News Curation and Storify.

News curation. The discovery and gathering of newsworthy content, sources and data that allow a journalist to piece together a story. Put simply, it’s something all journalists do. Take, for example, collecting information on an incident of interest to the general public. Reporting back would require research into the time, the date and the place. Throw into the mix quotes from witnesses, opinions of those concerned or viewpoints from local experts or academics and suddenly you’re curating a variety of content that will create a clear picture for your audience.

In recent years, news curation has evolved more significantly into digital curation, due to the increasingly technological advancement that makes social media at the forefront of journalistic tools. A prime example of this is Storify. Launched in 2010 by co-founder Xavier Damman, Storify allows its users to create both stories and timelines by incorporating articles with social media from a search engine sidebar, from anything along the likes of Twitter posts, Facebook and even YouTube videos. 

From personal experience, using Storify is both an engaging and interesting device in expanding the credibility and interest of my stories. By allowing me to incorporate a diverse range of media, readers can dictate which aspects of the article they wish to pursue further, if any, meaning the story I create is quite literally beyond my own. Enabling the inclusion of Tweets and statuses means I have been able convey opinions from members of the public, in turn portraying how digital curation has changed journalism with an active platform where journalists and users alike can participate in joint reference and discussion. Digital publishing director for Trinity Mirror blogged about the way in which journalists can use Storify and outlined his top 12 tips for using it effectively, a guide I found beneficial when using the platform myself.

Social media aspects aside, it has also prompted me into considering the validity and reliability of each source I use before implementing it within my own work. As easy as it is to simply drag and drop an article that “sounds about right” from the seemingly endless content, it’s essential to check before publishing what you're actually linking to, meaning my use of Storify has been both entertaining and informative in pursuing digital curation for use within my journalistic ventures.