Oh... this citizen journalism thing is only just getting started,
A British Web site that sees itself as a “citizen journalism
agency,” connecting camera phone reporters with newspapers. The site’s
founder, Kyle McRae, a former freelance technology writer, counts the
major British dailies, along with newspapers on the Continent and in
the United States, as his clients.
Unlike Bild, Scoopt’s
reader-reporters license their photos for three months to Mr. McRae’s
organization, and in return receive 50 percent of the sale price every
time Scoopt sells a picture.
The Web site has members in 90
countries, and Mr. McRae talks of a day when a global legion of
bloggers and camera phone reporters replaces journalists in covering
major news events.
“Being the first on the scene is valuable,” he said. “It’s thousands of times more valuable than the quality.” From The New York Times.
