Jan Schaffer
Bio:
Jan Schaffer is founder and executive director of J-Lab, a catalyst and incubator for news entrepreneurs and innovators. A Pulitzer Prize winner for The Philadelphia Inquirer, she left daily journalism to lead pioneering journalism initiatives in civic journalism, interactive and participatory journalism. J-Lab has funded more than 100 news startups and pilot projects. She previously directed the Pew Center for Civic Journalism, which funded more than 120 newsroom experiments to better engage people in public life. She also teaches media entrepreneurship in American University’s masters program.
Research Project: Guide to Crowdsourcing
The ability of news consumers to participate in acts of journalism has moved far beyond eyewitness accounts captured in photos and video. This project examines how crowdsourcing has developed since the term was first coined a decade ago, develop a robust taxonomy of uses, showcase important examples in case studies, and explore emerging best practices.