Matter - Website wants to revive investigative journalism

[gogameguru]

I just saw this and thought some other people here might be interested too:

http://www.readmatter.com/

It's great to see a few people taking a calculated risk, despite the fact that the traditional media industry is in decline.

[topazg]

My only concern is the technical competence of those setting forth on the project. Science and technology are covered so badly so often by national and international papers and reporters, and a large part of it is due to a lack of expertise to understand the subject they're reporting on. I'm not sure that a good amount of money is necessarily going to make the content much better, when you're trying to write about a subject where you are reliant on third parties to explain the detail.

[RBerenguel]

My only concern is the technical competence of those setting forth on the project. Science and technology are covered so badly so often by national and international papers and reporters, and a large part of it is due to a lack of expertise to understand the subject they're reporting on. I'm not sure that a good amount of money is necessarily going to make the content much better, when you're trying to write about a subject where you are reliant on third parties to explain the detail.

This is it. For example, one of our national newspapers has just one "science-journalist". I don't remember what he is specialised in, but when the subject is in his area of expertise, you can read and say "aha". If it is not... Well, it's as good as a press release. If they hire experts in several fields, it can be awesome (if they can write). If they just look for great writers without technical knowledge... It is doomed to failure (unless the writer wants to learn the subject and does so, of course).

[gogameguru]

So they got their project up and running and I just got the email about their second article. You can read a preview here and judge for yourself.

Here's the text from the email:

MATTER #2: ELECTRIC SHOCK
The goal of regenerative medicine — to regrow a damaged organ, or a hand lost in an accident — often feels like an impossibility. But one man could be on the verge of an astonishing breakthrough...

The second story from MATTER is now live! "Electric Shock" explores the work of Michael Levin, a Russian-American researcher who is rescuing the much-maligned field of bioelectricity from its Frankenstein roots. Written by Cynthia Graber (Scientific American, NPR) and edited by Seth Mnookin (Vanity Fair, MIT), it's the story of a man with exceptional focus and a remarkable idea — that electrical signals can be used to make the human body regenerate itself on command.

Visit the MATTER website to read the piece, which comes with a free download of an audio version of the story and an invitation to an exclusive Q&A session with the author.

As always, please spread the word if you like the story! We're still a new publication. The more readers we can attract, the better we'll be able to fund the in-depth and insightful journalism that MATTER was built to publish.

Jim & Bobbie
MATTER