[Air-L] youdecide2007 - citizen journalism project

Jason Wilson jason_a_wilson at yahoo.com.au
Tue Aug 21 21:05:51 PDT 2007


Hi all,

Just thought I'd let the list in on the details of an Australian Research Council-funded
citizen journalism project that I'm helping to facilitate from the Creative Industries Faculty at Queensland University of Technology (other
partners include SBS, On Line Opinion and the Brisbane Institute). 


We're offering a citizen-led coverage of the upcoming Australian Federal Election on an electorate-by-electorate (hyperlocal) basis. It would be great experience/CV fodder for student
journalists. It might also be something that colleagues are interested
in getting involved in directly! In any case, we'll hope you'll monitor the project post-launch in September. 


Information follows - please get in touch if you have any thoughts or recommendations. 



http://youdecide2007.org

j5.wilson at qut.edu.au



Best



Jason





youdecide2007



Funded by the ARC, and with project partners SBS, On Line Opinion and the Brisbane
Insitute, the Creative Industries Faculty is conducting a major
national research project on the emerging phenomenon of citizen
journalism.



The project will produce a range of outcomes, from cutting-edge research to exciting, real-world projects. 



The first major initiative of the project is youdecide2007. This is
a citizen journalism project which will offer a grassroots,
electorate-by-electorate coverage of the 2007 Australian Federal
Election. Ordinary Australians will have the opportunity to report on
the election from their own, local perspective, in a way that takes
local issues into account.



With this promising to be the closest-fought election contest in
some time, youdecide2007 will offer a new lens on our national
democracy. The broad perspectives offered by mainstream media outlets
will be complemented with a coverage that shows how local issues matter
to individuals. At the heart of the initiative is a website and an
online community which will host reportage and multimedia content
covering a range of key, “battleground” seats. The site will offer a
diverse range of perspectives on the election, and host both news and
opinion content that is generated by the voters.



The election and a surge of interest in citizen journalism means
that youdecide2007 will garner national and international attention.
“Anchor” citizen journalists will be sought for key seats, but news and
opinion will be welcome from the widest possible base of contributors.
Training and advice will be provided, to help get a broad base of
individuals involved in contributing content and the editorial process.



As the project progresses, research articles will be published
based on this experience, surveying global developments in citizen
journalism, contributing to conferences in this area, and working
towards community outreach activities including citizen journalism
workshops. 


Most importantly, though, we will be generating expertise which we
can use to contribute to sustainable citizen journalism projects in the
future. 




Dr. Jason Wilson

Research Associate

Creative Industries Faculty

Queensland University of Technology



j5.wilson at qut.edu.au

Tel +61 (0) 7 31380154

Mob +61 (0) 423913297




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