#futurejournalism

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The semantic web speaks to how we are moving from a Web of documents – what Google does- to a Web of linked data. The inventor of the World Wide Web, Tim Berners-Lee, states that the semantic Web will give information “…a well-defined meaning, better enabling computers and people to work in cooperation.” For Journalism, this implies lots of challenges for how information can be found and used.

The true believers say the semantic web could help journalists report complex ever-changing stories and reach new audiences. Reporters who exploit the semantic Web could soon use automated research tools that identify patterns, local connections, and even conflicts of interest without having to painfully acquire and load piles of data into spreadsheets.

But the critics of the semantic web are afraid about the consequences that web 3.0 could imply for journalism jobs: “could the technology become so smart it will replace some reporters?”

As Finlayson states, “if you search Google for a city's weather, it will give you the answer without sending you to a weather-related page on a news site”, so, if the semantic Web continues its development, could this happen with other stories? But Semantic Web advocates think the Internet will remain confusing for machines so reporters will continue being needed.

But, for the time being, the enhanced findability that the semantic Web provides, is the most practical and immediate reason for journalists to pay attention to the semantic Web movement, because it will allow us to easy access to thousands of sources of raw data that we will use to tell meaningful stories about our communities.

To sum up, I agree with the opinion of Andrew Finlayson: “Humans still will be needed to analyze and use the data to tell stories. In this way, the semantic Web might not be a technology that hastens the end of journalism but instead offers a new beginning”.