For the multi-media journalist the field is home. Its where the stories live, where the action is. Part of deploying a multi-media journalist plan in your shop must include mobility. The longer a journalist can stay in the field reporting, the more time they have building relevant content for your platforms.

So a key attribute for multi-media journalists is mobile. Anywhere - everywhere and the ability to stay and get the story and send it back, instantly!

In the old days, that could only happen with satellite or ENG trucks, and even more recent with hard line internet connections. Today its all a part of the multi-media journalist arsenal.

Two forces have joined together that has created some effective tools for the field. I’ve written about EyeFi before in our latest book, Live Local Broken News. EyeFi makes a wireless SD chip that can plug into most cameras, and wirelessly transmit files. Previously limited to only Flickr and YouTube, the company is expanding with a brand new device. The EyeFi ProX2 holds 8GB of memory, is a class 6 chip, which means its super fast in capturing standard and HD video and stills.

Here’s the cool part. Pop the chip into any camera that holds an SD card, shoot your pictures and then EyeFi wirelessly sends your images to any predetermined FTP or social media site.

Company CEO Jef Holove told me “while the original chips were made for consumers, we have found a growing contingent of professional journalists and bloggers using EyeFi. In my view .. clearly media organizations are getting smaller and need to move more quickly.”

Holove knows about the downsizing in American media, and sees the EyeFi as another way citizen journalists can supply content to media companies.

“We can leverage ways to level the hurt”, Holove says. “There are plenty of folks that are supplied with cameras that can now send images from the field. There is a necessity for media organizations to leverage the masses for video clips and stills. Media companies quickly need to figure out how we leverage and fact control the information coming in.”

Holove points to CNN’s IReport as a clear indication that the tipping point in user generated content has occurred, and the off the shelf tools like EyeFi is help making it happen.

So here’s the tech stuff. The EyeFi ProX2 runs on the standard 802.11N wireless network, it can also run ad hoc, meaning you can save wirelessly to your computer instead.

It has an endless memory mode, allowing it to delete images as you shoot new ones, and is twice as fast as the original cards. Everything under the hood on this card has been rebuilt. Cost is $149 and can be pre-ordered from the company website.

What? No wireless hotspot available! There is a solution for that too. Enter the wireless mobile hotspot. A little box you can carry in your pocket or car, allowing an instant internet connection. A couple of companies make them Novatel and Sierra Wireless.

Novatel makes the MiFi, which gives you as much as 4G speed, where available, Sprint and Verizon Wireless sell them, along with a $59 monthly fee. Sprint will give you one with a two year contract.

For roughly $200 your multi-media journalist can send you instantaneous images to your website from the field, and transmit video clips while driving to the next breaking story. Do that in a satellite truck.

This entry was posted on Monday, February 1st, 2010 at 9:05 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.