Journalism research, like all research, has an image of solitary endeavor. Hours spent poring over library catalogs, exploring research methods and approaching potential case studies for permission -- only to discover months later you have missed a potentially crucial piece of relevant research, or that someone else was studying exactly the same thing at the same time.
Here's the drop: Given current technologies, there's no reason for this.
Social networks allow us to connect, exchange information and ideas, and attempt to eliminate some of the duplication of effort, using time more effectively.
So I've created a social network for news/journalism researchers.
The goal is to help journalism students and academics get in touch with others researching the same area, exchange ideas and tips, and ask for help on everything from finding relevant literature to sourcing contacts and the best research methods.
It's also an experiment in social networking itself: Will it work? What shape will it start to take as the community take ownership? With forums, blogs, events, groups and video, there's a lot of potential routes. If it helps, I'll be hanging around trying to help as much as I can, and I'll be inviting others to do the same.
Hence: If you work with journalism students, please encourage them to join this network and contribute a question or an answer.
Likewise, I'd love to know your thoughts on the idea of journalism students using networks as part of their studies. What features would you like to see? What particular applications could it have?
In the meantime, let's get news research networked.
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