CNN now allows users to send in video and audio reports of breaking news occurring in their region. Users with camcorders or recording audio devices can email or upload their "I-Reports" directly to
CNN. All user submissions will appear in a separate Web site, called the CNN Exchange. The idea is YouTube-like, but with more direction. It calls for firsthand reports of news events as they happen
anywhere in the world. User video reports have always been important to news organizations: the fall of the World Trade Center, the infamous beatings of Rodney King, and videos of the race-related
riots in Los Angeles that followed. In those instances, the people who witnessed the events as they happened were on the scene before professional news crews. It's a great way to add new content for a
news site, but one wonders why Time Warner felt the need to develop a separate Web site. Adding more user reports to CNN.com would likely generate more traffic--and more video ad inventory.
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