Journalists used to rely on their notepad and pen. Today, professional journalists rely on the computer-and not just for the writing. Much, if not all, of a journalist's research happens on a computer. If you are journalist of any kind, you need to know how to find the information you need online. This book will show you how to find declassified governmental files, statistics of all kinds, simple and complex search engines for small and large data gathering, and directories of subject expe...

In the beginning, the World Wide Web was exciting and open to the point of anarchy, a vast and intimidating repository of unindexed confusion. Into this creative chaos came Google with its dazzling mission—"To organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible"—and its much-quoted motto, "Don’t be evil." In this provocative book, Siva Vaidhyanathan examines the ways we have used and embraced Google—and the growing resistance to its expansion across the globe. He exposes th...

The Internet was going to liberate us, but in truth it has not. For every story about the web's empowering role in events such as the Arab Spring, there are many more about the quiet corrosion of civil liberties by companies and governments using the same digital technologies we have come to depend upon. In Consent of the Networked, journalist and Internet policy specialist Rebecca MacKinnon argues that it is time to fight for our rights before they are sold, legislated, programme...

When you combine the sheer scale and range of digital information now available with a journalist’s "nose for news" and her ability to tell a compelling story, a new world of possibility opens up. With The Data Journalism Handbook, you’ll explore the potential, limits, and applied uses of this new and fascinating field.This valuable handbook has attracted scores of contributors since the European Journalism Centre and the Open Knowledge Foundation launched the project at M...

What is the true human cost of the war in Afghanistan? What are the real effects of the austerity measure? And how did the London riots spread so quickly?Facts are Sacred, the Guardian's award-winning datablog, publishes and analyses seemingly benign data - released under the auspices of transparency - to bring its readers astonishing revelations about the way we live now. It reveals how data has changed our world and what we can learn from it. Now, the most telli...

Every time you blog or tweet you may be subject to the laws of more than 200 jurisdictions. As more than a few bloggers or tweeters have discovered, you can be sued in your own country, or arrested in a foreign airport as you're heading off on vacation - just for writing something that wouldn't raise an eyebrow if you said it in a bar or a cafe.In this handy guide, media law expert Mark Pearson explains how you can get your message across without landing yourself in legal trouble. ...

How seemingly innocuous technologies are unsettling the balance of power by putting it in the hands of the masses - and what a world without "big" will mean for all of us.In The End of Big, social media pioneer, political and business strategist, and Harvard Kennedy School faculty member Nicco Mele offers a fascinating, sometimes frightening look at how our ability to stay connected - constantly, instantly, and globally - is dramatically changing our world.G...

The effect of the internet on public relations is the single biggest subject of current conversation in the public relations industry. As the world of communications changes beyond recognition, those seeking to communicate must revise and revolutionise their approach.Public Relations and the Social Web explores the way in which communications is changing and looks at what this means for communicators working across a range of industries, from entertainment through to polit...

Libraries today are more important than ever. More than just book repositories, libraries can become bulwarks against some of the most crucial challenges of our age: unequal access to education, jobs, and information.In BiblioTech, educator and technology expert John Palfrey argues that anyone seeking to participate in the 21st century needs to understand how to find and use the vast stores of information available online. And libraries, which play a crucial role in making...

Much of what constitutes Big Data is information about us. Through our online activities, we leave an easy-to-follow trail of digital footprints that reveal who we are, what we buy, where we go, and much more. This eye-opening book explores the raging privacy debate over the use of personal data, with one undeniable conclusion: once data's been collected, we have absolutely no control over who uses it or how it is used.Personal data is the hottest commodity on the market today—trul...

"Untangles the jargon and sets out the route-map for how the social network can enable us to become major contributors to the multiplatform digital age. The right message, the right time - this is the right book for taking advantage of it all." - Jon Snow, Channel 4 NewsThe essential guide to understanding and harnessing the tools of journalism today, Meagan Knight and Clare Cook show you how to master the enduring rules of good practice and the new techni...

The diffusion and rapid evolution of new communication technologies has reshaped media and politics. But who are the new power players? Written by a leading scholar in the field, The Hybrid Media System is a sweeping and compelling new theory of how political communication now works. Politics is increasingly defined by organizations, groups, and individuals who are best able to blend older and newer media logics, in what Andrew Chadwick terms a hybrid system. Power is wielded by t...