I wanted to survive on freelancing, even if it meant only eating rice and hot sauce and creating a permanent ass imprint on my couch.

That’s when I became a sweatshop worker.

I was recently interviewed by Tanja Aitamurto, a journalist and researcher from Finland who’s studying Spot.Us as a case study in new forms of journalism. For those of you unfamiliar, Spot.Us is a journalism startup pioneering “community-funded reporting” in the Bay Area. Basically, freelance journalists (or the organization) will pitch stories on the Spot.Us website and tap the public as well as news organizations for micro-donations to fund projects and pay reporters. Raising money through donations from the public is also known as “crowd funding,” and Spot.Us is experimenting with the concept as one method to sustain quality journalism in the ever-changing media landscape we are watching unfold before our eyes.

Aitamurto is researching the way crowd funding and crowd sourcing change the journalistic process, and as both an intern and reporter for Spot.Us, I wanted to share my experience. First, I want to make one very important disclaimer:  I’m a young reporter with little experience in

…is doing a week long blitz on how to “make it” as a freelance photographer. While its geared towards photogs who left their staff positions, its giving me grants to look up and ideas to pursue. Check it out now.