A recent job posting at WPVI-TV in Philadelphia is for an unusual sounding job. The ABC station is hiring a “community journalist,” and says it’s looking for “innovative multi-platform journalists” and “self-sufficient story tellers who can create memorable content for our digital, social media and broadcast platforms.” ABC stations across the country have been hiring community journalists since last fall. But what does that mean, exactly?
Generally, it means these MMJs are “embedded” and live in the community they report on, like Eric Resendiz at KABC-TV in East LA or Chaz Miller at KTRK-TV in West Houston. Their goal is to find more hyperlocal news and share it on digital and social first. Sometimes, but not always, their stories become part of ABC’s digital program series, Local-ish.
“It’s a great opportunity to find stories we normally wouldn’t do,” says Elizabeth Flores, assistant news director at WABC-TV in New York. Flores and others spoke at the 2019 Excellence in Journalism conference. She expects community journalists to be creative “because they don’t have all the resources. We’ve told them not to worry about the traditional track-SOT-track, to not be afraid of trying something new.” That can mean shooting a story with a phone or telling stories with no narration.
“[Having community journalists means] we can go deeper in places we don’t normally get to cover because our resources are limited,” says Jennifer Graves, news director at ABC’s Chicago station WLS.
A scan of community journalists’ stories at several ABC stations suggests that most aren’t a result of digging deeper for stories. Most are features, although they do highlight stories from diverse neighborhoods that might never have made air.
ABC expects its new community journalists to know social media backward and forward, but Wil Cruz, senior editor of ABC News digital, says that’s not enough. “If you are only guided by your social media savvy and you don’t have a solid news foundation it all falls apart.”
All journalists need to be smart about what they post and share. For example, Flores noted that many news outlets shared a story from Telemundo about a Florida family who’d found a huge iguana in their toilet. “It sounds incredible and almost laughable,” the anchor says, but for a family from Hialeah, it was a nightmare that still has them in fear.” The video quickly went viral.
ABC immediately checked the account referenced in the story, @directedbylopez, and checked what else the user had posted. “It looked like someone was trying to get their five minutes of fame,” Flores said. After making a few calls, the station decided not to share it. Good thing. It was a total hoax.
