The BlackBerry has long been the smart phone of choice for many newsrooms, particularly for large news organizations.
The most obvious use is e-mail for staying in contact with editors, colleagues and sources while out in the field or away from the office. But like the iPhone, the BlackBerry has lots of other apps and features that can help journalists do their jobs.
Here’s a look at some of the best apps for journalists as well as some examples of how journalists use the device on the job. Like the iPhone, the BlackBerry has an app store, called “BlackBerry App World” (you have to download if it didn’t come on your phone), but not all apps are available there. Others can be downloaded directly by visiting the developer’s Web site on your BlackBerry browser.
Unless otherwise noted, these apps are all free and should work on all BlackBerry models. Some of my comments are based on my experience using a BlackBerry Curve 8330 from Sprint, so the experience might vary slightly on other models.
Qik enables you to broadcast live video from your phone. Qik videos are embeddable, and you can set up your account to automatically post the link to your live video stream on Twitter, Facebook or other sites. Having Qik installed on your BlackBerry means you can go live whenever you see breaking news happen.
News organizations have used Qik as an easy way for reporters to cover events and to broadcast live video from a source or citizen reporter on the air.
Works on: BlackBerry Bold, BlackBerry Curve, BlackBerry Pearl
In recent months, many journalists have switched from TwitterBerry to UberTwitter because UberTwitter is faster and offers more features. The free Twitter program lets you tweet from multiple accounts, shrink URLs (with bit.ly), access trending topics and find nearby tweets. It also lets you e-mail tweets and upload both photos and videos.
For the journalist who is frequently out of the office, UberTwitter makes it easy to promote one’s work, crowdsource, and stay on top of breaking news. For instance, a journalist covering a protest could use UberTwitter’s nearby tweets feature to see what people nearby are saying, or the search feature to keep track of the hashtag associated with the event.
Although you can tweet photos taken with your phone using UberTwitter, it doesn’t use TwitPic. If you want to tweet photos so they show up on Twitpic.com, you can do it by e-mail. Go to Twitpic.com, log in with your Twitter username and password, click “Upload a photo” and enter the special e-mail address into your BlackBerry address book. When you want to tweet a photo, open the photo on your phone, press the BlackBerry key, choose “Email photo” and send it to your Twitpic address. Enter the text for the tweet in the subject line.
Between e-mail, phone calls, text messaging and other applications, the BlackBerry offers many ways for a reporter to communicate with colleagues. But the most effective may be BlackBerry Messenger, an instant messaging program included on all BlackBerrys. Messenger only works between BlackBerrys, and you have to know the other person’s “PIN” to send them a message.
Unlike e-mail and text messages, when you are having a BlackBerry Messenger conversation with someone, you can see when the other person is typing, which is helpful when you need a quick response and want to know if the other person is about to respond. Conversations are grouped together so you can easily review previous messages, and they are accessible from both your inbox and BlackBerry Messenger. Best of all, BlackBerry messages do not count toward your allotted text messages.
The photographers and photo editors at my newspaper often use BlackBerry Messenger to communicate instead of e-mail, phone calls or text messages because “we can send info quickly without interrupting a photographer on assignment,” said photo editor Tom Burton. Recently, Burton used BlackBerry Messenger to communicate with a photographer who was inside a courtroom covering a hearing.
Journalists who use Google products and services such as Gmail, Google Docs, Google Reader and Google Maps can get easy access to them on their BlackBerrys by downloading this app and installing the products of their choice. There’s also a quick search box that lets you type your search or hold down a button and speak your search terms.
Evernote
Since you cannot edit or create new Google Docs on a BlackBerry, Evernote provides a handy way to write notes on your device that are accessible on the Web. You could start writing a story on Evernote on the BlackBerry, and then pull it up on Evernote.com when you return to your computer. Evernote has lots of other features, such as the ability to record audio notes. It can serve as a storage place for photos or documents.
Works on: BlackBerry Curve, Storm, Bold
For journalists who don’t want to ever miss a call from a source — or want to screen calls — Google Voice is a godsend. The free service lets you pick a new number, which you connect to all of your existing phones. When someone calls that number, all of your phones ring. In addition to call screening, voice mails are transcribed, you can record conversations, and switch from your cell to your office phone in the middle of the conversation. To have your Google Voice number show up on another’s person’s caller ID, place the call from within the Google Voice BlackBerry app. For more information on how Google Voice can help journalists, see my Tidbits piece from August.
Works on: Phones with BlackBerry OS 4.2 or later.
Opera Mini
The Web browser installed on many BlackBerrys is not a full HTML browser, so some pages won’t load and others will be displayed in a mobile (mainly text) format. For many tasks, the BlackBerry browser is all you need, but sometimes you want to view a Web page in the same manner you would on a computer.
Opera Mini is an alternative Web browser that will display Web pages in an easier to view format on your phone, giving you a closer experience to browsing on a PC. You can zoom in on different parts of the Web page, and the beta version of Opera Mini 5 even offers tabbed browsing.
Facebook
The social networking site has become a valuable tool for journalists who want to find sources and story ideas, promote their work and engage readers. The BlackBerry version sports a basic interface. You can upload photos from your phone to Facebook, but for now, you can’t upload videos. Since Facebook can run in the background, you can have your phone display your Facebook notifications at the top of your phone screen.
Tethering
This one is not an app, but it is a feature that gives the BlackBerry an advantage over the iPhone. Depending on your rate plan, you can connect it to your computer and use it as a modem to get online, something known as “tethering.”
Since not all journalists have Internet access on their computers when they are away from the office, being able to use your phone to get online can help if you need to quickly send a photo or file a story.
Works on: Consult your data plan and your carrier. This feature is also referred to as using your “phone as a modem.”
Vlingo is an application that lets you use voice commands to perform various tasks, such as sending text messages, opening applications and even updating your Twitter or Facebook status. Both free and paid versions are available.
Works on: BlackBerry Bold, Curve, Storm, Pearl, Pearl Flip, Tour, World Edition
Some other applications worth checking out include Documents To Go, Voice Notes Recorder, (both of which come with your BlackBerry), AP News, YouMail and WordPress.
Did I leave out any great BlackBerry applications for journalists? Post a comment with the app name, description and link.
