Plastics

“It is often said that ‘information wants to be free’, but it is truer in the digital age that information wants to be analyzed, shared, synthesized, curated, aggregated, commented on and distributed”

News as a Conversation: News is no longer a lecture from journalist to public. In the digital age, journalists and the community create an interactive conversation.

Making Conversation: Digital conversation between journalists and readers first started in the comment sections of online newspapers. Today, with the advent of social media, journalists are active on websites like Facebook and Twitter. This allows for more in depth coverage of beats because the reporter can turn to the public and hear immediate feedback.

-Downsides of Digital Conversation: Because online users are able to comment on content anonymously, there is the potential for mean spirited or harmful feedback.

In chapter 9, Briggs discusses data-driven journalism. The first part of the chapter essentially indicates that if you organize your online life, your journalism will follow. “You can become a better, more efficient reporter or editor simply by trading any of the paper-based information storage systems you’re using and going digital” (Briggs, 251.)

Every story is a gathering of data. Stories all have information. It’s about organizing and breaking down that information in a way that will benefit your storytelling and accuracy.

I payed particular attention to the section of Map Mashups. Map Mashups are “the product of taking information data, such as addresses or points on a map, and organizing them based on a category or information type” (Briggs, 268.)

“It’s heavy on manual labor, but once the work is done, we have a repository of everything we know in one place,” said Megan Garvey, LA Times editor.

My group for this class is planning on making an interactive map of the Virginia earthquake, so we will definitely be referring to this chapter.

In chapter 8, Briggs discusses the digital video revolution. According to Briggs, “visual journalism is about telling compelling stories that connect the audience with subjects, people and issues.”

Just remember to tell a story with your video. How does one do that? Arrange your video clips in a coherent and interesting order. Put more emphasis on information gathering than information editing. Keep it short, though.

More lessons to learn:

• Define your story in the first 20 seconds; hook the audience.
• Make sure you have a beginning, middle, and end.
• Don’t let the viewer have a chance to be bored. Use short clips, the more the better.
• Focus on one central idea and stick with it
• Remember that characters make stories. The better your characters, the better your stories will be.