Writing for New Media

Mindy McAdams summarizes advice from Fiona Spruill, editor of the nytimes.com Web newsroom, in a Q&A at the Times site.

Journalists who can flourish in both the Web newsroom and the print newsroom today:

* Can package the news online.
* Can create original multimedia.
* Have solid journalism credentials.
* Have strong technical skills.

Journalists who expect to get a job will “walk in the door with”:

* A proficiency in Photoshop, HTML and blogging software.
* An understanding of Web publishing systems (content management systems).
* Experience in the production of multimedia — including the use of audio and video editing tools.

Labels: audio, html, multimedia, photography, photoshop, video

An article in the latest American Journalism Review looks at the spread of video on news Web sites. Perhaps most interesting is that not only are many still photographers making the change to video, but some are actually retiring their still cameras and grabbing frames from their HD video cameras.

While that news is mildly surprising, it is just one more step in the age of convergence -- and one more reminder that tomorrow's journalists need to be versatile. Towson professor Sandy Nichols reports on a recent class visit:

Mark Miller, News Director at WBAL-Radio, just spoke in my class and talked about this very phenomenon in radio news. His reporters are now carrying video cameras out in the field to capture video for the web, but also using the cameras for still shots for the web. They are all also carrying a computer to edit the video and clips, as well as record the voice-overs.

He showed the class several examples of stories on their Web site, emphasizing the importance of multimedia storytelling to an industry that has traditionally relied on sound to tell stories. He's spoken every semester since I've arrived at Towson, but this is the first time he's made such a strong statement. "If you want to be successful in radio now," he said, "you MUST know how to work across platforms."

Labels: photography, radio, video

CNN offers several tips and links to resources for people who want to submit work to the cable giant. But the same tips can help you become a better multimedia journalist.

Labels: audio, photography, video