International journalism 101 - Thailand

Photo by affaire de couronne de Thomas

The media landscape is changing before our very eyes. Once again a major news story can be covered by anyone with an internet connection, often with greater accuracy and more insight than the established media channels. I have been following developments in Thailand over the last few hours and it seems to me the the best source for breaking developments and the background to what has been happening are Twitter, Flickr and blogs.

For more details on what is going on in Bangkok check out

#redshirts on Twitter

"redshirts" in Google blog search and Technorati

"redshirts" in Youtube

"redshirts" on Flickr

Follow these sources for an hour or two and you'll find out as much as most professional journalists (at least non - Thai's) know about what is happening.

I see this tendency set to explode over the next few years as more and more people are able to access the internet via their mobile/cell phones and the world wide web ceases to the sole domain of those with the wealth to buy a computer. Already the number of people who use mobiles in the developing world has skyrocketed. With the spread of lower cost devices which include video and camera capabilities as well as letting you get on the internet then we will have to chance to hear from those caught up in news stories around the world unfiltered by national and international media.

New City dress code goes into effect ahead of G20 demo

New City dress code goes into effect ahead of G20 demo, originally uploaded by Teacher Dude's BBQ.

How not to look like a banker

City workers are being advised by police to dress down during the G20 summit next week, in case they're targeted by protesters.

The Guardian

For the latest updates on the G20 demonstrations check out the #g20 hash on Twitter and "G20" on blog search engines such as Technorati. These are great resources for anyone who wants to get an impression of what's going on in the streets as well as the news rooms.

And they say bloggers are sloppy!!!!!

Foreign coverage of the events in Greece has been a mixed bag. There have been some very good articles on the causes of the protests, for example the Guardian wrote in depth about the situation (click here) and the BBC's Malcolm Brabant gives a very accurate account of the underlying causes (click here) .

On the other hand I have come across a lot of "remote - control" journalism. The kind where the person has done little more than Google the subject for an hour or so or chatted to some guy in a bar. You know the classic foreign correspondent tactic when abroad and disconnected from the culture. I think this article in the Economist definitely falls into the second category. Sweeping generalisations, lack of context and a blind acceptance of other media sources make for pretty sloppy work.

So, instead I recommend Twitter (#griots hash) which has been a very good source of information and links written by those actually involved or on the scene. Most of it is in Greek but you can translate the page into English by clicking on the button on the right hand side. Also Technorati and Google's blog search can often prove very valuable.