Voyeurism is addictive
Posted on July 31, 2007
I can’t play video games. Don’t get me wrong, I have good hand-eye coordination and excelled at Doom back in the day.
No, I can’t play because I become this couch-zombie game addict who rarely blinks. Really, my eyes become so dry they hurt! (The Wii, I can do, however, because I’m movin’ around. Swinging my arms wildly trying to beat my opponent at boxing; well, I *have* to blink during all that commotion.)
Besides, I just don’t have time for that stuff, anyway. I already spend too many hours on the computer reading blogs and the latest on multimedia and journalism.
But I’ve been administering the eye drops because last weekend, I have to admit, I caught a “video game” bug and spent a little longer than I’d like to admit playing: The HBO Voyeur Project, which is a series of multimedia stories that revolve around the theme of voyeuerism. “See what people do when they think no one is watching …”
It takes some time to download, but it was worth it because right off the bat, I was wowed with the Flash design and presentation. Watching the scenes in the first apartment building was jaw-dropping enough, then I realized there’s a whole city to explore. Each building (four at this point, but they may add more) and unit with its own storyline.
Aside from the Flash aspect, how can we apply this example to journalism?
>> This is non-linear storytelling. The user must choose their own route through the presentation.
Sure, it’s entertainment, and we wouldn’t *necessarily* tell a news story in this fashion. But you *could* use this technique to reenact the scene of a crime or to create a more visually interesting interactive timeline.
>> The story is told on several platforms. This isn’t where the presentation ends or begins.
“The Project includes the main website, HBO On Demand and HBO Mobile exclusive content, MySpace pages for the characters from the stories, supporting websites, and additional content for those willing to follow the breadcrumbs or “artifacts” hidden in the other media. Clues /discussion about voyeur artifacts found at the promotional blog http://www.thestorygetsdeeper.com. The project was estimated to have cost between $7 and $10 million dollars, and took about a year to create.”
>> The content and presentation is addictive. The site is set up to draw you in, and it encourages you to stay and explore it. (Don’t forget that Nielsen will count only unique users and time spent instead of page views.)
Good reads for 07.28.07
Posted on July 28, 2007
>> Facebook continues to grow, and it’s going even more mainstream. The Wall Street Journal’s Kara Swisher visits their HQ in Palo Alto, Calif.:
(Kudos to Kara for taking readers along with her on this interview, but I don’t think the shooting is up to Angela Grant’s standards. ;) )
Which probably means it’s on the way out, no? Anyway, here’s what’s being blogged: Facebook boosts college paper’s readership, recruiting; Facebook: What’s in it for journalists?; How much is s Facebook oser worth? At least $0.30; and more on Facebook from Innovation in College Media.
Got the Facebook fever? These two journalism groups have recently been made: Online Journalism Blog and Journalists and Facebook. I also found groups for NAA and ONA.
>> Mindy McAdams went to Travel Channel Academy Video Bootcamp; read what she thought of it.
“Having all the trainers as experienced professional video editors made a huge difference. Even when I had to wait to get help, I didn’t have to wait very long. I could see that the people with the least experience were getting a lot of one-on-one help. In most workshops I attend or conduct, we do not have the luxury of having so many hands-on people in the room, and it’s rare to have so many people with extensive experience in the exact thing you’re learning.”
Watch two videos she produced during the training. And she also has posted a helpful list of options for video editing software.
>> Want more video tips? Angela Grant offers advice on how to import still images into Final Cut Pro. While Mastering Videography has a primer on batteries.
>> Shane Richmond of the Telegraph.co.uk needs some help finding online journalism’s must-read blog posts. “Which articles do you often refer back to?” he asks. “Which ones are you always forwarding to people or referring to in speeches and seminars? Which are the articles that changed your mind, shaped your thinking or simply summarised a complex issue?”
>> William M Hartnett has noticed that there are several computer-assisted reporting jobs open (or being added): “It seems like there is an uncommonly high number of computer-assisted job openings at newspapers these days. (And by “uncommonly high” I mean “more than one.” It is a relatively small field, after all.)”
More doom and gloom for newspapers
Posted on July 28, 2007
>> AP ending ‘asap’: No real surprise, says Doug Fisher. “E&P and some others seem surprised at this. Why? AP continued to distribute ‘asap’ through its members’ Web sites. But the 18-to-34 set isn’t going to ‘newspaper.com’ to start or end the day — or much in the middle, for that matter. Those readers tend to go to more socially oriented sites that let them share stories, photos, experiences, etc. Most newspaper sites are still far from that.”
>> The next three years are critical for newspaper Web sites, according to Howard Owens. He says: “I know there are those who would say the prospects are bleak now. I disagree. I remain hopeful. But I would say the trends now are neutral. Our fate hangs in the balance.”
>> David Johnson at the LostRemote gives some good analysis of Fortune’s “Can the Washington Post survive?” “Anyway you look at this, it isn’t a pretty picture for anyone in the news business,” he says. “Print is bleeding, but our customers, the guys like Jordan Bitterman who buy our advertising space, go to bed happy at night knowing they don’t need to pay us a lot to reach our online audiences.”
>> Advertisers better enjoy their shut-eye while they can get it. Sharply increased online rates are on the way, says Lucas Grindley. “If newspapers respond to market demands, the amount of money it costs for a simple banner ad is about to jump dramatically. Just guessing on the exact figure, but I’d say online CPMs have a strong likelihood of at least doubling within the next two years.”
>> And Lucas has a warning for newspaper employees: Prepare for salary cuts across the board. “Plan now,” he warns. “Many of you will make less money in the near future. Instead of cutting bodies, some newsroom managers will consider slashing salaries as a better option.”
Good and bad news for online video
Posted on July 25, 2007
Let’s start with the good news first.
Web users say online video is great, says a Pew Internet & American Life Project study. “Online video now reaches a mainstream audience; 57% of online adults have used the internet to watch or download video, and 19% do so on a typical day.”
Now for the bad news.
>> Young adults aren’t watching video from news sites.
>> And all the niche citizen journalism newspaper Web sites out there, listen up: Viewers prefer to watch professional video rather than amateur (user-generated) content. (NOTE: This one straddles the line; it’s definitely “good news” for newspaper photographers!)
Here are some of their findings:
>> “News video is the most popular category for everyone except young adults.”
According to their survey, 49% of video viewers age 18-29 watch their videos on YouTube; 6% of them watch on news sites. Egads! That’s a huge difference.
>> “Most online video viewers prefer professionally-produced video over content ‘produced by amateurs.’ “
“Overall, 62% of online video viewers say that their favorite videos are those that are professionally produced, while 19% of online video viewers express a preference for amateur content. Another 11% say they enjoy both professionally-produced video and amateur online video equally.”
Ah, well. All is not lost. Here’s some more good news to sandwich the bad:
>> Viewers may appreciate GOOD advertising.
One in eight Internet users watch or download commercials online, the survey says.
“Young adults are twice as likely as users age 50 and older to say they watch or download commercial videos online; 22% of those 18-29, 13% of users ages 30-49, 7% of users age 50-64 and 8% of those ages 65 and older say they consume commercial video content online.”
>> “Most video viewers watch at home, but one in four report at-work viewing.”
This finding, I think, further supports newspaper Web site strategies to play up video in the evening hours:
“Video viewers who are ages 30-49, those who have a college degree, and those living in households earning $75,000 or more are among the most likely to watch video at work; roughly one-third of each group views online video at their workplace. However, those who have a broadband connection at work beat out all of these other demographic groups; 37% of online video viewers who have a high-speed connection at work watch video there.”
Prometeus - The Media Revolution
Posted on July 25, 2007
Some guesses about what will happen on the Web during the next 40-50 years. “A new figure emerges: the prosumer, a producer and a consumer of information. Anyone can be a prosumer,” says Davide Casaleggio.
Who should foot the bill?
Posted on July 22, 2007
Angela Grant points out a debate about multimedia equipment in a blog post by SPJ President Christine Tatum. Should journalists or their employers foot the bill for Web resources?
This is an issue that’s bothered me this past year as I hand out equipment recommendations to reporters and photographers (I tell them to ask their editors about reimbursement options). And I’ve been on the “if it’s the company’s time, it should be the company’s equipment” side of the argument. Why should we buy hardware and software to produce content that we don’t own?
I do agree there are some pluses to owning my gear, though. I wouldn’t have to wait in line or deal with a broken device. And there’s an opportunity that with your own (and assumedly better) equipment, you could get better results. Says Tatum: “I hear from far too many reporters who say, ‘They expect fire but give me flint to make it.’ ”
I have heard that in some newsrooms, photographers DO purchase their own still cameras (and maybe video, too). So this concept may be more jarring for reporters.
I fear that journalists in newsrooms that aren’t paying for gear and who can’t or won’t buy it for themselves will fall behind in what’s becoming and going to be essential skill sets. Are they just SOL?
But, egads. Angela’s wish list would cost more that $6,000 for just the camera, computer and software. Then you have to buy the peripherals. That sure would be painful on many pocketbooks. It’s not like journalists are making the big bucks to begin with.
Baltimore homicides in 2007
Posted on July 20, 2007
The Baltimore Sun put this map together as a part of their Confronting Crime series.
What an effective way to illustrate this series. You can search their interactive database of homicides so far this year, and click on a point to see who was killed where.
They say a picture is worth 1,000 words: Try a search for all blacks in all of 2007, then compare that map to all whites in all of 2007.
Holy crap.
Credits: Data compiled by Sun reporter Gus Sentementes using information from the City of Baltimore. Baltimoresun.com designer Stephen Mekosh produced the Google Map mashup.
UPDATE: I made a typo in the headline that was completely unintentional. It’s now fixed.
Making baby the high-tech way
Posted on July 20, 2007
OK, so not every project can be an advanced, fully-integrated, multimedia project. We just don’t have the resources to do that. And not every project warrants it.
So when you’re strapped for time but still want to make an interesting presentation, just jazz up your print graphic into an interactive like this example on MSNBC.
It’s a wee bit more involved than posting a link to a 2-D graphic, but it’s a whole lot more interesting to view. Each step (aside from the last frame) is a graphic that zooms in with a next button. They just made it look pur-ty.
If you don’t want to play, move out of the way
Posted on July 18, 2007
Watch out reporters and photographers, future journalists set to join newsrooms full time in the next couple of years (if they stick around) are producing some nice online stories.
I’m particularly impressed with this piece by Roanoke.com’s Tim Gruber from Ohio University (his first for the paper).
Check it out:
Note: Keep in mind that Tim created his very first piece for a video class in May — of this year. (Should be inspiration to us all!)
You can watch it here.
He blogged about it and shares a few lessons learned:
No matter how steady you think you can hold the camera. You can’t.
Headphones are the key to good audio, but don’t forget to do a visual check of the audio levels on your camera.
The more you shoot the more you have to edit. If at all possible know what you’re going after coming into a story. That’s not to say go in with the story already written because the beauty of life is that it’s unscripted.
Don’t let the camera shoot for you. Turn off auto everything and do the thinking for the camera. It’ll guarantee you the results you’re after.
You can never have enough detail shots.
Depending on the pacing of your video (ie: alot of fast cuts) you better make sure you wide variety of material to work with.
A good soundtrack can help reinforce what you want your audience to feel. Care must be taken though not to abuse that power.
Good reads for 07.17.07
Posted on July 17, 2007
>> Will the paper edition of newspapers eventually become secondary to online? Says The New York Times Executive Editor Bill Keller: ” … the Web audience is growing at a great clip, while print circulation is not. And online revenues are growing faster, too, albeit from a smaller base. If the trend continues, there’s little doubt that — ‘eventually’ — online becomes the main business.” Will newspapers on paper disappear eventually? “Keller: Eventually covers a lot of future. I think newspapers on paper will be around for a good while yet. They may in time become niche products — like vinyl LPs — for a particular loyal audience.” Some more observations about the interview from ditors Weblog.
>> After 126 years, The Cincinnati Post and The Kentucky Post will stop the presses for good on Dec. 31, 2007, the E.W. Scripps Co. announced today. Staffers and readers react.
>> Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive launched its first community site, LoudounExtra.com. “One of the interesting things about the new Loudoun Extra site is that it’s a community-oriented, hyperlocal site… but the site is not depending on the community,” says Beth Lawton, writing for The Digital Edge. “Unlike BackFence, which largely ran on contributions from locals, Loudoun Extra so far is fed mostly by professional reporters and journalism interns.” Rob Curley will chat about the new site with readers on Wednesday.
I find it interesting that they’re using the label “multimedia” on a community site. Is this a mainstream word now, or still industry jargon?
>> Mindy McAdams posted a two-hour video (divided into four parts) of a recent University of Florida panel discussion about video on newspaper Web sites. The experts (Chuck Fadely, Regina McCombs and Chet Rhodes) share video training and workflow tips and samples.
>> Richard Koci Hernandez shares 6 rules for video on the Internet.
>> Smashing magazine reviews “unusual, remarkable and outstanding” homepages. I don’t see newspapers trying these, but some design ideas here are quite innovative.
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