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Everyblock’s New Geocoding Fixes

April 17, 2009 – 8:27 am

Adrian Holovaty. (Image by Additive Theory via Flickr)

Recently I wrote about how a Los Angeles Police Dept. geocoding data glitch yielded inaccurate crime maps at LAPDcrimemaps.org and the database-powered network of hyperlocal sites, Everyblock.
On Apr. 8, Everyblock founder Adrian Holovaty blogged about the two ways his company is addressing the problem of inaccurate geodata.

Latitude/longitude crosschecking. [...]

By Amy Gahran | Also posted in accountability, credibility, data, geodata, geography, government, mapping, problems, software, solutions | Comments (1)

WSJ & the Kindle: Puzzling Relationship

April 13, 2009 – 1:07 pm

Over the weekend, while I was reading the Wall Street Journal on my Kindle e-reader (I pay $10/month for that subscription), I noticed this headline: Amazon Is Developing Bigger-Screen Kindle. I found the article interesting for several reasons — including that the sole source for the headline’s claim is the unnamed group, “people who said [...]

By Amy Gahran | Also posted in business, e-readers, ethics, journalism, mainstream media, media evolution, social media, transparency, twitter | Comments (7)

HuffPost’s citizen journalism standards: links required (News orgs, take a hint)

April 13, 2009 – 8:15 am

Last week the Huffington Post posted its standards for citizen journalism. It’s a pretty short, basic list — just six requirements — that reads like journalism 101.
However, many news organizations still could take a lesson from the second item on HuffPost’s list:
“2. Do research and include links to back it up. Whether you are referencing [...]

By Amy Gahran | Also posted in accountability, citizen journalism, credibility, culture, journalism, mainstream media, transparency | Comments (0)

Los Angeles Police Geocoding Error Skews Crime Maps

April 10, 2009 – 2:11 pm

Crime maps are one of the most popular and (in urban areas) ubiquitous types of geo-enabled local news — and they’re a staple of the Knight News Challenge-funded project Everyblock. This data comes from local police departments — but how reliable is it?
On Sunday, the Los Angeles Times reported a problem with the Los Angeles [...]

By Amy Gahran | Also posted in geodata, geography, government, mapping, problems, software | Comments (3)

Tracking a Rumor: Indian Government, Twitter, and Common Sense

November 27, 2008 – 9:53 am

This morning, as I check in on the still-unfolding news about yesterday’s terrorist attacks in Mumbai, I noticed a widely repeated rumor: allegedly, the Indian government asked Twitter users to stop tweeting info about the location and activities of police and military, out of concern that this could aid the terrorists.
For example, see Inquisitr.com: Indian [...]

By Amy Gahran | Also posted in accountability, credibility, critical thinking, journalism, problems, questions, skills, social media, transparency | Comments (27)

Foolish Journalism

April 1, 2008 – 4:03 pm

At last, it all ties together! I just spotted on Twitter the most likely reason why I adore both journalism and April Fool’s Day, courtesy of blogger Prentiss Riddle.

(Thanks to David Sasaki of Global Voices Online for the tip.)