#Twutorial guest post by Jaclyn Schiff: How using Storify can help you find great sources

Thanks to Jaclyn Schiff for this #twutorial guest post:

Jaclyn Schiff

A story breaks and you want to build a Twitter source list to help you track developments.

So what do you do?

Your next move probably includes using a combination of Twitter search, Topsy, Listorious, Twiangulate or similar tools. Looking at who your major sources are following and conversing with can also be helpful.

Here’s something else you should do: search Storify.

Most journalists think of Storify as a platform to use only after sources and content have been identified; a good place to go once you have the story and want to convey it. And yes, Storify is a great storytelling tool, but it’s a goldmine of sources too. All you have to do is search.

In case you’ve missed it, Storify’s search field is on the top right when you log in.

Think about it.

If a tweet makes it into a reputable source’s Storify story, it’s a good indication that someone found it highly relevant, insightful or articulate — which is exactly what you want out of a source. Searching Storify basically allows you to access dozens of lists of sources who have not only tweeted about your topic lately (Storify search results default to most recent), but who have had something noteworthy to say about it.

This isn’t the best strategy if you’re putting together something really fast. In that case, Twitter search should be your first destination. The search results on Storify do not have the same immediacy, and they won’t always turn up sources who are tweeting about your topic at that moment. But the search results will help you identify experts and sources who might add a valuable perspective or provide interesting commentary later. Storify search is a good way to forecast who might be interesting next — perfect inspiration for the second-day story. 

Storify is also spreading beyond the journalism world. Major nonprofits, U.N. agencies, think tanks and advocacy organizations are using it to record Twitter chats and create other content.

I’ve found this especially useful for finding sources for international news stories because in many cases, non-government organizations will try to amplify the voices of their in-country staff or connections. For example, if I wanted to find Twitter sources for the recent Ebola outbreak in Uganda, a few quick keyword searches would have led me to this story on a related CDC chat and to this one, which quotes sources on the ground. That’s a fairly obscure topic, so you can imagine how much more helpful this would be for something more mainstream.

But a word of caution: Storify search is far from perfect. It returns results for stories that aren’t exactly related to your topic, but are authored by a person or organization that has created something related to your topic. Hopefully the search function gets more specific over time, but a combination of looking for your keyword in the story headline or description preview can help you figure out what to review pretty quickly.

Jaclyn Schiff, (@J_Schiff) is a freelance journalist / media consultant in the Washington, D.C. area. She is the host of Pangea, a global affairs podcast for the digitally connected.

If you would like to contribute a guest post on an aspect of how journalists use Twitter, email me at stephenbuttry (at) gmail (dot) com with your idea. If your post has been published elsewhere, I will use the first few paragraphs here, then link to your original piece.

Previous #twutorial posts

Step one for using Twitter as a reporter: Master advanced search

Use lists, TweetDeck, HootSuite, saved searches, alerts to organize Twitter’s chaos

Denver Post staffers’ #theatershooting coverage demonstrates Twitter breaking news techniques

Hashtags help journalists find relevant tweets and reach more people

Advice and examples on how and what journalists should tweet

9 ways to find helpful people and organizations to follow on Twitter

To build Twitter followers: Join the conversation, tweet often, be yourself

10 ways Twitter is valuable for journalists

Updated Twitter time management tips

Don’t be selfish on Twitter; tweeting useful information is good business

What’s the best way to view Twitter’s users? 16 percent or 30 million

Twitter data shows journos’ ‘burstiness’ boosts followers

#Twutorial guest post from Alexis Grant: A simple Twitter strategy that will dramatically grow your network

#Twutorial guest post from Deanna Utroske: Tips for twinterviewing

#Twutorial guest post by Menachem Wecker: How to use Twitter to find the best sources

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