Reuters has said that it is working with Nokia on a project that could “transform the way journalists file news reports on the move”.
It is a new mobile application which the agency said is a “a lightweight toolkit that provides everything journalists need to file and publish stories from even the most remote regions of the world.”
Reuters journalists have trialled the application this summer and are already said to be using it file text, images, sound and live and recorded video streams and to produce multi-media stories of broadcast quality without needing to return to the office.
According Nic Fulton, whose job title is “chief scientist” at Reuters: “This is a very easy-to-use application that takes account of the demands placed on journalists in the field.
‘By running on handheld devices, rather than on bulkier laptop computers, the mobile journalism application enables us to create complete stories and file them for distribution, without leaving the scene. This saves us time and benefits our audience by ensuring that they receive high quality news that is absolutely up-to-date.”
Timo Koskinen, project manager with Nokia Research Center, said: ‘The term ‘citizen journalism’ has been in use for some years, but technological innovations – particularly the introduction of mobile multimedia computers – have transformed the concept. ‘Citizen journalism’ is beginning to embrace a wide range of public engagement with the media, from groups of contributors organized around subject or geographic areas to the casual participation of observers who are lucky – or unlucky – enough to be at the scene of a newsworthy event.”
According to Reuters, the new “mobile journalism application” uses the multimedia capabilities already available in existing smart phones and combines these to produce a toolkit that fits intuitively with the way in which journalists want to use it.
Reuters has also developed an “interface” for its in-house editorial systems which it claims means stories produced using the new mobile technology can be published instantly.
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