We are slowly approaching the next phase of the Beat Blogging project. After the holidays our reporters will have to engage their sources. The first thing they’ll have to think about (and what I hope benefits from some radical transparency) is the pitch they’ll make to their sources to join their network.

After that – the project will rest on the ability of our reporters to manage people. We will continue to highlight tools that will help our beat bloggers, but as David Crumm, a longtime reporter for the Detroit Free Press (and subject of the next post) told me recently "Our instinct is that it’s not about the technology side at all. People are willing to use anything, they’ll crawl across the virtual desert if it’s the right content. So as you are having people work in this arena, remind them it’s about the voices and the content – don’t waste time on anything that overly distracts you from that."

Indeed – it is the content. Or, as I often refer to it – the community. How you build that community is less important than your ability to engage and manage it.

Now, for the purposes of creating a Cliff’s Notes for Beat Blogging: Let’s look at the last two weeks of posts. The most valuable group being the lessons from Reporters a category of posts that I hope to build into a resource as (or more) valuable than the 64 interviews I did in preparation for the Networked Journalism Summit. So if you are a reporter out there doing something similar, don’t hesitate to contact me. 

Lessons From Reporters Thus Far

The News Organization: VentureBeat
The reporter: Eric Eldon
Highlights from the blog post: "If they are on a crappy forum list, that’s where
you have to be. You can’t think like a
reporter, you have to think like
you are part of the community. You are not cut off from the rest of the world."
Lesson: Go where the community is: In the beginning this might mean a simple email list-serv: Everyone is already on email – if you can manage them there, that’s a good place to start.

MORE AFTER THE BREAK

News Organization: BBC
The reporter:  Paul Mason
Highlights from the blog post: "Get yourself on Newsnight was not that big
a success: it just didn’t generate momentum because it was not event
based. It has reinforced my view that you have to do fast, event based stuff on
social networks and then move on."
Lesson: Facebook as a tool has limitations. It might be good for quick events like the Consumer Electronics Show (which 2-3 of our beat bloggers are going to and might try a quick experiment…hint hint, wink wink)

Organization: Publish2.com
The correspondent: Scott Karp
Highlights from the blog post: "There is editorial value in serving up the best links, but a good link-blogger will tell you – it takes time and effort. Just ask Romenesko. But with social bookmarking you can mimic Eyebeam Reblog, and get great links form a  volunteer effort."
Lesson: Social
bookmarking via Del.icio.us is an easy way to engage sources at a very
basic level. Or to network with other journalists – try Publish2 (still
a very small community). Kent brought up good counterpoints: Don’t
reinvent the wheel.

Organization: Wired
The reporter: Alexis Madrigal
Highlights from the blog post: "The idea is that if you can see what blog posts I’m sharing or
Twitters I’m twittering, you’ll be able to chime in with suggestions,
new ideas, and story angles that will help deliver the kind of news
you’re interested in reading."
Lesson: We
are not alone: Beat blogging will spread in the industry. Associate
beat bloggers are out there – and we will help define the emerging art.

Tools Found or Discussed (but
don’t forget the mantra above: People before tools. Even with the right
tools – if you can’t manage, motivate, find or engage people – you have
no network!)

Microblogging: In the blog post we highlighted a few microblogging tools
and how they can be used. Instead of using Twitter to say "I’m doing
this." Use it to broadcast what you are thinking/writing/or questions.
An instant way to get feedback from sources.

Calling itself
the “Ning for nonprofits,” the site now lets nonprofit organizations
create “branded networks” that can tap into Change.org’s community of users but retain their own look and feel."

KickApps

An example of what is possible with Ning.
Assignment Zero alumni Edward Domain, has built TroopSpace.Net.
(NOTE: This is a hobby for Ed – and he built the page incredibly fast.
Imagine what is possible if somebody is able to devote 1/4th of their
work day to this?)

Instant Journalist  The
name rubs me the wrong way: But it is a recently created tool. Not
necessarily the best out there – but something to show this space is
developing.

To see a wider range of tools see TechCrunch’s list of social network building tools

General Posts

Thinking about Community: "The shift in value has transfered from distributing
the content to something less tangible: The value that
community members place on being a member."
Thought: Make sure you find a way to give your community members recognition, motivation, incentive.

Social Networking via WordPress, MoveableType and In Person: It’s all a bit tech-oriented right now. Just like Google’s Open-Social,
if you aren’t a programmer then this won’t effect you for about a year.
But it’s another mark on the wall
of turning the infrastructure of the web into a social network itself.
Which means learning the tricks of the trade now, while third-party
sites like Facebook and MySpace or Multiply (Read/Write Web’s review of Multiply) run the show, will be a boon to journalists who are on their own in the future.
Also: These networks can be used to organize in-person meetings ala CopyCamp.us