Just a few decades ago, journalists relied on nothing more than a notebook, a pen, and a phone, but now they lean on cutting-edge technologies. So, what are their favorite tools in this new era of information? And what constitutes the ideal technical stack for a journalist in 2024? Here's our selection.
Powerful Information Gathering and Monitoring Tools
According to Cision's 2023 Media Trends Report, 96% of journalists use social media for various work-related activities such as monitoring, connecting with experts, or identifying trending topics. To effectively leverage platforms like Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook, many journalists turn to third-party tools allowing them to track specific keywords or analyze trends.
Examples include the CrowdTangle extension for social listening and Tweetdeck, now known as XPro, which offers a dashboard for tracking accounts, hashtags, or specific keywords on Twitter. While once free, Tweetdeck recently transitioned to a paid model due to platform developments.
Beyond social media, information professionals frequently use Google tools like Google Alerts and Google Trends for monitoring, and they rely on digital press rooms. Platforms like MediaConnect provide access to all press releases shared on the platform, allowing filtering by topic of interest and setting up personalized alerts, facilitating effective monitoring while combating information overload.
Increasingly Accessible Multimedia Content Production Tools
According to Cision, 45% of journalists this year have integrated infographics into their articles, 43% have used videos, 28% have employed social media posts, and 13% have included audio content. A plethora of tools now exists to create such content without requiring advanced graphic skills.
For instance, Canva enables quick visual creation, Dalet Flex offers simplified video editing and production features, and Datawrapper simplifies data visualization. Tools for recording, editing, and distributing podcasts have also proliferated, with platforms like Zencastr, Audacity, or Ausha among them.
Publishing and Distribution Platforms Tailored to Journalistic Needs
The Content Management System (CMS) often serves as the central tool for online news media, organizing, publishing, and distributing content in a structured manner, and in some cases, monetizing it.
The British magazine Press Gazette recently partnered with the web analysis tool BuiltWith to analyze over 2,000 leading news sites worldwide and identify the most commonly used CMS. According to this study, 44% of online media use the open-source solution WordPress, including publications like The Economist, Al Jazeera, and The New York Times. Drupal and Hubspot CMS Hub follow as the second and third most popular choices, respectively.
Journalists are increasingly turning to social media management tools like Hootsuite or Buffer to plan posts and automate certain aspects of content distribution.
Emerging Fact-Checking Tools
The scourge of fake news and misinformation significantly impacts journalistic work. We were discussing it in our podcast "Ça bouge" with Grégoire Lemarchand and Sophie Nicholson, respectively editor-in-chief and deputy editor-in-chief of digital investigation at AFP.
Consequently, information professionals devote increasing time and effort to verifying sources. Fortunately, tools are emerging to assist in this task:
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Botometer verifies the authenticity of Twitter accounts.
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Amnesty International's YouTube Dataviewer helps extract metadata from YouTube content.
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InVID aids in assessing the veracity of videos.
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TinEye serves as a reverse image search engine.
Google itself offers Fact Check Explorer, a tool dedicated to information verification. While resources available to journalists are expanding, it's essential to note their reliability is rarely 100%.
A New Generation of AI-based Writing and Editing Tools
As mentioned at the beginning of this article, artificial intelligence is making a significant impact on the world of journalism, particularly conversational AI like ChatGPT. Many journalists already utilize it to condense information, proofread texts, or brainstorm story ideas.
Last July, Google announced the upcoming launch of "Genesis", an AI tool aimed at assisting journalists in writing news articles. It aims to offer a range of features dedicated to information aggregation, synthesis, and writing assistance.
This announcement sparked lively reactions and concerns within the profession. However, major media outlets like The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal are among those eager to explore the possibilities offered by this future tool. The technologies facilitating and transforming journalists' work are far from reaching their peak!
Ingrid de Chevigny
