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"Postmodernism is a change-or-be-changed world. The word is out: Reinvent
yourself for the 21st century or die! Some would rather die than change."
Leonard Sweet, cultural historian.

06/06/2006 Entry: "Must be the season of the geek"

Here's a great interview from the Online Journalism Review with the brilliant Adrian Holovaty on the need for journalism to welcome geeks programmers into the newsgathering and presentation mix.

OJR: What ought news organizations do to encourage tech innovation from their staffs?

Holovaty: Hire programmers! It all starts with the people, really. If you want innovation, hire people who are capable of it. Hire people who know what's possible.

And once you hire the programmers, give them an environment in which they can be creative. Treat them as bona fide members of the journalism team -- not as IT robots who just do what you tell them to do.

This is advice I've been increasingly giving to broadcasters, and the inability of stations to completely access the source code and back end of their web sites will soon drive archaic 3rd-party providers out of business.

Replies: 4 comments

Hello Terry. Hope you are well. Could you please elaborate on what you mean by this: "will soon drive archaic 3rd-party providers out of business"? Thanks much from one who enjoys your work.

Posted by Tom @ 06/06/2006 02:38 PM CST

Clarification...who are "the archaic third party providers"...and what are they providing?

Posted by Tom Tucker @ 06/06/2006 02:41 PM CST

Tom, I get in trouble every time I mention names on this particular topic. Let's just say they provide a site with a backend that allows for content creation, but access to the source code, templates, etc., is forbidden. Each station is going to have to control its own site, so that it can create its own, market-specific interactive modules. (To say nothing of building other Web 2.0 applications)

Posted by Terry @ 06/06/2006 03:04 PM CST

Very beautiful and interesting blog! I enjoy reading you blog... keep it up guys!
Respect you!

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"The future is not something we enter. The future is something we create."
Leonard Sweet