FAU Multimedia Journalism course

Spring 2011 student blogs

2011-09-20T18:46:00.000-07:00

Alysha: Thirsty For Beer!

Amber: Sunshine & Serenity

Drew: Heat Fandom

Elyssa: Good Food for the Soul

Jenna: Insight into a dancers world!

Jillian: College Night Life

Kaley: Off Atlantic

Kayla: The Plastic Feminist

Mara: Tips for Fashionable College Students on a Budget!!

Matthew: South Florida Car Spottings and News

Mercedes: Curl My Lashes

Michael: Eye on the Owls

Rachael: Lady Angler

Shannon: The Single Working Female

Vanessa: Sharkin'

Alternative Story Forms

2010-10-11T10:18:00.000-07:00

Alternative story forms aren't limited to use online, but they work particularly well there.

Sara Quinn has an interesting intro to the concept, which begins with this:

Q: What are alternative story forms?

A: They’re tools that quickly engage a reader’s attention: a timeline, a checklist, a fact box or a graphic — anything that doesn’t fit the standard model of most newspaper narratives. You’re reading one right now in this Q&A.

Here is a list of just a few types, each with a link to an example:

Captions to look at in class

2010-10-10T01:35:00.000-07:00

Here is an example of captions that tell a story:

Is there a farm in your future?

Hiking in Kurdistan

Childbirth in Afghanistan

Some examples of databases in online journalism

2010-10-10T01:00:00.000-07:00

Here's a list of a few database-driven projects recently featured in online sites.

Immigration patterns from the New York Times
Violence in Afghanistan from Wall Street Journal
Faces of the Fallen from Washington Post
U.S. Congress votes database from Washington Post

Blogs from students during fall 2010

2010-09-27T17:29:00.000-07:00

Amanda: Eyegasm

Andres: 93+ Only

Andrew: Frozen Lair

Arielle: Live Music In Palm Beach

Estee: The weekly hoopla

Jackie: Appetite Bite

Jasmine: The Sport of Cheerleading

Jennifer: Fabulous Fashion Fauxs

Jessica: RAWRRR!!! South Florida Animal Life

Lester: The "white guy" on MLK Blvd.

Richard: SpillerThriller

Serenity: MDS: Mother Daughter Syndrome

Stephanie: To Ink With Love

Veronica: What's On TV with Auntie V

Where students can find images for their blogs

2010-09-16T07:05:00.000-07:00

Every semester I struggle with the issue of photo copyright in the blogs my students create.

Here's a helpful list of copyright-free images where students can find art on a wide range of subjects. There are 30 here, so it will take some time to explore them and see which are applicable to your blog. Some students have told me MorgueFile is particularly useful.

Another good tactic: Go to Google Images advanced search. Near the bottom of the list of options is "usage rights." For a non-commercial student blog, you can can select "labeled for reuse."

Ways to add cool stuff to your blog

2010-08-27T13:50:00.000-07:00

Once you've created your basic blog and are ready to experiment, there are many ways you improve it -- and have fun with it.

You can add more interactivity. One good way is using a Blogger tool called reactions. Here's more about how to use it.
Allow your friends and family members to become followers. Details here.
If you search a bit, you can find a great variety of third-party tools -- polls and survey tools (here's one http://www.polldaddy.com/) and widgets (http://mashable.com/2007/09/06/widgets-2/) galore.
Google "blog background images" and you'll learn how to add background images and some appealing choices that are ready to use.

Spring 2010 student blogs

2010-08-27T12:28:00.000-07:00

Anna on applying to law school

Christina on cocktails

Courtney on FAU students worth knowing about

Dale on homeless in Florida

Dominique on shopping

Jaimie on going out on the town

John on the New York Sports Fan

Maelie on the search for good beer

Neil on sports radio

Olenka on music

Olga on Cooking Secrets for Busy People

Rodrigo on South Florida nightlife

Veronica on America's Next Top Model

You've created your blog; now become an authority

2010-08-23T13:03:00.000-07:00

Here are 100 useful tips for anybody serious about blogging.

http://www.insidecrm.com/features/100-authority-site-resources-041408/

New directions for news: Assignment for Oct. 15

2010-03-17T17:22:00.000-07:00

The Internet has caused a seismic shift in the world of news and media.

Old forms, particularly newspapers, are declining, and there are questions as to whether they will survive.

New forms are being created, but it is not clear yet which will thrive.

In addition, many question whether these news forms can fill the traditional role of objective journalism that is sometimes called "accountability journalism" -- the sort of serious often investigative journalism that prevents corruption and keeps the powerful in check.

For this week's class, we are going to examine various trends in online journalism.

Here's what you are assigned to do:

* Spend a half hour reviewing your assigned site and reading the items posted, particularly any "about us" information.
* Research the site you are assigned by doing Google searches and reading everything you can find that's being said about it. (Most of these sites are referenced in Wikipedia; you can use it as a source to give you background.) The background you provide is just as important as your observations of the site itself.

Then, write a brief report about this site -- a profile of its mission, how it works and what it brings to the practice of journalism.

I'm suggesting some questions for you to address, but use them as a starting point for your analysis. Don't just answer these questions. Your report should have full paragraphs with transitions rather than simply answering questions in a list.

Print out and bring this assignment to our next class: Thursday, March 25.

In class that night, each of you will make a brief oral presentation about the site you studied and then participate in a "panel discussion" with colleagues assigned sites within the same grouping.

You are expected to ask questions of each other. Your presentation should help the class understand how this particular site is organized, how it works and how it differs from media of the past. The goal is to learn from each other's research.

Here are some questions; they are just suggestions to get you thinking. Please make other observations that you think are worth discussing.

* What is the mission of your site?
* Is it different from the mission of a traditional media outlet? How?
* When was it founded and by whom?
* Who writes the news and information? (Professional journalists? Citizens? Both? In what proportion?)
* How is it funded -- advertising? donations from public? grants from foundations? not clear?
* Does the site focus on a specific topic or type of content?
* Who edits the news and information?
* Does it appear to have substantial participation?
* Do you think it will survive?
* Do you think it provides a useful service?

Here is an article that provides useful background. Read this before you look at the site to which you are assigned.

Here's the list and assignments:

The future of local news
Voice of San Diego -
WestSeattleBlog -
Oakland Local -
Chicago Talks -
Spot.us -
MinnPost -

Citizen-powered coverage
The Bleacher Report -
CNN iReport -
Ground Report & Now Public -

Investigative journalism
Huffington Post Investigative Fund -
Propublica.org -
Center for Public Integrity - Venica

Doctors getting journalism degrees? Redefining who does journalism

2010-03-05T05:56:00.000-08:00

The Mayo Medical School has teamed up with the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University to create the kind of journalism program we're likely to see more of in the future.

The program will take some of the top doctors-in-training in the world and give them a year of journalism training and a master's degree. Here's the school's description of the program.

Why? Sure, it's about all the doctors now working as TV journalists.

But it's also about redefining who does journalism. In an era when everybody has a blog, including your doctor, who's a journalist?

Edward Sylvester, professor of journalism and director of the medical journalism studies at the Cronkite school, says in this article from StatePress.com that the program is an example of "the radical changes going on in our ideas of who is doing journalism and of how we all report the news."

Makes sense to me. Most of my students at Florida Atlantic University are not likely to work as traditional journalists. But I still believe journalistic skills can help them succeed in any field.

So, in the future, maybe journalism schools should focus on teaching students in all fields how to write, blog and use social media. Because those students are going to "do journalism" -- maybe as much of it as "journalism students" will get to do.

The best AP style summary I've come across

2010-01-08T07:57:00.000-08:00

Here is a great AP style cheat-sheet.

It covers all the pertinent style questions on my test plus very helpful ways to remember some of the rules.

My thanks to authors Dave Feldman and Stan Ketterer.

Student blogs, fall 2009

2010-01-01T17:50:00.000-08:00

Troy on Landshark Stadium

Nicole on college-grad job hunters

Julie on planning a wedding

Natalia on looking thin

Ashley on cockatiels

Nina on the Glades region

Shaniece on dating

Ivan on local music

John on things he hates

Sivan on immigration

Valerie on desserts

Emily on FAU athletes

Sarah on internships

HTML and Dreamweaver tutorials

2009-11-01T05:07:00.000-08:00

We'll be talking about HTML and Dreamweaver in class Thursday. Here are some tutorials that might help:

This site allows you to write HTML and see the results.

A good, basic Dreamweaver tutorial

Another very basic tutorial

A series of short video tutorials that cover basic steps -- a way to review what we cover in class.

So you are going to blog: Start here

2009-06-21T14:40:00.000-07:00

One of the key activities of this class is creating and sustaining a blog all semester.

To begin thinking about what that takes, we're going to examine some blogs.

Here's the idea: Together, two or three students will look at and read through one of the sites listed below. Then, the group will introduce the blog to the class in an informal oral presentation. The goal is to closely observe how these blogs are written, where their material comes from and what tone or style they use.

As you examine these blogs, ask yourself: "How would I do this if this were my blog?"

After you have looked at the blog and discussed it with your group, you will briefly introduce this blog to the class in an informal oral presentation and discussion.

Here are some questions you can use as a general guide of what to cover. You don’t have to review these with the class point by point. This is just designed to prompt your thinking.

* Who do you think is the intended audience for this blog? How did you determine the intended audience?
* What is the mission of this blog? What purpose does it fill for the intended audience?
* Who writes the blog? Is it an individual, a group, a company?
* Where does the blog’s content come from? Does it contain a lot of links? To what kind of sites? How much of the blog’s content is written by the blogger? Is the blogger summarizing the content to which he/she is linking? Or is the bogger instead commenting on that content?
* Is the blog objective? Factual? Opinionated?
* What's the writing style or tone of the blog? How does it differ from what you might read in a news story at the mainstream media site?
* What do you think of the blog’s presentation and appearance?
* What kind of headlines or titles does it use? Do you think they are effective? Why or why not?
* Could you write this sort of blog? Why or why not?

Welcome spring 2009 multimedia journalism class

2009-01-08T15:24:00.000-08:00

You'll soon see links to 14 new blogs here, as a new crop of Florida Atlantic University students begin a new semester in my class tonight.

In the rail at the right you will find links to blogs by students from the fall 2008 semester. Most were last updated Nov. 13. Sadly, that means they probably won't continue blogging now that they're not earning a grade for their work. There are exceptions: Edwin's FAU sports blog and Danielle's gaming blog appear to have updates in 2009.

If you want to get a head-start studying for the AP style test, see the next post.

Blogs: Spring 2009

2009-01-07T18:07:00.000-08:00

Here are student blogs from the spring semester in 2009:

Jason on movie comedies & dramas

Ana on South Florida restaurants

Paola on the world view of Obama

Heather on Florida fashion

Irene on healthy minds/healthy souls

Brittney on college dating

Heather on South Florida travel

Lanna on local music

Nicole on natural remedies

Angela on time wasters

Symone on what to watch

Tori on FAU life

Michael on tea

Elizabeth on career prep

Student blogs: Spring and Fall 2008

2009-01-06T14:26:00.000-08:00

My class had a good crop of blogs in fall 2008:

Curtis on comic books

Danielle on the female gamer

Meagan on trendy Japanese imports

Christina on beauty tips

William on useful flying info from a flight attendant

Angelica on relaxation

Christine on FAU softball

Brittany on running

Marilyn on life with big dogs

Yanuarys on having fun in Palm Beach.

Edwin on FAU sports

Ashley on dating

Dena on parenting teens

I also recommend the blogs from spring 2008:

Krystena on FAU student athletes

Omar on politics in South Florida

Jenifer on health and fitness

Jennifer on South Florida for vegetarians

Michelle on celebs and their lifestyle

Vanessa on opposing the culture of waste

Yesenia on the muscle-car scene

Jay on the FAU sports beat

Yenory on movies

Corina on the music industry and the Internet

Steven on the local music scene

Jose on soccer

Lauren on fitness

Clara on Latin culture

Student blogs, fall 2007

2009-01-05T18:05:00.000-08:00

Michael on Florida politics

Luz on natural food

Jason on MLB prospects

Lindsay on the music scene

Marisol on South Florida crime

Rebecca on music and fashion

Avalon on women's issues

Tonya on South Florida celebs

Victor on Florida sports

Molly on fashion finds

Michael on the NFL, then and now

Ashley on vintage stores

Patricia on cheap fun

Summer 2007 student blogs

2009-01-04T07:49:00.000-08:00

Here are blogs from FAU students in my six-week summer course:

Michael on 'Eurocentric Paradigm'

McKenzie on 'College to Career'

Tonya on shopping

Stephanie on South Florida entertainment

Tom on weather

Karina on food/nutrition

Ashley on life with a small dog

Peter on video games

Chasity on campus social life

Jessica on night life

Bethany on Lake O

Jason on South Florida sports fans

Veronica on the environment

Jim on South Florida baseball

Video for the web: New approaches to a new medium

2008-10-06T06:33:00.000-07:00

Tiffany Ellis, a Sun-Sentinel.com videographer and video editor, will speak to our class this Thursday. Ellis talks to my class every semester, and students love to hear about her work, particularly since she sat in their seats in the same multimedia journalism course at FAU only three years ago.

Here are some links to her recent work:

Knockouts: Kimbo Slice, Gina Carano and more this Saturday at Bank Atlantic

Kimbo Slice after losing a mixed martial arts match (raw video)

Weekly fishing report

Harvey's Highlights

Miami Heat Media Day

Miami Swim Week

Ocean Rescue

Here's an article from the American Journalism Review on how news sites are approaching video for the web. It references a Pulitzer Prize-winner project that involved a talented writer, a clever idea and a great use of video for the web. Take a look and a listen.

Photos for class

2008-09-01T12:13:00.000-07:00

For your Museum of Art package, I have pulled together some images you can use.

http://fauclass.blogspot.com/2007/03/photo-3-for-class.html

Assignment: Creating a Google mashup map

2008-03-16T09:35:00.000-07:00

Assignment: Use one of the photo galleries linked here and translate it into a simple map using fmatlas.com.

Using fmatlas.com, you are to create a map pinpointing FOUR specific locations from one of these galleries. (Tip: To map these locations, you will need an exact address.)

Your map must have a photo for each location and you need to rewrite the information from the captions provided. Make them shorter, but make sure the inforrmation is still usable and informative.

When you are done, you should copy the URL generated by fmatlas.com and e-mail it to me.

A sample map built with fmatlas.com: Offices of the Sun-Sentinel Company

2008-03-16T01:34:00.000-07:00

Bad-dreams and Dreamweaver

2007-11-01T14:25:00.000-07:00

Some of my students don't think Dreamweaver, the Macromedia Web authoring tool, got its name from sweet dreams. (Note: I avoided the obvious lead here, which is some variation on Dreamweaver and nightmares. OK, I didn't totally avoid it, did I?)

Since use of Dreamweaver will be important in future classes, I suggest confused students click through this neat tutorial from the University of California at Berkeley. Silvia Fausto, the extraordinary designer who teaches my Dreamweaver lesson, used this when creating her presentation. (The lessons on rollover images and image maps are only for those who have mastered the basics.)<
Students interested in multimedia storytelling should explore the site, a project of the Knight New Media Center, which offers workshops to mid-career journalists.

Student blogs, spring 2007

2007-05-03T12:04:00.000-07:00

STUDENT BLOGS:

Shanna on local entertainment scene

Mirelis on diet and fitness

Matthew on South Florida traffic

Sarah on FAU Greek life

Jennifer on FAU athletes

Jenna or sports celebrities

Kay on University of Miami sports

AJ or electronic music scene

Carolina on coffee

Katherine on Hispanic media

Patricia on nutrition

Amanda on South Florida wedding planning

Catrina on movies

Alexa on cheap South Florida fun

A sample map made with FMAtlas

2007-01-29T17:53:00.000-08:00

Students blogs from fall 2006

2006-05-26T06:12:00.000-07:00

Here are the 14 blogs created and maintained by students in the fall class in 2006:

Jason on local media

Laura on stupid Florida politics

Linda on South Florida's movie scene

Kelly on South Florida fuel deals

Marissa on fashion in Florida

Katie on South Florida real estate

Rachael on inside FAU news

Rick on FAU campus life

Welta on urban style

Carl on Florida's waterways

Ifonia on Florida getaways

Eric on New York sports teams

Bianca on Caribbean issues

Tracy on how to experience South Florida like a native

Student blogs from summer 2006:

2006-05-14T14:39:00.000-07:00

Ahmed's Hurricane Skinny

Tanya's Edu Beat

Marcus on the South Florida Football

Ivana's Florida News

Alicia on the Miami Heat

Shereen's So. Flo. Expressions

Joseph's Marlins Summer 2006

Theresa's Moda a la South Florida

Rebecca's Jam-On: South Florida Style

Erika's South Florida Arts

Nyasha's Stil Starvin in South Florida

Sheena's Open Mic at Night

Links to some job sites

2006-05-12T18:35:00.000-07:00

This story from a British media site reports that veteran news staff are being replaced with younger, cheaper employees all over the world. I've seen this trend in action, and this could mean short-term opportunities for young journalists. It is probably not good news for the profession in the long run, however.

Here is a sampling of some useful job sites for studnets:

A top job site: http://www.journalismjobs.com/
A useful list of links: http://www.freep.com/legacy/jobspage/links/jobboard.htm
A Q&A with a newsroom recruiter, answering some common questions: http://jobspage.typepad.com/jobspage/

photos for class

2006-04-09T16:51:00.000-07:00