---
title: "Fun With Journchat"
author: "Christopher S Penn"
date: 2009-01-27
url: https://www.christopherspenn.com/2009/01/fun-with-journchat/
categories:
  - "New media"
  - "Twitter"
tags:
  - "New media"
  - "Twitter"
---

# Fun With Journchat

**Fun With Journchat**Last night I decided to give Journchat a spin, which is a Twitter-hosted discussion of journalism topics between PR folks and journalists. **Question: As a journ, who should I follow on Twitter to ensure my newsroom is on top of breaking news? (quick one) #journchat**Not a person, but topics. Try jargon for your news vertical in [search.twitter.com](https://search.twitter.com) like [FAFSA](https://www.fafsaonline.com/fafsa-guide-ebook.php) or JPM or IMDB. If you think news is happening somewhere, do location in [search.twitter.com](https://search.twitter.com) to see if there's a mention. if you want breaking news, tie a search from search.twitter.com RSS to an RSS->SMS service. Text to your phone of breaking tweets. Connect Twitter RSS to Yahoo Pipes, filter, then send to Google Reader. See [www.FinancialAidPodcast.com/twitterbook](https://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com/twitterbook)You should also be using marketing tools like Google Trends, Insight for Search, etc. to find trending topics. Plug in every kind of RSS search - Twitter, Google News, etc. - into Google Reader to find stories, esp. overnight. **Question: What do u think of The Big Video Debate: Rough or Slick?**Slick or rough matters less than relevant. Crappy video in HD is still crappy video. Instead of spending money on HD, spend less money on a [stabilizer](https://www.christopherspenn.com/2007/06/30/stabilization-equipment-for-handheld-video/)! If you want to try slick video on a Mac, look into the free software [CamTwist](https://www.allocinit.com/index.php?title=CamTwist). Text, crawls, logos, etc. @howardkang and every reporter regardless of medium should carry a Flipcam or other pocket camera. I carry a Nikon D90, Flipcam, and Samson Zoom H2 all the time, just in case. Have gotten decent local stuff. **Question: Journs and bloggers: how do you use twitter/online to source stories?**I use every channel available. Bloomberg, Twitter, Facebook, CNN, whatever has the info I want for my blog/podcast. I do a lot of financial services writing, so Google Finance, Econoday, and friends on Twitter all are sources. Twitter is great for reality-checking a piece and getting immediate feedback, esp. fact check. 4,800+ friends = fast checks. **Question: What do journs need and/or look for in a web 2.0 press room? (source's site)**I need to see obvious contact information, multiple channels. Don't make me hunt you down or I won't bother. **Did you enjoy this blog post? If so, please subscribe right now!**[![](https://www.christopherspenn.com/btn-email.png)](https://www.feedburner.com/fb/a/emailverifySubmit?feedId=761786) [![](https://www.christopherspenn.com/btn-google.png)](https://www.google.com/ig/add?feedurl=https://feeds.feedburner.com/ChristopherSPenn) [![](https://www.christopherspenn.com/btn-rss.png)](https://feeds.feedburner.com/ChristopherSPenn)Get this and other great articles from the source at [www.ChristopherSPenn.com](https://www.ChristopherSPenn.com)