For Samford Crimson journalists

What Daniel Ucko, editor of The Poly Post, says is relevant to all of us as journalists.

We focus so much effort on the print publication you may (or may not) put your hands on each week, we’re left with little energy or time to spend on the podcasts, videos, slideshows, and interactivity we are slowly incorporating into our Web site.

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t expect to see continuous updates, like the re-launching of the Web site next quarter, news videos from broadcast journalism students at thepolypost.com/cppvideos, and online coverage of the men’s basketball team all week long as they enter playoffs.

So what are we left with?

While the communication department is not completely behind the times here, the print-centric mindset still dominates and students see online as second-fiddle to what should be the priority if any of us are looking to get hired in a job(less) market that just surpassed 10 percent unemployment in California, and is leaving more than 80,000 without jobs nationally.

Does that even matter?

Most of us need to make it on our own. Journalists can no longer market themselves as simply a reporter: we have to be multimedia journalists, bloggers, designers, photographers, and Twitterers.

There are a lot of compelling dilemmas and opportunities here, none of them unique to The Poly Post or to The Samford Crimson. Towards the end of the column he makes the best point of all, one of adaptability. “There is no direct conclusion here because things will keep changing.”

Be flexible. Learn new skills. Try things. Figure out how to tell the best stories possible with all the tools available to you. That’s how you begin to make yourself a commodity.

College Media Innovation is ramping up for another online content contest:

Multimedia

1. Best audio slideshow – Recognizes excellence in combining photographic images with audio to create an enhanced story. Judges will look for strong visual imagery and strong audio storytelling that integrate well together. Audio must include elements of the story (i.e., not a musical soundtrack to a slideshow).

Submission must include URL for slideshow entry to be judged.

2. Best breaking news video – Recognizes excellence in using short-form video on the web as a storytelling medium video that focuses on a breaking news event, produced by an individual or team.

Submission must include URL for video entry to be judged.

3. Best video package – Recognizes excellence in using longer-form video on the web as a storytelling medium video, produced by an individual or team.

Submission must include URL for video entry to be judged.

4. Best overall multimedia – Recognizes excellence in use of audio, video, hyperlinks and animation in the presentation of web-based stories. Judges will pay special attention to the use of available technology to complement and enhance the story content.

Submission must include URL for site to be judged.

And a whole lot more at the link. Which of these do you see the Crimson competing for?

Deborah Howell asks, in The Washington Post,  “What makes a good reporter?”

Here are some of answers in bullet form, but you should read the entire piece:

Endless curiosity and a deep need to know what is happening.

Reporters go where the story is

Good reporters are committed to telling the story.

Good reporters are savvy enough to find sources they can trust

Good reporters know how to get access to people and documents

In which of these areas do you think you’ll do well? Where might you find yourself lacking and in need of improvement? How do these traits carry over into reporting and writing in your online journalism?

Anil Dash writes about how Six Apart could help journalists now swimming through uncharted waters. That little blog post is turning into an interesting enterprise because of passion for the craft:

A lot of people are thinking about how journalism is going to evolve online, and many people are passionate about making sure journalists make the leap.

[...]

Overall, there’s an optimism which indicates that having a starting point to do something proactive and positive will be a great first step for many journalists to take control of their careers in an industry that is going through enormous upheaval.

[...]

The TypePad Journalist Bailout Program is not a silver bullet. It’s not going to singlehandedly preserve the career and income of every working journalist who has a job today. And frankly, the response has been so overwhelming that we won’t be able to accept every application at first.

But what we can do is give journalists the tools to take control of their own presence online. This program will let a lot of the most eager writers and reporters learn the ropes about how to be more effective and successful on the web.

What we’re all going to be in the future is one-part journalist and one part marketer. There’s no better place — plenty of tools, low barrier of entry and an immense network — than the internet.

And you’re using many of the available tools already. Facebook, Flickr, blogs, personal websites, Twitter and more can be used for much more than just chatting with friends and broadcasting personal pictures. Think about putting those instruments together in such a way to help you get the next big job, build professional credibility, land a big scoop, listen to a community of sources and more …

Marc Wood at ACP has posted a nice collection of college newspaper’s Wednesday editions. Have a look at some of these on Flickr.

You really have more than one job as a journalist. In print you’re a reporter and a writer. In broadcast you’re an interviewer, an editor and maybe on-air talent. Online you can do it all. One of the challenges that every reporter faces is becoming an expert on a subject and then filtering and compressing it to give your audience a great, informed story in the time and space allowed.

Here the interview aspect of your job is a key. This story at Poynter has subheadings alone that make it worth your time:

• Start with a question that no one has asked in quite the same way.
• Use your ignorance and your status as an outsider to your benefit.
• Look for people who aren’t experts.
  
• Make the story concrete.
• Ask people to tell their stories, ask about key moments, and get out of the way.

Working on your lede? Here are a few helpful tips.