5 ms·

Question: the article cites a lady who was frustrated with AT&T customer service - she’s from Illinois. How do newspapers find anecdotal stories like this? I m

by dfee 7y ago

Question: the article cites a lady who was frustrated with AT&T customer service - she’s from Illinois. How do newspapers find anecdotal stories like this? I mean this could have been anyone, anywhere - we all have these sorts of frustrating stories. Is there a sort of marketplace or broker who has a list of on-demand anecdotes? I just can’t imagine it’s worth it for WSJ to fly a reporter halfway across the country to get a head shot and a one paragraph statement.

EVdotIO 7y ago
HARO is mostly the answer.
- eclipxe 7y ago
  Help A Reporter Out
- dredmorbius 7y ago
  https://www.helpareporter.com https://www.helpareporter.com "Help A Reporter Out (HARO): Your PR Agency's Worst Nightmare" https://www.forbes.com/sites/zalmiduchman/2015/11/27/haro/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/zalmiduchman/2015/11/27/haro/ "Help a Reporter Out (HARO): Ultimate Guide 2019" https://fitsmallbusiness.com/help-a-reporter-out-haro/ https://fitsmallbusiness.com/help-a-reporter-out-haro/
diyseguy 7y ago
AAAS: Anecdotes as a Service I think I found my new startup idea
- siphon22 7y ago
  No, you need to do a ML-powered "This Anecdote Doesn't Exist" instead. Could provide a lot of amusement for HN.
wp381640 7y ago
If I was writing this story i'd scour social media replies to the major telco's and then get in touch with people. Likely picked telco's since they rank so low on customer satisfaction, ditto with banks Large part of being a good reporter and getting the story right is networking and finding where the story leads you This is certainly right in this case - if you count the sources in the story you'll see the reporter spoke to at least 9 people and cited a few reports and previous reporting edit: it's also possible the reporter didn't fly to IL - she may have done the interview over the phone/video and the editor sent in a local freelance or bureau photographer
- dredmorbius 7y ago
  From some cases in which I've been interviewed: - A very large online footprint associated vaguely with the story. - Knew the reporter socially. - Knew the reporter through previous contacts. (Emailing the publication can do this.) - Chaining through other contacts -- "oh, you should talk to ...". That includes a decade or three's experience. Today with social media the task is much easier. Various public filings (court records, consumer complaints to gov't offices, to watchdog groups) can also trigger journalist follow-ups, depending on the case. The reporter very likely talked to 10x the people cited in the article -- one reason good journalism is hard. As with high-quality video and audio production, it's what's left out that makes what's left in much better.
magicseth 7y ago
Not quite the same, but there are networks of people that reporters can reach out to when they want a quote or a piece for a story. They send out prompts and people with relevant experience can reply: https://www.helpareporter.com/ https://www.helpareporter.com/
formercoder 7y ago
WSJ is the master of anecdata

by dfee 7y ago

EVdotIO 7y ago

HARO is mostly the answer.

eclipxe 7y ago
Help A Reporter Out
dredmorbius 7y ago
https://www.helpareporter.com https://www.helpareporter.com "Help A Reporter Out (HARO): Your PR Agency's Worst Nightmare" https://www.forbes.com/sites/zalmiduchman/2015/11/27/haro/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/zalmiduchman/2015/11/27/haro/ "Help a Reporter Out (HARO): Ultimate Guide 2019" https://fitsmallbusiness.com/help-a-reporter-out-haro/ https://fitsmallbusiness.com/help-a-reporter-out-haro/

diyseguy 7y ago

AAAS: Anecdotes as a Service I think I found my new startup idea

siphon22 7y ago
No, you need to do a ML-powered "This Anecdote Doesn't Exist" instead. Could provide a lot of amusement for HN.

wp381640 7y ago

If I was writing this story i'd scour social media replies to the major telco's and then get in touch with people. Likely picked telco's since they rank so low on customer satisfaction, ditto with banks Large part of being a good reporter and getting the story right is networking and finding where the story leads you This is certainly right in this case - if you count the sources in the story you'll see the reporter spoke to at least 9 people and cited a few reports and previous reporting edit: it's also possible the reporter didn't fly to IL - she may have done the interview over the phone/video and the editor sent in a local freelance or bureau photographer

dredmorbius 7y ago
From some cases in which I've been interviewed: - A very large online footprint associated vaguely with the story. - Knew the reporter socially. - Knew the reporter through previous contacts. (Emailing the publication can do this.) - Chaining through other contacts -- "oh, you should talk to ...". That includes a decade or three's experience. Today with social media the task is much easier. Various public filings (court records, consumer complaints to gov't offices, to watchdog groups) can also trigger journalist follow-ups, depending on the case. The reporter very likely talked to 10x the people cited in the article -- one reason good journalism is hard. As with high-quality video and audio production, it's what's left out that makes what's left in much better.

magicseth 7y ago

Not quite the same, but there are networks of people that reporters can reach out to when they want a quote or a piece for a story. They send out prompts and people with relevant experience can reply: https://www.helpareporter.com/ https://www.helpareporter.com/

formercoder 7y ago

WSJ is the master of anecdata