Cover the Planet

By David Poulson

Jeff Kart has this nice piece in the Bay City (Mich.) Times today on the future of a proposed coal-fired power plant in the heart of his readership.

Consumers Power Co. makes the case that this plant is unusually well-suited for carbon capture and sequestration technology. The region already has underground cavities that might be used to store captured carbon.

Kart does a good job of explaining the issue. But he helps the reader by embedding into the online version of the story this U.S. Department of Energy YouTube video that describes the technology and the challenges:

Should you rely on government video to help you explain your story?

Of course. You wouldn’t hesitate to interview a government official for a similar explanation. Take advantage of all the resources you can - and as efficiently as you can.

A commitment to multi-media reporting doesn’t mean you have to do it all yourself. Government, non-profit agencies and other organizations have resources that can engage readers. They may not be perfect - in this case I’d argue the carbon video is much too long.

But seek out those sources. Nowadays that really is part of your job as a journalist. Besides, you save yourself a pile of production work if you can find something to illustrate your story that someone else has done.

Just be transparent about where you got the video - like you’d do with any information. And if the presentation is biased, point that out. Or at least report alternative valid viewpoints. It’s still journalism.