8 tasks for digital journalists

8 Things Digital Journalists Do

That Print Journalists Don’t Have To

with Margot Carmichael Lester

© 2017 by Teaching That Makes Sense, Inc. All rights reserved. For more information contact Margot Lester at [email protected]

Session Overview Slug: Digital copy has a few special requirements.

Story: All journalists focus on writing; digital journalists have additional duties.

News: There are eight important tasks most digital journalists have to do beyond reporting and writing.

So?: Mastering these basics makes you more valuable in the newsroom.


Why We Care About Digital Tasks

• Content that lives online isn’t of much value if readers can’t find and consume it on any device they want.

• Good writing is always priority one, but there are a few other tactics online writers deploy to increase engagement and discoverability.


Let’s Review those 8 Things!


8 Tasks for Digital Journalists


1. Write multiple heads 2. Create metadata 3. Format text 4. Source visuals 5. Add key words & phrases 6. Deliver more context 7. Optimize length 8. Identify other content

1. Write multiple heads. H1, mobile, emotional

1. Write multiple heads. The H1 head is main title of an online article. Follow the same rules as for print.

The mobile head is shorter (usually 55 characters) and optimized for small screens.

The emotional head is catchier and used for social posts or homepage feature spots.


Photo by kjetikor - Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License https://www.flickr.com/photos/43642098@N06 Created with Haiku Deck

2. Create metadata. search-related

"supplemental content"

2. Create metadata The meta/title tag (50-60 characters) are the clickable heads in search results and crucial for discoverability and social sharing.

The meta description (150-160 characters) provides a concise explanation of page content and often shows up on search engine result pages to help people find what they’re looking for.


meta/title tag

meta description


Photo by Alex W McCabe - Creative Commons Attribution License https://www.flickr.com/photos/34339147@N03 Created with Haiku Deck

3. Format Text skim, scan, read

3. Format text. Online content is read on TV-sized monitors and watch-sized screens. Keep paragraphs short and concise, and use lists and subheads to encourage skimming, scanning and reading.



lists

subheads

Photo by gliak00 - Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License https://www.flickr.com/photos/126219266@N06 Created with Haiku Deck

4. Source visuals. photos, images, videos

4. Source visuals.

Many digital journalists also suggest or source graphics from archives, video banks or stock photo inventories, or produce their own.


Photo by Josh Kenzer - Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License https://www.flickr.com/photos/36908075@N03 Created with Haiku Deck

5. Add key words/phrases.

5. Add key words/phrases

Pay attention to the terms you use to research a story, the auto-suggestions in the browser bar and the related searches at the bottom of the results page. Jot them down and if they work for your text or your headlines, use them to improve discoverability.


key words & phrases

Photo by thedescrier - Creative Commons Attribution License https://www.flickr.com/photos/61502033@N02 Created with Haiku Deck

6. Deliver more context. related content, contextual links

6. Deliver more context.

Add context with related online content you can feature at the top, bottom or inline. Create contextual links within the text to point readers to content that provides additional insight, data or credibility.


contextual links

related content

Photo by Marcin Wichary - Creative Commons Attribution License https://www.flickr.com/photos/8399025@N07 Created with Haiku Deck

7. Optimize length. not too short, not too long

7. Optimize length. Unlike print, the online news hole is fluid, based on metrics like time on site, engagement, etc. The research changes regularly — be aware of the sweet spots for readership and work within them.


For now, preferred lengths are:

<400 words for short posts, breaking/trending news and contextualized/amplified content

>1600 words for features, in-depth reporting and analysis


Photo by dickie pea - Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License https://www.flickr.com/photos/32676956@N06 Created with Haiku Deck

8. Identify other content. atomize, enterprise

8. Identify other content.

Suggest ways of getting more coverage of a topic, or more use of information. Showcase data from an article into an infographic, chart or other visual. Create a podcast or article series from an interview. Build a photo gallery/story or slide show to amplify an article or q&a.


So?Even if you aren’t currently expected to perform these tasks, knowing how they work, why they’re important and how to execute them makes you more valuable in future positions.


8 Things Digital Journalists DoThat Print Journalists Don’t Have To

with Margot Carmichael Lester Twitter: @word_factory

Blog: thewordfactory.com/our-blog Instagram: @beabetterwriter

Thanks for attending


8 tasks for digital journalists

Education