Reporting technology: Resist the PR machine, grab your slice of gadget heaven
Zoe Kleinman
is a BBC News technology reporter @zsk
In the third of our posts on what it takes to be a journalist in a specialist field, part-time reporter Zoe Kleinman warns against drowning in emails, the dark side of technology and over-stepping the brief:
So far in 2015 I’ve piloted a selfie-taking drone in the middle of the Nevada desert, road-tested a motorised skateboard, been hypnotised by a smart strobe light, tried (and failed) to earn virtual pirate treasure with my three-year-old and pounded the pavements of Winchester to put a fitness band through its paces.
Test-driving a giant robot spider (above) was a career first; investigating Apple watches this week was pretty down to earth by comparison.
As a technology reporter I feel it’s my duty to try out as many gadgets as possible. It’s great fun too of course, and a very handy source of anecdotes to have up your sleeve whenever there’s a lull in conversation at parties - but before you get too jealous it’s also only about 10% of the job.
I am one of a small (but perfectly formed) team of specialist tech reporters in BBC News. We run the national and international versions of the technology section of the BBC News website, we provide on-air comment and analysis across both BBC TV and radio, and we produce video. We also have our own weekly show on BBC World Service, Tech Tent, where we talk tech with our correspondent and presenter Rory Cellan-Jones and top guests from around the industry.
Technology’s our speciality but we can’t pretend it’s any longer a niche subject. From tweeting along to your favourite TV show to playing that annoying game on your phone (you know, THAT one), from the way you run your social life to the way you navigate your way around the world, tech is everywhere and it’s evolving all the time. It’s an entrepreneurial industry full of creative people bursting with new ideas.
Keeping up in such a fast-paced and competitive environment requires good judgement, trusted expert advice and sometimes just a bit of old-fashioned good luck. Every new gaming app wants to be the next Flappy Bird; every new social network the new Facebook; every new lift-sharing service the new Uber (controversy aside).
The new players are hungry for publicity because it can make or break a fledgling start-up. Sometimes I feel like a Dragon straight out of the Den - if only I had the money to match.
Seriously though, the PR machine is relentless, and can be tedious. My email inbox is always bursting at the seams and can double in size overnight - but it’s important not to get sucked down by it all.
Keep your eyes peeled and step away from the press releases when you can. It could be the person you bump into in the lift, or even chat to at the school gate, who is doing something truly innovative - using technology in an inspiring or downright clever way to make life easier, or change someone else’s life for the better.
It’s definitely one of those always-on job specs. I work part-time and juggle my office hours with raising two small children. But I’ve got a box of business cards in my changing bag, I check my work email remotely at least twice a day, and I’m rarely far from Twitter.
Journalists, like therapists, need to be good listeners. You also need to know how to wind up a conversation with your expert guest in full flow, swiftly and politely, when the time is right. There’s nothing like having a producer shrieking ‘Wrap! Wrap!’ into your ear in the middle of a live broadcast to test that particular skill.
And there’s a dark side to technology too, of course. Edward Snowden’s revelations have shown the controversial powers exercised by the world’s security services in tapping our digital communications; financial fraud has been given a new lease of life through the various flaws in online banking (change your passwords, people…); threats are bandied around on social media and individuals are abused in the name of online entertainment.
We need to understand and report those stories unflinchingly, but without breaking the law ourselves. If you’re working on a story about illegal material, whatever you do, don’t look at it, and definitely do not download it. If it concerns criminal activity, brush up on the reporting laws in your country so you don’t end up in contempt of court.
If you still fancy being a tech reporter, here’s one final piece of advice: just as people always want doctors to cure their colds, they will want you to fix their gadgets. And you almost certainly won’t be able to. So take it from someone who has learned the hard way and don’t be tempted to show off.
Specialist journalism can be a tough old business
Specialist journalism is the future - if you can see the wood for the trees
The boom in tech journalism –and its complex relationship with PR
