To start with, where do you interact online?
I’m most visibly present on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, but I also have a LinkedIn account and am just learning about Snapchat.
What have you been using Snapchat for?
My use is only sporadic and I am still very much learning about how it can be used as another platform to share news reports and stories on.
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I very rarely add people I haven’t met in person to my Facebook circle.
Do you use these platforms differently? Do you find yourself speaking to the same people or do you have different audiences on each?
Interesting question.
The groups of people I engage with on the various platforms differ.
On Facebook I have a (hopefully) maximally private account. Most of the people on my friends list I’ve known for many years. I use it to stay in touch with friends and relatives overseas and to follow updates in their lives. I also share various articles of interest, as well as photographs. The nature of my commentary and communication (‘sharing’) is more personal, although restrained.
I very rarely add people I haven’t met in person to my Facebook circle.
My interactions on LinkedIn are purely professional. I don’t trust the platform entirely and am in the process of deciding whether to remain active on it. I only share my journalistic work via LinkedIn and on occasion use it to communicate with other journalists or professionals relevant to my work.
I love Instagram, although the addition of advertising to the feed is off-putting. I have a private account that requires friends requests be approved. Here I share a selection of images from all areas of life ranging from the professional to the more personal. I find Instagram to be like a window into the world and somewhat voyeuristic.
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How I express myself in such a public forum can reflect on they way I am perceived as a journalist.
And Twitter… This is the one that requires most balance.
In great part I use it as a sort of personal ‘news wires’ service. It’s a most diverse information space from which I source international and domestic news and contacts relevant to my journalistic work, as well as share my own and other people’s reports and investigations. I enjoy following public discussions, although I rarely participate myself.
Here I have to show my greatest restraint because how I express myself in such a public, albeit limited, forum can reflect on they way I am perceived as a journalist.
Like my reporting work, the aim of any Twitter content selection or commentary etc is to encourage debate and questions rather than impose a viewpoint of my own.
Certainly the way I engage on Twitter has changed since I first starting using it in 2009.
You’ve been a journalist throughout that time though – is it perhaps that Twitter’s use by the media has changed since its launch?
Yes, but I have become more visible during the time. Perhaps it has… as media/news organisations develop social media policy. And as what appeared on Twitter found its way into other media outlets.
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I use [Twitter] primarily to connect with other journalists or track reporting by the major news distribution agencies and outlets, as well as to gain direct access to international institutions and bodies – e.g. at the United Nations or MSF working with refugees and migrants in Europe.
That’s quite interesting to me actually: that relationship between Twitter and media outlets. Do you think Twitter is a helpful tool for you, as a journalist?
Absolutely. It’s valuable as a resource to keep track of international and domestic events and issues in real-time, offering up a diverse range of accounts and view points. In this context I use it primarily to connect with other journalists or track reporting by the major news distribution agencies and outlets, as well as to gain direct access to international institutions and bodies – e.g. at the United Nations or MSF [Médecins Sans Frontières] working with refugees and migrants in Europe. There are occasions where it’s possible to bypass the formal ‘media contact’ and get straight to the source via Twitter.
I also use it to complement my reporting, so, where possible I will expand my coverage of a story/issue on social media – mainly Twitter.
Do I come across as a selfish Twitter user? I’m all take… And very little give 🙂
You mentioned before that you must have self-restraint, because what you say may reflect on you as a journalist. Do you feel this way often?
It’s a default setting.
Do you ever second guess a tweet you’re composing, or delete things?
Very rarely do I second guess what I tweet and if I do delete it will be because I’ve made a grammatical error or something such and I’ll rewrite the tweet.
But, yes, there have been occasions where I have felt like I’ve stepped outside the boundaries.
I sound rather dull to myself now 🙂
I am a journalist first and foremost and really it’s not my place to provide public commentary, but rather to provoke discussion and questioning of the world around me. That is, hopefully, reflected in my presence on social media as through my work.
It’s obviously more than “just a job”, like some jobs can be – but would you say you’re a journalist first and foremost in all aspects of your life?
That’s quite a question. Not in all aspects of my life, no. But in many.
You mentioned to me before this interview that you have to separate your personal Facebook account from your journalist account – can we talk about that?
Sure.
What were the reasons behind separating the two?
I’ve had Facebook for longer and it started as a personal account through which I could stay up to date with the lives of people I know at home and overseas.
I probably share less on Facebook now than I have in the past.
What I will say is that the organisation I work for has codes and guidelines in place, including for social media engagement. The boundaries of those are still being tested.
I think that is not unique to us.
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In my context, Twitter serves more to alert and point to events/news/developments and as a connection to other useful resources…But everything that comes from it must be verified.
I wonder about the pressure the 5 minute (or whatever it is now) news cycle puts journalists… this pressure to be instant which comes from platforms like Twitter.
You speak about it pretty positively though – is your experience of Twitter generally positive? Do you think it helps you/makes life/work easier or more productive/efficient/effective?
Yes, absolutely. The pace of the news cycle is a reality. Twitter is certainly not a primary source of information or news – merely an aid. For journalists working in different scenarios this would not apply.
There’s so much to be said here.
In my context, Twitter serves more to alert and point to events/news/developments and as a connection to other useful resources. In that way it is invaluable. But everything that comes from it must be verified.
I wouldn’t attribute productivity or effectiveness levels to Twitter alone – it is one resource among many.
And yes, overall, my experience has been positive. But that may have something to do with the fact that I don’t use it to share personal opinions and don’t engage too deeply in discussion.
Does that help avoid the trolls?
Not necessarily. There have been several occasions on which I have received some unflattering messages merely on account of articles I’ve shared.
What did you do?
I consulted a lawyer on one occasion where I had someone from another country threaten me with legal action over an article I retweeted.
I’m familiar with the relevant local laws, but then other countries have laws that concern defamation online that I don’t necessarily understand. It amounted to nothing more than a threat.
I’ve had abuse hurled at me for stories I’ve investigated myself. I tend not to engage with such commentary.
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At the time what I found most confronting and uncomfortable was that someone’s perception of my professional conduct translated into vulgar personal attacks.
How does it make you feel?
At first it’s confronting, as if it has been said to me in person. I was genuinely afraid when I received the threat of legal action from overseas over a RT. But then I tend to treat it as noise. People will always disagree with aspects of what I do.
Sometimes I’m amused, even, by what’s written. I don’t want to sound dismissive of what is a very real problem in the online world. I don’t think I’ve experienced it at the level others have and, perhaps, I’m lucky in that way.
What I found more confronting was seeing some personal attacks against me on forums. Some years ago I found a community forum which had a dedicated section to commenting on my work. The objection to my work was based on a perceived political view of the world. It manifested in various personal attacks on me and my editor at the time.
At the time what I found most confronting and uncomfortable was that someone’s perception of my professional conduct translated into vulgar personal attacks. And descriptors of female anatomy.
I’ve had some private messages on Facebook to the same effect before I made my account more private.
So, the abuse mentioned earlier was based on my perceived political views/bias but manifested in an ugly way. I don’t even know who it was that was behind the comments.
Does it affect how and what I post? Not necessarily. It’s not the main determinant. My experience may be somewhat sheltered. I do try to keep a professional distance.
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I started following him for his photography, but over the years have grown to feel like I almost know him and his family simply because I’ve watched his two kids grow via Instagram. Is that strange?
You mentioned you find Instagram somewhat voyeuristic.
Yes. Maybe that was partly a joke and part not.
I just love how Instagram is a window into other worlds. I love the travel accounts – photos of nature, cityscapes, places I’ve visited and others I haven’t. Sometimes I’ll just turn away from whatever I’m doing and look for photos of my favourite holiday destinations.
I found quite fascinating the other day the realisation that I’ve been following this one photographer in the United States for several years now. I started following him for his photography, but over the years have grown to feel like I almost know him and his family simply because I’ve watched his two kids grow via Instagram. Is that strange?
They’re a young family that has moved around. I remember when they announced their second pregnancy. We’ve exchanged some public messages – but I really do feel like I know them.
What kinds of things do you like to post yourself?
This is probably where my posts are most diverse. I post images relating to my work, stories I’m working on or have completed. I also post photos of friends, travel, family members. Food!
Maybe I don’t feel as exposed because the account is private and ultimately I control who can see the photos. Maybe that’s an illusion. Now I’m questioning whether I should remove some of the photos!
There’s some ego involved, I suspect, otherwise why share my life with others… Strangers?
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Selfies are fun. Fun to the point of being relatively natural.
Selfies – yay or nay?
Yay! But not with a selfie stick. They are evil.
Why do you like selfies?
Selfies are fun. Fun to the point of being relatively natural.
They can be quite creative. I’m not talking about Kardashian style selfies.
Yes – so yes to fun and spontaneous selfies. And not the high maintenance ones. And yes to filters.
Do you have a specific angle which works best for you?
I dunno.. I’ll need to pay more attention to that. I tend to include only part of my face in a selfie. Not sure when I started doing that. Maybe subconsciously it’s a way to not be fully exposed in a photograph.
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