ONA Weekly #501: Field Canvassing For Journalists

Field canvassing for journalists

Borderless Magazine focuses on immigrant stories and information needs in Chicago, and 45% of its online readership accesses the coverage in Spanish (every story is published in English and Spanish). In 2023, Borderless was honored with the OJAs’ Gather Award in Community-Centered Journalism, Micro/Small Newsroom, for their use of organizing techniques like canvassing to better serve their Spanish language audience. Take a peek behind the scenes of this award-winning effort.

From the AI collaborative

The AI Innovator Collaborative is an ongoing gathering of ONA members who have been experimenting with AI technologies in their journalism work. The collaborative offers space to exchange ideas, learn from peers and discover new tools. Participants are working on a range of projects, including:

• Researching and writing about Visual AI ethics and use
• Making environmental data more accessible (e.g. temperature trends)  
• Developing a guide to AI image generators
• Creating quizzes and puzzles for local news organizations

The collaborative gathers online on the second Tuesday of each month. You’ll need an ONA member number to sign up. Learn how to find your member number or join ONA.

Questions from the ONA Slack

• Which  AI transcription tool that does well with accented spoken English?
• Does anyone have a sample freelance writer agreement that they can share?

Upcoming events

• Feb. 28: Introduction to AI Tools
• March 12: AI Innovator Collaborative For ONA members
• March 20: AI and Fact-Checking in an Election Year
• March 21: Early Bird registration opens for ONA24 NEW!
• April 4: Submissions open for the 2024 Online Journalism Awards 🏆
• April 9: AI Innovator Collaborative 
• April 24: AI Tools for Journalists Part II
• May 8: Leveraging AI in Your Audience Engagement Strategy
• May 14: AI Innovator Collaborative 
• May 22: Prompt Writing
• June 5: AI Mini Lab: Prompt-Writing
• June 11: AI Innovator Collaborative  
• June 18: Image Creation Tools
• July 9: AI Innovator Collaborative  
• July 10: AI Mini Lab: Image Creation
• Aug. 7: AI and Data Journalism
• Aug. 13: AI Innovator Collaborative  
• Sept. 18-21: 2024 Online News Association Conference (Atlanta)
• Sept. 20: 2024 Online Journalism Awards Ceremony (Atlanta)
• Oct. 8: AI Innovator Collaborative  
• Nov. 12: AI Innovator Collaborative  
• Dec. 10: AI Innovator Collaborative

Career opportunities

ONA’s Career Center is an excellent resource for jobs, fellowships and internships in digital journalism. Recent postings include:

• Program Associate, American Association for the Advancement of Science
• California Local News Fellowship – School of Journalism, University of California Berkeley 
• Audience and Engagement Editor, Billy Penn, WHYY
• Assistant Professional Practice Professor – KOMU Storytelling Editor, University of Missouri – Columbia 
• Manager, Brand Marketing & Development and Digital Marketing & Ad Operations Specialist, News Revenue Hub 
• Editor, Local and Weather (Contract), Apple News
• Editor-In-Chief, Honolulu Civil Beat 
• Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism, The Carter Center 
• Assistant/Associate/Full Professor of Practice in Science Communication, University of Nevada Reno/Reynolds School of Journalism 
• Editor, Local Bay Area (Contract), Apple News
• Metro Reporter, Breaking News and Mental Health Reporter, The Seattle Times
• Travis County General Assignment Reporter, KUT Radio 
• Founding Editor, Austin Free Press 
• Managing Editor, Charlottesville Tomorrow 
• Senior Editor, Harvard T.H Chan School of Public Health 
• Bellisario Professor of Practice in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Pennsylvania State University
• Community News Editor – Assistant Professional Practice Professor, University of Missouri – Columbia
• Senior Editor, Equity and Justice, GBH
• Director of the Collier Prize for State Government Accountability, University of Florida
• Assistant Sports Editor, The Seattle Times
• Membership Director, Tiny News Collective 
• Community News Editor – Assistant Professional Practice Professor, University of Missouri – Columbia 
• Editorial Intern, Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting
• Director, Park Center for Independent Media, Ithaca College, Roy H. Park School of Communications 
• Campaign and Media Communications Officer, Solidarity Center  NEW!

On our radar

• The data collection app at the heart of the BJP’s Indian election campaign, Srishti Jaswal for Rest of World
• I created an AI tool to help investigative journalists find stories in audit reports. Here’s how I did it and why it matters, Jaemark Tordecilla for Reuters Institute
• Countering disinformation effectively: An evidence-based policy guide, Jon Bateman and Dean Jackson for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
• Latin American media use YouTube Shorts to increase views, monetize and reach new audiences, Katherine Pennacchio for the LatAm Journalism Review
• Register for the 2024 Skoll World Forum, a global convening focused on cross-sector social change happening online April 9-12