YouTube is launching a new "Reporter" channel, featuring a variety of news related videos submitted by anyone, from amateurs to professionals.
The Google-owned company has been building out its role in the political world already, having co-sponsored presidential debates with CNN, and a YouTube page for users to submit video-format questions to the candidates. As the American presidential contest narrows to two major-party candidates, this new Reporter page may prove an interesting place to find fresh footage of the candidates -- or at least of their rabid supporters.
From the company blog post's description, the intended "reporters":
- People who tote around their cameras offering "on-the-scene" coverage of local news and events
- Students producing their own weekly newscasts
- Active community members who conduct interviews with local leaders
- Engaged citizens who love providing commentary and analysis on important issues affecting the world at large
- Professional journalists using YouTube as an additional outlet for their work
You can already access this page by going to the Channel Info page within the My Account section. The company is going to shortly introduce the channel within the "Channel" tabbed section on the YouTube homepage.
Olivia Ma, whose past experience includes running a national student newsmagazine, has been working on the project. She has more to say about it in this video: