Yahoo! Adds Blogs, Flickr to News Mix

Embracing the idea of citizen journalism and searcher's desire to hear non-mainstream takes on the news, Yahoo! added blogs, Flickr photos and MyWeb links to their news mix last night. The move marks a shift toward mixing mainstream media with user-generated content. In the wake of events like Hurricane Katrina where citizen bloggers were one of the few sources of real local news, the change makes good sense.

From the Yahoo! press release:

...when a user conducts a search on Yahoo! News they will receive mainstream news stories along with blogs. When a user clicks on “all blog results” they will receive Flickr photo thumbnails and My Web links on the right hand side of the search results page. By incorporating grassroots journalism from all around the globe into News Search results, consumers can now enjoy opinions, analysis and commentary, via blogs, and related photos from the Flickr community that provide a visual context to breaking news as reported by everyday people.

Take the new changes for a test drive at Yahoo! news.