Climbing on board the new media bandwagon
Tips on how to revolutionize the way you produce content
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January 16, 2010 5:56 PM
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Everyone’s talking about: The social media sites that are going to help you attract a wider audience and gain insight into what your readers are interested in.
But, do you have any idea where to start?
Student journalists should be using social media sites — like Twitter and Facebook — for reporting and gathering information, said new media guru Mack Male (@mastermaq) of Edmonton.
“I think [social media] has absolutely impacted local news,” Male said. “It’s had an impact in that journalists often find stories, or find reactions to stories, or find content for their news using social media tools.”
Male said that papers should be using social media to enhance their print product with blogs, podcasts, or other multimedia elements.
“Instead of just publishing in the student paper that comes out twice a week or whatever, they could be posting on an ongoing basis to a blog or Twitter,” he said.
Male said that there are three main social media tools student journalists should be using to attract readers and enhance their reporting.
“Blogs are really good because they give you a permanent place to store things, they give you an opportunity to write a longer type of entries."
Male also commented on the usefullness of Twitter and its ability to get information in real time.
“[Use it for] posting links to stories as soon as they’re published, finding links that people are talking about [and] getting reaction from people from your stories.”
There is also the obvious: “Facebook is pretty useful just to be able to have a place for people to post comments or discussions or other things related to your content,” Male said.
Since the majority of mainstream have already hopped on the social media band wagon, Male said it’s a good idea for student journalists interested in careers in the media to do it to.
“For student journalists who are trying to learn the ways of the business and how they’re going to be able to use their skills when they get a job — you might as well start early, right?” Male said.
SIDEBAR
Chris Berube, CUP's new media co-ordinator, also had some input on the new media tools you should be using.
Adding a second web editor — Every paper should have two editors responsible for the Internet: One who is responsible for generating and overseeing content on the website, and one who is responsible for the technical side. Also, try and promote the online editor to a full editor's position if it isn't already one.
Train the whole staff in your backend system — Everyone should know how to operate a web system if they want jobs, so why not learn now? This will make your life easier in terms of getting content online without relying on an additional editor.
Integrate new media into your production schedule — Setting goals in terms of the amount of weekly content is the best way to get started. It builds an audience when you have consistent features that appear at a predictable time each week.
Use the tools available on the web already — Every paper should be using social media to promote their brand. However, it is also worthwhile to use free web tools in your production schedule. Using Google Docs or free file-sharing sites can make your production schedule more portable. Further, there are free web applications to fill in the gaps in most back-end systems, especially HotInk.
Consume a lot of new media — Read and learn the best practices.