... on some topics, weblogs are a source of up-to-date information that no media organization attempts to match. In addition, weblogs have an inherent respect for their audiences and take advantage of their wide-ranging knowledge and expertise. While contributions may not come from trained journalists and may not be vetted through a traditional editing process, weblogs offer the possibility of presenting a much wider range of points of view about information than would be possible in the traditional media.

That's precisely the point I've been trying to make to the NY Times on Zeyad and the Bahgdad anti-terrorism demonstrations: Weblogs are a new source of information and viewpoints we could never before afford to gather. That's valuable. Period.

Stovall on web journalism:

This new relationship will have profound effects on the way journalists gather information and make decisions. Readers are likely to become sources of information and lead journalists to new inquiries and stories. They could provide valuable perspective to journalists who are new to a story or not part of the community they cover (two of the major criticism of journalists today), offering points of view that journalists would not normally hear in talking with “official” sources about their stories. The public journalism movement (often called civic journalism), which seeks to involve the community in journalistic decision making, could be taken to a new level with the Web.

He even understands the value of community, which scares many an old-time journalists:

The idea of an Internet community is something of a radical departure for traditional journalistic thinking. These 'communities' may be short-term and topic-oriented. They may not be confined to the geographic areas that have traditionally defined audiences for journalists. They are likely to dissipate once the issue that brought the individuals together fades. On the other hand, they may survive and thrive beyond the control or the participation of the journalist who began them.

Professor, I give you an A.

: UPDATE: Jack Driscoll, the former editor of the Boston Globe and now a luminary at the MIT Media Lab, agrees with Stovall and points us to an interview with him about the Silver Stringers program he created with my boss. This really is a precursor to weblogs and hyperlocal and citizens' media. You wonder how I can get away with doing neat things at the day job? Now you know: a very enlightened boss.

Here is the link to the review on BuzzMachine.

(Posted July 25, 2005)