DigiActive.org

Tool: Newsrack.in

Tool Description: In an increasingly globalised environment, information has been recognised as the key to development. NGOs and activists have their own info-gathering needs, and have used a sissors-and-gum newspaper-based system. A new tool, Newsrack.in, automates the process and customises it in a way that can match precise needs.

This free service allows anyone to ‘track’ published news (using key-words) they’re interest in. Instead of searching through scores of newspapers, Newsrack.in keeps track of the news on one or more issues — electronically. You can also ’share’ the news that others keep track of. Crucial when it comes to info-activism, and keeping uptodate on the issue you’re working on. It was created by Indian techie Subramanya Sastry. The site has about 12,000 unique visitors a month tovthe site itself, and a majority of these visitors are from India. In addition, there are over 10,000 unique requests to the various RSS feeds that newsrack generates.

Activist Application: This tool can be useful to keep track of news specifically related to issues you work on (say, child-labour, poverty, water, sanitation). It can be customised and used in any part of the globe, after editing a few simple files.

Ease of Use: Moderate. You create an account, then create concept areas (defined by keywords) for the news areas you want to track. You can track more than one area and you can break your area into different categories.