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Updated Reporting Methods

Updated Reporting Methods. Dr. Kristen Landreville Aug. 29, 2011. “And why do I need to blog again?”. See class blog post. Computer-Assisted Reporting. Email for News Gathering. Email interviewing = Last resort Why? No follow-up or on-the-spot questions

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Updated Reporting Methods

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  1. Updated Reporting Methods Dr. Kristen Landreville Aug. 29, 2011

  2. “And why do I need to blog again?” See class blog post

  3. Computer-Assisted Reporting

  4. Email for News Gathering • Email interviewing = Last resort • Why? • No follow-up or on-the-spot questions • Impossible to know true identity of emailer • No facial expressions, gestures, voice inflections • OK to email for: • Arranging a time/place to meet • Quick follow-up question AFTER your phone or in-person interview • Remember: • Use proper grammar, spelling, and punctuation • Be very cognizant of your writing style (don’t want to come off rude or demanding) • Use a professional email address name

  5. The Audience & News Gathering • Crowdsourcing: Use the community to help you report rather than a small set of experts • Example: Asking parents to help identify small and large child-care centers that DFS may have missed • Distributed, collaborative, or open-source reporting • Example: Reader networks allows readers provide their email addresses, are categorized, and asked to supply information at times • Example: Asking voters to report irregularities on election day

  6. Web-Based News Gathering General Information: Journalist Resources & Tips • Online encyclopedias and dictionaries • Almanacs • Directories (e.g., Yahoo) • Databases • Mapping programs • Bartlett’s familiar quotations • ConvertIt • CIA World Factbook • CJR’s inflation adjuster • Wikis (ALWAYS double-check information from wikis) • PowerReporting.com • Poynter.org • ProfNet (profnet.prnewswire.com) • National Press Club (press.org) • Journalism.org • StateoftheMedia.org • JournalistsToolBox.org

  7. Better Searching • Visualize the Web page you’re trying to reach • Example: Finding a list of concerts in your area • Avoid vague, topic-oriented terms • laramie musicians • Use search terms that will appear on that page • laramiewyoming calendar music events • Consider using the “advanced” search page

  8. Social Media for News Gathering • Available tools • Twitter with hashtags (e.g., #journalism) • Facebook groups/friends/pages • Do not use social media as the only source of information in a story • Good for background, finding sources, and context in the story • Good for keeping updated on a particular issue

  9. Social Media for News Promotion See class blog post

  10. Storytelling for the Web The Word Still Dominates

  11. Writing Style for Headlines • Entice readers • Reflect the overall story for SEO • Use conversational language • If you use a catchy headline, be sure to include a literal secondary headline • Can use concise bullet points with main facts • Example: • Do-Re-Mi promotes a feeling of ‘we’ • Music can encourage children to cooperate

  12. Writing Style for Stories • We don’t read, we scan. • Include short subheads that “chunk” the story • Hybrid Writing • Tight, punchy, and colorful like broadcast news • Subject > Verb > Object (active voice) • More detail like newspapers • Story Structures • Inverted pyramid (good for slowing down scanners) • Thematic (good for chunking with subheads) • Narrative (not the best for scanning, but engaging) • Chronological (good for chunking with subheads)

  13. Examples • Fact-Check / Ad-Watch Story • http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/jul/21/republican-groups-ad-stretches-truth/ • Science Story • http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-10711202 • COJO 3530 student-reporting project • http://klandreville.com/report.html

  14. Linking Purpose of Links • Background, related, or prior stories you’ve written • Where you got your story information or sources • Web sites of people or organizations you mentioned in the story • Alternative points of view from the story focus • Link to similar stories authored by yourself or your organization

  15. Linking Issues • Don’t link to competitor’s Web sites • Check on other browsers and computers to ensure links work • Warn users if plug-ins are required to view content • Be specific about your links • Within the story, highlight the word or phrase you want to link to (not the whole sentence) • Ensure the word or phrase is exactly what the user will expect to appear • Limit linking to a handful of VIPs • Don’t want to lead users away from your story

  16. Multimedia and Interaction Going Beyond Your Written Word… • Is a photo assignment needed? • How about a locator map? • What about audio and/or video? • A comment box? • A narrated photo gallery? • An interactive primer?

  17. Multimedia Storytelling • Seeing History in ‘Mad Men’ • http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/07/16/arts/television/20100718-madmen-timeline.html?ref=multimedia • 2nd Blog Post: Find and Analyze… • 2 good multimedia stories • 1 bad multimedia story

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