How journalists are using DocumentCloud to support facts in their stories
Journalists have learned one way to restore trust in the media is to increase transparency in their work and letting the public know how they got the story. DocumentCloud, a new platform, is looking to make the task easier.
It allows documents journalists use for their stories to be embedded into the story itself, so readers can see the evidence. It's user-friendly and lets journalists upload source documents straight onto the server.
A recent study looked at how journalists were using the platform and the types of outlets that used it the most. Results found that traditional news outlets used it more than alternative outlets, which include citizen journalism, and although the platform was made as a tool for investigative journalists, it was used more for regular stories that covered events. Journalists use it to provide evidence to claims they make themselves or claims made by a source.
DocumentCloud brings hope in that journalists are making their work more transparent, but also offers more opportunities for transparency for journalists to verify the source documents they use and describe how they obtained them.