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SOCIAL & MOBILEMEDIA JOURNALISM

May 6, 2014Week 11:

Verification HandbookJournalism Now, Chapter 7

Class project

Today’s agendaVerification HandbookJournalism Now, Chapter 7Class project

Verifying imagesWho took the photo?

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Verifying imagesWho took the photo?Image location, date, timeMetadata or ‘EXIF’ dataPhotoshop or online tool

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Verifying imagesWho took the photo?Image location, date, timeMetadata or ‘EXIF’ dataPhotoshop or online tool

Is the photo’s description accurate?

Ch 7: Audio journalismAudio stories can be powerfulRadio didn’t get a lot of respectBut now, all journalists can use audioon the Internet

Why audio?Fastest way to provide infoGreat for breaking newsEngaging way to telland discuss a storyAdvantages over text & videoListen with MP3 player or phone or in car Do you?

ToolsRecorder (maybe cellphone)Microphone if possibleEditing software (Adobe Audition or Audacity)Free sounds clips (Creative Commons)

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‘Best lens of all’Lets audience ‘see’with the mindRequires people to listen,concentrate, use imagination‘Painting pictures with sound’‘More intimate & personal’

Audio’s advantagesPresence: You bring readerto a locationEmotions: Tone of voice,expressions, pausesAtmosphere: Natural soundpulls listener in close

Authorities have made four arrests in connection with a bridge collapse that killed nearly a dozen people Saturday in the village of Liangping in south China.

Two local officials and two people with the company building the bridge were held responsible for the accident, investigators said.

Eleven people died and two were severely injured when the stone bridge under construction in Liangping collapsed Saturday afternoon.

Village officials had not received a license to erect the bridge, and they were ordered in April to stop working on the project. But construction apparently secretly resumed during the May Day holiday.

Chinese regulators recently ordered the country’s video streaming sites to remove four popular American television shows, including ‘The Big Bang Theory,’ a comedy about four socially awkward scientists. But a few days later, China’s national broadcaster began airing HBO’s violent and sexually explicit series, ‘Game of Thrones.’

The contrast points to what may be the real motivation behind China’s latest censorship measure. Authorities speak of “cleaning the web” of offensive content. But their real reason may be to remind the country’s flourishing private Internet firms that the government is still in charge.

Who even needs a dog these days? Especially when you have a loyal head of cabbage that will never leave your side.

Well, that's exactly what a handful of teenagers in China must think: They have been taking cabbages out for walks, tied to a piece of string, to fight loneliness and depression.

The trend was evident during a recent music festival in Beijing, where some attendees were seen dragging cabbages behind them on leashes.

Going out in public to 'walk' a cabbage reportedly allows for teenagers to seek out like-minded individuals with cabbages of their own.

Typical audio reportRecorded interviewVoiceover (you)Natural (environmental) soundSometimes sound effectsfor transitions

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National Public RadioU.S.; nonprofit; funding fromfoundations, governmentand listeners’ donationsGrowing audience, on air and online‘Driveway moments’: whenNRP listener stays in car

What different pieces (or kinds) of audio made up that story?

Some uses of audioReporter overviewPodcasts (audio blog)Audio slide showsBreaking news

Recording tipsPick quiet locationGather natural soundPrepare your subjectExplain what story is about, who

audience will be, provide questionsWatch what you say

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Recording tipsKeep quietInterview / rehearse first,then record your subjectMark best spots

For your reportWrite a scriptShort, simple sentences

Creative ‘hook’ to get listener interestedWarm up; exercise voiceFind ‘operative’ keywordsNatural & conversational

GearRange of recordersCellphoneMP3 playerRecord with computerMicrophoneHeadphones

Editing processCopy files from recorderto your computerName & manage filesOpen in editing softwareCrop out bad stuff (‘um’)

Editing processAdd & mix sound tracksIntroduction, interviews,

endingTransitions (fades)Make it stereoExport as MP3

PodcastingDistribution of audioover the Internet using RSSDownload to phone,MP3 player or computerMake available on iTunesVodcasting (with video)

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More tipsSpeak naturallyDon’t use big wordsKeep it simple; readers mustunderstand on 1st hearingDrama & suspenseWrite for the earPerformer & a journalist

Class projectGroups (3-4 students)Each group has a focusChoose 1 day (week of May 13?)We post all our photos, text & video on a website

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