Use DocumentCloud to share your docs

Embedding primary source documents improves transparency

Hi, reporters! Today’s tool has always seemed like an essential TFR to me, but when I looked back over old posts, I realized I haven’t talked about it in years! Correcting that today.

DocumentCloud is an outstanding tool that was created by journalists for journalists. It’s a document uploading/sharing/annotating/analyzing platform that has far too many features for me to cover here.

What I will talk about it today is its excellent embedding capabilities. DocumentCloud lets you, for instance, upload and embed an entire stack of thousands of extremely news-relevant emails. Other document tools, like Adobe and Google Pinpoint, don’t include this sharing/embedding aspect.

These embedded collections can also include their own search bar, highlighting feature, notes, and contextual info. This provides awesome transparency into your own process as well as providing audiences with more info and tools.

If DocumentCloud has a downside, it’s only that you have to be a journalist to join. The project’s owner, MuckRock, verifies applications to upload and share docs. But that provides some extra security and credibility - so share your sources please, reporters!

Did you miss the last TFR? Use an early-adoption AI tool to turn your ideas and scribbles into usable image