Instablogs Gets Global, Inaudible

If there’s one thing the Internet has done that has changed the world in a profound way, it’s that it has enabled citizen journalism. Enabling local voices to reach out with on-the-ground reports that mainstream news providers would ignore, or be unable to get, has changed our understanding of global events, whether it be through photos and footage from Hurricane Katrina or mapping reports of the 2008 Kenya post-election crisis. The man on the street may not have the most unbiased of opinions, but his access is unbeatable — and his perspective invaluable.

The blogging network Instablogs, originating in India, caught on fairly early to this phenomenon, launching a community network in 2006 that has since grown to include 25,000 registered members providing news, photos, and video on what’s happening in their backyards. And now, following the path of seemingly countless other successful (or not so successful) web sites, it’s got itself a video podcast.

Global Report runs between five and seven minutes and spans the globe with reporting on large and small-scale stories: The July 2nd episode covers overpopulation in Egypt, Ugandan freedom of expression, and the marriage of Australian Idol host Andrew to pop star Noa Tishby. The quality of the reporting here isn’t exactly in depth, given the short time frame (with four to five stories per episode, that leaves about a minute per story). The series’ greatest strength is in its diversity of reporters and coverage, which allows it to execute a nice balance between hard and soft news.

But there’s a bit too much journalism and not enough citizen in these stories — some episodes feature news that’s gotten plenty of play, such as the the Gloucester High teen pregnancy pact, while other stories, which definitely count as fresh news, lack a personal approach. But what’s supremely disappointingly about Global Report is the production value. Graphics lack sophistication, the editing is less than impressive, and sound quality is extremely poor — to the point of becoming unintelligible at times. This might be forgivable for the field reports, but the quality is equally bad for in-studio segments.

Also, none of the anchors show much personality on camera. Each is awkward, uncomfortable and difficult to understand. It’s great to see a web series demand to be taken seriously, but just because you don’t want an Amanda Congdon hosting your series doesn’t mean you should aim so dramatically towards the other side of the spectrum. Also, rather than using original intros for each segment, the host just repeats the story’s lead on at least one occasion — which is just lazy.

Instablogs is perfectly placed to explode citizen journalism into the online video space, and Global Report is so well-intentioned that I hesitate to write it off. But its production needs to live up to its promise.