News site offers voice to citizen photojournalists
By robert caston
11 July 2008
There are millions of digital cameras and cellphone cameras in the hands of people all over the world who are also eyewitnesses to the events taking place around them.
WeSay.com is a news site with a mission to give a voice to those people.
The idea for the site came from web entrepreneur Jim DeBoth who one day was searching the web for photos from the London subway bombing.
He noticed that the best and most dramatic photographs were posted on Flickr and came from people who actually experienced the dramatic event firsthand.
It was then that he realized that people needed a way to document what was taking place in their world instead of viewing it through the eyes of the corporate-controlled media.
He created WeSay.com, which launched this year. The site encourages photographers to submit their photos. There are five main categories: News, Environment, Sports, Celebs and Far-out.
"Anyone who carries a camera or cell phone camera is a potential citizen photojournalist and has the ability to make an impact," said WeSay.com president Jim DeBoth. "We want to give the average citizen the power to shape world news."
Members are given a free profile where they can display their work, promote themselves and ask for feedback.
The site also frequently post topics or run photos contests for members.
WeSay.com held its first citizen photojournalism contest in conjunction with the launch and the grand prize winner was Naom Galai for his photo of a steam pipe explosion in New York City.
"We encourage photographers, both professional and amateur, to participate in our site and showcase their photographs," DeBoth said. "If you have great photos of local events, weather, sports or just something strange in your neighborhood, don't hide it, share it. If it's a strong photo, we'll promote it on our site."
DeBoth believes WeSay.com will eventually launch some photographers into new careers as photojournalists.
Prior to this venture, DeBoth was the creator and owner of Interest.com, a financial news site with nearly two million unique visitors that highlighted the lowest mortgage, credit card and auto loan rates.
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