This is my final blog post for CNJ 442. The course has provided explanations for many of the things I do during my day job.
The system we work in, I now know is a content management system not just "assembler." We don't edit story comments because it leaves us liable. We constantly promote our selves to get ads.
I'll see ya online.
Saturday, December 6, 2008
value added service
Have you ever glanced at the very bottom of news Web site? I mean the way bottom.
There's usually a list of other sites to click of other services, kind of like classified ads. Want to find an job? Click on careerbuilder.com. Lease up and need to find a new apartment? Head to apartment.com.
Newspapers sell their services to these ads sites to promote their services. There actually might be some database maintenance and building, information sharing and lots of other stuff involved in the name of paying for the news.
What's interesting is that the even in Web advertising for the news people are getting more for less.
There's usually a list of other sites to click of other services, kind of like classified ads. Want to find an job? Click on careerbuilder.com. Lease up and need to find a new apartment? Head to apartment.com.
Newspapers sell their services to these ads sites to promote their services. There actually might be some database maintenance and building, information sharing and lots of other stuff involved in the name of paying for the news.
What's interesting is that the even in Web advertising for the news people are getting more for less.
Blackbeard and Wifi
A local politician used a wifi to let friends know about pirate attack, yes I said pirates.
Aventura Vice Mayor Billy Joel was halfway around the world when modern-day pirates tried to hijack the cruise ship off the coast of Somalia.
Talk about the Internet making the world a little smaller and neighbors a lot closer. From e-mail to Web sites. Both the local sites are buzzing about it.
Aventura Vice Mayor Billy Joel was halfway around the world when modern-day pirates tried to hijack the cruise ship off the coast of Somalia.
Talk about the Internet making the world a little smaller and neighbors a lot closer. From e-mail to Web sites. Both the local sites are buzzing about it.
Educating journalists
Journalist.org is asking how do you bring a not-so-Web-savvy newsroom up to speed?
Well, I know how UM plans to help: By educating students with a vast array of multimedia skills through a new master's program.
Professor Rich Beckman told his class last week that the program should be up and running by the fall. It'll be three semesters and a required summer abroad.
This is the type of program meant to turn out NYTimes/WashingtonPost quality work.
Well, I know how UM plans to help: By educating students with a vast array of multimedia skills through a new master's program.
Professor Rich Beckman told his class last week that the program should be up and running by the fall. It'll be three semesters and a required summer abroad.
This is the type of program meant to turn out NYTimes/WashingtonPost quality work.
90-9-1 Theory. Who knew!
Have any of you ever heard of the 90-9-1 theory?
Apparently, it states that in any community 90 percent of the users, nine percent are contributors and only one percent participate "very often."
It's being used to explain the Web participation in Wiki world and other online user generated sites with more than one contributor.
The world of cyber news has gotten so big that it's now got it's only theory, well rule really. Theories are very scientific.
Thanks to my friend and former colleague Angela Connor's blog for educating me.
Apparently, it states that in any community 90 percent of the users, nine percent are contributors and only one percent participate "very often."
It's being used to explain the Web participation in Wiki world and other online user generated sites with more than one contributor.
The world of cyber news has gotten so big that it's now got it's only theory, well rule really. Theories are very scientific.
Thanks to my friend and former colleague Angela Connor's blog for educating me.
Notorious
This probably falls into the mindless information category, but it's related to online journalism. I promise.
According to Roland Martin's Twitter feed, Angela Bassett is will play Biggie's mother in Notorious, the movie named after his legendary song. (This the online journalism part)
Will Bassett, who lifted weights like crazy to play Tina Turner, spend time in the Islands to get the Biggie's mother's accent down? Talk about taxing part preparation.
According to Roland Martin's Twitter feed, Angela Bassett is will play Biggie's mother in Notorious, the movie named after his legendary song. (This the online journalism part)
Will Bassett, who lifted weights like crazy to play Tina Turner, spend time in the Islands to get the Biggie's mother's accent down? Talk about taxing part preparation.
What would you do?
Here's an interesting cyberchat started by another UM student, Greg Linch. His digital foot print is huge, but in a good way.
He wondered: If you had a million dollars to save journalism, what would you do?
Some of the responses include putting the money into a trust so students can spend their summers and semesters doing unpaid internshihps.
He wondered: If you had a million dollars to save journalism, what would you do?
Some of the responses include putting the money into a trust so students can spend their summers and semesters doing unpaid internshihps.
Wire service from a TV station
CNN, you know the international television station, started a news wire service. Talk about convergence.
For years, the Associated Press has provided news for newspaper, radio, television and Web sites. And newspapers have traditionally provided information for morning newscasts, but now that news flow is looking to reverse.
I can't help to wonder about competitive factors. CNN competes with MSNBC and FOX News. Guess this would just be for newspapers.
For years, the Associated Press has provided news for newspaper, radio, television and Web sites. And newspapers have traditionally provided information for morning newscasts, but now that news flow is looking to reverse.
I can't help to wonder about competitive factors. CNN competes with MSNBC and FOX News. Guess this would just be for newspapers.
Award-winning sites
It's been eight years since the National Press Foundation started handing out awards for online journalism.
This year's winner is politifact.com, a project by the St. Pete Times and Congressional Quarterly that rates the accuracy of political statements by candidates and advocates.
The site is akin to factfinder.org, so I can't help but wonder is this where journalism is headed? These special projects are highly interactive and take lots of time to create, but they're not you're traditional sites.
I guess would really be considered new media.
This year's winner is politifact.com, a project by the St. Pete Times and Congressional Quarterly that rates the accuracy of political statements by candidates and advocates.
The site is akin to factfinder.org, so I can't help but wonder is this where journalism is headed? These special projects are highly interactive and take lots of time to create, but they're not you're traditional sites.
I guess would really be considered new media.
Miami Herald being sold?
Online only?
Fitch Ratings predicts The McClatchy Co. and Tribune Co.—the two companies that own South Florida’s hometown papers—are looking bankruptcy by next year.
The empty bank accounts could mean “more newspapers and newspaper groups will default, be shut down and be liquidated in 2009 and several cities could go without a daily print newspaper by 2010,” the report says according to Editor & Publisher.
So, if the print product goes, will the cyber product go with? Or, (silver lining) will they go online only like the Christian Science Monitor recently did?
The empty bank accounts could mean “more newspapers and newspaper groups will default, be shut down and be liquidated in 2009 and several cities could go without a daily print newspaper by 2010,” the report says according to Editor & Publisher.
So, if the print product goes, will the cyber product go with? Or, (silver lining) will they go online only like the Christian Science Monitor recently did?
Charging for access
There are few, if any, news Web sites that charge users subscription fees to click their way through the morning, afternoon and evening news. There’s blog chatter that some news sites might charge users who don’t subscribe to the print edition, but such chatter is few and far between.
And if you listen to media moguls such as Rupert Murdoch, the guy who owns the Wall Street Journal, newspapers make more money through advertising than subscription fees because the site is open to more traffic.
So, are there sites that still charge to log-on for the morning traffic report?
And if you listen to media moguls such as Rupert Murdoch, the guy who owns the Wall Street Journal, newspapers make more money through advertising than subscription fees because the site is open to more traffic.
So, are there sites that still charge to log-on for the morning traffic report?
Speaking of Ads
According to CNN.com, Web ads are doing a heck of a lot better in this economy than traditional marketing means.
The article said the Web ads are a cheaper, more accountable way to reach the masses, which makes sense considering traditional ads cost more and consumers are more likely to log-on to the Web for quote “free” news.
Predicting that there could be a permanent shift to online ads when the world’s financial mess passes, the article online ads provide a targeted way for companies to track the return on their investment. Think: page view tracking software.
The article said the Web ads are a cheaper, more accountable way to reach the masses, which makes sense considering traditional ads cost more and consumers are more likely to log-on to the Web for quote “free” news.
Predicting that there could be a permanent shift to online ads when the world’s financial mess passes, the article online ads provide a targeted way for companies to track the return on their investment. Think: page view tracking software.
Speechwriter caught groping
Professors and professionals always say be cafeful of your digital footprint. Set your Facebook page to private, so now drunken pictures of you pop-up if a potential employer Google's you.
But what about your friend's Facebook pages? Well, if you're President-Elect Obama's cheif speechwriter it means you get caught groping a cardboard cutout of the now Secretary of State. Here's what the Washington Post had to say about it.
Paying for the Web
Just about everyone types w-w-w-dot (insert favorite organization) to get news these days. But, no one wants to pay for it.
Papers a have to pay reporters, producers, videographers, photographers, etc. Where does the money to do that come from? Ads. Ads. Ads.
Yes, those annoying pop-ups, scroll-downs and side bars that show up whenever a user logs-on.
Technically there are two other ways to pay for Web site usage—subscription fees and value added service—but the most common way are ads, so don’t get too annoyed the next time you type in w-w-w-dot and get a pop-up.
Papers a have to pay reporters, producers, videographers, photographers, etc. Where does the money to do that come from? Ads. Ads. Ads.
Yes, those annoying pop-ups, scroll-downs and side bars that show up whenever a user logs-on.
Technically there are two other ways to pay for Web site usage—subscription fees and value added service—but the most common way are ads, so don’t get too annoyed the next time you type in w-w-w-dot and get a pop-up.
Are you reading this?
According to Web site gurus, users don't read stories online. They scan them.
Stories written specifically for news sites tend to be shorter, and not just the story length. The sentneces are shorter. The words have fewer characters. This is most noticable when there's breaking news.
I'd write more, but you're probably getting to the scan max--about four paragraphs. That's the length of most online breaking news stories.
Stories written specifically for news sites tend to be shorter, and not just the story length. The sentneces are shorter. The words have fewer characters. This is most noticable when there's breaking news.
I'd write more, but you're probably getting to the scan max--about four paragraphs. That's the length of most online breaking news stories.
Blogs revisited
Then again, there are blog posts like this ode to puppy cam that a Sentinel page designer made for the paper's viral video blog. It's gotten close to 40,000 page views.
Bloggers
Do news blogs really work? Most sites have them for politics, education, crime, columnists, lifestyle reviews, etc.
These electronic diaries are sort of like the new media version of what used to be called the reporter’s notebook, where papers would print sidebars of the interesting information that didn’t fit into the main story.
Using them as reporters’ notebooks, helps to belie ethical fears that reporters will logon and bash coworkers and sources. And while newsblogs can be written with a little more attitude and voice, they still must confirm to the standards of journalistic writing, meaning attribution and fact-checking.
But with the Web’s endless users, do the 500 page views the SunSentinel’s youtube, politics page received really constitute a success? Is it worth the reporter’s time?
These electronic diaries are sort of like the new media version of what used to be called the reporter’s notebook, where papers would print sidebars of the interesting information that didn’t fit into the main story.
Using them as reporters’ notebooks, helps to belie ethical fears that reporters will logon and bash coworkers and sources. And while newsblogs can be written with a little more attitude and voice, they still must confirm to the standards of journalistic writing, meaning attribution and fact-checking.
But with the Web’s endless users, do the 500 page views the SunSentinel’s youtube, politics page received really constitute a success? Is it worth the reporter’s time?
Linking Law
While copy stuff without permission from news sites is illegal, linking to that stuff is more than allowed. In fact, it’s encouraged. “You do not need permission to link to our Web site,” the SS.com says.
The MiamiHerald.com let’s user link without permission too, but only allows users to reprint one copy of posted content “but only for your personal use.”
This makes sense considering that most Web traffic comes from a third-party site (er, I think that’s what its called).
The World Wide Web was created to share information, and there’s really no way to control who links to what. And why would you, considering third-party linking helps drive readership on your site.
The MiamiHerald.com let’s user link without permission too, but only allows users to reprint one copy of posted content “but only for your personal use.”
This makes sense considering that most Web traffic comes from a third-party site (er, I think that’s what its called).
The World Wide Web was created to share information, and there’s really no way to control who links to what. And why would you, considering third-party linking helps drive readership on your site.
Copyright
Web sites are made for information sharing not info stealing. All of the content—stories, pictures, graphics, illustrations—are copy written.
In fact, the SunSentinel asks users to fill out a form to reproduce any of its stories. Not sure how many people actually do that, though, as you must click through several layers of stuff to get to the “request permission to reprint” form.
In this copy-and-paste World, it would be a lot easier to highlight the story and just copy it into whatever Web site you want. Then download the picture.
Most of this stuff is not in the public domain, so it’s kind of like ripping music from Web site. That’s stealing, just like the PSA’s by Brittany Spears and other artists say.
In fact, the SunSentinel asks users to fill out a form to reproduce any of its stories. Not sure how many people actually do that, though, as you must click through several layers of stuff to get to the “request permission to reprint” form.
In this copy-and-paste World, it would be a lot easier to highlight the story and just copy it into whatever Web site you want. Then download the picture.
Most of this stuff is not in the public domain, so it’s kind of like ripping music from Web site. That’s stealing, just like the PSA’s by Brittany Spears and other artists say.
Decency
Newspapers sites like to post thought-provoking images of interest to users on their homepages.
They also like to post thumbnail pictures that show some skin—photo galleries of hot lifeguards Miss World 2008 bathing-suit contest, and the Sptizer “girl” partying topless. Who wouldn’t click on like those or the graphic-content galleries of flood-ravaged Haiti or terrorist-ravaged Mumbai?
But if you think these images are indecent for a homepage, think again.
Web sites are held to many of the same ethical standards of newspapers where indecency and obscenity are concerned, meaning they can’t post obscene content—something “designed to cause arousal and lacks artistic, literary or scientific value.”
So bring on the bikini-clad ladies and bare-chested men.
They also like to post thumbnail pictures that show some skin—photo galleries of hot lifeguards Miss World 2008 bathing-suit contest, and the Sptizer “girl” partying topless. Who wouldn’t click on like those or the graphic-content galleries of flood-ravaged Haiti or terrorist-ravaged Mumbai?
But if you think these images are indecent for a homepage, think again.
Web sites are held to many of the same ethical standards of newspapers where indecency and obscenity are concerned, meaning they can’t post obscene content—something “designed to cause arousal and lacks artistic, literary or scientific value.”
So bring on the bikini-clad ladies and bare-chested men.
Comments, schmoments
Now I know why newspapers don’t edit the comment sections of stories—they can get sued. Apparently, they’ve only get three options, each have all or nothing consequences:
- Screen and edit all content in the comments
- Edit nothing
- No discussion boards at all.
If you’ve read to the bottom of a SunSentinel story, you know it opts for No. two. The discussion boards are a free-for-all. Take the story about a baby killed in a house fire that her mother and older brother survived. Apparently, the family’s power was turned off and mom was using candles for light when the fire started.
Firefighters say the woman ran for frantically for help. The mother was called a negligent, irresponsible woman who didn’t care about her kids by commenters who wondered incredulously “if she was such an active ‘church member’ how come the church is not providing the funds?”
I can’t help but ask how does this help the public discourse?
Friday, December 5, 2008
Interactivity Production
Creating the interactive pieces of a multimedia story takes time and skill. Look at credits on most of the videos attached with stories and the bylines don’t match. One person writes the story, another take the pictures and often shoots the video.
In rare instances, a reporter writes the story and shoots the video.
But in a deadline driven industry that’s cutting back on staff while increasing emphasis on its Web product, I must ask: Just who is supposed to produce the content for these sites? And, let’s not even mention the programming and design aspects of creating a news sites—Flash, Java, advanced HTML, file compression, etc.
It’s just too much for a few people.
In rare instances, a reporter writes the story and shoots the video.
But in a deadline driven industry that’s cutting back on staff while increasing emphasis on its Web product, I must ask: Just who is supposed to produce the content for these sites? And, let’s not even mention the programming and design aspects of creating a news sites—Flash, Java, advanced HTML, file compression, etc.
It’s just too much for a few people.
Interactivity analysis. Part Deux
OK, to spare viewers the pain of reading one uber blog post, I split the visual critique into two.
You’re welcome.
Photographs: Local news Web sites homepages use a dominate image…small thumbnail pictures of newspaper bloggers are used on the homepage of the Miami herald. But photos of SunSentinel bloggers are only seen after a viewer clicks on the link.
Video: Both sites use video prominently displayed on their homepages. But viewers will watch each video differently because of the various site designs.
The Miami Herald has a flash based video player prominently displayed on the homepage that highlights all the sites videos. This makes it easy for viewers to find their video and makes sure each doesn’t become buried in the site. The SunSentinel on the other hand embeds their videos in each story. There is a video player mezzanine on the Sentinel’s but no real indication that the thumbnail images are video links.
What happens if someone’s been living in a hole for several years and doesn’t know that a red, right arrow means play?
You’re welcome.
Photographs: Local news Web sites homepages use a dominate image…small thumbnail pictures of newspaper bloggers are used on the homepage of the Miami herald. But photos of SunSentinel bloggers are only seen after a viewer clicks on the link.
Video: Both sites use video prominently displayed on their homepages. But viewers will watch each video differently because of the various site designs.
The Miami Herald has a flash based video player prominently displayed on the homepage that highlights all the sites videos. This makes it easy for viewers to find their video and makes sure each doesn’t become buried in the site. The SunSentinel on the other hand embeds their videos in each story. There is a video player mezzanine on the Sentinel’s but no real indication that the thumbnail images are video links.
What happens if someone’s been living in a hole for several years and doesn’t know that a red, right arrow means play?
Interactivity analysis
Now, let’s examine and critique the various visual aspects of both local newspaper Web sites.
Graphics: The only graphic visible on either of their homepages is an image of the NASDAQ stocks, courtesy of BigCharts.com.
Illustrations: SunSentinel.com has a blog called News Illustrated that highlights the work of the newspaper’s graphic designers and cross promote a weekly print feature by the same name. Sometimes it features online only illustrations, such as this. But PDF versions of the weekly News Illustrated feature are available too.
Each print version of the story has a refer to the blog.
It’s supposed to turn readers into viewers. When the refers are on every story, much like taglines (e-mail addresses and phone numbers) it works. When they’re not, they don’t.
Graphics: The only graphic visible on either of their homepages is an image of the NASDAQ stocks, courtesy of BigCharts.com.
Illustrations: SunSentinel.com has a blog called News Illustrated that highlights the work of the newspaper’s graphic designers and cross promote a weekly print feature by the same name. Sometimes it features online only illustrations, such as this. But PDF versions of the weekly News Illustrated feature are available too.
Each print version of the story has a refer to the blog.
It’s supposed to turn readers into viewers. When the refers are on every story, much like taglines (e-mail addresses and phone numbers) it works. When they’re not, they don’t.
Interactivity
Interactivity, in an online-Web-way, means being able to seamlessly combine multiple media elements. So a quick glance at the homepage of SunSentinel.com is a textbook example of interactivity. There’s text, video, links and photos.
Most news sites, save radio stations such as NPR.org, seem not to have audio files by themselves online, but the Miami Herald has an audio/podcast tab in it’s multimedia section on the homepage.
Wonder why more sites don’t do this? Maybe it has to do with how accustomed viewers have become to looking at things. For many, listening to the radio—which is akin to standalone audio files—has become something done on the commute to and from work. And news radio, as we learned during our visit to the Miami Herald at the beginning of the semester, is targeted toward a very specific audience.
Most news sites, save radio stations such as NPR.org, seem not to have audio files by themselves online, but the Miami Herald has an audio/podcast tab in it’s multimedia section on the homepage.
Wonder why more sites don’t do this? Maybe it has to do with how accustomed viewers have become to looking at things. For many, listening to the radio—which is akin to standalone audio files—has become something done on the commute to and from work. And news radio, as we learned during our visit to the Miami Herald at the beginning of the semester, is targeted toward a very specific audience.
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