Tips for multimedia journalists on writing fast

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Video journalist Anne Herbst firmly believes in preparation. She does research on stories before leaving the newsroom. She shows up to assignments early so she can meet people and figure out in advance who might be a strong character. And she writes fast–an essential skill when you’re working by yourself and you have to do it all.

Herbst is a former TV news photojournalist for KUSA-TV in Denver who now works for the Denver Post, where she shoots, writes and sometimes voices her own stories. She’s able to write fast, she says, because she logs every bit of her video. But that’s not her only trick for writing in a hurry. She also uses her smart phone to help her write on the go.

Herbst started writing stories while she was still in local TV because she saw where things were going in the news business. She encourages photojournalists to write VO/SOTs and urges reporters to take out a camera and learn to use it. “You want to be able to do everything,” Herbst says. “I learned it before I had to.”

Something else Herbst has learned: how to do interviews when working alone. “Have a person lean on something so they’re not moving around a lot and you can step away from the camera.” She also frames interviews differently so she can cut back and forth between them. “You don’t have to add [cutaway] shots, and it takes a whole chunk of edit time out.”

You can see both techniques at work in this story:

Herbst isn’t just skilled at telling stories, she’s a master at finding them, too. As a self-described “people person,” she’s always asking what’s going on. “On a VO/SOT, hand our your card,” she advises. “You don’t have to shoot a great story on the VO/SOT but you might get another story.” Herbst also finds stories on bulletin boards in coffee shops, in small newspapers, and during conversations in bars with random people. It’s simple, she says: “Be nice, be a human being, be interested.”

One more piece of advice from Herbst about working alone: Take care of yourself.  When you’re alone, you don’t have anyone to talk to, or vent at or to give you a hug at the end of a tough day. Covering the Aurora theater shooting, Herbst was exposed to massive amounts of pain and grieving. “I had no idea how that would affect me,” she says. Her suggestion: “Talk to people who have been through same thing. Do something for yourself even though people say you don’t have time. Keep yourself sane.”

Originally published at NewsLab

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Look back into your future

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Contributed by Stephen Hess

Many young journalists must wonder what their careers are going to look like. Although the profession will undoubtedly change in significant and unpredictable ways in a digital world, looking back on a generation of journalists offer clues into your future.

In Whatever Happened to the Washington Reporters, 1978-2012, I report on the lives of the 450 Washington reporters I first surveyed in 1978. With my students at George Washington University and my interns at the Brookings Institution, we located 90% of them between 2006 and 2011, and re-interviewed 283. We found them in 19 states in addition to the Washington area, as well as Australia, New Zealand, Italy, France, and the UK. So our findings reflect more than the Washington job market.

The biggest surprise may be that you are apt to be a journalist-for-life!

When I started interviewing in 1977, journalists claimed “I’ll stay til my legs go.” This referenced the high energy level of the job. But also the low pay. When you start worrying about how to pay your kids’ college tuition, it’s time to remove to public relations, or some other occupation where you can cash in on your skills, knowledge, and contacts.

But this didn’t happen for two-thirds of the journalists. Even beyond a 30-year career, a quarter stayed in journalism for over 40 years, 13 for over 50 years, 3 worked 60-plus years. (Sorry, I can’t predict you will live longer than those in other lines of work.)

This is especially nice news because these happy warriors are notorious complainers. Contended Albert Hunt, Bloomberg News, who has been a journalist for 47 years, “We complain because we are quasi-creative workers.” Creative people are supposed to complain.

Why the longevity?

Because you love what you’re doing. Journalists keep volunteering that they are having “fun. “ This is the most repeated word in our interviews. (Contrast this with those for whom fun is what they do after work, not during office hours.)

Because you are likely to marry someone like you. That is, in socioeconomic terms: college-educated, possibly with a graduate degree. So your spouse (if he/she is not a journalist) probably will be a lawyer, doctor, professor, or someone whose income, combined with yours, means that you will not have to quit journalism to send the kids to college. And since you love your work, why quit?

Yet some young journalists will dropout. Why?

Because some go into journalism on a fling. It’s an engaging job before going to law school or into a family business or for those who just don’t know what else to do. In short, these reporters treat journalism as a short-term adventure rather than a serious career option. (Note: There are some flingers who stay for life.)

Because some leave journalism for the same reasons that people leave other types of work. They have a fight with the boss. They feel trapped in an organization that isn’t going to work for them. They are caught up in a reorganization. Or for personal reasons that might relate to the health of a child, moving because of a spouse’s job, or the needs of aged parents.

Here’s something else for young journalists to file for future use. You will live a long life and you will retire and you will wonder about what will be life-after-journalism. Then you discover that people with journalism skills, the ability to write fast and accurately, are in demand for short term projects in the worlds of business, foundations, and associations. There are even retired journalists who insist on writing their memoirs. And there are those who simply wish to do good.

Aaron Epstein, after 42 years a journalist, decided to help fifth and sixth graders put out a school newspaper. Its motto is “Thou Shall Not Bore the Reader.”

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Top journalism skills in 2012

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So, it may seen a little arrogant to assume that our blog can act as a barometer of the journalism industry, but what the heck.

If you look at the five most viewed posts of 2012, it seems reasonable to me to make the following assumptions:

  • Video is a ubiquitous story telling tool for journalists now.  If you don’t know a little about shooting and editing video stories, get started with our No. 2 ranked Video Editing Tips post.

If  you’re making resolutions for 2013, consider learning a new skill or re-dedicating yourself to some of the oldies and goodies.  Happy New Year from Advancing the Story!

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Journalism job hunters need an edge

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You’ve probably heard these job hunting tips before — Google yourself to see what a future employers might find and apply SEO techniques to the content you want them to find.  Get yourself a portfolio site, even if it’s a simple WordPress or about.me page. But, Matt Thompson of NPR has a bit more advice for journalism grads seeking work right now.

Writing for SPJ’s Quill magazine, Thompson suggests 10 things he’s looking for in applicants, and here are three you may not have considered before now.

1.  Read differently the skills listed in a job description.  Thompson says you should, “Highlight the ones that apply most strongly to you, and underline the ones that pose a bit of a problem. In your cover letter and interview, I’m going to want you to emphasize the former and give me reasons not to be concerned about the latter.”

2.  Your cover letter should tell two stories.  “First, as concisely as you can, tell me the story of how your experiences have shaped you for this position. Then, with similar economy, tell me the story of what you’ll do with this position if you land it.”

3.  Beware the online application systems.  “…the Web software we use for job applications and hiring tends to render resumes unrecognizable. So unless you know for certain that the system is going to deliver the resume to me with formatting intact, make sure that it looks wonderful in a plain text editor (like Notepad on Windows or TextWrangler on Mac).”

As thousands of December grads jump into the job market, be sure yours stands out to potential employers.

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Mobile study offers newsroom opportunities

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More than a third of people with tablets and smartphones use them to get the news, according to a new study from the Project for Excellence in Journalism.

What’s particularly heartening is the demographic breakdown of that mobile audience.  It appears to be somewhat of an equal opportunity platform.

Though the PEJ study notes gaps between men and women and the more highly educated vs. the less so, it’s striking that news consumption never falls below 30% for any demo other than those 65+ on their smartphones.

 

In mobile, TV journalists still have an opportunity to find audience that isn’t consuming their nightly newscasts. For example, the study finds that men and younger people — some of the toughest demos to get in TV news — are frequent viewers of video via mobile.

Of course, getting demos and getting dollars are sometimes two different things, but PEJ offers some thoughts on mobile revenue opportunities as well.

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Improve your writing by editing backward

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Words have power and the most powerful word in a sentence should come last.  I could have written: Words have power and the last word should be the most powerful one in a sentence. But that would have put the emphasis on “sentence” when I wanted to stress “last.” See the difference?

Sometimes, this kind of writing just happens because it’s the way we speak, but often it’s the result of careful revision. Remember that what you write for broadcast isn’t a script at first, it’s a draft.  Make sure to save some time to review and revise what you’ve written and you’ll wind up with a stronger story. And when you do revise, edit backward.

Look closely at the ends of sentences. Have you ended with the word that conveys the most meaning? Or have you allowed an unnecessary phrase to sneak in and steal your thunder? A few examples from stories I’ve seen:

“They gave up and left the area.” Why not just stop at “left?”

“The chrysanthemum show featured 51 varieties of the flower.” Pray tell, what else would it have featured varieties of? Kill “of the flower.”

“After fighting breast cancer for 20 years, she died of the disease.” If she died of something else, by all means tell me. Otherwise, delete “of the disease.”

Editing backward will help you spot wasted words and even entire sentences you can dump. Just think how much time you’ll save. Maybe even enough to add more NAT sound!

Originally published at NewsLab

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Poynter’s Irby urges new thoughts on newsroom diversity

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Photo by Mark Dolan, November 28, 2012

At a time when news organizations are focused on matters of sheer economic survival, Poynter’s senior faculty member for visual journalism and diversity, Kenny Irby, says it’s no surprise that newsrooms are experiencing diversity fatigue.  However, Irby says journalists need to change their thinking about the issue.

“Ideas about diversity have been so associated with people and hiring and the cost associated, that when you’re in a hiring freeze, if you’re only thinking of diversity in terms of hiring, you can’t do anything,” said Kenny Irby.

Instead, Irby suggests that journalism organizations broaden their understanding of diversity beyond people and into content.

“Diversity is a catalyst to innovation,” said Irby.  ”When you have mixed groups and more voices and perspectives it can help you.  There are lots of examples of how having a diverse workforce and talent pool leads to more innovative ideas.”

Irby points to the Santa Fe New Mexican as having diversified its coverage of a changing community by focusing on Latino, Hispanic and Native Americans.  By covering issues of change as they relates to the audience, Irby says the paper has tapped into potential new readers.

“Publications need to stop and think about their unique audiences – not the national demographics – that’s what helps you build credibility in your local community; that’s what most important, the local trends,” said Irby.

Irby offers the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel as one example of a paper that understands the importance and the opportunity diverse coverage provides.

“This is a paper that has showed continued commitment despite industry tumult and changes,” Irby said.  ”You’ll  find organizations like this that value diversity as a responsibility and as an economic opportunity.  As your community diversifies, so does your opportunity to grow audience.”

For individual journalists who may not work for a news organization with a diversity commitment, Irby says they too must change.

“Move out of your comfort zone in the pursuit of truth telling,” Irby said.  ”There’s a straight line from accuracy and ethical decision making to diversity.  As your coverage area changes, so should your sources and subject content and the individual characters in your narratives.  Move beyond the usual suspects as a community grows.”

Poynter’s Diversity at Work column is a resource for journalists who want to help keep the focus and conversation about diversity going or who just want to see examples of excellent and diverse news coverage.

Irby says journalists need to focus more on what can be done versus what hasn’t been done.

“Diversity sometimes requires an affirmative action to move forward.”

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Video journalism tips from a pro

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Darren Durlach left television almost two years ago to try something new. He’d won two consecutive NPPA TV Photographer of the Year awards and, unbeknownst to him, was on the verge of winning a third. He’s now senior multimedia producer at the Boston Globe, where he shoots and edits stories both alone and in collaboration with the newspaper’s reporters.

It’s a different world.

Durlach spent six years in local TV newsrooms at WVIR in Charlottesville, Va., and WBFF in Baltimore, Md. Now he’s learning to meet the demands of a print newsroom that’s still relatively new at the video game.

Durlach sums up his approach to storytelling with three Cs:

  • Character
  • Connect
  • Collect

What makes a great character? “Access,” Durlach says. It’s not a person who’s quick with one-liners or the loudest person in the room, it’s someone who will let you in and reveal what really makes them tick. “People have walls, but when you get the feeling they may open up, stick with them,” he advises. “When you find someone to be compelling, most likely, you audience will also find them to be compelling.”

Once you’ve made a connection with a character, collect the elements you’ll need to tell a great story: authentic moments and great sound bites. Durlach says that for him, patience is key. “Don’t appear to be in a hurry even if you are,” he says. His best interviewing advice? Be yourself, and listen.

That approach paid off big time in a story Durlach shot about the opera singer Barbara Quintillani. “She was a tough egg to crack,” Durlach says. It wasn’t until he told her something about his own experience that the wall crumbled. “We started connecting and the camera disappeared. That’s your goal, to make your camera disappear.”

Durlach may be out of TV news but he’s still winning awards for his video work. The Boston Globe picked up five of the ten 2012 national Murrow awards for local online video, including work by Durlach, and he also won two regional Emmys.

Originally published at NewsLab

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Anchors quit on air: Courage or crazy?

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Viewers of WVII in Bangor, ME saw an unusual show kicker at the end of the 6 p.m. newscast. The show’s co-anchors decided to resign on the air.

According to the Bangor Daily News, co-anchors Cindy Michaels and Tony Consiglio left the station “citing a longstanding battle with upper management over journalistic practices.”

The anchors weren’t specific about their differences with management, but Michaels, who was also the station’s news director, told the paper that she and Consiglio were afraid they wouldn’t get a chance to say goodbye to the community on the air if they had resigned behind the scenes.

Watching the video, it seems like the anchors could have done a better job of explaining the reasons for their resignations to the viewers.  It also seems like the kind of step you wouldn’t want to take unless you were ready to leave the business for good.

What do you think?  Is this the right way or the wrong way to handle your differences with management?  Do you think they still have a future in TV?

 

 

 

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What’s a VO/SB and how do you write one?

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For some reason, the voice over/sound bite (VO/SB) or voice over/sound on tape (VO/SOT) seems to be one of the most challenging TV story forms to do well.  It also seems to be one of the toughest story forms for which to explain the writing process to beginning journalists.

At it’s most basic, a VO/SB is a story, usually read live by an anchor, which includes video that the anchor “voices over” and a sound bite, for which the anchor pauses reading so the audience can hear it.

Jamie McIntrye, a former CNN reporter, says these stories are made up of four key components (pdf):

1. The anchor intro — usually one sentence long and read live on camera.
2. The copy — covered by b-roll and usually 2-3 short sentences long — also read live.
3. The SOT or sound bite — usually :08-:15 long. (The anchor stops reading while the audience hears the sound bite.)
4. The anchor tag — another sentence or two for the anchor to read live,  either on camera or as voice over following the sound bite.

McIntrye has about a dozen great “how-to” posts on his blog, which he calls “Journosaurus Rex.”

Thanks for sharing!

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