The DC-based website Sunlight Live from the Sunlight Foundation has won the top prize in the Knight-Batten awards. Sunlight Live won $10,000 for “…add[ing] journalistic punch to a carefully orchestrated government event, adding context and insight to the proceedings… they don’t stop at merely shedding light on the behind-the-scenes proceedings of government – they go a step beyond to make it fun and engaging, creating a social experience around the event.” The site’s tagline is “Making Government Transparent and Accountable.” There are a variety of features on the site, including blogs dedicated to the BP oil disaster and Transparency Data. Winners of the $1,000 Special Distinction Award were:
ProPublica for its distributed reporting.
48 Hr Magazine, the team that created a 60-page magazine in a weekend.
The Obameter, a production of the St. Petersburg Politifact site, dedicated to measuring President Obama’s promise-keeping.
Ushahidi Haiti, which “marshaled Skype, Twitter, Facebook, radio and short codes to crowdsource real-time needs” following the Haiti earthquake.
Publish2 News Exchange, a platform that “… allows news organizations to interact directly with one another to create custom newswires and set terms for collaborating and sharing content.
The Takeaway, from WNYC and Public Radio International, New York, N.Y. This effort “…prompted residents to text tips about particular stories from Mexicantown in Southwest Detroit. Residents texted information about trucks illegally barreling down their side streets.” Another experiment from the site encouraged neighborhood residents to send in keywords that describe their neighborhood. Journalists from Detroit’s WDET were also involved.
