ALJ301 reactions, thoughts and musings

In just a couple of days a hard copy of this blog will arrive on lecturer Stephen Quinn’s desk, ready for marking.

He provided us with weekly set readings and asked us to present our reactions, opinions and thoughts on what multi-media developments would mean for future journalists.

But as I found myself trawling through the set material, figuring out the blog technology and coming to terms with the endless linking and searching for information, I found myself thinking about the blog most days. As I read news articles or other blogs, I wondered whether there was something interesting in it I could point out to my (rather measly!) readership.

I began writing more often, on the readings and other things I came across. And I noticed my strict, staid news-writing style giving way to a more free and conversational tone. Needless to say, I’m an editor’s nightmare, having completely blown the weekly 240 word limit.

But I learnt a lot about multi-media (”now media”, in the wise words of STOMP’s Felix Soh), about its power and potential, and about my need to jump on the bandwagon NOW!

So feel free to follow me to korenhelbig.wordpress.com, where I will attempt to continue regular posts about interesting things I come across in the course of my journalistic endeavours.

See you there!

Cheers – Koren

 Jeff Jarvis, journalism educator, media
consultant, journalist and blogger.

Photo: Helayne Seidman,
The Washington Post

Jeff Jarvis uses his BuzzMachine blog to float ideas, gain reactions and widen his thought-web. It’s exactly how a great blog could and should enhance the work of a journalist.

Take, for example, yesterday’s post. Jarvis needed to put together an essay on the future of the internet. He started by outlining his own thoughts on why access to a free internet should be a right, like having electricity or access to a good education.

He concluded by asking what his audience thought. Already there are 17 comments and several have broadened the scope of his discussion. One particularly good comment by Gina Welker asked how the internet will work when lumped upon cultures outside of the Western world. Good one.

Jarvis may not have thought of that angle, but now he has a chance to widen his essay and make it more meaningful. The same scenario could pay dividends for a journalist working on a difficult story.

Plenty of journalism educators advocate this type of networking. But I haven’t been able to find a blog that is dedicated to airing possible story leads.

So, in the spirit of Jarvis, I’ll turn the problem over to you. Have you found any of these blogs?

– Koren

PS – While compiling this post I discovered (oh so belatedly) the joy of following a linking trail. It started with a click to Gina Welker’s funny little murmurings and ended at this literally hilarious weblog.

I’ve mentioned the Brisbane Times before in a rather positive light. But lately, as I’ve visited the site more frequently, I’ve noticed some major flaws that I’d like to point out.

Firstly, a lot of the stories are just lightly rewritten press releases, stories lifted straight from the AAP wire or worse, rewritten stories from other news organisations. Where’s the journalism?

Secondly, the style is rather racy and tabloid-inspired - not to my liking, especially when it comes to headline writing (take, for example, two stories on the site today: Penis is schoolbag: kiddie porn or just child’s play? and Man’s ‘genitals set alight before he was shot’).

But the biggest problem, for me, is the lack of local content. For a website that bills itself as Brisbane-based, there is often precious little local content on the site – especially compared to the rival Courier Mail website.

In addition, the Courier Mail often beats the Brisbane Times by hours when reporting on breaking news. I know which site is my first port of call.

Maybe I’m biased. The Courier Mail is News Limited and so am I! But I’d like to see some current circulation figures to see if others have noticed the flaws.

Mindy McAdams, journalist, journalism
educator, web developer and blogger.

Photo: Teaching Online Journalism

I’ve highlighted the quality work of Mindy McAdams several times already in this blog (see here and here).

But Mindy’s latest couple of posts got me thinking. She’s trying to create a “starter package” list of skills that employers could reasonably expect journalism graduates to possess when they graduate.

Now let’s be honest straight up: I don’t know how to do some of the stuff she lists. And, though just two modules away from completing my journalism major, I probably won’t learn them before I graduate.

At first this annoyed me. I wondered if Australian students were getting a raw deal compared to our overseas counterparts. I wanted Australian lecturers to take the bull by the horns and get more practical in their training (assigning more hands-on tasks like this very blog, a component of Deakin University’s ALJ301 course).

Then I read comment #13 by Brendan, who says “focusing heavily on skills is dangerous” because the basics can become lost among all the technology.

The debate, funnily enough, seems to mirror the uncertainty surrounding developments in the media industry overall. How do we sustain quality and meaningful “old fashioned” reporting while embracing the constant and rampant technology changes?

There’s got to be some sort of happy medium here. And I don’t think the formula is quite right just yet. Let’s do away with this “publish first, get it right later” online mentality, for starters.

– Koren

After my miraculous induction into the world of RSS just a few weeks ago (see my previous post), I subscribed to Juan Antonio Guiner’s Innovations in Newspapers blog.

This guy is a machine! He posts every day, often twice or more, and brings attention to some of the best (and worst) newspaper initiatives from across the globe. I particularly like his short, no-nonsense writing style. He keeps his blog informative but quick and easy to digest.

Guiner is all too aware of the challenges facing newspaper operators – reduced revenue as advertisers high-tail it to the internet, increased competition, staff cuts… the list goes on.

But Guiner firmly believes that “good journalism sells“, whatever platform it is presented in.

Here are just a couple of the ingredients that make up Guiner’s recipe for success:

• Newspapers need to react quickly to remain in the game.
• Newspapers must report exclusively, deliver solutions (not just problems), and provide analysis and the news behind the news.
• Journalists, especially print journos, need to do all this while writing for their audience, not just relaying expert mumbo-jumbo.

I’d like to add my own ingredient: Newsrooms must foster attitudes that embrace change. Too often in my workplace I see people committed to doing things the old way and resisting change. Times are a’ changing – let’s keep up!

– Koren

Oh – and this post by Guiner is worth checking out, because it’s just plain funny.

 Juan Antonio Guiner, founding director of
Innovation International Media and blogger.
Photo: Innovations in Newspapers

This week I discovered the Straits Times online mobile and print (STOMP) site. In some ways this site, which complements the more serious and staid Straits Times, mirrors the OhmyNews phenomenon (see my Week 5 post for more on OhmyNews).

But STOMP cleverly merges user-generated content with traditional journalism in a different way. It allows ordinary citizens to send in photos, news tips, even whole stories (in almost any format you can imagine), which are then re-worked by qualified journalists/producers.

The STOMP crew even allow the tipster to review the story and make changes if necessary. This idea freaked the hell out of me – in many cases where I’ve allowed someone to “check” my story they have taken it as an opportunity to nit-pick the crap out of it, resulting in tons of emails and phone calls back and forth.

Yet STOMP editor Jennifer Lewis says the initial petty complaints have slowed and the option creates a new kind of power in reporting. I guess it would be nice to know one could achieve 100 per cent accuracy with a little help from citizen journos.

But the truly great things about STOMP is its unassuming attitude about what constitutes news. The ‘about us‘ page puts it simply: 

“We want STOMP to become a forum of lively discussion – whether the topics are weighty national issues or where to get the best bak chor mee.”

Now there’s a way to appeal to all.

UPDATE (SEPTEMBER 26): For a more scathing (and rather funny) look at STOMP, check out this post by ALJ301 student Michael.

Mindy McAdams posted two awesome blogs at Teaching Online Journalism this week.

The first lists advice from a journo graduate on how to make it in the online world. I love it. Learn the lingo, learn html, succeed.

The second is about self-promotion. Do you have a quality, professional online presence? Let’s put ourselves out there people!