The news website I will be tracking over the semester is Slate Magazine. Slate gives its users an easy and interesting way to connect to the news they find most interesting. It features news, videos and blogs that engage younger generations.
Slate has many examples of different kinds of online journalism. The staff takes full advantage of the many multi-media capabilities of twenty-first century technology in order to provide captivating stories to an audience with a short attention span.
Parallel reporting is a method used frequently by Slate. In this article about Republican Vice-Presidential nominee, Paul Ryan's views on the legalization of medical marijuana, parallel reporting is used to quote Presidential candidate, Mitt Romney's thoughts on the legalization of marijuana and its status as a "gateway drug." Parallel reporting is a type of journalism in which the same story is told in multiple ways. In this particular article, what Romney says in a video interview is quoted in the article.
Another example of multi-media journalism is convergence. Convergence combines news and pictures in different ways to tell a story. In a Slate article about the new novels by Andrew McCarthy and Molly Ringwald, the stars of the 80s classic, "Pretty in Pink," both actors commiserate about life post-stardom and the real world difficulties of relationships not explored in the Brat Pack flicks. The article tells a story and includes pictures of the stars in their roles as Blane and Andie, as well as shots of the cover of McCarthy's book.
An important element of journalism is having the ability to create topics and write pieces that will remain relevant no matter what the current news is. Slate created a series called the Happiness Project, a compilation of posts written to teach readers, "how to be happier." One evergreen article from the Happiness Project is "Seven Tips for Making a Good Conversation With a Stranger." The article gives tips on how to engage in a successful, memorable conversation with a stranger. This will remain relevant for as long as there are strangers in this world.
I had more trouble coming up with examples of interactivity on the site, because many of the old articles that included interactive features have since been deactivated.
The only prominent example of user generated content are comments from readers.
I look forward to tracking Slate over the course of the semester.
No comments:
Post a Comment