Open source CMS on the top of the world
Established 11 years ago, the Annapurna Post in Nepal boasts 65,000 print readers and 25,000 daily visitors to their website on average.
Six months ago, when the newspaper changed ownership, the staff began looking for a new CMS that would facilitate better collaboration between the print and online editions.
"We were using a tailored system that had very limited functionality," said the paper's digital editor, Ujjwal Acharya.
Currently just five of the Annapurna Post's 60 team members are using Newscoop. But soon, the entire print section of the team will be trained on how to use the open source CMS, as will the paper's correspondents around the country.
Cycling stories from print to online and back again
The Annapurna Post's online and print journalists work closely with each other. "It's a kind of mutual cooperation," Acharya said. The print journalists contribute to the online stories, while the online team does background research and verifies information for the printed edition.
The Annapurna Post digital team
The newsroom is currently enjoying Newscoop's media archive and editorial deck, which make it easier to manage stories and delegate tasks. The team also noted that being able to schedule posts in advance is a great help. Newscoop helps them pass tasks back and forth easily, letting them organise workflows within the team. "Compared to what we had earlier, Newscoop has been very, very efficient," Acharya said.
Open source tools make it all possible
Nepal is one of the least developed nations in the world, according to the 2013 Human Development Report, so open source alternatives are very important there. "I have always promoted open source software," Acharya said. "I believe everyone around the world should enjoy these solutions regardless of social status."
His sentiments mirror the Sourcefabric mission. We believe open source means free speech. And open source tools allow multiple voices to participate in the media dialogue, regardless of their budget or location.
We're always happy to see media organisations like the Annapurna Post able to take advantage of our CMS designed for journalists, by journalists and harness the power of free and open source technology.