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I led the design, development and roll-out of a new alerts tool. The tool is built in the newsroom’s online content management system and it lets users send a breaking news alert to audiences on Twitter, on Facebook, via text message and (ultimately) via push notification. Before this tool was created, editors would use multiple websites and processes to send an alert – such as that a wildfire had broken out in the forest. The tool auto populates with the best information (pulled from the story and headline) in the best format for each medium. A central bit.ly account lets the Register measure how manyRead More →

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As part of my new mobile and social position in the newsroom I led a collaborative effort to revise the Register’s disaster plan. In the past, the Register has had two normal work modes: general news coverage and big breaking news coverage. One of the main efforts with the new disaster plan was to make the Register’s coverage of every day and small breaking news coverage mirror the way we cover large wildfires and mudslides. Mirroring our disaster workflow with every day workflow will ensure more consistency and better preparedness among newsroom staff. We also adjusted the disaster plan to account for an increasingly mobileRead More →

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Link: ShareOC alpha test One of my main frustrations is that all efforts to allow Register’s to share content have not been as successful as hoped for. So, I set out on brainstorming over a few weeks about why those efforts failed. Rather than being upset about the situation, I wanted to do something about it. I wanted to come up with my idea for user content. My idea is #shareoc. Rather than building a website, or a mobile app, or a group on a social networking site – I want to build a system. And, I want the focus to be about why peopleRead More →

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Link: 7.2 Mexico earthquake jars O.C. Link: Round-up of tweets about San Diego earthquake Link: O.C. residents roll with the quake I was working a Sunday night cops reporting shift when suddenly the building started shaking. A normal Sunday shift turned into a quake shift. While the building kept shaking I tweeted this: “Wow – #earthquake felt here in Santa Ana at the Register. Still feel it movin. Details to come.” Once the shaking stopped, I sent another tweet linking to the USGS quake information page and sent a text message to the breaking news SMS subscribers. I sent more tweets – retweeting others’ tweetsRead More →

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After working on the Freedom Communications mobile team I proposed that I work as the mobile and social content leader for the Orange County Register. My plan was accepted by Register Editor Ken Brusic. The objectives for my position are as follows: Lead training to increase the speed in reporting and disseminating news to audiences using social media and mobile tools and technologies – and other methods as they emerge. Be the mobile and social media content champion. Train staff, engage newsroom, evaluate success and create guidelines. Be the point person for news alerts and text messages, mobile applications, e-mail news alerts, and OCR TwitterRead More →