Our seismic safety project,"On Shaky Ground," in April 2011 best exhibited the new multi-platform model. The project, led by reporters Corey G. Johnson and Erica Perez, was the result of a 19-month-long investigation into regulatory failures in construction of California schools.

The multi-part story ran over several days and was broadcast by all the affiliates over two or three days. We also produced a version of the story for "PBS NewsHour" and a 30-minute special for KQED television that was rebroadcast on 13 PBS affiliates in the state. KQED radio did three lengthy stories, and 10 newspapers published various versions. Nearly 130 of AOL’s Patch.com sites across the state also ran it. New America Media helped distribute the story to ethnic outlets.

Public Engagement Manager Ashley Alvarado was involved in every planning and editorial meeting. At one meeting, Alvarado asked about a target audience we had not considered: the schoolchildren. No one else thought of getting the story to an 8-year-old. How would this story reach them, she asked. Her answer: a coloring book.

We had fostered a wide-open culture in which new and different ideas were encouraged. And this was new and different. Alvarado explained that most kids don't know what to do when an earthquake hits, whether in a school or at home.

She got the go-ahead to produce a coloring book. Alvarado collaborated with the American Red Cross and elementary school teachers to create a useful guide. She thought there might be interest in 1,000 books. We eventually had requests for nearly 40,000. We made calls and got underwriters. The book was published in Spanish, Chinese and Vietnamese. Entire school districts ordered them, and the books reached children in nearly 100 schools statewide. Not high-tech, but certainly innovative. Alvarado even blogged about the experience. With the help of intern Ariane Wu, Alvarado also provided an "Inside the Newsroom" video on the subject.

Over three days, "On Shaky Ground" reached 7 million people. This conservative estimate is based on newspaper circulation and television and radio audience numbers. But the stories appeared on every partner's website as well, and they were pushed out through social media and picked up elsewhere. We did not have the ability to capture those numbers.

A free copy of Reinventing Journalism can be downloaded to your digital reading device through Project Gutenberg or through iTunes. It will also be available soon at the Google eBookstore. A PDF version of the full report can be read immediately at Scribd.