Journalism online

1. Journalism online The World Wide Web, the past, the present, the future

2. It used to be … • We had three TV networks • We had broadcast radio • We had newspapers • We had magazines • Later on … • Cable television

3. Along came the 1990s … • Early 1990s, the Internet starts to gain popularity among the general public. • At first, sort of a high-tech telegraph. People used it for email, to talk to others in chat rooms, AOL …

4. Since then • We’ve seen an explosion in information, the amount of it available at the click of a button, and the creativity in expressing ourselves in the digital realm. • Social networking, music and video file sharing, blogs, YouTube. • A revolution in communication

5. Traditional media and the ‘net • Traditional media sources have gone through a number of approaches with the World Wide Web- Ignore it- Dip a toe in- Dive in • Do their approaches make sense?

6. How do we use media today? • What sources of information do you use? • Your parents? • Your grandparents?

7. Where are we going? • The rate of change and evolution with information dissemination is quite rapid right now. • What is popular today may not be popular six months from now. Something else may be the rage.

8. Scary and exciting • Rapid change is both scary and exciting for those who work in media. • Offers opportunities for creativity with new products and new forms of expression.

9. Traditional media vs. online • Traditional media: Two dimensional • Online: Three dimensional • Many of the tools, practices and principles we’ve used in the past translate well to the Web.- Inverted pyramid- Broadcast techniques- The line is blurred between traditional print, broadcast

10. Characteristics of the Web • Immediacy • Flexibility • Permanency • Capacity • Interactivity

11. Immediacy • Content is easier to go with immediately online than in print or broadcast. • Audience can receive instant alerts. • Costs to place information online quickly are cheaper than traditional. • Audiences now accustomed to the immediate dissemination of information online.

12. Flexibility • Web allows for much greater creativity with how info is presented. The story can be relayed more effectively:- Story, video, audio, q and a interview, slideshow, graphics (interactive?), Web chat, blogs, comments, on and on

13. Permanency • Web offers not only easy access, but easy permanent access to info. • No paper, tape, etc. to maintain. It’s there and available all the time. • Or is it? Is it permanent information if it can be fundamentally altered/removed/changed? • Transparency.

14. Capacity • News organizations can enhance their traditional products with Web-only. • Provides an outlet for viewers and readers who want a more in-depth experience with a report. • Allows those who want to explore more about a topic to do that without seeking out large quantities of physical information.

15. Interactivity • 2-D traditional vs. 3-D Web media • Audience members can pick and choose what they want to experience. • More connection opportunities for content producers with the audience. • Allows site hosts to track popularity of certain topics. Helps with audience appeal, advertising.

16. Links • With interactivity, quality sites will provide links to allow readers who are interested in a topic explore more about that topic. • Links may also provide audience a chance to see previous articles on the same subject.

17. Old techniques that work • Inverted pyramid style, concise and efficient writing, and lists of info are all traditional media techniques that translate well to the Web. • Why?

18. Visuals, writing, the Web • We are a very visual society. You need to remember this when writing. • Short paragraphs. • Varied length of sentences and paragraphs. • Bullets, bold words. • Italics – use sparingly, and only a couple words. No long paragraphs of italics.

19. Headlines • During a Web search, what turns up? • Headlines: Traditional vs. online. • Clear, specific, to the point headlines on your stories. • Headlines are not there to tell the whole story. Rather, think of them like an advertisement for or a hint at what the reader will find in the story.

20. Summaries, intros, points • Some Web sites use short story summaries in conjunction with the headlines.- Kind of like inverted pyramid leads. • Intros: Often, videos are accompanied by a couple paragraphs. • Points: Sometimes, stories are displayed with a few main topics/points.

21. The more you know … • It used to be that journalists focused on being real good at specific skills:- Writing- Copy editing- Design and graphics- Photography • These roles still exist. But the lines are often blurred now.- The more varied skills you offer, the more valuable you are to an employer.

22. More, but more creative • Being skilled in more areas allows content producers to be able to pick and choose the best ways to inform the audience. • Story, slideshow, audio report, graphic – all produced by the same person.

23. The Web • Offers immediacy, interactivity, and opportunities for creativity that we didn’t have before. • Audience expects participation. • Emphasizes speed of information like never before. • There’s much more information out there than ever before, which means …

24. Opportunity • New media products are joining the traditional sources/brands all the time. • Those that do the job the best will succeed. Those who attract an interested, audience that returns again and again will really succeed. • Rapid change can be scary, but it is also exciting.

25. Questions?