Television news often gets a bum rap. Broadcast journalists routinely get criticized for doing little more than covering car crashes and crime. But there are plenty of TV reporters who push to tell the important stories, even if they have to convince their bosses to do it. Bree Sison is passionate about covering politics and [...]
Filed under: 03. Multimedia Newsgathering | 1 Comment »
You’ve heard it before: to bring the impact of an action home, you need to shoot the reaction. Flames engulfing an apartment building have more impact if we also see the faces of people who are losing their homes. The clowns in a parade are funnier if we also see the grins and hear the [...]
Filed under: 03. Multimedia Newsgathering, 06. Multimedia Storytelling | No Comments »
“It’s not about the beer,” says Boyd Huppert, describing an assignment to profile a successful local brewery. Instead, Huppert’s story focused on the family behind the business — tapping into a universal theme. “My goal is to go out and cover a story to make someone care about it,” says Huppert, “make you laugh or [...]
Filed under: 02. Finding the Story, 03. Multimedia Newsgathering, 04. Reporting in Depth, 05. Writing the Story | 1 Comment »
Can you be a good journalist and not be plugged into social media? The Washington Post’s Local Editor Vernon Loeb says, “No.” “Social media are not really optional anymore,” says Loeb. “You can’t do your job without them. Social media are where news often breaks first. They’re a great way to cultivate sources, track events, [...]
Filed under: 01. The Multimedia Mindset, 02. Finding the Story, 03. Multimedia Newsgathering | 2 Comments »
If you’re just starting out in the news business or even thinking about a career in journalism, you may feel a little overwhelmed by everything you think you need to know. Don’t be. Every good journalist learns on the job. And many bosses I know would prefer to hire someone who admits they don’t know [...]
Filed under: 03. Multimedia Newsgathering, 05. Writing the Story, 12. Getting Ready for the Real World | 1 Comment »
It’s quite possible to find something useful and free online every day. Here are a few sites that might come in handy when you’re looking to send off big files, you need audio or images that won’t get you in copyright trouble or you’re looking to build a portfolio site quickly. 1. WeTransfer.com – a free Web-based [...]
Filed under: 03. Multimedia Newsgathering, 12. Getting Ready for the Real World | No Comments »
Keeping an eye on Twitter is pretty much mandatory in most newsrooms–or at least it should be. Yes, there’s a lot of worthless chatter out there, but every so often you can find a pony. Take the story Kara Matuszewski, a Web producer at WBZ in Boston, turned up last week about schools in one local district [...]
Filed under: 03. Multimedia Newsgathering | No Comments »
Adam Westbrook recently wrote about his favorite freebie programs and the list is worth a look. Among his Top 10, are three of my own faves. 1. MPEG Streamclip What it does: Put simply, MPEG Streamclip is a video transcoder and compressor. It takes a video file and converts it into a smaller, bigger, different video file [...]
Filed under: 03. Multimedia Newsgathering | 1 Comment »
TV photojournalist Anne Herbst does a lot more than shoot and edit. She writes a lot of stories, too, but unlike other solo journalists at KUSA in Denver, she doesn’t voice them. “My husband says I sound like Kermit the Frog,” Herbst told participants at the 2010 Northwest Video Workshop. So Herbst has found other [...]
Filed under: 03. Multimedia Newsgathering | Comments Off
The transition from general assignment reporter to multi-platform journalist isn’t always easy, but people who’ve made the switch often say they’d never go back. For Josh Hinkle of KXAN-TV in Austin, Texas, working as a one-man band makes it easier to be creative. “I don’t have to explain my concept to a photographer or editor,” [...]
Filed under: 03. Multimedia Newsgathering, 10. Delivering the News | No Comments »
