DC Examiner/WECAN
Sponsoring news organization: Washington Examiner
Location: Washington, DC
Owned by: Clarity Media Group
Founded: 1865; consolidated and changed name to Washington Examiner in 2004
Community engagement initiative launched: late 2004/early 2005
Editor: Nicholas Horrock
Editorial Page Editor and head of WECAN project: Mark Tapscott
Software used: Custom-developed web platform

Mark Tapscott of the DC Examiner describes WECAN as an experiment in bringing the central notion of James Surowiecki’s book The Wisdom of Crowds to journalism. In a post introducing the effort on the MediaShift weblog, he wrote:

The heart of WECAN is seen in a little book, “The Wisdom of Crowds” by New Yorker business writer James Surowiecki who focuses on a key principle underlying the immense power of the Internet: No one of us is as smart, experienced or skillful as all of us together. The Internet lets us focus collective talent and knowledge on a particular problem simultaneously.

Here’s how a recent Examiner editorial announcing the posting of two new databases, employee compensation for Washington’s Metro system and the City of Alexandria, explained WECAN:

“By putting databases and other resources on the Internet, WECAN makes it possible to focus hundreds or even thousands of pairs of eyes and brains on key government activities or services.”

Tapscott wrote that in October of 2006. By January, when we interviewed him, data on salaries for government workers in the city of Alexandria, VA, the DC Metro authority, Montgomery County, MD, and Fredrick County, MD had been posted online. While the effort was technologically modest – the data was provided as links to Excel spreadsheets – Tapscott says that the goals were ambitious. In January, we asked him to reflect on his experiences with WECAN:

Center for Citizen Media: What do you expect citizens who want to get involved with WECAN to do with the data you're making available?

Tapscott: Our readers include hundreds, if not thousands, of people who are accountants, government auditors, personnel experts, program managers, etc. etc. We want them to look at the databases we post because they will see things as a result of their expertise that a working journalist typically would miss. We also want them to suggest to us additional databases they would like to see posted and if they are filing FOIAs or other requests, tell us about their progress, so we can post that on the WECAN web site, too. Then, these folks also tend to be quite knowledgeable about parts of governments we are covering, so they are likely going to be sources for possible stories that wouldn't necessarily come from the data. I also harbor a hope that WECAN will encourage more awareness among the public of how difficult it can be to get basic information out of local, state and federal governments and of how important it is that they take advantage of resources like WECAN. The whole idea here is to combine forces in an effort to bring a much greater level of transparency to government and public examination of their governments' operations. Doing that is why we have a First Amendment that is meant to insure an independent, free press.

Center for Citizen Media: So far you're collecting payroll data for municipalities and counties. Why start there?

Tapscott: The Examiner's primary reporting focus is on local and regional news, though as the institution matures, national and international news will undoubtedly become more important. But the local and regional focus is our bread and butter, so WECAN's logical focus is there. I am quite aware that the principle underlying WECAN works just as logically in the context of Congress, the White House, etc. I also think the WECAN concept can work for civic groups, non-profits, etc. Frankly, I am surprised, and a little disappointed as well, that the Blogosphere has not done more to cover Congress in a more systematic manner, but I think that will change for the better in the next five years as a result of the credentialing efforts of the Media Bloggers Association, which just recently secured an agreement from the federal courts to establish seats for bloggers covering the Scooter Libby trial.

Center for Citizen Media: Has the WECAN effort resulted in stories in the Examiner (outside of op-ed pieces?) How do you think WECAN could result in innovative
journalism or just good pieces in the future?

Tapscott: I have not made a systematic attempt yet to cultivate news stories out of WECAN, primarily because we had a long delay in getting a web site up and available. But as I've talked with people in the newsroom and outside it in the various communities we cover, I have frequently seen possible stories, and based on my knowledge of the data we have posted to date. A number of our editorials on local topics were directly the result of things we found in the data and could as easily have been springboards for news stories if the Examiner had a larger reporting staff. I will be talking to the reporting staff and demonstrating WECAN to them in the next few weeks and my expectation is that 2007 will see a number of news stories coming out of the effort.

Center for Citizen Media: What ideas interest you in terms of technology that could be used with WECAN? Right now you're making data available online in the form
of Excel spreadsheets. Do you think you'll move into visualization of that data (maps, live graphs)? What about ways for people to interact with and annotate that data beyond downloading it, looking at it, and sending the Examiner email?

Tapscott: I was in San Francisco back in October at a conference of activists, programmers and developers talking about Internet-based products that can be used to enhance transparency and accountability in government. I believe any tool that helps citizens gain more information and understanding about the performance of their public officials probably has an application with WECAN. Just to cite one obvious example, I would like to have a widget that pulls relevant campaign contributions, family connections, calendar entries, etc. for local and state legislators, much as a widget I saw in San Francisco does for the federal level. I really do believe the Internet makes possible transparency and accountability that the Founders could only dream about. Actually, I guess they couldn't even dream about it!

Center for Citizen Media: You had a successful blog -- Mark Tapscott's Copy Desk -- for five years before moving your blog to the Examiner. How do you feel this
shapes how you do your job at the Examiner?

Tapscott: Actually, my first blog post - asking if the Internet could do for government what it had already done for the mainstream media - went up Nov. 16 2004. It never attracted a consistently large readership, much to my chagrin, but Tapscott's Copy Desk in its first iteration put me into contacts and relationships that would simply have not been possible beforehand. That's the great thing about collaborative network via the Internet, it can extend all of us to each of us as we choose. In the context of media and government, there is incredible power in that possibility.

Since moving TCD to Examiner.com, those relationships have if anything been strengthened and I have been enabled as a resource to the newsroom as a result with tips, leads and resources. I am impatient for the restoration of some basic functionality that I had before but overall I am very happy with the move. I did like my quill pen masthead much better though!