1. Tweets and Truth
Journalism as a discipline of collaborative verification
Alfred Hermida
Future of Journalism 2011
Cardiff University, 8 – 9 September

2. Social awareness streams
• “They disrupt
established concepts
of communication,
prevailing notions of
space and time and
the distinction
between public and
private spheres.”
• Arceneaux and Schmitz
Weiss, 2010
Photo: Tasayu Tasnaphun Legay http://www.flickr.com/photos/tasayu/

3. Facts, truth, reality
Verification as the essence of journalism (Kovach and Rosenstiel, 2001)
Photo: MeganMorris http://www.flickr.com/photos/megangoodchild/

4. Networked architectures
• “Journalists must find
tools that will enlist a
methodology of
verification in a more
citizen-oriented way.”
• Kovach, 2006
Photo: Haags UitburoTasnaphun http://www.flickr.com/photos/haagsuitburo/

5. Twitter users as network of news sensors
Sakaki et al, 2010

6. Emerging practices: “Live updates” pages
“The unfolding truth in all its guises,” Herrmann, 2009
Photo: United Nations http://www.flickr.com/photos/un_photo/

7. Discussion
• “Facts are messy,
difficult to determine
and they are often
dependent on
interpretation.”
• Brennen, 2009
Photo: Rudoni Productions http://www.flickr.com/photos/rudoni/

8. Discussion
• Reporter-curators
“will take advantage
of novel ‘verification
technologies’ that
will be increasingly
faster and more
reliable and
advanced.”
• Bruno, 2010
Photo: Greekadman http://www.flickr.com/photos/papazimouris/

9. Conclusion
• Journalism as a
tentative and iterative
process where
contested accounts
are examined and
evaluated in public in
real-time on social
awareness streams.
Photo: Patrick Hoesly http://www.flickr.com/photos/zooboing/

10. Thank you
• alfred.hermida@ubc.ca
• @hermida
• New book out now
• All royalties go to Reporters Without Borders