Chapter Eight Digital Journalism

From Print to the Web Will electronic newspapers replace dead- tree newspapers someday? Probably. Online media offer readers more variety— and better yet, more control. Navigation is a crucial factor on news Web sites: Sites must be informative, inviting and intuitively logical, so users can roam at random, following their curiosities and customizing their news. Electronic news reporters need to develop new storytelling techniques.

Differences between Print and Web Timeliness: Web stories can be posted seconds after they're written and updated constantly as events unfold. Images usually run smaller on Web pages (readers can click to enlarge). Online text uses bigger type, and stories run in just one column. A print story consists of just text, photos and graphics.

Differences between Print and Web Online stories can become part of a complex multimedia package, combining text, photos, audio, video, animated graphics, interactive chat and more. Stories, images and digital extras can be linked together in layers, with related options just a click away. Though the options are more diverse online, journalistic standards and reporting techniques should remain the SAME.

Media Convergence Newsrooms must work together to create a solid news source

Convergence in three basic forms Newsroom convergence: Journalists from different media (TV, radio, newspaper, online) all share the same workspace, instead of occupying separate offices in separate buildings. Newsgathering convergence: Reporters, editors and photographers collaborate on story production—Journalists multitask in multimedia. Content convergence: The final story is presented in multimedia form, combining text, images, audio, video, blogs, podcasts, slide-shows, etc.

Navigating Online News Sites The home page: ◦ The gateway to the online news. ◦ Links users to every related page. It must be comprehensive, yet easy to navigate; busy, yet clean. ◦ Story links require compelling headlines and concise, engaging summaries. ◦ Key elements on the home page defined (time/date, index, lead story, page depth, footer, navigation button, search engine, ads/promos, interactive extras, links).

Online Storytelling Options The printed word remains the fundamental building block of online journalism, but there are smart, new tools to enhance it. Multimedia Options ◦ video ◦ audio ◦ webcams and webcasts ◦ podcasts ◦ animated graphics

Online Storytelling Options Interactive Options ◦ live chats ◦ reader feedback and comments ◦ online polls and quizzes ◦ downloads Links

Blogs What are Weblogs? Who creates blogs? Why are blogs important? But are blogs journalism?

Writing for Online Media The Web is changing reader habits and challenging journalistic conventions.

Five Tips for Online Stories "Chunk" your information. Tweak your type to make it easier to scan. Rethink what a "story" is. Enhance your story with extra elements. Collaborate.

Online Package Planning A form that helps reporters and editors plan stories for the Web.

The Future of News Experts answer the question: How will Americans get their news in the year 2025?