Writing & Editing Online

-Continuing significance of text: “The text is still what brings various media together” (Foust).

-Culture of “instant” gratification

“Think of your Web audience as lazy, selfish and ruthless. Web audiences are on a mission – they’re task oriented” (Michael Gold – Journalism Consultant)

-Quality of presentation still matters (grammar, spelling, etc.)

-Fairness, accuracy, attribution, relevance, newness still matter

Writing & Editing Online

ADAPTING TO THE RUTHLESS WEB AUDIENCE: SOME TECHNIQUES

-Chunking-SHORT sentences with active verbs -SHORT paragraphs (no more than 3 or 4 sentences!)-Bullets-Headlines

- Fair, accurate, compelling, grabbing, short- Must have a verb (or clear implied verb)- Must use AP style: Only first word capitalized (proper

nouns also capitalized)- Straightforward (Avoid puns, wordplay, etc. Nicks

nixes flicks / Mayor cuts funding for film festival)- Must be able to stand on own (Guilty! / Mayor guilty of

embezzlement)- Search engine optimization

-subheadlines/summaries/bold faced headers-Integration of multimedia elements!-Use links

Using Links in Online Stories

links second only to text in their ability to convey information and meaning to the user.

no “correct” number of links in a particular story; number should be driven by content consideration

goal = not to overwhelm the user with sheer numbers of links, but present best links that help tell story & encourage further exploration:

“Your site shouldn’t feel like an endpoint in the conversation. should feel like the beginning.”

“By sending your users to the best information available on the Web, you’ll keep them coming back for more.”

most relevant, most reliable, most compelling links

link should generally incorporate no more than three to five words

avoid: “Click here to go to there”; [however, it is not always possible to write a main story so that link info will be clear w/o disrupting the flow of the main story]

Clarity: It should be obvious to the user what lies on other end of link

should links open in new windows, yes or no?

keep links up-to-date

Using Links in Online Stories

Different uses

Background: info that provides basis for some part of your story;

Backing up information: Direct link to statistical source in your story;

Alternate points of view: Linking to different points of view on issue;

Further explanation: Site that gives you more information;

Citizen journalism: Links to sites that give people chance to take action;

Complete Online Story Customization

Fonts: sans serif (like Arial or Verdana, not Times New Roman or Courier)

Headlines: Come up with a grabbing headline -- remember it must fairly reflect the content of your story

Paragraph length: Use short paragraphs! You should not have any paragraphs longer than three sentences. Period.

Bullets: Where appropriate, use bulleted lists.

Subheads: Break up your text with boldface headers (a basic rule of thumb is about three headers for a 700-word story)

Hyperlinks: Use hyperlinks!

Service journalism: Point people toward helpful resources

Basic editing and proofreading: No typos, etc. please

Visuals: You need these!

http://dailycollegelife.wordpress.com/2011/01/25/du-dining-debatable/

Word version

Homework

READINGFoust, J. Online Journalism – Chapter 11: Gathering and Editing Images, Audio, and Video; (pp. 249 - 273) Briggs., M. Journalism Next – Chapter 6: Visual Storytelling With Photographs (pp. 142 - 176)

WRITINGPP/Slideshare.Net Goal Statement

Homework

READINGFoust, J. Online Journalism – Chapter 11: Gathering and Editing Images, Audio, and Video; (pp. 249 - 273) Briggs., M. Journalism Next – Chapter 6: Visual Storytelling With Photographs (pp. 142 - 176)

WRITINGPP/Slideshare.Net Goal Statement