University of Missouri

The University of Missouri is a public university located in Columbia, Missouri. The university has a drone program, the Missouri Drone Journalism Program, which is a $25,000 collaboration between Missouri's Information Technology program and the Missouri School of Journalism, and a local radio and news station called the KBIA. The focus of this program is to design and build small unmanned aerial systems (UAS) to be used primarily for news gathering, including taking photos, video, and GPS data. Due to FAA regulations, the Missouri Drone Journalism Program is only able to operate in rural areas.

Drones
Missouri's Drone Journalism Program wouldn't be possible if not for one thing: its drones. Students affectionately refer to them as the J-Bots, and they are the entire focus of the program. The program has five drones, all of which have either been built themselves or modified from a purchased base model.

Quadcopter (DJI F450)
The most basic of Missouri's drones, this is the training model. It is used to help students learn how to fly drones, and as such is light on extra features. It runs on an external battery, attached to the frame. With this external batter, the DJI F450 can run for approximately seventeen minutes before needing a recharge. The drone lacks a camera.

TBS Discovery Quadcopter
The base of this quadcopter comes from Team Blacksheep. Outfitted with GPS and telemetry links, this drone is able to broadcast live footage while in flight to a monitor on the ground with its First Person View (FPV) equipment. This is advantageous both for flight control and for recording film.

Hexacopter (DJI F550)
As its name implies, the Hexacopter differs from other drones the university is using by the fact it has six rotors instead of four. In theory, multiple rotors leads to a more stable platform that will respond more quickly and more precisely to user input. The Hexacopter is a large drone, and as a result, has been outfitted with an external camera and landing gear.

XAircraft X650 V8
Much like the Hexacopter, this model has more than the traditional four rotors, sporting eight rotors. It is being tested to see what the optimal number of rotors for stability and performance is. To fit these eight rotors, the payload capacity of this model is significantly larger, and this fact is taken advantage of by oufitting the drone with extra batteries for extended flight time.

“The BumbleBee” Quadcopter
This drone is the smallest of the five main models that the University of Missouri uses, having been constructed entirely by the IT Program’s Full Spectrum Laser 40W Laser Cutter. Unlike most of the models that the university uses, this one lacks GPS capabilities. Due to its size, the BumbleBee is unsuitable for outdoor work, as even the slightest gust of wind could take it away. Instead, it is mostly restricted to indoor use.

Journalism
The key component of the Missouri Drone Journalism Program is its Field Reporting course, the syllabus of which has been posted online. As part of the course, have to report three stories. Several students had the idea to use drones to cover a controlled burn on the Prairie Fork Conservation Area. The purpose of this burn was to clear some of the land, while also providing nutrients for growth, encouraging diversity, and reducing shrubbery growth. This story did go on to be published by the KBIA. This was the second story published by the Missouri Drone Journalism Program, the first being on the abnormal numbers of snow geese in the mid-Missouri area. Like the prairie fire story, this one was also published by the KBIA. Other stories covered have included an excavation site and an oil boom. Through the university's East-West Center, students in the program have been able to meet with and demonstrate their drone journalism to journalists from both Pakistan and South Korea. In a program similar to that of exchange students, the East-West Center arranged for journalists from the aforementioned countries to come to America and look at American journalism while American journalists went to Pakistan and South Korea to look at journalism in those countries. The Drone Journalism was added at the last minute to the itinerary of the Pakistani journalists, much to their pleasure. The students shared with the journalists some of the stories they'd covered with drones, even teaching a few of them how to fly one. The journalists were most interested in how drones would change the coverage of dangerous situations, such as a suicide bomber or natural disasters. The Korean journalists were similarly impressed, saying that drones would be ideal for covering stories about the demilitarized zone and North Korea.

The program, unfortunately, has been hampered by laws and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). One proposed Missouri Law, HB 46, would have limited the use of drones for journalism, requiring that journalists acquire the permission of the person who's land they are flying drones over. While this was unlikely to affect the Missouri Drone Journalism Program significantly, as they already obtained permission prior to shooting aerial footage with a drone, they did mention being concerned of the ramifications for other journalists. In August of 2013, the program received a cease and desist letter from the FAA, despite following all of the guidelines the FAA had laid down for remote-controlled aircraft. Legally, the program can only continue once they have been granted a Certificate of Authorization (COA), which they are currently in the process of obtaining. Even with the COA, however, the program's operations would change significantly, as they would only be able to fly in small, contiguous, unpopulated areas. This would severely limit their ability to cover stories with drones.