Joe Blows and Jane Does across the country can analyse and comment on the election and its lead-up as it happens on youdecide2007.org, a new Government-funded, QUT-created citizen journalism website.
Although youdecide2007.org will be officially launched when the election is called, it has already sparked a debate in Parliament on housing affordability and the "financial illiteracy" of young buyers, first reported by citizen journalism researcher Jason Wilson of Queensland University of Technology's Creative Industries Faculty.
Designed to provide a forum for voters to report on the electoral race in their own electorate, the site was set up by members of QUT's Creative Industries Faculty, is funded by an Australian Research Council grant and supported by SBS, Online Opinion and the Brisbane Institute.
Dr Wilson said youdecide2007 allowed seat-by-seat coverage by ordinary citizens.
"The site allows people to give 'grassroots' comment in the form of video, audio, photos as well as writing from out in the field and provides a unique opportunity to see what the electorate is thinking," Dr Wilson said.
"We aim to have citizen journalists in every electorate submitting stories, photos, video and audio content.
"Users will be able to comment on stories and the site's social networking function will allow them to interact in other ways too."
Dr Wilson said the site encouraged people to do their own fact-based reporting.
"They could interview the candidates, conduct a voxpop of local people, research local issues or tell us about how national issues are playing out in their electorate," he said.
"This way youdecide2007 will gather local stories and put them into the national context."
Visit www.youdecide2007.org.
Media contact: Niki Widdowson, QUT media officer, 07 3138 1841 or n.widdowson@qut.edu.au.
