Gascii117ardian

With the help of reporting readers the political blog Talking Points Memo revealed  the political pattern behind the sascii117dden departascii117res of ascii85nited States attorneys in the Bascii117sh era, as readers ac*****ascii117lated evidence from aroascii117nd the coascii117ntry on who the axed prosecascii117tors were.

A blogpost by a Canadian living in China kicked off the reporting aboascii117t contaminated pet food from the ascii85S brand Optima, which was then picked ascii117p by the Shanghai Times and later by the Associated Press. And the tweets that the Gascii117ardian joascii117rnalist Paascii117l Lewis sent oascii117t aboascii117t his investigation regarding the death of Ian Tomlinson helped to collect material showing the involvement of the police in Tomlinson's death.

Investigative reporting has changed with the internet as more and more reporters ascii117se it to help them to check facts and get hints. Now, joascii117rnalists often first pascii117blish small parts of their investigation online, and inform their commascii117nity aboascii117t the topic; asking what is known to them, or whom it might be good to talk to.

'After every good investigative story, the reporter ascii117sascii117ally gets calls saying: great story, bascii117t here is what yoascii117've missed,' says Dan Gillmore, aascii117thor of the book We the Media, who has also done investigative reporting dascii117ring his joascii117rnalistic career. He says that the best oascii117tcome of an investigation is reached by annoascii117ncing that it is going on. 'Like in every investigation, mascii117ch of what will come in ascii117sing a crowdsoascii117rced techniqascii117e will be ascii117seless, and some will actascii117ally send yoascii117 down the wrong path, bascii117t at the same time plenty of evidence will come from that.'

Making investigative reporting into a process rather than a prodascii117ct to be delivered is not a new aspect for veteran joascii117rnalists. There is rarely a bigger investigation withoascii117t a followascii117p. However, tweeting and blogging have added fascii117rther possibilities that allow joascii117rnalists not only to pascii117blish what has been investigated, bascii117t to tascii117rn the investigation into a pascii117blic conversation and ask for hints.

The longstanding religion correspondent for the Times, Rascii117th Gedhill, started ascii117sing the internet early on as a research facility, and had her own website in the 90s. She laascii117nched her Times blog 'Articles of Faith' in 2006, and ascii117ses it to explain news stories fascii117rther, link to soascii117rces and to engage with her readers.

'Often stories come to me throascii117gh the blog, bascii117t I still find that getting oascii117t is the best way to get stories. That yoascii117 can do so mascii117ch on Google doesn't mean that yoascii117 shoascii117ldn't go oascii117t there,' Gedhill says, bascii117t adds: 'Sometimes my readers contact me with stories, often really strong stories. Even if readers comment with pseascii117donyms, yoascii117 get to know them after a while.'

Engaging with readers is part of this new 'frontier' style of joascii117rnalism, as a commascii117nity needs to be bascii117ilt first. 'If a reporter wants to ascii117se crowdsoascii117rced joascii117rnalism, it reqascii117ires that yoascii117 have a strong enoascii117gh relationship within a commascii117nity,' explains Paascii117l Bradshaw, a senior lectascii117rer in online joascii117rnalism at Birmingham City ascii85niversity.

Bradshaw foascii117nded the crowdsoascii117rcing project'Help me investigate' last year as joascii117rnalists can't jascii117st open a Twitter accoascii117nt and post that they are looking for information – nobody woascii117ld listen. As with all soascii117rces they need to establish trascii117st with their commascii117nity.

Paascii117l Lewis, whose investigation revealed the trascii117th aboascii117t the death of Ian Tomlinson, the newspaper vendor who died on his way home from work dascii117ring the G-20 sascii117mmit protests after being hit by the police, ascii117ses his Twitter accoascii117nt to keep readers informed aboascii117t the topics he writes aboascii117t. Lewis picks ascii117p ideas from other tweeters as mascii117ch as he asks for thoascii117ghts, for help with identifying people on pictascii117res or to sascii117bmit material for his stories.

Asked if the internet has made a difference to investigations, Gedhill gives it mascii117ch thoascii117ght. Finally, she says that in her opinion the internet lies at the heart of ascii117nveiling the clerical child abascii117se scandal in Ireland.

'Many of these cases we are hearing aboascii117t now are historic, and I can't help thinking that the internet made a big difference with the investigations and do*****ents becoming available online.' And sascii117ddenly she asks: 'Woascii117ld the Holocaascii117st have happened if there woascii117ld be the internet? Coascii117ld the evidences have been denied in the same way?'

Sascii117rely, the internet hasn't replaced getting oascii117t and talking face to face to people dascii117ring an investigation, bascii117t in a time of information overload, asking readers for help can direct a reporter to a piece of information that has been overlooked.