Flight 1549: New video

In this world you can probably be sure that when you go out in public, you will probably be on camera for most of it. As New York scours its multiple feeds, it continues to come up with more shots of the plane crash in the river. This clip, from CNN.com is the most clear yet, and is an incredible watch. Check it out.

Flight 1549: On safety and citizen journalism

The recent accident in New York, in which a US Airways Airbus A320 was forced to ditch in the Hudson River, is a prime example on the future of citizen journalism, bloggers, and their role in today’s instant information culture. According to Silicon Alley Insider, twitter user Janis Krums was the first to post a photo of the accident from his iPhone on a ferry heading to the crash site.

I am a long-time Wikipedia user (5 years and counting), and an avid reader of the “Crowd Powered Media” site NowPublic.com. I believe that while this type of reporting may never completely replace the quality work done by trained professionals, it is a fine way to complement their contribution, by getting firsthand accounts, witness statements and pictures and video out to the masses long before a polished report is completed for the 5 O’clock news or the morning paper.

On another note, it will be interesting to see the backlash from this accident in the media. According to this report 200 people have been killed by bird strikes in the past 20 years. Also:

Most commercial airlines are now replacing older, three- and four-engine planes with more efficient double-engine aircraft. Because these newer engines are quieter, birds are less likely to detect and avoid them. Worse still, fewer engines mean fewer back-ups should a plane and a flock of birds cross paths. – Time.com

Expect to hear calls for louder aircraft with more engines. ;}

Photo Credit: jimdavidson on Flickr