The Chicago Marathon took place on Oct.7th, and being more than 25 miles long, it took the runners and spectators from Addison Avenue to 35th St. Streets were closed all over town as the groups of runners ran past the mile markers. The Mobile Journalism students considered how to cover an event that had so many individual stories, enfolded over time, and covered so many miles.

With a new tool, Meograph, the reporters found they could take what they had reported during the marathon, at different times of day, and all around the race course and Chicago, and include their stories as “moments” on a timeline that displays the date and time of each moment and a view of the location. The race reporting is exciting because it gives you a sense of the race over time and space. The reporters included interviews, videos, photos, and lots of links to material like a map of the race course. One reporter got the story of the missing medals first hand. Another reported from her home, which is on the race course, presenting the race from a resident’s point of view. The reporting moments are vignettes, but reported using this unique tool, the user gets a customizable view of a big day for Chicago. Whether you raced and want to relive some moments, or enjoy being an armchair participant, our new kind of storytelling has something for you.

Meograph: Four-dimensional storytelling – 2012 Chicago Marathon Moments.

Please leave your comments on the reporting and whether you think this is an effective way to tell a story of an event like a Marathon.

The contributing reporters on this Mobile Journalism Project.