Aspiring citizen journalists and the public at large will have a new avenue to submit video, audio and text to the Web sites of local CBS TV stations as the result of a new CBS Digital Media Group initiative.
The network announced Monday that it was developing a community-generated content initiative using Microsoft Silverlight technology, a new cross-browser, cross-platform plug-in for Web media.
The new initiative is being displayed in proof-of-concept form at the MIX07 conference in Las Vegas this week. It gives the network a new way to allow audiences to "participate in the local broadcast process," said Jonathan Leess, president and general manager of the CBS Television Stations Digital Media Group.
The new local initiative will allow users of the CBS-owned stations' sites to view, upload, share, rate, comment, sort and search video, images, audio and text submissions. The application will be integrated into the existing content publishing workflow of the CBS stations' digital media groups and will allow community-generated content to be managed alongside the station's professional content in a single workflow.
CBS is working with Microsoft to build the Silverlight-powered beta version, which is expected to launch in some markets later this year.
For more information, visit www.cbscorporation.com.
