Why newsroom diversity matters
Monday, February 08, 2010
A recent article about the lack of diversity in Vanity Fair's "New Hollywood" issue has received more than 18,000 comments and counting from readers who either lament the lack of women of color on the cover or charge that diversity is a moot issue. Whether or not Vanity Fair should have presented a more diverse group of actresses on its cover, the discussion brings up an important question: How diverse are today's newsrooms?
During the 90's and the early 2000's, there was a widespread effort from many media publications to diversify their staff. In theory, a more diverse staff translates to diverse points of view and a more eclectic group of stories and coverage. For many newsrooms, this push toward diversity eventually gave way to a focus on integrating technology in the newsroom and ultimately to retaining what staff they could due to financial and budgetary concerns. However, a lack of resources does not mean newsrooms shouldn't make an effort to make sure their staff represents the varying interests of their readers.
Journalism — and life itself — would be boring if everyone was interested in the same things. There's already somewhat of a homogenization of ideas in journalism. If you are a journalist, you are expected to read The New Yorker and be well-versed in every episode of "The Wire." You should have read "All the President's Men" and be intimately familiar with the work of Hunter S. Thompson. The same societal norms extend to the tech world — if you have a computer it should be a Mac, if you have email it should be GMail, and if you have a phone it should be an iPhone or Blackberry.
However, if every reporter or editor has the same interests and thinks alike, the newsroom will unknowingly and collectively produce the same stories and target the same audience, leaving other sections of the readership or viewership underserved and underrepresented.
In theory, a diversity of opinions at Vanity Fair may have translated to a more diverse group of actresses on the magazine's cover. The issue, however, is not unique to Vanity Fair. Many newsrooms are guilty of overlooking stories or news subjects simply because they aren't on their radar, not because they intentionally omit these subjects.
Newsrooms should represent the communities they cover and a diverse staff with varying interests and ideas translates into a broader spectrum of stories. This, in turn, better serves the audience. Diversity doesn't just mean race or gender either, but a variety of factors, including age, socioeconomic background, and more. Diversity for diversity's sake is wrong and misguided, but diversity in the name of producing better journalism should be applauded and a goal of every newsroom.
During the 90's and the early 2000's, there was a widespread effort from many media publications to diversify their staff. In theory, a more diverse staff translates to diverse points of view and a more eclectic group of stories and coverage. For many newsrooms, this push toward diversity eventually gave way to a focus on integrating technology in the newsroom and ultimately to retaining what staff they could due to financial and budgetary concerns. However, a lack of resources does not mean newsrooms shouldn't make an effort to make sure their staff represents the varying interests of their readers.
Journalism — and life itself — would be boring if everyone was interested in the same things. There's already somewhat of a homogenization of ideas in journalism. If you are a journalist, you are expected to read The New Yorker and be well-versed in every episode of "The Wire." You should have read "All the President's Men" and be intimately familiar with the work of Hunter S. Thompson. The same societal norms extend to the tech world — if you have a computer it should be a Mac, if you have email it should be GMail, and if you have a phone it should be an iPhone or Blackberry.
However, if every reporter or editor has the same interests and thinks alike, the newsroom will unknowingly and collectively produce the same stories and target the same audience, leaving other sections of the readership or viewership underserved and underrepresented.
In theory, a diversity of opinions at Vanity Fair may have translated to a more diverse group of actresses on the magazine's cover. The issue, however, is not unique to Vanity Fair. Many newsrooms are guilty of overlooking stories or news subjects simply because they aren't on their radar, not because they intentionally omit these subjects.
Newsrooms should represent the communities they cover and a diverse staff with varying interests and ideas translates into a broader spectrum of stories. This, in turn, better serves the audience. Diversity doesn't just mean race or gender either, but a variety of factors, including age, socioeconomic background, and more. Diversity for diversity's sake is wrong and misguided, but diversity in the name of producing better journalism should be applauded and a goal of every newsroom.
Labels: news on the news
Get out of the newsroom and into the community
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
When I started my first journalism job at a medium-sized newspaper, I was surprised by how many reporters rarely left their desks to do their work. It wasn't that they were lazy or not producing stories — they just did their reporting over the phone. Now that e-mail, Google, and other internet technologies are a permanent fixture in newsrooms, many more journalists are doing their work from the comfort of their chairs.
This is why I was excited when California Watch, the investigative reporting team for which I serve as a multimedia producer, announced the "Open Newsroom." For one day, the California Watch team is hitting the streets in neighborhoods around the state and inviting readers to come chat with us, share ideas, or just share a cup of coffee.
The idea was born out of necessity — the team is transitioning to a new work space — but I personally love the idea of going into the community and inviting readers to meet us face-to-face. Journalists are already doing this somewhat using social networks like Twitter to interact with readers, but nothing beats in-person interaction.
Shortly after I discovered my colleagues at my first newsroom were conducting most of their reporting over the phone, I was introduced to the concept of "parachute journalism," or visiting a community only to cover a story and then leaving shortly after. Journalists should avoid parachuting into communities and should whenever possible get out of the newsrooms and meet the people in the communities they cover.
As for me, you can catch me at the Starbucks at 2224 Shattuck Avenue in Berkeley from 1 to 4 p.m. on Thursday, January 19. Drop by and say hello and let's see if we can't make journalism a little more awesome.
This is why I was excited when California Watch, the investigative reporting team for which I serve as a multimedia producer, announced the "Open Newsroom." For one day, the California Watch team is hitting the streets in neighborhoods around the state and inviting readers to come chat with us, share ideas, or just share a cup of coffee.The idea was born out of necessity — the team is transitioning to a new work space — but I personally love the idea of going into the community and inviting readers to meet us face-to-face. Journalists are already doing this somewhat using social networks like Twitter to interact with readers, but nothing beats in-person interaction.
Shortly after I discovered my colleagues at my first newsroom were conducting most of their reporting over the phone, I was introduced to the concept of "parachute journalism," or visiting a community only to cover a story and then leaving shortly after. Journalists should avoid parachuting into communities and should whenever possible get out of the newsrooms and meet the people in the communities they cover.
As for me, you can catch me at the Starbucks at 2224 Shattuck Avenue in Berkeley from 1 to 4 p.m. on Thursday, January 19. Drop by and say hello and let's see if we can't make journalism a little more awesome.
Labels: news on the news
How news media are covering Haiti using multimedia, social networks
Thursday, January 14, 2010
After a natural disaster like the recent earthquake in Haiti, news organizations often have just hours to put together produce multimedia and interactive elements in addition to text stories. Web Journalist Blog, in collaboration with 10,000 Words, has put together a list of maps, graphics, slideshows, interactive content and social networking efforts coordinated by mainstream news media to report the damage in Haiti. You can find even more examples, as well as ways you can donate to relief efforts, in this Digiphile post.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• Do you have a multimedia emergency plan?
• How to quickly track natural disasters online
Also on 10,000 Words:
• Do you have a multimedia emergency plan?
• How to quickly track natural disasters online
Labels: news on the news
News media and college students: A match made in heaven?
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
In what seems to be a growing trend, colleges and universities are pairing with traditional news media to cover underserved communities and populate hyperlocal news sites. The New York Times recently announced that it will partner with The City University of New York's Graduate School of Journalism to cover areas of Brooklyn. The UC Berkeley School of Journalism has partnered with several news organizations, including a notable partnership with financier Warren Hellman and public radio station KQED to form a non-profit online news operation. You can read about similar partnerships here, here, here and here.The trend raises the question: are media organizations using college journalism students to fill the gap of traditional reporting and better serve local communities or are students being used as cheap labor?
It is worth noting that college journalism students are often bright and talented young journalists looking to hone their skills in an academic environment. Some students, especially those in graduate programs, often have substantial experience in the newsroom or have worked previously as a full-time journalist. The partnerships can benefit both the students who gain practical experience and news media who can expand the reach of the newsroom.
But are news organizations avoiding paying full or part-time reporters in favor of tapping the skills of students who only require academic credit rather than financial compensation? Please share your thoughts in the comments.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• How to make the most of your journalism internship
• Just what are they teaching future journalists?
• How online college newspapers are using multimedia and social networking
• Journalism Grads: 30 Things You Should Do This Summer
Labels: news on the news
7 Ways to keep journalism alive (without paywalls)
Monday, October 05, 2009
Is journalism dead? Not even close. Attendees at this past week's Online News Association conference were brimming with ideas about how to sustain journalism and the technologies that will support the industry. Want to be a part of the future of journalism and technology? Here's what you need to know.
In her workshop Top Ten Tech Trends You've Still Never Heard Of, Webbmedia Group's Amy Webb threw a list of amazing new technologies at the audience like lightning bolts, each one more dazzling than the last. While all the technologies mentioned had the ability to elevate journalism, it would be foolhardy to adopt them all at the same time. Instead, choose the tools that you think are right for your organization and can do more than just be the "cool" new tool.
The journalism culture insists that new ideas be tested and proven before they are actually put into place, the opposite of other industries where failure is a part of the process. Journalism innovators have such a heavy burden on their shoulders because the world is watching and sometimes waiting to cry FAIL should a project go under. Don't be afraid of failure or the naysayers, because as journalism educator Ann Grimes said, it is okay to "fail early and often."
There were many great panels at ONA, but the absolute best and most informative wasn't created by conference producers, but rather was voted up by conference attendees. Instead of a group of pre-selected panelists, the lively "un-conference" session led by Publish2's Ryan Sholin encouraged input from anyone who wanted to speak and the diverse viewpoints contributed to the collective knowledge of the group and a better understanding of the topic.
Looking to other journalists for inspiration can be equivalent to the blind leading the blind. The way to truly innovate is to look outside of journalism for ways to improve the industry. Take a cue from Stanford University and a number of other journalism schools who have partnered with other departments to come up with new ways technology can be used to enhance and sustain journalism.
One ONA session in particular left the audience scratching their heads after the presenter showcased only one way to create an online map when there in fact hundreds of ways to create map mashups. The implied lesson: there may be a single technology that everyone is using but that doesn't mean you shouldn't experiment with different options. Case in point: journalists and geeks all gravitate toward one technology and chastise others for not following suit. If you're using a computer, it must be a Mac, if you're using a browser it must be Firefox and if you're using email it must be Gmail. Forget about what others say, if you find something that suits you better, go with it.
You don't have to wait until you are let go from or quit your job to start the next big revolutionary project. ONA speakers Leo Laporte and Om Malik started with an idea for their respective businesses and didn't wait for editors or business executives to give them the go ahead. If you start small and have a great idea, that will idea will cut through the clutter and rise to the top where other people will discover it.
It doesn't matter how novel or innovative journalism is presented if the content itself sucks. There are a million burgeoning ideas of how to present news but if the writing, reporting, facts and research are lacking, readers and viewers just won't care.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• What the journalism industry can learn from porn
• 4 Organizations more tech-savvy than your newsroom
• 10 Journalists you should follow on Twitter
1. Explore new technologies, but be discerning
In her workshop Top Ten Tech Trends You've Still Never Heard Of, Webbmedia Group's Amy Webb threw a list of amazing new technologies at the audience like lightning bolts, each one more dazzling than the last. While all the technologies mentioned had the ability to elevate journalism, it would be foolhardy to adopt them all at the same time. Instead, choose the tools that you think are right for your organization and can do more than just be the "cool" new tool.
2. Experiment, but don't be afraid to fail
The journalism culture insists that new ideas be tested and proven before they are actually put into place, the opposite of other industries where failure is a part of the process. Journalism innovators have such a heavy burden on their shoulders because the world is watching and sometimes waiting to cry FAIL should a project go under. Don't be afraid of failure or the naysayers, because as journalism educator Ann Grimes said, it is okay to "fail early and often."
3. Follow the wisdom of the crowd
There were many great panels at ONA, but the absolute best and most informative wasn't created by conference producers, but rather was voted up by conference attendees. Instead of a group of pre-selected panelists, the lively "un-conference" session led by Publish2's Ryan Sholin encouraged input from anyone who wanted to speak and the diverse viewpoints contributed to the collective knowledge of the group and a better understanding of the topic.
4. Collaborate with others outside of journalism
Looking to other journalists for inspiration can be equivalent to the blind leading the blind. The way to truly innovate is to look outside of journalism for ways to improve the industry. Take a cue from Stanford University and a number of other journalism schools who have partnered with other departments to come up with new ways technology can be used to enhance and sustain journalism.
5. There's more than one way to skin a cat
One ONA session in particular left the audience scratching their heads after the presenter showcased only one way to create an online map when there in fact hundreds of ways to create map mashups. The implied lesson: there may be a single technology that everyone is using but that doesn't mean you shouldn't experiment with different options. Case in point: journalists and geeks all gravitate toward one technology and chastise others for not following suit. If you're using a computer, it must be a Mac, if you're using a browser it must be Firefox and if you're using email it must be Gmail. Forget about what others say, if you find something that suits you better, go with it.
6. Follow your passion...now
You don't have to wait until you are let go from or quit your job to start the next big revolutionary project. ONA speakers Leo Laporte and Om Malik started with an idea for their respective businesses and didn't wait for editors or business executives to give them the go ahead. If you start small and have a great idea, that will idea will cut through the clutter and rise to the top where other people will discover it.
7. Provide good content
It doesn't matter how novel or innovative journalism is presented if the content itself sucks. There are a million burgeoning ideas of how to present news but if the writing, reporting, facts and research are lacking, readers and viewers just won't care.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• What the journalism industry can learn from porn
• 4 Organizations more tech-savvy than your newsroom
• 10 Journalists you should follow on Twitter
Labels: news on the news
10 Ugly truths about modern journalism
Friday, September 11, 20091. The stories that are published are the stories that sell
The reason you're more likely to read about a shooting spree than a library opening is because with dwindling resources, broadcasters and print publications must devote their time to stories that will grab the most attention. Hyperlocal sites like EveryBlock have stepped up to fill the void, but the phrase "if it bleeds, it leads" has never been truer.
2. Many stories are not copy edited
In the age of layoffs and buyouts, many of the first people to go in the newsroom are the copy editors, the people ensure that published stories are accurate and well-written. Without copy editors, many stories, especially those that appear online, are being published without first being checked for spelling and grammar. These errors are becoming even more frequent and are a mark of credibility against the news outlet.
3. Many stories come from wire services
Years ago, newspapers were brimming with stories written by staff reporters about national and international issues. As these reporters are being downsized, more of the national stories that appear in the local paper are written by wire services like Reuters and the Associated Press, meaning a lack of diverse voices covering any given issue.
4. Some journalists are driven by awards
The great majority of journalists gravitate to the profession to spread the news to as many people as possible and enlighten the communities they cover. There are also some journalists who write stories not for readers, but with the intent of winning big name awards like Pulitzers and Emmys. Though they may not openly admit it, some stories are written to gain the adoration of other journalists rather than to empower readers.
5. Journalists are biased
There is no such thing as unbiased...it is humanly impossible. While journalists often strive to make sure their stories are as unbiased as possible, many cover particular subjects or issues because they feel particularly strong about them.
6. Some journalists use Wikipedia
Although the use of Wikipedia is frowned upon in many newsrooms because of its perceived unreliability, many reporters do use the wiki as a source and unverified facts that appear on the site sometimes make their way into news stories. Such was the case with the obituary of French composer Maurice Jarre. Many newspapers published a quote found on his Wikipedia page that was never uttered by Jarre himself, but was added to the page by a then 22-year-old university student.
7. There is no big conspiracy
Not so much an ugly truth, but a truth some refuse to accept. There are a growing number of critics who decry the media for collectively and intentionally pushing either the liberal or conservative agenda (which agenda depends on who you ask). The truth is such a coordinated effort does not exist and most publications are made up of individual journalists with a wide of variety of interests and (you guessed it) political leanings.
8. Many journalists have side projects
In the golden age of journalism, reporters could dedicate themselves exclusively to their work in the newsroom when there was no fear of being sudden layoffs. But when a pink slip could come at a moment's notice and paychecks are becoming increasingly smaller, many more journalists are writing books, creating blogs, consulting, and anything that can build their personal brand or bring in a few extra dollars.
9. Entertainment stories rule
When journalists lament the "death" of journalism, they are often referring to the big investigative pieces that expose politicians and bring to light previously uncovered issues. The reality is, the most popular stories on news sites are often not investigative pieces, but entertainment stories and celebrity news. Paris Hilton can often drive more traffic than the president.
10. No one has the answers
Everyone is looking for the savior of journalism and the solution to the industry's problems. Social networking, paywalls, restructuring and micropayments have all been suggested as the key to saving journalism, but anyone who says they have a definite answer is delusional or misinformed. Together we will try to do everything to ensure journalism's future, but what exactly that magic solution is remains to be seen.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• 10 Reasons why online news sites suck
• 10 Things I wish they'd told me in J-School
• 25 Things I've Learned About Journalism
Labels: news on the news
In a world without editors, readers thrive
Thursday, July 23, 2009
News meetings suck.
Not because they are long, boring and often don't have enough snacks (actually that may be the problem), but because they are a group of journalists sitting in a room trying to decide what news they think readers will want to read. Editors and reporters have a good eye for news and are trained to know what makes a good story, but the problem with the system is that there really is no accurate way to gauge what stories thousands or millions of readers will care about. Sure there are site analytics which gauge the popularity of individual online news articles, but as any editor can tell you these stories often skew to the offbeat stories and celebrity news.
That's where sites like Windy Citizen and NYC.is come in. The sites aggregate local news for Chicago and New York, respectively, and follow a Digg-like formula where users submit the stories they find interesting and others vote the stories up or down. Both sites play to the wisdom of the crowd: local readers know what's important to them and those that are unsure of what they want to read can rely on their peers for suggestions.
Windy Citizen (left), NYC.is
Yes Windy Citizen and NYC.is mostly depend on mainstream news sources to fuel their sites, but the key difference is readers don't have to rely on mainstream news sites — or a handful of journalists — to tell them what they should be reading.
Such sites are like perpetual news meetings where people around the world communicate and identify the stories they are interested in. Online news headlines often appear separate from the actual news site, meaning many readers will have read the story without seeing the news site it came from or the landing pages that advocated its existence.
Some traditional journalists will argue that we need editors to make the key news decisions, but do we really? It is understandable why editors are needed in print and broadcast journalism to select stories to be printed or aired, but in the digital age where readers flock to social networks and, to a lesser extent, RSS readers to get the news they care about, the power of the news editor is diminished.
While sites like Windy Citizen and NYC.is should be praised for letting readers determine what is newsworthy, such modern approaches to the curation of news won't be adopted overnight... meaning the news editor position is safe for now. However, journalists should get ready for people-powered journalism where the reader is best served by serving themselves.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• 6 Sites that are changing the way you follow the news
• Beyond Twitterfeed: Innovative uses of Twitter in the newsroom
• 5 Interactive maps that connect communities
• How the internet is changing how natural disasters are covered
• Why aren't all journalists "citizen" journalists?
Not because they are long, boring and often don't have enough snacks (actually that may be the problem), but because they are a group of journalists sitting in a room trying to decide what news they think readers will want to read. Editors and reporters have a good eye for news and are trained to know what makes a good story, but the problem with the system is that there really is no accurate way to gauge what stories thousands or millions of readers will care about. Sure there are site analytics which gauge the popularity of individual online news articles, but as any editor can tell you these stories often skew to the offbeat stories and celebrity news.
That's where sites like Windy Citizen and NYC.is come in. The sites aggregate local news for Chicago and New York, respectively, and follow a Digg-like formula where users submit the stories they find interesting and others vote the stories up or down. Both sites play to the wisdom of the crowd: local readers know what's important to them and those that are unsure of what they want to read can rely on their peers for suggestions.
Windy Citizen (left), NYC.is
Yes Windy Citizen and NYC.is mostly depend on mainstream news sources to fuel their sites, but the key difference is readers don't have to rely on mainstream news sites — or a handful of journalists — to tell them what they should be reading.
Such sites are like perpetual news meetings where people around the world communicate and identify the stories they are interested in. Online news headlines often appear separate from the actual news site, meaning many readers will have read the story without seeing the news site it came from or the landing pages that advocated its existence.
Some traditional journalists will argue that we need editors to make the key news decisions, but do we really? It is understandable why editors are needed in print and broadcast journalism to select stories to be printed or aired, but in the digital age where readers flock to social networks and, to a lesser extent, RSS readers to get the news they care about, the power of the news editor is diminished.
While sites like Windy Citizen and NYC.is should be praised for letting readers determine what is newsworthy, such modern approaches to the curation of news won't be adopted overnight... meaning the news editor position is safe for now. However, journalists should get ready for people-powered journalism where the reader is best served by serving themselves.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• 6 Sites that are changing the way you follow the news
• Beyond Twitterfeed: Innovative uses of Twitter in the newsroom
• 5 Interactive maps that connect communities
• How the internet is changing how natural disasters are covered
• Why aren't all journalists "citizen" journalists?
Labels: citizen journalism, news on the news
Why having technical skills alone just won't cut it
Friday, July 03, 2009
Last week's post on the 30 skills every journalism graduate should learn this summer garnered attention for pointing out technology every newly-minted journalist should know. As several commenters suggested, the checklist is also applicable to established journalists, as is the following advice:
As this Yanko Design post points out, being a Jack of all trades is only the starting point. Journalism and its associated technologies are changing at a rapid pace and to learn one skill set is to be left in the dust. Sadly some of the technologies on the list will be obsolete in just a few years time. To survive in this industry means continuously evolving along with it.
This isn't limited to veteran journalists either. There are many "new media" journalists who adopted an enviable skill set some years ago, but haven't picked up anything new since. At the heart of a good new media journalist is flexibility and adaptability.
Additionally, it doesn't matter if you have every new media skill in existence if no one knows you exist. This means having and distributing business cards, having an online portfolio and sharing it with others and not just accumulating lots of Twitter followers or LinkedIn connections but actually interacting with them and establishing contacts in and outside of the journalism sphere.
Most of all, success in journalism requires a strong grounding in the fundamentals: knowing how to write (well), how to interview, how to speak to others and how to quickly establish trust and relationships. Without these skills, there is no reason to even learn the technologies that are transforming the industry. Learning a slew of technical skills isn't the answer, it's just part of the journalism equation.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• Journalism Grads: 30 Things You Should Do This Summer
• The 20 Essential RSS Feeds for Multimedia Journalists
• 10 Things I wish they'd told me in J-School
As this Yanko Design post points out, being a Jack of all trades is only the starting point. Journalism and its associated technologies are changing at a rapid pace and to learn one skill set is to be left in the dust. Sadly some of the technologies on the list will be obsolete in just a few years time. To survive in this industry means continuously evolving along with it.
This isn't limited to veteran journalists either. There are many "new media" journalists who adopted an enviable skill set some years ago, but haven't picked up anything new since. At the heart of a good new media journalist is flexibility and adaptability.
Additionally, it doesn't matter if you have every new media skill in existence if no one knows you exist. This means having and distributing business cards, having an online portfolio and sharing it with others and not just accumulating lots of Twitter followers or LinkedIn connections but actually interacting with them and establishing contacts in and outside of the journalism sphere.
Most of all, success in journalism requires a strong grounding in the fundamentals: knowing how to write (well), how to interview, how to speak to others and how to quickly establish trust and relationships. Without these skills, there is no reason to even learn the technologies that are transforming the industry. Learning a slew of technical skills isn't the answer, it's just part of the journalism equation.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• Journalism Grads: 30 Things You Should Do This Summer
• The 20 Essential RSS Feeds for Multimedia Journalists
• 10 Things I wish they'd told me in J-School
Labels: news on the news
Where the magic happens: Interactive and virtual newsroom tours
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
The average reader or viewer will never see the inside of a newsroom and sadly will never experience the electricity of reporters and editors working together to gather the day's news. Newsrooms have long been shrouded in a veil of secrecy, so why should they bother letting outsiders in on the experience?
Imagine having a friend with whom you talked every day, but knew nothing about where they lived or never visited their home. Newsrooms are a lot like that, but they don't have to be. Journalists can use the multimedia tools they use to bring stories to life to cover themselves. The following virtual tours combine photos, audio, video and/or slideshows to give users insight on the institutions and journalists who represent their interests.
The Sky News Virtual Newsroom combines three-dimensional animated recreations of various news departments with interviews of the people who work there. The overall effect shows just how complicated newsrooms can be, but also how many people it takes to create the news.
Weather Channel meteorologist Jim Cantore is your virtual tour guide to the "studio of the future," a Flash-based digital recreation of the channel's impressive studio. The hovering ghost-like orbs are clickable markers that describe some of the set's features, including several high-definition televisions and monitors and other hidden quirks.
In 2007, The New York Times used video and 360° interactive panoramas to create an interactive tour of its Manhattan tower. The multimedia piece also features audio from architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff.
If you're looking to recreate the panoramas seen in the project, check out this previous post on the tools used to create them.
A virtual tour doesn't have to be flashy; it could be as simple as a series of panoramic photos, like those of the New York Times newsroom posted by Flickr user imajes. The now online-only Christian Science Monitor used a relatively simple, interactive Flash graphic to illustrate the day-to-day operations of the newsroom.
Talk shows have long been the forerunners of making interactive set tours available online and there are a few that are taking the idea to the next level. The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien posted a time-lapse video of its set construction and The Rachael Ray Show, using the interactive video technology from Klickable, has created a video walkthrough of the set in which users can click various items and find out more about them, as illustrated in the screengrab below.
The overall effect of the virtual tour is to give the user an inside look out how journalism is created and take some of the mystery away from the newsgathering process. The internet is all about creating a spirit of openness and an online tour is a great way to open the newsroom doors to the public.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• 4 Organizations more tech-savvy than your newsroom
• Beyond Twitterfeed: Innovative uses of Twitter in the newsroom
• Why newsroom meetings should be made public
• 4 Sites for viewing panoramas (and 3 ways to create them)
• Essential resources for panoramic photography
Imagine having a friend with whom you talked every day, but knew nothing about where they lived or never visited their home. Newsrooms are a lot like that, but they don't have to be. Journalists can use the multimedia tools they use to bring stories to life to cover themselves. The following virtual tours combine photos, audio, video and/or slideshows to give users insight on the institutions and journalists who represent their interests.
The Sky News Virtual Newsroom combines three-dimensional animated recreations of various news departments with interviews of the people who work there. The overall effect shows just how complicated newsrooms can be, but also how many people it takes to create the news.
Weather Channel meteorologist Jim Cantore is your virtual tour guide to the "studio of the future," a Flash-based digital recreation of the channel's impressive studio. The hovering ghost-like orbs are clickable markers that describe some of the set's features, including several high-definition televisions and monitors and other hidden quirks.
In 2007, The New York Times used video and 360° interactive panoramas to create an interactive tour of its Manhattan tower. The multimedia piece also features audio from architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff.
If you're looking to recreate the panoramas seen in the project, check out this previous post on the tools used to create them.
A virtual tour doesn't have to be flashy; it could be as simple as a series of panoramic photos, like those of the New York Times newsroom posted by Flickr user imajes. The now online-only Christian Science Monitor used a relatively simple, interactive Flash graphic to illustrate the day-to-day operations of the newsroom.
Talk shows have long been the forerunners of making interactive set tours available online and there are a few that are taking the idea to the next level. The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien posted a time-lapse video of its set construction and The Rachael Ray Show, using the interactive video technology from Klickable, has created a video walkthrough of the set in which users can click various items and find out more about them, as illustrated in the screengrab below.
The overall effect of the virtual tour is to give the user an inside look out how journalism is created and take some of the mystery away from the newsgathering process. The internet is all about creating a spirit of openness and an online tour is a great way to open the newsroom doors to the public.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• 4 Organizations more tech-savvy than your newsroom
• Beyond Twitterfeed: Innovative uses of Twitter in the newsroom
• Why newsroom meetings should be made public
• 4 Sites for viewing panoramas (and 3 ways to create them)
• Essential resources for panoramic photography
Labels: news on the news
9 Things You Didn't Know About Newspapers
Friday, May 29, 2009
Yomiuri Shimbun of Japan has the world's largest newspaper circulation with an estimated 14,000,000 subscribers. In fact, 6 of the top 7 largest newspapers are based in Japan, according to the World Association of Newspapers.
There is at least one newspaper available in every continent of the world, including The Antarctic Sun of Antarctica.
Of the 429 U.S. newspapers viewable at the Newseum's daily archive, 123 — or 28 percent — use some variation of the familiar Gothic font in their masthead.
Anne Royall, born 1769 and considered by some to be the first professional female journalist in the US, was also the first woman to interview a US president: John Quincy Adams.
The world's smallest newspaper, according to the Guinness Book of World Records, is the First News of Surrey, England. The tiny tabloid measured in at only 1.25 x 0.86 in (32 x 22 mm).
The newspaper with the largest number of Pulitzer Prizes is the New York Times with 101.
You've probably heard the New York Times' famous slogan "All the News That's Fit to Print." But how about the Aspen Daily News' motto "If You Don't Want It Printed, Don't Let It Happen" or the Mason Valley News of Yerington, Nevada's proclamation "The Only Newspaper in the World That Gives a Damn About Yerington."
At 210 years old, The Dartmouth, founded in 1799, is the United States' oldest college newspaper.
The Washington Post has its own theme song, aptly titled "The Washington Post March," composed in 1889 by John Phillip Sousa. The familiar tune was commissioned by newspaper management and can still be heard at many parades.Also on 10,000 Words:
• The Daily News-Tribune-Herald-Times: Newspapers names are
much of the same
• Just what are they teaching future journalists?
• How did you choose your blog's name?
• Better Days: The Golden Age of Newspapers
Labels: news on the news
Why journalists should learn to code (and why some shouldn't bother)
Monday, April 20, 2009
In this era of new media and technology, journalists are being asked to acquire skills beyond reporting and writing, probably the most daunting of which is learning basic computer programming. Some argue that coding skills are an essential part of working in a new media environment, while many traditional journalists balk at the idea, saying computer programming is not why they signed up for the profession.
Both sides have valid arguments: learning basic HTML, CSS or other programming languages helps journalists create their own online content and understand the parameters of technical journalism. On the other hand, refusing to learn coding may be more than just stubbornness or old media thinking.
Being both a journalist and a programmer/coder requires use of both sides of the brain. The left brain, which relies on logic and analysis, is more apt for synthesizing computer processes; the right brain relies more on intuition and creative thought, essential skills for a successful journalist. Because journalists are more likely to be right-brain thinkers, asking a writer to code is basically asking someone to rethink the way they think (To find out what kind of thinker you are, take this short quiz).
This is why such skills are at odds with each other and learning coding is not as easy as just picking up a book. One must tap into both hemispheres of the brain and think both analytically and intuitively to thrive in the new era of journalism.
So why should journalists bother to learn coding? If anything, learning how to build online and interactive stories gives journos a greater understanding of how web-based journalism is created and how they can enhance traditional print or broadcast stories. As with all multimedia skills, journos are more likely to be invested in the technical process if they have an idea of what's possible.
Also, learning computer skills makes journalists less dispensable and, for the unemployed, more marketable for future employment, which — let's be honest — can't hurt in the industry's current tumultuous state. Many journalism jobs now require someone who has both coding skills and writing experience, the latter of which many traditional computer programmers lack. Because many coders and developers aren't exactly rushing out to learn about inverted pyramids and cutlines, this gives the coding journalist an advantage.
There are many working journalists/programmers, some of whom are more fluent in one side or the other, and with computer programming being taught in J-Schools, even more should emerge in the coming years.
Learning HTML/CSS is useful for building web-based projects and knowledge of ActionScript is necessary for working in Flash environments. But unless you're planning a career as a developer, a deep understanding of Django, PHP or Ruby on Rails is not required.
It's encouraging to see participants at the Knight Digital Media Center training workshops and other similar efforts take the basic web design skills they pick up and go on to create their own online stories or web-based projects.
For those interested in learning basic computer programming, start with the online tutorials at W3Schools or any of the books in the For Dummies series. Additional online tutorials can be found at lynda.com, News University or any of the sites listed in this previous post.
There are journalists whose prowess remains in the written word and they shouldn't be admonished for sticking to what they know. Those who choose to adhere to long-standing forms of print or broadcast journalism shouldn't fret, but know that there will come a time when basic coding will become an integral part of a journalist's duties. It's better to jump on the bandwagon now than to be left in the dust later on.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• Essential multimedia tutorials and resources for do-it-yourself training
• What is...? A handy guide for the new media novice
• Journalists: Change starts with you
• Multimedia Picker: Choose the right medium for your message
• Why J-Schools matter
Both sides have valid arguments: learning basic HTML, CSS or other programming languages helps journalists create their own online content and understand the parameters of technical journalism. On the other hand, refusing to learn coding may be more than just stubbornness or old media thinking.
Being both a journalist and a programmer/coder requires use of both sides of the brain. The left brain, which relies on logic and analysis, is more apt for synthesizing computer processes; the right brain relies more on intuition and creative thought, essential skills for a successful journalist. Because journalists are more likely to be right-brain thinkers, asking a writer to code is basically asking someone to rethink the way they think (To find out what kind of thinker you are, take this short quiz).
This is why such skills are at odds with each other and learning coding is not as easy as just picking up a book. One must tap into both hemispheres of the brain and think both analytically and intuitively to thrive in the new era of journalism.
So why should journalists bother to learn coding? If anything, learning how to build online and interactive stories gives journos a greater understanding of how web-based journalism is created and how they can enhance traditional print or broadcast stories. As with all multimedia skills, journos are more likely to be invested in the technical process if they have an idea of what's possible.
Also, learning computer skills makes journalists less dispensable and, for the unemployed, more marketable for future employment, which — let's be honest — can't hurt in the industry's current tumultuous state. Many journalism jobs now require someone who has both coding skills and writing experience, the latter of which many traditional computer programmers lack. Because many coders and developers aren't exactly rushing out to learn about inverted pyramids and cutlines, this gives the coding journalist an advantage.
There are many working journalists/programmers, some of whom are more fluent in one side or the other, and with computer programming being taught in J-Schools, even more should emerge in the coming years.
Learning HTML/CSS is useful for building web-based projects and knowledge of ActionScript is necessary for working in Flash environments. But unless you're planning a career as a developer, a deep understanding of Django, PHP or Ruby on Rails is not required.
It's encouraging to see participants at the Knight Digital Media Center training workshops and other similar efforts take the basic web design skills they pick up and go on to create their own online stories or web-based projects.
For those interested in learning basic computer programming, start with the online tutorials at W3Schools or any of the books in the For Dummies series. Additional online tutorials can be found at lynda.com, News University or any of the sites listed in this previous post.
There are journalists whose prowess remains in the written word and they shouldn't be admonished for sticking to what they know. Those who choose to adhere to long-standing forms of print or broadcast journalism shouldn't fret, but know that there will come a time when basic coding will become an integral part of a journalist's duties. It's better to jump on the bandwagon now than to be left in the dust later on.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• Essential multimedia tutorials and resources for do-it-yourself training
• What is...? A handy guide for the new media novice
• Journalists: Change starts with you
• Multimedia Picker: Choose the right medium for your message
• Why J-Schools matter
Labels: news on the news
Beyond Twitterfeed: Innovative uses of Twitter in the newsroom
Monday, April 06, 2009
As many newsrooms have discovered, Twitter is a great way to break news as it happens and to share stories with a large audience as they are made available. However, many news organizations fall into the trap of simply posting links to stories with no context and no interaction with their followers, thereby turning Twitter into a glorified RSS feed. That is the old media way of disseminating the news, one that won't survive. What follows are examples of newsrooms embracing Twitter as a new media, Web 2.0 way of spreading and sharing the news and listening in return.
One of the simplest ways to increase reporter interaction with communities is to sign up as many as are willing for Twitter and have them cover and share news on their beat with Twitter followers. In order to make it easier for readers to find their favorite reporters, many news organizations, including the Austin American-Statesman, Cincinnati Enquirer, Grand Island Independent, and Des Moines Register (pictured below) have set up landing pages for potential followers to find every tweeting journalist or news section in one place.
NBC4 Columbus takes the landing page a step further by also showcasing tweets about the city that aren't necessarily directed to the news staff, in addition to recent tweets from anchors, reporters and staff. The Telegraph has reversed the notion, by displaying Twitterfall, an online interface for viewing recent tweets, on a large screen in its newsroom.
Many traditional and nontraditional news outlets have also embraced Twitter as a means of crowdsourcing, or gathering information from the community on a story or topic. Twitter makes it easy to ask questions of many people at one time who may have information that would have otherwise gone unheard. 10,000 Words has done so for several posts, including this one and this one. ReadWriteWeb explains how they crowdsource in the post "How We Use Twitter for Journalism".
Sites like TweetBeep, which provides alerts based on keywords selected by the user, can also be used to stay on top of breaking news as it happens on Twitter. If you're looking for news on a specific area, CityTweets aggregates Twitter mentions of various cities around the world in one place. Breaking Tweets is also worth a look — the news site is powered by information and photos shared on Twitter.
Because the journalism conference season is coming up, it would be interesting to see something like this, a list of attendees who are on Twitter (looking at you @ONA09). With so many seminars and happenings being shared on Twitter at SXSW for example, it would be useful to have those names on hand to increase interaction among attendees.
You can find even more ways to merge Twitter and journalism in the comments section of this Online Journalism Blog post and this post by Meranda Watling.
It's time to turn off Twitterfeed, and embrace Twitter's many uses for many improving journalism. For a list of newspapers on Twitter, check out this exhaustive list and also ReporTwitters, a collection of online journalists using Twitter as a tool for innovation.
Also on 10,000 Words
• 10 Journalists you should follow on Twitter
• Twitter for journalists: What you need to know
• The top 7 mistakes new Twitter users make
• How to analyze your Twitter followers and friends
One of the simplest ways to increase reporter interaction with communities is to sign up as many as are willing for Twitter and have them cover and share news on their beat with Twitter followers. In order to make it easier for readers to find their favorite reporters, many news organizations, including the Austin American-Statesman, Cincinnati Enquirer, Grand Island Independent, and Des Moines Register (pictured below) have set up landing pages for potential followers to find every tweeting journalist or news section in one place.
NBC4 Columbus takes the landing page a step further by also showcasing tweets about the city that aren't necessarily directed to the news staff, in addition to recent tweets from anchors, reporters and staff. The Telegraph has reversed the notion, by displaying Twitterfall, an online interface for viewing recent tweets, on a large screen in its newsroom.
Many traditional and nontraditional news outlets have also embraced Twitter as a means of crowdsourcing, or gathering information from the community on a story or topic. Twitter makes it easy to ask questions of many people at one time who may have information that would have otherwise gone unheard. 10,000 Words has done so for several posts, including this one and this one. ReadWriteWeb explains how they crowdsource in the post "How We Use Twitter for Journalism".
Sites like TweetBeep, which provides alerts based on keywords selected by the user, can also be used to stay on top of breaking news as it happens on Twitter. If you're looking for news on a specific area, CityTweets aggregates Twitter mentions of various cities around the world in one place. Breaking Tweets is also worth a look — the news site is powered by information and photos shared on Twitter.
Because the journalism conference season is coming up, it would be interesting to see something like this, a list of attendees who are on Twitter (looking at you @ONA09). With so many seminars and happenings being shared on Twitter at SXSW for example, it would be useful to have those names on hand to increase interaction among attendees.
You can find even more ways to merge Twitter and journalism in the comments section of this Online Journalism Blog post and this post by Meranda Watling.
It's time to turn off Twitterfeed, and embrace Twitter's many uses for many improving journalism. For a list of newspapers on Twitter, check out this exhaustive list and also ReporTwitters, a collection of online journalists using Twitter as a tool for innovation.
Also on 10,000 Words
• 10 Journalists you should follow on Twitter
• Twitter for journalists: What you need to know
• The top 7 mistakes new Twitter users make
• How to analyze your Twitter followers and friends
Labels: news on the news, social networking
Journalism-is-dead.com: A place for the naysayers
Thursday, February 19, 2009
There are several kinds of posts you will never see on 10,000 Words, one of which is anything proclaiming the demise of journalism. There are a chorus of pundits and bloggers that have already proclaimed the death of journalism as we know it, but rarely offer solutions to help improve the industry.
Journalism-is-dead.com is a collection of the alarmist, bombastic and otherwise humorous quotes about why journalism is dead. The future of media may be grim, but according to some, you'd think it was a sign of the apocalypse.
Check it out, have a laugh, and keep in mind the medium may change but journalism is here to stay.
Journalism-is-dead.com is a collection of the alarmist, bombastic and otherwise humorous quotes about why journalism is dead. The future of media may be grim, but according to some, you'd think it was a sign of the apocalypse.
Check it out, have a laugh, and keep in mind the medium may change but journalism is here to stay.
Labels: news on the news
Multimedia... but why?
Monday, February 09, 2009
I was browsing through last month's issue of Complex magazine when I stopped at a timeline of the history of Calvin Klein.
"They should have made that into a multimedia presentation," I thought. I then paused and asked myself why. Why would this already nicely designed infographic need the interactive treatment?
The short answer: to attract more viewers and stand out in a sea of online graphics.
There are so many sources of news in the crowded online market that making print articles available online is enough to attract a substantial readership, but not enough to stand out from the crowd. Considering many web readers skim content rather than read it, interactive and multimedia news stories force users to interact with the content rather than passively consume it.
In addition, a good interactive story can yield thousands of Diggs and Stumbles, hundreds of mentions on Twitter and other social networks, and a slew of saves on social bookmarking sites like delicious, which in turn means hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of visitors. All that is worth the extra man hours if it means higher page views which also translates to, for those concerned with the business side of journalism, greater revenue.
A nice multimedia presentation doesn't even have to be a complex database like those created by the New York Times. Popular Mechanics' interactive map of proposed North American high-speed train projects could have been a simple infographic, but its interactive Flash graphic was Dugg more than 1,700 times, bookmarked on delicious by more than 60 different users and was Stumbled a gajillion times.
In the same vein, the Associated Press' relatively simple interactive graph of the 2008 U.S. Presidential candidates' fundraising receipts was Dugg 545 times and Portfolio.com (which is already a great source of Flash journalism) created a simple six-slide slideshow on the "World's Most Worthless Money" was Dugg a whopping 1,045 times.
What these interactive graphics all have in common is they are simple but compelling ideas that are presented in an interesting way. One could argue that the examples illustrate their respective issues better than they would be with plain text or a flat graphic. Web users are spending more and more time online and are better served with content that piques their interest rather than puts them to sleep.
In the end, the most important thing is that interactive news stories encourage the reader to walk away with a greater understanding of the concept presented before them and encourage a larger audience to do so. After all isn't the point of journalism to spread the news to as many people as possible?
Also on 10,000 Words:
• Online news games are fun (and informative!)
• Where to find the best in Flash journalism
• Eyetrack studies: What we've learned and how to conduct your own
"They should have made that into a multimedia presentation," I thought. I then paused and asked myself why. Why would this already nicely designed infographic need the interactive treatment?
The short answer: to attract more viewers and stand out in a sea of online graphics.
There are so many sources of news in the crowded online market that making print articles available online is enough to attract a substantial readership, but not enough to stand out from the crowd. Considering many web readers skim content rather than read it, interactive and multimedia news stories force users to interact with the content rather than passively consume it.
In addition, a good interactive story can yield thousands of Diggs and Stumbles, hundreds of mentions on Twitter and other social networks, and a slew of saves on social bookmarking sites like delicious, which in turn means hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of visitors. All that is worth the extra man hours if it means higher page views which also translates to, for those concerned with the business side of journalism, greater revenue.
A nice multimedia presentation doesn't even have to be a complex database like those created by the New York Times. Popular Mechanics' interactive map of proposed North American high-speed train projects could have been a simple infographic, but its interactive Flash graphic was Dugg more than 1,700 times, bookmarked on delicious by more than 60 different users and was Stumbled a gajillion times.
In the same vein, the Associated Press' relatively simple interactive graph of the 2008 U.S. Presidential candidates' fundraising receipts was Dugg 545 times and Portfolio.com (which is already a great source of Flash journalism) created a simple six-slide slideshow on the "World's Most Worthless Money" was Dugg a whopping 1,045 times.
What these interactive graphics all have in common is they are simple but compelling ideas that are presented in an interesting way. One could argue that the examples illustrate their respective issues better than they would be with plain text or a flat graphic. Web users are spending more and more time online and are better served with content that piques their interest rather than puts them to sleep.
In the end, the most important thing is that interactive news stories encourage the reader to walk away with a greater understanding of the concept presented before them and encourage a larger audience to do so. After all isn't the point of journalism to spread the news to as many people as possible?
Also on 10,000 Words:
• Online news games are fun (and informative!)
• Where to find the best in Flash journalism
• Eyetrack studies: What we've learned and how to conduct your own
Labels: flash, news on the news, social networking
What the journalism industry can learn from the U.S. Army
Thursday, February 05, 2009
Advertising for the U.S. Army is everywhere — from movies to television to print ads — and all with one message: joining the Army is the coolest thing you could ever do and you should find out why. Media organizations should adopt similar marketing techniques to regain the readers that we so desperately need to survive.
Make use of the swag
When the Army sets up its recruiting tables, they are often stacked with Army-branded footballs, Frisbees and other assorted bric-a-brac so even if the taker doesn't plan on joining the armed forces, they at least have the Army burned into the back of their minds.
Every year, recruitment tables at journalism conferences around the world are also filled with company-branded notebooks, pens and the like, but the people who take away the loot are mostly other journalists and media types who already have thousands of notebooks lying on their desks. Since attendance at journalism conferences will likely be down this year (lets face it, who can afford these pricey shindigs anymore?), why not give the swag to people in the community who will be genuinely impressed by the free loot? Many communities complain about lack of interaction with their local papers, so the leftover piles of swag are a perfect way to bridge the gap.
Go where the young people are
The U.S. Army is notorious for taking its recruitment efforts to colleges around the country as well as placing large ads in many college newspapers. While it may sound strange to suggest professional newspapers advertise in student publications, it does bring home a point — no one knows how awesome your coverage is if you don't tell them. Media outlets cannot rest on being the long-standing source for news; they have to advertise directly toward the very demographic they complain about not reaching.
Get a new attitude
One of the biggest draws of the Army's television ads is it makes enlisting look like the most awesome thing ever: steel-faced soldiers march through a mix of smoke and flashing lights while rock music plays in the background...it makes one want to drop everything and join immediately.
While newspapers and broadcast stations likely don't have the cash to hire 3 Doors Down to sing a song about them, they can ditch the old gray lady/non-regional diction/holier than thou/old media attitude make reading the news feel a little more hip. One of the biggest draws of Current and sites like the Sugar network is they make the user feel cool just reading/watching just my changing the tone of the delivery. Coolness doesn't require the massive advertising budget of the army, it can be as simple as presenting news stories in a more conversational — and less condescending — manner.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• What the journalism industry can learn from porn
• 25 Things I've Learned About Journalism
• What Speed Racer taught me about multimedia journalism
Make use of the swag
When the Army sets up its recruiting tables, they are often stacked with Army-branded footballs, Frisbees and other assorted bric-a-brac so even if the taker doesn't plan on joining the armed forces, they at least have the Army burned into the back of their minds.
Every year, recruitment tables at journalism conferences around the world are also filled with company-branded notebooks, pens and the like, but the people who take away the loot are mostly other journalists and media types who already have thousands of notebooks lying on their desks. Since attendance at journalism conferences will likely be down this year (lets face it, who can afford these pricey shindigs anymore?), why not give the swag to people in the community who will be genuinely impressed by the free loot? Many communities complain about lack of interaction with their local papers, so the leftover piles of swag are a perfect way to bridge the gap.
Go where the young people are
The U.S. Army is notorious for taking its recruitment efforts to colleges around the country as well as placing large ads in many college newspapers. While it may sound strange to suggest professional newspapers advertise in student publications, it does bring home a point — no one knows how awesome your coverage is if you don't tell them. Media outlets cannot rest on being the long-standing source for news; they have to advertise directly toward the very demographic they complain about not reaching.
Get a new attitude
One of the biggest draws of the Army's television ads is it makes enlisting look like the most awesome thing ever: steel-faced soldiers march through a mix of smoke and flashing lights while rock music plays in the background...it makes one want to drop everything and join immediately.
While newspapers and broadcast stations likely don't have the cash to hire 3 Doors Down to sing a song about them, they can ditch the old gray lady/non-regional diction/holier than thou/old media attitude make reading the news feel a little more hip. One of the biggest draws of Current and sites like the Sugar network is they make the user feel cool just reading/watching just my changing the tone of the delivery. Coolness doesn't require the massive advertising budget of the army, it can be as simple as presenting news stories in a more conversational — and less condescending — manner.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• What the journalism industry can learn from porn
• 25 Things I've Learned About Journalism
• What Speed Racer taught me about multimedia journalism
Labels: news on the news
Black History Month BINGO
Monday, February 02, 2009
Now is the time of year when news organizations rehash the same clichéd trivia about African-American history in place of fresh reporting on the ongoing contributions of Blacks to American culture. Use this BINGO card to keep track of the oft-recycled people, places and things that you are sure to hear about this Black History Month and every February for years to come.
Previously on 10,000 Words:
• Black History Month is dying, but isn't dead yet
Previously on 10,000 Words:
• Black History Month is dying, but isn't dead yet
Labels: news on the news
10 Reasons why online news sites suck
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
It may be wrong to beat a man (or a newspaper) when he's down, but some of the unconscionable and downright annoying features and practices of news sites warrant a little attention. Here are some of the worst offenders:
1. 50 million-word stories
The reason why so many people use the internet to get their news is because they can do so fairly quickly. So that Pulitzer Prize candidate that takes two years to scroll through and resembles an endless sea of text? Either break it up or kick it down a notch.
2. Multi-page "slideshows"
On the flip side, there are the popular online "slideshows" — one news story spread over several pages, usually with a single image and a paragraph of text on each page. While the practice may be good for page views, no one wants to click through 27 different pages to read a single story.
3. Expanding/ "Rich media" ads
You're going about your business, reading a news article when suddenly that innocuous ad in the corner expands across the page and some cute animation demands your attention. You panic and search for the "close" button, but because it's tucked away in the last spot you'll ever look, you can't finish reading the news article and leave the site in disgust. Sound familiar?
4. No links whatsoever
Often a news story will refer to some cool, hip, happening site, but because there is no link to said site, readers are left to Google it themselves. Sometimes, this is the fault of the reporter for not including the link or at minimum a note to do so. Yet many news sites just don't have a practice of linking out or even worse, don't include links in fear that their readers may be taken away from their site.
5. Registration
Thankfully many news organizations have seen the error of their ways and stopped requiring visitors to register just to view a single story. There are a few holdouts who insist on the practice and who fail to realize that many visitors would rather not read the story at all than to endure a five-minute registration process for a site they may never return to anyway.
6. Poor design
The average front page of a major news site looks like the HTML fairies threw up on it: endless columns of text and links with no real differentiation between the content. If you're going to do the column thing, check out Alltop to see how it's supposed to be done.
7. Full-screen ads
Upon visiting a news site, readers are greeted with a full-screen ad for something or the other instead of the story they were expecting to read. Again, done to generate advertising revenue, but it doesn't make the practice any less annoying.
8. The never-ending hunt
As seen on TV? Not really. Many television newscasters at the end of a report will say something along the lines of "For more information, check out our website" and give the station's web address. However, when the viewer actually visits the site, the link to the story is nowhere to be found and doesn't show up in the site's search.
9. Pop-up ads
Are we really still doing these? Really?
10. Comment trolls and flamers
These guys are the bane of many sites' existence (and not just news ones). Because of the sometimes controversial nature of whats being reported, people use news sites as a forum for their bitter, inflammatory, racist or insulting remarks. Frustrated site managers try to dissuade or delete said comments, but are mostly crying on the inside and clinging to the notion that everyone has the right to free speech.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• 25 Things I've Learned About Journalism
• Eyetrack studies: What we've learned and how to conduct your own
• The difference between print and online design
1. 50 million-word stories
The reason why so many people use the internet to get their news is because they can do so fairly quickly. So that Pulitzer Prize candidate that takes two years to scroll through and resembles an endless sea of text? Either break it up or kick it down a notch.
2. Multi-page "slideshows"
On the flip side, there are the popular online "slideshows" — one news story spread over several pages, usually with a single image and a paragraph of text on each page. While the practice may be good for page views, no one wants to click through 27 different pages to read a single story.
3. Expanding/ "Rich media" ads
You're going about your business, reading a news article when suddenly that innocuous ad in the corner expands across the page and some cute animation demands your attention. You panic and search for the "close" button, but because it's tucked away in the last spot you'll ever look, you can't finish reading the news article and leave the site in disgust. Sound familiar?
4. No links whatsoever
Often a news story will refer to some cool, hip, happening site, but because there is no link to said site, readers are left to Google it themselves. Sometimes, this is the fault of the reporter for not including the link or at minimum a note to do so. Yet many news sites just don't have a practice of linking out or even worse, don't include links in fear that their readers may be taken away from their site.
5. Registration
Thankfully many news organizations have seen the error of their ways and stopped requiring visitors to register just to view a single story. There are a few holdouts who insist on the practice and who fail to realize that many visitors would rather not read the story at all than to endure a five-minute registration process for a site they may never return to anyway.
6. Poor design
The average front page of a major news site looks like the HTML fairies threw up on it: endless columns of text and links with no real differentiation between the content. If you're going to do the column thing, check out Alltop to see how it's supposed to be done.
7. Full-screen ads
Upon visiting a news site, readers are greeted with a full-screen ad for something or the other instead of the story they were expecting to read. Again, done to generate advertising revenue, but it doesn't make the practice any less annoying.
8. The never-ending hunt
As seen on TV? Not really. Many television newscasters at the end of a report will say something along the lines of "For more information, check out our website" and give the station's web address. However, when the viewer actually visits the site, the link to the story is nowhere to be found and doesn't show up in the site's search.
9. Pop-up ads
Are we really still doing these? Really?
10. Comment trolls and flamers
These guys are the bane of many sites' existence (and not just news ones). Because of the sometimes controversial nature of whats being reported, people use news sites as a forum for their bitter, inflammatory, racist or insulting remarks. Frustrated site managers try to dissuade or delete said comments, but are mostly crying on the inside and clinging to the notion that everyone has the right to free speech.
Also on 10,000 Words:
• 25 Things I've Learned About Journalism
• Eyetrack studies: What we've learned and how to conduct your own
• The difference between print and online design
Labels: design, news on the news, site management
6 Sites that are changing the way you follow the news
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
The way we read the news is changing, so it only makes sense that the way we follow the news should change as well. Even relatively new news aggregators like Google News seem antiquated compared to these game-changing tools.
Track This Now is an impressive tool in which the user inputs keywords and a Google Map outputs where the phrase is being mentioned by news sources around the world. In the below screengrab it is evident that media organizations all over the world are talking about president-elect Obama, as shown by the markers on the map. The latest news on Obama or any other searched-for topic is shown in the pane on the right.
Spreed recognizes that many internet users want their news quick, fast and in a hurry. The free service displays news articles a few words at a time, making them easily digestable and reducing the time necessary to read each story. It's hard to tell if the service will catch on, but it will definitely be popular among those with short attention spans.
MemeTracker analyzes almost a million news stories a day to determine what quotes and phrases appear most frequently over time. Memorable quotes like "Lipstick on a pig" and "The fundamentals of our economy are strong" echoed strongly across the blogosphere and as such are marked by strong peaks on the graph. The site, which was created by a team of researchers from Cornell University, has a great search function for viewing the popularity of quotes based on keywords, such as "economy" in the example below.
One of the latest iPhone applications lets owners of the mobile device listen to news stories on the go. Unlike other mobile news radio stations in which users tune in to a 24-hour a day broadcast, Stitcher users can listen to audio news articles from news organizations like NPR and CNN on demand, as well as pause, rewind and fast forward. Favorite news stories can bookmarked and saved for later listening.
DiggGraphr is a tree map visualization of the latest news on Digg and is reminiscent of the Marumushi newsmap (previously covered here). Each story is represented by a color-coded square. An initial visit to the page can be a little off-putting because selecting "All" will bring up headlines for spammy stories with just one or two Diggs, but by selecting a category in the drop down menu, users can filter the information into any one of Digg's relevant categories.
NewsMaps tracks the latest news from a number of popular US media organizations in a similar manner as DiggGraphr, albeit in an even more scaled down way. Recent stories are grouped by source and represented by blocks of color, red signifying the most recent news. Users can filter by keywords, source or any of several other factors. The NewsMap also offers a couple of unique features including the ability to directly clip, email, blog or track the article, all without leaving the site.
Previously on 10,000 Words:
• 7 Innovative ways of visualizing the news
• The big scrolling debate: Do users care about page length?
Track This Now
Track This Now is an impressive tool in which the user inputs keywords and a Google Map outputs where the phrase is being mentioned by news sources around the world. In the below screengrab it is evident that media organizations all over the world are talking about president-elect Obama, as shown by the markers on the map. The latest news on Obama or any other searched-for topic is shown in the pane on the right.
Spreed News
Spreed recognizes that many internet users want their news quick, fast and in a hurry. The free service displays news articles a few words at a time, making them easily digestable and reducing the time necessary to read each story. It's hard to tell if the service will catch on, but it will definitely be popular among those with short attention spans.
MemeTracker
MemeTracker analyzes almost a million news stories a day to determine what quotes and phrases appear most frequently over time. Memorable quotes like "Lipstick on a pig" and "The fundamentals of our economy are strong" echoed strongly across the blogosphere and as such are marked by strong peaks on the graph. The site, which was created by a team of researchers from Cornell University, has a great search function for viewing the popularity of quotes based on keywords, such as "economy" in the example below.
Stitcher
One of the latest iPhone applications lets owners of the mobile device listen to news stories on the go. Unlike other mobile news radio stations in which users tune in to a 24-hour a day broadcast, Stitcher users can listen to audio news articles from news organizations like NPR and CNN on demand, as well as pause, rewind and fast forward. Favorite news stories can bookmarked and saved for later listening.
DiggGraphr
DiggGraphr is a tree map visualization of the latest news on Digg and is reminiscent of the Marumushi newsmap (previously covered here). Each story is represented by a color-coded square. An initial visit to the page can be a little off-putting because selecting "All" will bring up headlines for spammy stories with just one or two Diggs, but by selecting a category in the drop down menu, users can filter the information into any one of Digg's relevant categories.
NewsIsFree: NewsMaps
NewsMaps tracks the latest news from a number of popular US media organizations in a similar manner as DiggGraphr, albeit in an even more scaled down way. Recent stories are grouped by source and represented by blocks of color, red signifying the most recent news. Users can filter by keywords, source or any of several other factors. The NewsMap also offers a couple of unique features including the ability to directly clip, email, blog or track the article, all without leaving the site.
Previously on 10,000 Words:
• 7 Innovative ways of visualizing the news
• The big scrolling debate: Do users care about page length?
Labels: design, mobile, news on the news
Just what are they teaching future journalists?
Friday, December 26, 2008
One of the biggest complaints about modern journalism schools is that they aren't equipping the next wave of journalists with the skills they need to compete in today's newsrooms. So what are they teaching students? The online course descriptions for several J-schools were run through Wordle. Here are the results:
More after the jump
UPDATE:
Here are a few more word cloud analyses from around the blogosphere:
Reynolds School of Journalism
created by Jessica Estepa
Boston University's JO540 Multimedia Journalism class
created by Steve Garfield
Medill Graduate School of Journalism
The CUNY Graduate School of Journalism
More after the jump
UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism
Asian College of Journalism
UNC Chapel Hill School of Journalism and Mass Communications
UPDATE:
Here are a few more word cloud analyses from around the blogosphere:
Reynolds School of Journalism
created by Jessica Estepa
Boston University's JO540 Multimedia Journalism class
created by Steve Garfield
Labels: news on the news
Less bang for your buck: Ads outweigh content in magazines
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
A quick read of the latest issue of Los Angeles magazine was made even quicker by the ads that dominated the magazine, surpassing the number of actual news articles. To determine if this was out of the ordinary, ten magazines were randomly selected from a local newsstand and the number of ads in each was counted.
The hand count includes total pages in the magazine, including any fold-out pages, front, rear, and inside covers, and full-page inserts. Here are the results, ranked from lowest percentage of ads to the highest.
78 pages, 27.66 total ads
244 pages, 96.83 total ads
114 pages, 46.33 total ads
98 pages, 45 total ads
160 pages, 77.66 total ads
204 pages, 99.16 total ads
364 pages, 208.66 total ads
240 pages, 138 total ads
360 pages, 218 total ads
284 pages, 191.5 total ads
The hand count includes total pages in the magazine, including any fold-out pages, front, rear, and inside covers, and full-page inserts. Here are the results, ranked from lowest percentage of ads to the highest.
Time
78 pages, 27.66 total ads
Cosmopolitan
244 pages, 96.83 total ads
Rolling Stone
114 pages, 46.33 total ads
Blender
98 pages, 45 total ads
People
160 pages, 77.66 total ads
Esquire
204 pages, 99.16 total ads
Vanity Fair
364 pages, 208.66 total ads
Wired
240 pages, 138 total ads
Vogue
360 pages, 218 total ads
Los Angeles
284 pages, 191.5 total ads
Labels: news on the news
