Covering War and Terrorism

Posted on July 2, 2001

It didn't crash, but it wobbled. The web's first real test as a new news medium showed its popularity - and its weaknesses. In the few hours after the Word Trade Center attacks, the web was under such demand for news that many major news sites could barely handle the demand.

CNN, which usually gets 14 million page views per day was flooded with 9 million per hour. At one point, Google - the popular search engine - simply told web users to go to their radio and TV because the main web news sites were so swamped.

The web was also a lifeline, as survivors in nearby buildings used instant messaging and email to keep in contact. The web also gave important support for donations, air travel and even tips emailed to the FBI.

Overall, the news web sites behaved more responsibly than during the madness of the Lewinsky scandal, when several major news organizations tried to scoop each other and the web and got things wrong. This time, most web sites were fast but cautious. Convergence also showed its strengths, with print sites like the New York Times and Washington Post offering excellent video and multimedia packages.

FINDING NEWS

Now as the task of covering terrorism and war dominates the agenda, what special resources can you use to do your job more effectively.

Moreover.com remains the single best way to find news headlines from major international English-language papers. You can read their selection of top stories or select from their pre-chosen categories -- including regional news on Afghanistan or the Middle East. (For a complete list, see Moreover's category list. ) You can also simply put in keywords in their search box in the top left corner of their page.

Worldnews.com creates special newspapers on demand on certain topics. These newspapers do not exist in the real world, but WorldNews creates them for you. They provide not only news from wire services and papers, but also excellent outside resources running down the left margin. For example, the Afghan Daily comes with links to the Muhjadeen; while Refugee News comes with links to help groups and agencies.

Say you want to read a specific newspaper in Hamburg or elsewhere in Germany for news on arrests there but don't know the name of the paper or how to speak German.

Or choose ABYZ or KidonMedia and get all the papers in a country.

FINDING PEOPLE

You can use US phone books to track down neighbours of suspects or victims by doing reverse searches. Infospace allows you to hunt for neighbours once you get an address on someone by clicking on the Neighbours link underneath the person's name. Or you can be more precise by putting in addresses next to the home you have located for a suspect or victim in the reverse box.

For example, Abdulaziz Alomari, one of the hijackers, reportedly lived on 57th terrace in Vero Beach. In Reverse search, you will find 25 of his neighbours.

Knowx.com - for a small fee under $10, will give you the names of people who have registered pilot's licenses in the US.

For experts, Profnet as always gives decent results and has put up a special page of experts, as has FACSNET.

If you are looking for government people at various ministries around the world, the best place to start is Gksoft. A couple of clicks gets you to the Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the Saudi Press Agency.

DISSENT

Good journalism also means swimming away from the pack and looking for views that are not getting a full airing in the mainstream media. As always, the web provides a treasure chest of contrary but often reliable or thought provoking criticism.

The best international site is Zmag.org, which features commentary by Noam Chomsky, Edward Said, Robert Fisk and others. FAIR has always been gadfly on the American media and continues its role during the current crisis. DemocracyNow provides news, views and a daily radio show with challenging opinions.

Canadian dissent can be found at StraightGoods.com and at Rabble.ca (in the interests of full disclosure, I am a contributing editor to the latter site.)

Progressive-minded foreign policy experts are available at the Interhemispheric Resource Center .

SPECIAL RESOURCES

Military.com is a privately run site that has the latest news briefs on American, but also access to military chat, background information and useful outside links.

The Poynter Institute is the best place to start for tips, resources and coverage about the coverage.

BUBL is a UK librarian site that does not give you endless lists but only a handful of the best sites, reviewed and analyzed for their relevancy.