Citizen journalism platform Groundviews thrives in Sri Lanka

In 2006, journalist Sanjana Hattotuwa created Groundviews.org, an influential website based in Sri Lanka intended as a “safe space for debate and discussion” during and after Sri Lanka’s long civil war, where people could write freely about news and events that interested them.

‘Voices in Danger’: Jim Armitage speaks about the Independent’s latest project

Launched yesterday, Monday 29 April, the Independent’s new press freedom project, ‘Voices in Danger’ will endeavour to “give prominence to the plight of journalists being harassed, attacked or pressurised” according to its pioneer, owner of the Independent titles, Evgeny Lebedev. The announcement of this humanitiarian campaign is timely, given that it falls in the same week as World Press Freedom Day (Friday 3 May).

Being right is more important than being first

The news media’s less-than-perfect coverage of the recent Boston bombings and subsequent hunt for suspects has reignited debates about how sure you have to be before publishing anything, whether through your own platform or through a social network. This issue arose during several discussions at the International Journalism Festival in Perugia in the last few days, and panelists overwhelmingly agreed that being right is far more important than being first, and this should be reflected on social media.

South Africa Secrecy Bill – ‘this fight is not over’

The ability of South African journalists to expose corruption and other criminal activities in their nation is under considerable threat following the passing of the Protection of State Information Bill last Thursday (25 April).

Emily Bell on newsroom organisation in a post-industrial journalistic age

News journalism just isn’t an industry any more, said Emily Bell, director of the Tow Center for Digital Journalism at Columbia Journalism School, and co-author of the report Post-industrial journalism: adapting to the present. Newsrooms all used to look the same but they are changing fast. The rows of desks with hundreds of people are going, but what will they be replaced by?

Mathew Ingram’s five lessons old media can learn from new

In a session titled “Teaching the fish how to walk” at the International Journalism Festival in Pergugia, GigaOm senior writer Mathew Ingram gave his top five ways that old media can learn from new.

UK newspaper industry puts forward rival royal charter

The vast majority of the UK newspaper industry has clubbed together to create and endorse their own proposal for a royal charter for press regulation in reaction to the cross-party royal charter published on 18 March.

Independent integrates augmented reality into editorial workflow

The Independent began adding smartphone-aided augmented reality features to its daily print editions on Tuesday. While augmented reality (AR) apps have been buzzing around the industry for a few years, the newspaper is the first to fully integrate the app into its editorial workflow, Press Gazette reported.

NYT to undergo major changes, including expansion into gaming and live events

Fighting a profit drop and an apparent stall in digital subscriptions, The New York Times detailed its new strategy for growth, including expansion into e-commerce and games and cheaper digital subscription plans, during the company’s first quarter earnings call Thursday.

UK Defamation Act ‘will strengthen freedom of expression’

The British press is set to profit from a new level of advanced legal protection – and, by extension, greater freedom of expression – in their criticism of large companies thanks to the long-awaited passing of the Defamation Bill by Parliament.