It's highly likely there will be things happening on and around the National Mall tomorrow that lead to videos, tweets, photos and other social media reports that go viral. Here are some reminders from an earlier post:
- We don't necessarily have to report about them until we have more to say than that they exist.
- One video [tweet, etc.] may not tell a complete story.
- It's very likely we won't know how it was edited.
- We may know nothing about the motivations of the person who made the video [tweet, etc.].
- We may know nothing about the motivations of the person who posted the video [tweet, etc.] (and whether it's the person who made it).
- OK, so what do we do? The short answer is: report. Talk to the people in the video [tweet, etc.] and any witnesses. Find angles that other media don't have. Ask and answer questions that haven't been addressed. Look for holes in the conventional wisdom. Explain what isn't yet known. Find out who made the video [tweet, etc.] and that person's motive. Press for and collect reactions from elected officials, prosecutors, police and others whose words might move the story forward.
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