Want to know a little secret about journalism and the newspaper world? We're changing.
You're shocked, I know.
But I don't think readers are fully aware of what some of these changes mean. For one, it means everyone is now a 'journalist,' if not a professional reporter. And very often a publisher. You no longer need a printing press. If you have a smart phone, tablet or laptop, you can be your own publisher.
And we in the business increasingly are asking you to join us in our daily coverage of what is going on here in Delaware County.
In fact, I'm not shy about asking. Yesterday readers were more than happy to oblige.
The truth is, we are now reporting news instantaneously 24 hours a day. As hard as we try, we have not yet figured out how to be everywhere in this county at all hours of the day.
So when breaking news hits, we are increasingly turning to readers for help. Take yesterday afternoon for instance. We got word mid-afternoon of a bad crash involving a school bus on the Conchester Route 322 in Upper Chi. We started working the story and posting on Twitter and Facebook. We quickly got an update - it was a fatal accident.
Our problem was that we really needed an image of the crash. Our photographers were nowhere near the scene. Do you have any idea how long it takes to go from Primos - here in the corner of Upper Darby where it meets Clifton Heights and Aldan - to Upper Chi? So instead I took to Twitter and Facebook and asked if anyone had any images of the crash. Within five minutes I had pictures of the car wedged under the back of the school bus. Those images quickly went onto DelcoTimes.com and were used in print this morning.
Now I'm looking for any pictures of another fatal crash, this one later yesterday afternoon, on a particularly notorious stretch of Smithbridge Road in Concord Township. A 17-year-old was killed when he lost control of his car. That stretch of Smithbridge, not far from Garnet Valley Hgih School, has been the scene of a number of fatal crashes over the years.
We will push our coverage - as well as reaction to the latest tragedy - most of the day.
All of this is part of what we generally refer to as reader engagement. We love the fact that you read. But we also want you to take part in the process. We have readers who write blogs, take photos, create Top 10 lists.
You can be involved, too.
We need all the help we can get in covering Delaware County 24 hours a day.
Consider this your formal invitation.
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