I noticed a couple instances today where reporters did a great job using social media, and I felt it was worth pointing them out.
The first one was from Tony Leys of the Des Moines Register. Leys wrote a story about a cemetery that is still in need of work after the 2009 floods:
A concrete burial vault still protrudes from the bank near the top of the ravine. A 5-inch-high hole in the dirt shows where animals have been digging. A few yards down the steep slope, bits of rusty hardware, possibly from an old coffin, sit next to what appears to be the end of a human leg bone. A couple of pieces of other bones peek out from under fallen leaves.
What impressed me was this post from Leys in the comment area of the story:
He obviously saw the reaction the story was getting, did some more reporting, and gave readers an update right there on the original story. That’s the kind of smart use of the comments area that we don’t see enough.
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The second example was WHO-HD’s Keith Murphy reacting to a post on Facebook. This one is pretty self-explanatory, but it was impressive how Murphy stood up for himself and actually got an apology from the original poster.
This is one of those cases where you are actually happy someone posted their thoughts in a public forum, so that you have a chance to respond. Part of the reason social media is such a great tool.