The rise of fake news
Alongside changing habits in this new digital landscape, fake news is growing in prevalence. With the proliferation of information sources through digital channels, journalists now also face an ongoing challenge to preserve factuality. The more sensational or interesting an online story appears to be, the more clicks and shares it gets - regardless of accuracy. News gatherers are therefore not only facing an uphill battle to capture the attention of viewers who are inundated with content in an ever-expanding mass of media, but are also trying to stay ahead of the curve to share stories as they break to disseminate true facts as quickly as possible.
According to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s research report entitled ‘The Spread of True and False News Online’, fake news reaches more people and spreads six times faster than real news. Today’s consumers have access to a variety of largely unmediated opinions from endless sources across the web, meaning the need for clear, accurate and timely reporting from the frontline has never been more important.
Broadcasters need to empower their journalists to become the most trusted source for news by equipping them with the tools they need to tell their story in the most transparent and meaningful way directly from source. From workflow solutions that bridge field-based journalists with the news infrastructure, to toolsets that allow multiplatform live streaming, the right use of technology can be an ally for news journalists in combatting fake news and telling their story first.
Flexibility, accuracy and factuality through the Cloud
This new reality of changing news consumption habits and the challenges created by the rise of fake news means that media organisations need to re-evaluate how they operate. Put simply, linear workflows can no longer meet the needs of the modern news environment.
The age of cloud has created a third generation of newsroom systems: flexible, scalable, and accessible from anywhere. Introducing cloud technologies such as Media Backbone Hive to the physical and virtual infrastructure of a news organisation allows journalists to capture, share, access and deliver content 24/7 from any location. Field journalists can share information with newsrooms in real-time without technological restraints – in a large part through automation. Reporting is made quicker and simpler as devices such as cameras and smartphones can capture information and relay it back to the newsroom instantaneously, where the content can be edited and distributed within minutes.
Cloud-based media solutions also enable faster publishing of content to multiple online platforms, whether that's publishing content an organisation’s own website, to social media outlets or to broadcast TV. With newsrooms applying such technological advancements, in-house journalists and editors can quickly search the entire newsroom system to find what they need, either archived content or material arriving right at that moment – reducing editorial constraints and giving media organisations the ability to share news quickly.
Finally, cloud technologies offer huge economies of scale for the journalistic workflow. Operating with a frictionless news production system ensures collaboration between journalists and newsrooms is as streamlined as it can be. The more journalists use these solutions, the greater their benefit will be to a news organisation. Avoiding the classic overinvestment in underutilised resource.
Amidst the various challenges media outlets face, it is essential that newsrooms maximise on the transformative new technologies that are available, to stay ahead of the curve. From broadsheet to mobile app, the format and delivery of news is constantly evolving as a result of technological change. Cloud technology is another such disruptor, giving news organisations the ability to efficiently and speedily report on fast-breaking events whilst releasing time for investigative news pieces.
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