News outlets should look to adopt a more local ‘CitizenTube’

YouTube announced Monday that it will test a news feed called CitizenTube for professional and citizen journalists. Its goal, according to Mashable, is “to highlight newsworthy videos uploaded by amateur videographers as well as professional news outlets.”

This test, a partnership with the University of California at Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, is another defining moment in the transition of news.

We’ve all known for years YouTube is where we post videos of poor college decision. But, it wasn’t long until news outlets learned they could use the tool as a way of reaching audiences. YouTube’s CitizenTube is an excellent example of exploiting this content.

The YouTube news feed will help instantly aggregate breaking news videos uploaded to the site from anyone — an ingenious idea. The question now is, how many news outlets will give it a try or how many will worry more about viewers leaving their site for YouTube?

The latter is not the point of this project. One point, however, is if someone is interested in a video on this feed, they will click back into your site — maybe finding more information and potentially become a “loyal reader” — an unlikely term in an HhJ world. In the HhJ world, the idea is that readers want more information, faster.

As the disruption of the broadsheet paradigm continues, more newspapers, magazines and Internet-based information companies will cast an incredibly wide net for content from PJs and CJs alike. In the HhJ paradigm, the entity’s editor is like a content manager, and that editor will need to be extremely facile in understanding that there will be multiple “plug-ins” for all kinds of content that never would have seen the light of day in the broadsheets.

Fast, locally focused content from multiple sources, backed by multiple photo and video providers, will rule this exciting new frontier. There will be huge opportunities for PJs and CJs and the editor aggregators. This will be a 24/7 opportunity that will feel like a runaway train to everyone involved.

This idea is something news outlets could attempt on their own by creating a similiar aggregation feed of CJ- and freelance PJ-submitted content that people can tag and then will play under stories if it’s relatable.

It even could be an app — one that updates throughout the day and shows the videos categorized under the day’s stories. For example, if there was a rally at the statehouse, viewers could submit their video, story or photo, tag it as “SHrally,” submit it, it shows under the original SHrally story on the website and then pushes to the app under a similar headline.

CitizenTube is moving into this territory, I think, but at a national level. As content becomes more localized, there will be an incredible need to show and to express opinions and news on local topics covered by local news agencies.

To players who accommodate the PJs and the CJs in the fastest and most user-friendly presentation will win the viewers.

After all, it will be those multiple sources stories that help get the most comprehensive information to the public. Not to mention attracting the eyeballs (aka more cash from advertisers).