In this age of tablets, smart phones, and social networks, video is a powerful way to introduce people to a cause. But on YouTube and other video-sharing sites, real-world issues often take a back seat to pop-culture favorites like “Fuzzy Fuzzy Cute Cute” (which, incidentally, surpassed a nonprofit video about global warming by more than 2 million views). The reality is, many advocacy groups are struggling to capture the attention of the general public. It’s time for them to step up their digital-storytelling game. These five tips can help.
Video journalism is an evolving field that has yet to cultivate an obvious identity for itself. Many companies have different needs and objectives and staff videographer positions will inevitably vary in their responsibilities. But there are a few skills that I strongly believe all budding video journalists should take note of as they begin their careers in multimedia production.
Networking is often seen as distasteful because many think it is all about putting yourself first to get ahead. However, I urge you to carefully consider your network and how you can strategically strengthen your connections to form beneficial two-way relationships. Regardless of where you are in your career, networking is an absolute must. So, let’s figure out how you can network efficiently and effectively.
Toady I am excited to launch a new series all about selling yourself professionally. I hope to cover a wide array of topics throughout this weekly series, including how to market and price your services, how to network successfully and how to best match your skills with an ideal job, among others. Hopefully these posts will be helpful for both students entering the job market as well as those in the middle of their career looking to transition in some fashion. As a disclaimer, I do not claim expertise in this area. However, I will reach out to a wide variety of people in order to give you numerous opinions on each topic. Moreover, I will utilize the knowledge I have garnered from peers, teachers and professionals over the years that have helped me shape my own professional strategy. First and most importantly, let’s talk about perfecting your story.
I have been blogging for more than three years, and I have normally kept my personal life, well personal. However, I alerted you when I applied for Nicholas Kristof’s contest, I updated everyone when I was accepted into UNC’s MBA program and I blogged when I finished my thesis. I think it’s important that bloggers add a personal touch every once and awhile. Recently an II reader asked me to blog about my thoughts on blogging and why I spend so much time doing it. So, for the first time, here is my take on blogging and why I would actually caution others from doing it.
If you are interested in data visualization and information design, I hope you already subscribe to Datavisualization.ch, the company blog of Interactive Things, a design and technology studio based in Zürich, Switzerland. Recently, they began a new series called “Datavisualization.ch Inside” where, similar to II’s “Behind the Scenes” series, they “look behind the scenes of interesting data visualization projects and present their development processes from the very beginning to the final product.”
English journalism blogger Adam Westbrook kindly gave me a sneak peak of his latest e-book that was released today and I was extremely impressed by both the creativity and depth he delivers about alternative business models for those within the journalism sector. Titled “Next Generation Journalist,” Adam details 10 viable revenue streams along with complementary interviews, case studies, and resources for further reading. If you are tired of the doom and gloom talk and ready to take action, I would highly recommend reading Adam’s book for an inspirational jump start.
In case you were living under a rock this month (or, if you were like me, buried deep in final papers, projects, presentations and exams) you might have missed some of the more note-worthy links that I shared in April. No worries! I’ll get you all caught up by highlighting my favorites so you can quickly browse what I deem as most important. Of course I can’t track everyone and everything, so please share your favorite April read in the comments!
Former managing editor for multimedia at The Washington Post Tom Kennedy recently gave a talk at The Knight Center for International Media at the University of Miami. Thankfully, the talk was videotaped, and it was recently uploaded for your viewing pleasure. I only caught the last half when it was covered live last Wednesday, so I went back and watched the first half tonight. I highly recommend putting it on in the background while you answer your morning emails, or while you eat lunch. His thoughts on digital media are right on and his advice is not to be missed!
I hope everyone is aware of several competition deadlines that are fast approaching. I have listed five January deadlines here for your convenience (listed chronologically by deadline). Some are free, while others are cheap and there are competitions for both students and professionals. Please remember to submit your work – the results are only valid if the winners are chosen amongst a rich sampling of other work in our field! Best of luck to everyone and please let me know if there are any other upcoming deadlines we should be know about.
