After reading the articles "When Bad News Follows You" and "Blaming The Times For Your Bad Reputation," I realized that I have mixed feeling on the issue of people appearing in a bad light due to misleading and incorrect stories available in online archives. In the Times story, Clark Hoyt says that something needs to be done, as some people are being hurt by negative archived stories that appear at the top of Google searches. Some of the solutions Hoyt come up with are removing the stories, altering the stories, causing the stories to appear lower in the Google searches, or having small, insignificant stories be "forgotten" in a few days by using complex technology. However, in the Slate article, Jack Shafer argues that this is a non-issue. He says that there is no concrete proof that these stories are actually hurting the people they are about and should thus be left alone.
I think both articles have really strong points, but I tended to agree with Shafer. There is no evidence that the archived articles are actually hurting their subjects and it might be a waste of time and resources to make it so only specific stories don't show up in Google searches. Furthermore, the examples that Hoyt offers aren't very strong. He discusses Allen Kraus, a man who is afraid that a negative, untrue story that appeared in The New York Time is now causing him to lose clients at his new job. However, there is no proof that Kraus is losing clients and Shafer offers some alternatives, such as having Kruas build a better homepage that will be linked to. Hoyt also offers the example of a woman who was quoted in a Times articles as being a size 16. This wasn't true, but who cares? This small piece of information is not important at all and it shouldn't be seen as harmful in the first place. I could see this being an issue if an official was wrongly quoted or the wrong facts were given about a story on national security, but information that is insignificant shouldn't really affect anyone.
Now, I'm not saying that these stories should remain the way they are. After all, journalists have a duty to the public to give the correct information. I would suggest that if there is a complaint about a story, then a disclaimer is then added to the top of the story giving the correct information. This way, if a reader stumbles upon a story with wrong information on Google, they will quickly learn the truth. Likewise, if someone working for the paper realizes that there is a mistake without the subject filing a complaint, the employee should offer a disclaimer as well. It would simply be a waste of time, however, to go through every story and make sure that it didn't accidentally negatively affect a person. It is true that journalists have a duty to minimize harm, but the stories that Hoyt discusses in his articles are simply too insignificant to cause any harm. If the subjects are truly worried then they need to take matters into their own hands, as Shafer suggests.
Besides the issue of archives, there are many other pressing ethical issues in the field on online journalism. Foremost in my mind is the issue of credibility. How can people be sure that what they are reading is from a credible source. Obviously, The New York Times can be trusted. However, some people use blogs to get their news. How do we know that these blogs come from credible sources. The answer? We don't.
Another ethical issue in online journalism, and one I had never really though about before, is the issue of hyperlinking. Should a story link to other pages that might not be credible or promote hate? If a story does do this then it lessens the credibility of the site that does the linking. I believe that it would be more ethical to not link to a hate site or possibly false information. Journalists should use their judgment and leave these links out, as they could possibly be interpreted as sites that the paper supports. For example, I believe that this USA today article did the correct thing by not linking to any sites affiliated with the KKK. If they had linked to a site, they would run the risk of being seen as supporters for the hate group, as readers may click on the link, which would add hits to the KKK site. I had never thought about the many issues with hyperlinking before, but I now see it for the ethical issue that it is.
However, in my opinion, the most pressing ethical issue in online journalism today is the issue of ads on online journalism Websites. For example, on The New York Times site at 1:00 p.m. on Dec. 2, there are ads for Bergdorf Goodman, Fidelity banking, and traveling to Italy. Why does the paper have these ads? The obvious answer is that the Times gets money to display them, and if there were no ads then the site wouldn't be free. However, these ads worry me because a journalism needs to be fair and balanced. These ads suggest that the Times supports these specific products, which is biased. Also, the integration of some of the ads on the page make it look like they are part of a story, instead of mere advertisements. If a site needs ads to survive, then they should be relegated to the bottom of the page, or ideally, to a separate page, away from the actual stories. CNN.com, had one ad on their main page, as far as I could tell, which I think is a step in the right direction.
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Flash
According to Mindy McAdams, Flash Journalism is very important. Not only does it offer new levels for interactivity, but Flash presentations often look more professional that the information would normally look on a regular Website. So, with that, here are three journalistic sites that tell stories using multimedia.
One site that employs the use of Flash is USA Today. As we saw in class, USA Today uses Flash to tell all aspects of a story, like they did with their coverage of the loss of space shuttle Columbia. Similarly, the USA Today site uses Flash for their "This Week in Space" segment. This story, located on the "Tech" section of the site is a photo gallery of what's happening this week in space. This week the article focuses on things like new planets, the International Space Station, and the moon. This multimedia feature adds to the story because it allows control as users can choose what pace they want to view the pictures by clicking buttons. Also, by showing users photos, readers become more interested in the story as they are seeing what's happening for themselves, rather than reading about it. However, this presentation does have its downfalls. Unless the user chooses to make the gallery open in a new tab, the gallery will open in a new window that can't be bookmarked, making it inconvenient for those who want to find the gallery again. Also, the gallery has to load, and while it only takes a few seconds, that may be a few seconds too many for some viewers. However, the gallery can be e-mailed to a friend and previous galleries can also be viewed.
A second journalistic site that tells a story in multimedia is CNN's "God's Warriors" site. This story concerns Jewish, Christian, and Muslim "warriors" and is a tie-in with a CNN special. This site is also extremely interactive as users can view video diaries and photo galleries, among other things. The site also links to a number of news stories on cnn.com. However, just like the USA Today site, the "God's Warriors" Flash presentation also has its drawbacks. First, there is the problem of bookmarking. When one clicks on the option for the photo gallery, for example, the gallery pops up in the same window and it is impossible to bookmark an individual picture, only the entire Flash presentation. Also, since this is a contained Flash presentation, only the entire presentation will show up in search engines, not specific sections, meaning a user may have to search through the presentation until he or she finds what they are looking for. However, the site does offer motion by having photos fade in and out and has no scrolling, both of which are benefits.
A third journalistic site that incorporates multimedia through the use of Flash is the New York Times' story about the Manhattan Project. This story, which details the history of the Manhattan Project offers a map of Manhattan with little boxes that give information when a user scrolls over them. When the boxes are clicked on, a new window appears with details for that specific location. For example, when a user rolls over the box titled "J. Robert Oppenheimer's Childhood Home," they are given the address. When they click on it they are given a photo along with a text write-up. Video is offered for some of the locations, too. This site is extremely interactive with very clear graphics, but users do have to scroll to see the entire map. And again, users cannot bookmark specific sections of the site, like the photo of Oppenheimer's childhood home. Also, the graphic does take a little while to load, which can be frustrating.
Flash presentations are a great way for journalistic sites to tell a story, whether they are discussing the history of the Manhattan Project or are just a simple photo gallery. While there are some pitfalls to these presentations, they are extremely valuable in that they offer new ways to tell a story through multimedia.
One site that employs the use of Flash is USA Today. As we saw in class, USA Today uses Flash to tell all aspects of a story, like they did with their coverage of the loss of space shuttle Columbia. Similarly, the USA Today site uses Flash for their "This Week in Space" segment. This story, located on the "Tech" section of the site is a photo gallery of what's happening this week in space. This week the article focuses on things like new planets, the International Space Station, and the moon. This multimedia feature adds to the story because it allows control as users can choose what pace they want to view the pictures by clicking buttons. Also, by showing users photos, readers become more interested in the story as they are seeing what's happening for themselves, rather than reading about it. However, this presentation does have its downfalls. Unless the user chooses to make the gallery open in a new tab, the gallery will open in a new window that can't be bookmarked, making it inconvenient for those who want to find the gallery again. Also, the gallery has to load, and while it only takes a few seconds, that may be a few seconds too many for some viewers. However, the gallery can be e-mailed to a friend and previous galleries can also be viewed.
A second journalistic site that tells a story in multimedia is CNN's "God's Warriors" site. This story concerns Jewish, Christian, and Muslim "warriors" and is a tie-in with a CNN special. This site is also extremely interactive as users can view video diaries and photo galleries, among other things. The site also links to a number of news stories on cnn.com. However, just like the USA Today site, the "God's Warriors" Flash presentation also has its drawbacks. First, there is the problem of bookmarking. When one clicks on the option for the photo gallery, for example, the gallery pops up in the same window and it is impossible to bookmark an individual picture, only the entire Flash presentation. Also, since this is a contained Flash presentation, only the entire presentation will show up in search engines, not specific sections, meaning a user may have to search through the presentation until he or she finds what they are looking for. However, the site does offer motion by having photos fade in and out and has no scrolling, both of which are benefits.
A third journalistic site that incorporates multimedia through the use of Flash is the New York Times' story about the Manhattan Project. This story, which details the history of the Manhattan Project offers a map of Manhattan with little boxes that give information when a user scrolls over them. When the boxes are clicked on, a new window appears with details for that specific location. For example, when a user rolls over the box titled "J. Robert Oppenheimer's Childhood Home," they are given the address. When they click on it they are given a photo along with a text write-up. Video is offered for some of the locations, too. This site is extremely interactive with very clear graphics, but users do have to scroll to see the entire map. And again, users cannot bookmark specific sections of the site, like the photo of Oppenheimer's childhood home. Also, the graphic does take a little while to load, which can be frustrating.
Flash presentations are a great way for journalistic sites to tell a story, whether they are discussing the history of the Manhattan Project or are just a simple photo gallery. While there are some pitfalls to these presentations, they are extremely valuable in that they offer new ways to tell a story through multimedia.
Monday, November 5, 2007
Behaviors
As we learned in class last week, behaviors are an important part of any Website. Not only do they look cool, they're extremely helpful.
For example, a journalistic site could use a jump menu to organize links and archives. I used to jump menu on my website to organize my links. I linked to some pages I frequently visit, such as CNN.com, the Entertainment Weekly site, and Pop Candy, a pop culture blog from USA Today. The jump menu can be found at the bottom left of my site.
Also helpful is the pop up window. These windows are useful in journalistic sites because they can show new information that is important to a story. However, this new information will be in a new window, so readers will be able to stay on the page they are currently looking at. I used my pop up window to send a message to readers that they are leaving my site when clicking on a link. the link reads "Click here for news" and takes readers to the New York Times Website. This behavior is located under the photo credit on my site.
Sound is also important to journalistic website. By hearing something, certain readers may be able to remember it better. Sound also lets readers know they are hearing something important. For example, a reader could click on a link and hear a quote from a story. My sound clip is just for fun, however. When a user clicks on "Contact" on my site, a sound clip of Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Freebird" is played.
Finally, swap images can be used on journalistic sites. By having a swap image, a user could see a mini photo gallery of a subject. On my site, when a user rolls the mouse over the picture of me, the picture changes.
I plan on tweaking these behaviors a little, but users should be able to get the idea of the potential of these behaviors and how they could be uses in a journalistic manner.
For example, a journalistic site could use a jump menu to organize links and archives. I used to jump menu on my website to organize my links. I linked to some pages I frequently visit, such as CNN.com, the Entertainment Weekly site, and Pop Candy, a pop culture blog from USA Today. The jump menu can be found at the bottom left of my site.
Also helpful is the pop up window. These windows are useful in journalistic sites because they can show new information that is important to a story. However, this new information will be in a new window, so readers will be able to stay on the page they are currently looking at. I used my pop up window to send a message to readers that they are leaving my site when clicking on a link. the link reads "Click here for news" and takes readers to the New York Times Website. This behavior is located under the photo credit on my site.
Sound is also important to journalistic website. By hearing something, certain readers may be able to remember it better. Sound also lets readers know they are hearing something important. For example, a reader could click on a link and hear a quote from a story. My sound clip is just for fun, however. When a user clicks on "Contact" on my site, a sound clip of Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Freebird" is played.
Finally, swap images can be used on journalistic sites. By having a swap image, a user could see a mini photo gallery of a subject. On my site, when a user rolls the mouse over the picture of me, the picture changes.
I plan on tweaking these behaviors a little, but users should be able to get the idea of the potential of these behaviors and how they could be uses in a journalistic manner.
Monday, October 29, 2007
InterACTIVITY
Interactivity is something that is becoming increasingly important for journalistic websites. Users want it all: graphics, audio, sound...plus extras. One way journalistic websites cam incorporate interactivity is through Macromedia Flash Player. Flash allows journalists to use information in a new way, making it more likely that a user will come back to their site.
For example, the site Planet in Peril, which is special environmental coverage from CNN.com uses Flash to report on environmental issues. Their site incorporates high-tech graphics, such as an image of the globe that users can click on to learn about issues in specific regions. Once a user clicks on a place on the globe they are taken to another page that uses video. Many websites that aren't journalistic in nature use Flash and journalistic sites could learn from their example. By using all types of media in a way that catches the eye of the viewer, journalistic websites can appeal to as many people as possible.
Interactive games are another way to help journalistic websites appeal to users. Once users interact with information they will gain a better understanding of it because they actively have to participate. Once I played the Enron Blame Game, mentioned in the text, I gained a better understanding of the Enron scandal in general, even though it happened a few years ago. Journalistic websites could do something similar with the upcoming presidential elections. A game could be made where users have to match the candidates to their views. This way users would learn more than if they were simply reading a story and they would be having fun, too.
Flash player would have come in very handy with previous work I have done in previous courses. For example, two years ago I wrote a story on soda being banned from schools. With Flash I could have used video of officials discussing why soda should be banned, graphics that show the nutritional value of soda, audio clips of key quotes and interactive games where users could take polls on whether soda should remain in schools or games where they could guess the healthiness of certain foods. These features would help advance the story because readers would feel like they were a part of it. By allowing readers to see video, listen to audio, and interact in general, websites are giving the reader a choice to learn more than they ever could in a standard newspaper. Readers shouldn't just be sitting reading a story where they had no choices. They should interact with the information and thus better absorb it.
For example, the site Planet in Peril, which is special environmental coverage from CNN.com uses Flash to report on environmental issues. Their site incorporates high-tech graphics, such as an image of the globe that users can click on to learn about issues in specific regions. Once a user clicks on a place on the globe they are taken to another page that uses video. Many websites that aren't journalistic in nature use Flash and journalistic sites could learn from their example. By using all types of media in a way that catches the eye of the viewer, journalistic websites can appeal to as many people as possible.
Interactive games are another way to help journalistic websites appeal to users. Once users interact with information they will gain a better understanding of it because they actively have to participate. Once I played the Enron Blame Game, mentioned in the text, I gained a better understanding of the Enron scandal in general, even though it happened a few years ago. Journalistic websites could do something similar with the upcoming presidential elections. A game could be made where users have to match the candidates to their views. This way users would learn more than if they were simply reading a story and they would be having fun, too.
Flash player would have come in very handy with previous work I have done in previous courses. For example, two years ago I wrote a story on soda being banned from schools. With Flash I could have used video of officials discussing why soda should be banned, graphics that show the nutritional value of soda, audio clips of key quotes and interactive games where users could take polls on whether soda should remain in schools or games where they could guess the healthiness of certain foods. These features would help advance the story because readers would feel like they were a part of it. By allowing readers to see video, listen to audio, and interact in general, websites are giving the reader a choice to learn more than they ever could in a standard newspaper. Readers shouldn't just be sitting reading a story where they had no choices. They should interact with the information and thus better absorb it.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
RSS Feeds
This past week in class we learned about RSS feeds, which stands for rich site summary and allows the webmaster to "Provide fresh and relevant content on their website, which encourages users to return", according to What is RSS?. The goal of the class was to incorporate RSS feeds into our personal website by working in groups. Unfortunately, my group did not figure it out. However, we did make some of progress.
I had never really paid much attention to RSS feeds, even though I see them offered pretty often on Websites I visit. For example, I have always noticed that Pop Candy, a pop culture blog run by USA today offers readers the option of subscribing to a feed. Once I realized that I could post headline from something like Pop Candy on my personal Website, RSS feeds became much more interesting. Now, my site could be updated with news that I like from sites I visit everyday.
When my group first started learning about RSS feeds, we found it very confusing. We read through some tips, but we couldn't quite manage to get the RSS feed to appear on our sites. Instead, we looked at example of Websites that off RSS feeds, such as The New York Times. However, simply subscribing to this feed didn't work either.
Finally, after some advice from the BBC, we figured out that we needed to download a news reader. We also discovered that we needed to open an XSLT page in Dreamweaver to create a feed. XSLT is XML based, which is important because RSS feeds are in XML (Extensible Markup Language).
I found Feed Tools in Dreamweaver 8 and CS3: RSS and XSL to be very useful. This site tells the reader how to create an RSS feed in Dreamweaver step by step, and, for the most part, is very easy to understand. Once I have followed the advice of this Website, opened an XSLT page in Dreamweaver and downloaded a news reader, I believe I will be ready to incorporate a feed into a site.
I had never really paid much attention to RSS feeds, even though I see them offered pretty often on Websites I visit. For example, I have always noticed that Pop Candy, a pop culture blog run by USA today offers readers the option of subscribing to a feed. Once I realized that I could post headline from something like Pop Candy on my personal Website, RSS feeds became much more interesting. Now, my site could be updated with news that I like from sites I visit everyday.
When my group first started learning about RSS feeds, we found it very confusing. We read through some tips, but we couldn't quite manage to get the RSS feed to appear on our sites. Instead, we looked at example of Websites that off RSS feeds, such as The New York Times. However, simply subscribing to this feed didn't work either.
Finally, after some advice from the BBC, we figured out that we needed to download a news reader. We also discovered that we needed to open an XSLT page in Dreamweaver to create a feed. XSLT is XML based, which is important because RSS feeds are in XML (Extensible Markup Language).
I found Feed Tools in Dreamweaver 8 and CS3: RSS and XSL to be very useful. This site tells the reader how to create an RSS feed in Dreamweaver step by step, and, for the most part, is very easy to understand. Once I have followed the advice of this Website, opened an XSLT page in Dreamweaver and downloaded a news reader, I believe I will be ready to incorporate a feed into a site.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Journalistic Blog Sites
Journalistic blogs are a tricky subject. In many cases the people doing the blogging aren't writing the posts. Instead, they merely collect the news and repost it in blog form (giving credit to the original authors of course). However, some blogs do have original content and are written by actual journalists.
Andrew Sullivan's blog, for example, is a mishmash of news stories and Sullivan's thoughts. Some of Sullivan's posts are on such things as "Exposing the Vatican" and "The First Green Bible." In these posts, Sullivan mainly posts stories from other sources and then comments on them. In other posts he'll feature a poem, a response to a comment or a photograph. This blog definitely differs from traditional reporting. Sullivan offers his opinions and interpretation of news stories and only seems to post what is interesting to him. The content is really unusual and eclectic, but this is not a bad thing as the stories are interesting and not ones readers may be aware of. Because the stories are so varied, it's hard to say who the target audience is. My best guess would be readers "of no party or clique", as that's what Sullivan's banner reads. In all, this blog is amusing and interesting, but I didn't see it as effective because of the eclectic nature of the posts.
Paul Bradshaw is another journalist with a blog. This blog occasionally reposts new stories from other sources, but Bradshaw seems more interested in blogging about being a journalist. for example, two of his posts are titled "How to be a journalism student- the wiki" and "Online journalism job of the week: Keyword Manager". This site differs from traditional reporting because it mostly isn't reporting. Bradshaw simply collects the news and then posts his own ideas about how to be a journalist. The intended audience for this blog is journalists and aspiring journalists. The blog is extremely effective for this audience as it explains new steps being taken in journalism and how to be a journalist.
Dan Gillmor's blog is more straightforward. His is an example of a site that collects the news and reposts it. Gillmor summarizes and comments on each story. However, the voice of the blog is primarily in stories written by other people. This is very different from traditional reporting, as Gillmor merely finds stories that interest him and reposts them. The stories posted are very specific, almost always having to do with business and the economy (49ers Ripoff: Nail the Taxpayers). Thus, this blog is where people interested solely in business can find their news. This is very effective as readers can find stories that interest them in one place and don't have to worry that much about Gillmor's opinion seeping in.
Jeff Jarvis' site is quite a change from Gillmor's. Jarvis posts mainly on his experiences in journalism, from sharing a letter to the editor he wrote to blogging on the Networked Journalism Summit. There really isn't any reporting being done on this site, which makes it a very different type of journalism. Jarvis' posts are really in depth, so I would say the target audience is anyone who is really interested in reading about the media. However, Jarvis' posts are so in depth that readers may find it hard to read, which makes the site not very effective.
The journalistic blog that I found most appealing is that of Romenesko. This blog is similar to that of Gillmor's. This blog just collects and briefly comments on stories from other sources. While this may differ from traditional reporting in that there is no reporting being done, only collecting, this blog is the one that most interested me. The stories are mostly about the journalism industry and the media ("Journalists love blogging because it lets them cut loose" and "Exec says Detroit newsroom cuts shouldn't affect coverage". The audience for this blog would be any journalist interested in learning about the industry. Romenesko is extremely effective as it offers a comprehensive up-to-date look at what is going on in journalism, including print, television, and online. This blog is incredibly useful for any journalist.
Andrew Sullivan's blog, for example, is a mishmash of news stories and Sullivan's thoughts. Some of Sullivan's posts are on such things as "Exposing the Vatican" and "The First Green Bible." In these posts, Sullivan mainly posts stories from other sources and then comments on them. In other posts he'll feature a poem, a response to a comment or a photograph. This blog definitely differs from traditional reporting. Sullivan offers his opinions and interpretation of news stories and only seems to post what is interesting to him. The content is really unusual and eclectic, but this is not a bad thing as the stories are interesting and not ones readers may be aware of. Because the stories are so varied, it's hard to say who the target audience is. My best guess would be readers "of no party or clique", as that's what Sullivan's banner reads. In all, this blog is amusing and interesting, but I didn't see it as effective because of the eclectic nature of the posts.
Paul Bradshaw is another journalist with a blog. This blog occasionally reposts new stories from other sources, but Bradshaw seems more interested in blogging about being a journalist. for example, two of his posts are titled "How to be a journalism student- the wiki" and "Online journalism job of the week: Keyword Manager". This site differs from traditional reporting because it mostly isn't reporting. Bradshaw simply collects the news and then posts his own ideas about how to be a journalist. The intended audience for this blog is journalists and aspiring journalists. The blog is extremely effective for this audience as it explains new steps being taken in journalism and how to be a journalist.
Dan Gillmor's blog is more straightforward. His is an example of a site that collects the news and reposts it. Gillmor summarizes and comments on each story. However, the voice of the blog is primarily in stories written by other people. This is very different from traditional reporting, as Gillmor merely finds stories that interest him and reposts them. The stories posted are very specific, almost always having to do with business and the economy (49ers Ripoff: Nail the Taxpayers). Thus, this blog is where people interested solely in business can find their news. This is very effective as readers can find stories that interest them in one place and don't have to worry that much about Gillmor's opinion seeping in.
Jeff Jarvis' site is quite a change from Gillmor's. Jarvis posts mainly on his experiences in journalism, from sharing a letter to the editor he wrote to blogging on the Networked Journalism Summit. There really isn't any reporting being done on this site, which makes it a very different type of journalism. Jarvis' posts are really in depth, so I would say the target audience is anyone who is really interested in reading about the media. However, Jarvis' posts are so in depth that readers may find it hard to read, which makes the site not very effective.
The journalistic blog that I found most appealing is that of Romenesko. This blog is similar to that of Gillmor's. This blog just collects and briefly comments on stories from other sources. While this may differ from traditional reporting in that there is no reporting being done, only collecting, this blog is the one that most interested me. The stories are mostly about the journalism industry and the media ("Journalists love blogging because it lets them cut loose" and "Exec says Detroit newsroom cuts shouldn't affect coverage". The audience for this blog would be any journalist interested in learning about the industry. Romenesko is extremely effective as it offers a comprehensive up-to-date look at what is going on in journalism, including print, television, and online. This blog is incredibly useful for any journalist.
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Online Content
Salon.com, similar to slate.com, which I wrote about in my last post, is "An independent online magazine, featuring lively original reporting and commentary on news, politics, culture, and life." This journalistic Website has a lot of content, broken up into several categories, including arts and entertainment, books, comics, community, life, movies, news and politics, opinions, sports, and technology and business. The site also includes a daily blog, weekly columns, special coverage of the 2008 presidential election, and a podcast. I found this to be a great site, content wise. There is something to interest everyone and in this way the Website really does resemble a magazine. In addition, the site covers topics that readers might not be able to read about in a newspaper, such as an article about parking titled "We Paved Paradise-So why can't we find any place to park? Because parking is one of the biggest boondoggles -- and environmental disasters -- in our country." I thought that having a little bit of everything was a real strength for this site, as opposed to focusing on just, say, arts and entertainment. This way the site seems more rounded and will probably appeal to a larger audience.
The writing on Salon.com doesn't really differ from that of a print column. The stories range in length from one to four pages. I found this strange because online readers usually just skim an article and are turned off from longer articles spread over multiple pages. In addition, the stories generally follow the pyramid format, as opposed to the inverted pyramid. This means that readers have to actually read most of the article to get to the point, instead of having the option to stop after a few paragraphs and still know what the story is about. I found this to be similar to in depth magazine coverage, rather than what is usually expected from online journalism writing. Even though I dislike reading an article on a computer screen, I still found the articles on this site very interesting. However, I still found myself skimming over some paragraphs to find the main point. I saw this as both a strength and a weakness for the Website. On the one hand the articles are very interesting and well written. However, articles that span for four pages won't really hold an online reader's attention.
Links are used very effectively on salon.com. For example, an article titled "Here's Looking At You, 'Kid'" by Andrew O'Hehir about a documentary titled "My Kid Could Paint That" uses several links. The article is about a 4-year-old painter who might be a hoax. The article offers links to the film's official Website, a podcast of the author interviewing the film's director, the Website to view the 4-year-old's paintings, an article in the New York Times, and an article about the Sundance Film Festival, among others. These links made the article extremely different from a story in a print medium. The links allow the reader to further explore the subject of the article and learn more, if they so choose. Salon makes use of links in all of its stories and by doing so clearly lets the reader know that what they are reading is a article online complete with the use of digital multimedia.
The writing on Salon.com doesn't really differ from that of a print column. The stories range in length from one to four pages. I found this strange because online readers usually just skim an article and are turned off from longer articles spread over multiple pages. In addition, the stories generally follow the pyramid format, as opposed to the inverted pyramid. This means that readers have to actually read most of the article to get to the point, instead of having the option to stop after a few paragraphs and still know what the story is about. I found this to be similar to in depth magazine coverage, rather than what is usually expected from online journalism writing. Even though I dislike reading an article on a computer screen, I still found the articles on this site very interesting. However, I still found myself skimming over some paragraphs to find the main point. I saw this as both a strength and a weakness for the Website. On the one hand the articles are very interesting and well written. However, articles that span for four pages won't really hold an online reader's attention.
Links are used very effectively on salon.com. For example, an article titled "Here's Looking At You, 'Kid'" by Andrew O'Hehir about a documentary titled "My Kid Could Paint That" uses several links. The article is about a 4-year-old painter who might be a hoax. The article offers links to the film's official Website, a podcast of the author interviewing the film's director, the Website to view the 4-year-old's paintings, an article in the New York Times, and an article about the Sundance Film Festival, among others. These links made the article extremely different from a story in a print medium. The links allow the reader to further explore the subject of the article and learn more, if they so choose. Salon makes use of links in all of its stories and by doing so clearly lets the reader know that what they are reading is a article online complete with the use of digital multimedia.
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Online Writing Skills
One Web site that is a great example of online writing skills is Slate.com. This site features original journalistic content, but the writing is clearly made for the Internet.
First off, Slate's navigation is very easy to use. The navigation bar is broken up into categories, such as "News & Politics" and "Arts & Life." Each category then brings the user to a list of recent articles. Some of these articles appear to be a little long, which isn't really a good thing, as readers don't read on the web, they SCAN. However, Slate makes up for this breach in length in other ways.
According to Jakob Nielsen, one writing skill Web sites should employ is highlighting key words. In the case of an article on Slate titled "What's Wrong With British Cattle?", keywords and important phrases are highlighted and linked in blue. This allows readers to scan and get the general idea of a story instead of having to read the whole thing on a computer screen. Another piece of advice Nielsen gives is to have meaningful subheadings. Slate does this as well, as seen with the same British cattle story. The subhead reads: "Why Do They Get So Many Diseases?" This lets the reader know what he or she is about to get into, better preparing them for the story.
Slate is very aware that readers can't always focus on a story when reading online. To remedy this they incorporate other media aspects into their stories. For example, a story about public sculpture is reported on, but also features a slide show so the reader can see the sculptures for themselves. This is part of the layering of information that Jonathan Dube discusses.
In addition, Slate employs the use of discussion boards on each article to better incorporate readers into the story. Slate is one Web site that definitely knows how to write for an online audience.
First off, Slate's navigation is very easy to use. The navigation bar is broken up into categories, such as "News & Politics" and "Arts & Life." Each category then brings the user to a list of recent articles. Some of these articles appear to be a little long, which isn't really a good thing, as readers don't read on the web, they SCAN. However, Slate makes up for this breach in length in other ways.
According to Jakob Nielsen, one writing skill Web sites should employ is highlighting key words. In the case of an article on Slate titled "What's Wrong With British Cattle?", keywords and important phrases are highlighted and linked in blue. This allows readers to scan and get the general idea of a story instead of having to read the whole thing on a computer screen. Another piece of advice Nielsen gives is to have meaningful subheadings. Slate does this as well, as seen with the same British cattle story. The subhead reads: "Why Do They Get So Many Diseases?" This lets the reader know what he or she is about to get into, better preparing them for the story.
Slate is very aware that readers can't always focus on a story when reading online. To remedy this they incorporate other media aspects into their stories. For example, a story about public sculpture is reported on, but also features a slide show so the reader can see the sculptures for themselves. This is part of the layering of information that Jonathan Dube discusses.
In addition, Slate employs the use of discussion boards on each article to better incorporate readers into the story. Slate is one Web site that definitely knows how to write for an online audience.
Monday, September 24, 2007
Campaign 2008
One news item that is virtually inescapable is the 2008 presidential race. The actual election is still more than a year away, but the media (online and otherwise) just can't stop talking about it. However, online outlets are unique in their ability to give even more information about the race than newspapers or television or radio could ever dream of.
The Washington Post is an ideal site for politics (hey, it's based in D.C, right?). One thing striking this about their Website is the organization they have on all of the 17 major Democrat and Republican candidates. Each candidate has his or her (in the case of Hillary) own profile complete with a campaign tracker for appearances, biography, photos and videos, links to relevant Post articles, a tracker on where the candidate stands on issues, financial summary, and links to relevant Web sites. This site is definitely one of the top to visit for up to date campaign coverage and everything presented is almost wholly unique to online journalism, meaning that most of it could not be accomplished by other forms of journalism so succinctly in one location.
Meanwhile, The New York Times focuses more on the issues and less on the candidates. This doesn't mean that the candidates aren't given adequate coverage. In fact, the Times offers profiles similar to that of thewashingtonpost.com. However, the Website gives more area to articles and issues relevant to campaign 2008. This coverage is unique to online journalism because of the archives that are readily available. Readers can easily access the latest articles on the campaign, including articles titled "Bush Says Clinton Will Win Nomination" and "Education and Schools Are a Focus for Edwards."
Taegan Goddard's Political Wire is more of a blog and differs much from the Post and Times sites. Because it doesn't have the resources of a large newspaper the coverage of campaign 2008 isn't as extensive. However, Political Wire does have its strengths. Each post offers relevant news in addition to the original link. The posts are short and easy to follow, making the site not as overwhelming as that of the Post and Times. This site definitely would not be possible without online journalism. The blog gathers stories from numerous sources and can even categorizes posts by Southpaw (liberal) and Wingers (conservative) commentary. Also, be sure to check out the campaign 2008 "Quote of the Day" along with "Bonus Quote of the Day."
Outside the Beltway in another blog, and while it may not be very fancy it gets the job done. Items are taken from various news outlets and posted together for a complete look at the 2008 race. The blog gives easy access to its archives and recent comments are shown on the main page, giving readers an idea of what they can expect.
One thing is certain with these four completely different sites:
The amount of coverage would not be possible if it wasn't for online journalism. Perhaps because information is so readily available even more people will be motivated to vote in the upcoming election. Only time will tell, but online journalism is doing its part.
The Washington Post is an ideal site for politics (hey, it's based in D.C, right?). One thing striking this about their Website is the organization they have on all of the 17 major Democrat and Republican candidates. Each candidate has his or her (in the case of Hillary) own profile complete with a campaign tracker for appearances, biography, photos and videos, links to relevant Post articles, a tracker on where the candidate stands on issues, financial summary, and links to relevant Web sites. This site is definitely one of the top to visit for up to date campaign coverage and everything presented is almost wholly unique to online journalism, meaning that most of it could not be accomplished by other forms of journalism so succinctly in one location.
Meanwhile, The New York Times focuses more on the issues and less on the candidates. This doesn't mean that the candidates aren't given adequate coverage. In fact, the Times offers profiles similar to that of thewashingtonpost.com. However, the Website gives more area to articles and issues relevant to campaign 2008. This coverage is unique to online journalism because of the archives that are readily available. Readers can easily access the latest articles on the campaign, including articles titled "Bush Says Clinton Will Win Nomination" and "Education and Schools Are a Focus for Edwards."
Taegan Goddard's Political Wire is more of a blog and differs much from the Post and Times sites. Because it doesn't have the resources of a large newspaper the coverage of campaign 2008 isn't as extensive. However, Political Wire does have its strengths. Each post offers relevant news in addition to the original link. The posts are short and easy to follow, making the site not as overwhelming as that of the Post and Times. This site definitely would not be possible without online journalism. The blog gathers stories from numerous sources and can even categorizes posts by Southpaw (liberal) and Wingers (conservative) commentary. Also, be sure to check out the campaign 2008 "Quote of the Day" along with "Bonus Quote of the Day."
Outside the Beltway in another blog, and while it may not be very fancy it gets the job done. Items are taken from various news outlets and posted together for a complete look at the 2008 race. The blog gives easy access to its archives and recent comments are shown on the main page, giving readers an idea of what they can expect.
One thing is certain with these four completely different sites:
The amount of coverage would not be possible if it wasn't for online journalism. Perhaps because information is so readily available even more people will be motivated to vote in the upcoming election. Only time will tell, but online journalism is doing its part.
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Useful Links
Some good places to go for information on Web design:
1. Web Sites That Suck:
http://www.websitesthatsuck.com
This Web site offers tips on how to build a good Web site. Specifically, it gives advice on what NOT to do. The site gives examples of some of the worst Web sites out there. Included on the list for 2007 are the Web sites for Brita, the Department of Energy and the Department of Architecture. It's obvious that something is "off" when I visited each of these sites, but it was hard to point out just what, but I guess that's why they're on the worst Web site list.
Additionally, websitesthatsuck.com offers checklists to make sure your own Web site doesn't suck and some interesting videos of bad Web sites.
Unfortunately, this Web site is a little confusing and hard to read because of poor design and annoying ads. Maybe this site needs to follow its own advice.
2. Top Ten Web Design Mistakes of 2005
http://www.useit.com/alertbox/designmistakes.html
Among the top ten web design mistakes are legibility problems, content that's not written for the web and bad searches, all of which I've experienced first hand while browsing (especially legibility problems...very frustrating). This site is brief and to the point and offers some really helpful tips. I found this to be one of the better sites of Web design because it was so easy to read and understand.
3. Dmitry's Design Lab
http://www.webreference.com/dlab/
Dmitry Kirsanov offers 25 tutorials on Web design. These tutorials are aimed at educating Web designers on font, color, animation and other design issues. These tutorials come with titles such as, "Designing with Chaos", "Logo Design Revisited" and "The World of Color." Each tutorial goes in depth about a specific design issue, making it a great site to visit for the Web designer who wants history and theory, as well as tips.
4. Prioritize: Good Content Bubbles to the Top
http://www.useit.com/alertbox/991017.html
Jakob Nielsen gives advice on how to put the most important items and stories at the top of the Web site. One excellent piece of advice he gives is "When everything is emphasized, nothing is emphasized." Nielsen also offers important tips on how to bring out content hidden within a site and to use server traffic to see where users are going the most.
5. Is Navigation Useful?
http://www.useit.com/alertbox/20000109.html
Another site by Nielsen, this one dealing with the all important subject of Web site navigation. According to Nielsen's research, users tend to be more concerned about a Web site's content rather than its navigation. In fact, in most cases, users don't even understand the basic idea behind Web site navigation. I didn't really see an explanation to Nielsen's question of "Is navigation useful?" but he does raise some interesting points.
6. Resources for Web Workers
http://plaza.ufl.edu/mmcadams/design.htm
Myndy McAdams' Web site is perhaps the most useful to consult for Web design issues. McAdams discusses seemingly boring issues, such as font, color and layout, but makes them seem interesting and presents her information in a way that is easy to understand, especially for a first time Web site designer. She breaks down information on design issues and what she has to say really makes sense. I found that this Web site summarizes a lot of the other Web sites listed, so you may want to start with McAdams' site first, as it gives a lot of general information.
All in all, the above mentioned Web sites offer great advice on what to do and what not to do in terms of designing a Web site.
I don't know much about computers and Web sites, but after browsing these sites I'm finding that I'm starting to get a better grasp on to dos and don'ts of Web design.
1. Web Sites That Suck:
http://www.websitesthatsuck.com
This Web site offers tips on how to build a good Web site. Specifically, it gives advice on what NOT to do. The site gives examples of some of the worst Web sites out there. Included on the list for 2007 are the Web sites for Brita, the Department of Energy and the Department of Architecture. It's obvious that something is "off" when I visited each of these sites, but it was hard to point out just what, but I guess that's why they're on the worst Web site list.
Additionally, websitesthatsuck.com offers checklists to make sure your own Web site doesn't suck and some interesting videos of bad Web sites.
Unfortunately, this Web site is a little confusing and hard to read because of poor design and annoying ads. Maybe this site needs to follow its own advice.
2. Top Ten Web Design Mistakes of 2005
http://www.useit.com/alertbox/designmistakes.html
Among the top ten web design mistakes are legibility problems, content that's not written for the web and bad searches, all of which I've experienced first hand while browsing (especially legibility problems...very frustrating). This site is brief and to the point and offers some really helpful tips. I found this to be one of the better sites of Web design because it was so easy to read and understand.
3. Dmitry's Design Lab
http://www.webreference.com/dlab/
Dmitry Kirsanov offers 25 tutorials on Web design. These tutorials are aimed at educating Web designers on font, color, animation and other design issues. These tutorials come with titles such as, "Designing with Chaos", "Logo Design Revisited" and "The World of Color." Each tutorial goes in depth about a specific design issue, making it a great site to visit for the Web designer who wants history and theory, as well as tips.
4. Prioritize: Good Content Bubbles to the Top
http://www.useit.com/alertbox/991017.html
Jakob Nielsen gives advice on how to put the most important items and stories at the top of the Web site. One excellent piece of advice he gives is "When everything is emphasized, nothing is emphasized." Nielsen also offers important tips on how to bring out content hidden within a site and to use server traffic to see where users are going the most.
5. Is Navigation Useful?
http://www.useit.com/alertbox/20000109.html
Another site by Nielsen, this one dealing with the all important subject of Web site navigation. According to Nielsen's research, users tend to be more concerned about a Web site's content rather than its navigation. In fact, in most cases, users don't even understand the basic idea behind Web site navigation. I didn't really see an explanation to Nielsen's question of "Is navigation useful?" but he does raise some interesting points.
6. Resources for Web Workers
http://plaza.ufl.edu/mmcadams/design.htm
Myndy McAdams' Web site is perhaps the most useful to consult for Web design issues. McAdams discusses seemingly boring issues, such as font, color and layout, but makes them seem interesting and presents her information in a way that is easy to understand, especially for a first time Web site designer. She breaks down information on design issues and what she has to say really makes sense. I found that this Web site summarizes a lot of the other Web sites listed, so you may want to start with McAdams' site first, as it gives a lot of general information.
All in all, the above mentioned Web sites offer great advice on what to do and what not to do in terms of designing a Web site.
I don't know much about computers and Web sites, but after browsing these sites I'm finding that I'm starting to get a better grasp on to dos and don'ts of Web design.
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