For example, new users might
simply be asked the who, what, when, where, why questions and their
answers will form a rude informational format for transmitting news.
Meanwhile, more advanced users might be given the option to write a
traditional news story, but may still be reminded of how to craft a
lead and body paragraphs. The goal is to take the mystery out of
producing a news story, therefore encouraging those who are reluctant
to participate because of fear of the unknown or a lack of basic
skills.
(5) news on social sites - MySpace news was a failure. Facebook's
'news feed' has nothing to do with the news that happens outside your
circle of friends. Perhaps adding a news agency's news feed into
Facebook or allowing users to create stories to share within Facebook
would be a good idea. We aren't sure where we want to go, we just know
that it is an area that needs to be addressed.