TOWS Week Seven

News U: Five Steps to Multimedia Storyelling

News U: Five Steps to Multimedia Storytelling had some great information. Below are just a few of the tips that I wrote down as notes.  To me this is the most important information. The general guidelines are very helpful and we all need to know and understand them.

• Before you venture into the field, gather as much information as possible to put together a rough storyboard
• Collect visuals — photos, videos, maps and graphics — from your sources or from the Web to get an idea of potential story components.
• Once you’ve finished your fieldwork, refine your storyboard. Evaluate your information, figure out what has changed from your original version of the story, and map out which media you have and what should appear on each page.

General guidelines when using different media:

• Video:
  • Keep videos short, preferably 1 or 2 minutes, no more than 3 or 4 minutes
  • Keep talking heads to a few seconds, then switch to “B-roll”
  • Because the Web uses a low frame rate, avoid action shots with a lot of movement or shots that capture nuances of emotion.
• Audio:
  • Only use high-quality audio. One exception: really old recordings. But, by definition, they have to be scratchy and tinny.
  • Use subtitles with the audio if you have no other options or to reinforce an important point.
  • Avoid using background music unless it’s pertinent to the story.
• Still Photos:
  • The Web is a visual medium, so be sure to include photos.
  • Text and photos should complement each other visually, as well as in their content.
  • Don’t be afraid to use Photoshop to put text directly on your photos.
  • Photos can be used two ways:
    • Individually, to set a mood or introduce a story or section of a story
    • Sequentially, to tell a story with a “slide show”
• Graphics:
  • You can make graphics interactive by using GIS (geographic information systems.) This lets readers select a geographic area (such as their neighborhood) and get information about the region.
  • Graphics can be the centerpiece of a story.
• Text:
  • Save text for what is left after you’ve put as much information as possible into other media.
  • Use for display type: headlines, photo captions
  • Text works best for first-person stories, political stories, analysis, op-ed pieces and short updates.

Tapping the Web and New Media

Chapter 12 Notes

Rise of Social Media

• Blogs
  • Almost anyone can create a blog. A blog is ideal for a small business or large company
  • Start up cost are often minimal….Free
  • Links can be made to other blogs and Web pages.
  • Material can be updated and changed instantly.
• MySpace and Facebook
  • Excellent opportunities to make “friends” in several ways.
  • Marketing and Public Relation personnel believe networking sites were vital for
    • Gaining consumer insights
    • Building brand awareness
    • Creating customer loyalty
• YouTube
  • Popular medium of communication
  • YouTube video’s are:
    • Humorous
    • Entertaining
    • Educational
• Flickr
  • Allows individuals to share photos with the rest of the world.
  • Primarily used for personal use.
  • Organizations are strongly discouraged from trying to sell products and services, however Public Relation personnel find creative ways to use the social networking aspect of Flickr to build awareness of an organization or brand.
  • Flickr can be used for public relations purposes only of the focus is on generating participation and involvement on the part of consumers and the general public.
• Texting
  • Broadcast text, companies often use to send a brief message to all employees at the same time.  Example, text may be to remind employees about sign up for something.
  • Subscription, Users sign up to receive text messages from groups or organizations. Example, a reporter may sign up to receive text messages from a company the he or she covers on a regular basis.
  • “One-off,” a cell phone user can send a text message to a source to get an answer to a question.
• Twitter
  • Another form of text messaging
  • Free social networking and microblogging service.
  • Allows users to post messages of up to 140 characters in length on computers and mobile devices.
• Wikis
  • A collection of Web pages that enables anyone who accesses it to provide input and even modify the content.
• Podcasts
  • Digetial media file, or a series of such files, that is distributed over the internet using syndication feeds for playback on portable media players and personal computers.
  • Three major advantages of podcasts
    • Cost-effective
    • Ability of users to access material on a 24/7 basis
    • Portability
  • Organization use podcasts for a variety of purposes, including
    • Provides news about a company
    • In-depth interviews with executives and other experts
    • Features giving customer tips about use of products and services
    • Training material for employees

Getting Along With Journalist

Chapter 11 Notes

I really liked the tips given on page 283, on how to handle interviews with print or broadcast personnel.

• Listed below are a few of the tips that I liked most or that I found more helpful:
  • Determine, in advance, what key points or message you want to convey on behalf of the organization or client.
  • Anticipate questions and plan answers. Be totally familiar with facts, figures, and details that will help you sound credible.
  • Don’t tell half-truths. Don’t exaggerate.
  • Don’t let reporters put words in your mouth.
  • Be quotable. Say it briefly, clearly, and directly in 30 seconds or less.
  • Never say “NO COMMENT”
  • There is no such thing as “OFF THE RECORD”
  • Don’t speak ill about the competition or other individuals.
  • Watch your attitude. Don’t be arrogant, evasive, or uncooperative.
  • If a question is unfair or too personal, say so and refuse to answer.

I also found the section about news conferences to be very interesting and helpful. There are a lot of key points in the reading. Below, I have broken it down and pulled out points that I thought were most important.

• Scheduling a News Conference
  • In general, Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday mornings are best for dailies and broadcast media. Allows sufficient time for reporters to get stories in the next morning’s daily or on the 6 p.m. news.
  • Avoid Saturday and Sundays, as well as major holidays.
  • Try to schedule the news conference on a day when there are not other major announcements or news events.
  • Selecting a location (must meet several criteria)
    • Convenient for the media invited and be relatively close to their place of work.
    • Room selected must have the necessary facilities to accommodate both print and broadcast media.
    • Room must have plenty of electrical outlets. In some cases television people may want ground floor near an entrance, they may want to run cables from the truck to the room for live broadcasting.
    • Radio reporters will want a room with phone jacks.
    • Make room available 1 or 2 hours in advance so that radio and television crews can set up.
    • Have general seating arrangements.
    • More great tips can be found under the invitation, handling the conference, and after the conference section.