English: "Stories have been around forever; it's how we share what we've learned and what we love. Now with mobile phones that access the Internet, people are telling their stories in real time by sharing a photo or a video," said Xavier Damman, CEO and co-founder of Storify.

See more: Smartphones as Social Watchdogs Storify CEO sees social media as a platform for timely, relevant news and information in an increasingly smartphone-connected world.

From the Arab Spring to the recent airline crash in San Francisco, Xavier Damman, CEO of Storify, sees smartphones as social watchdogs of reality that help people understand the world and pursue truth.

Individuals equipped with smartphones are increasingly the source of insights, photos and videos, and news outlets from the BBC to CNN have proved eager to tap them to bring deeper, more immediate coverage of news events. But the explosion of user-generated content and social sharing has forced journalists and news junkies to wade through lots of noise to find meaning. The desire for context and deeper meaning about news and events is what drove Damman to co-found Storify with former AP correspondent Burt Herman.

Storify helps people create stories and timelines using social media. News outlets such as the Wall Street Journal and San Francisco Chronicle have used the service to augment news coverage, and the UK Prime Minister's office recently used it to illustrate their impact during the G8 Summit.

In an interview, Damman spoke about the importance of smartphones and social networks in surfacing amplifying information that matters so people can use it to do the things they love and even change the world.