Multimedia Journalism and Media Convergence

Multimedia Journalism

Entertainment-related stories often make for great opportunities for multimedia journalism. Television, movies and music engage our eyes, ears and imagination so there are a number of great opportunities to use different kinds of media to create an engaging story. Creating a multimedia piece for an entertainment story also works well because it fits the same role entertainment does. We turn to television, movies and music when we’re looking for stimulation and when we read a story that incorporates different forms of media, our minds are stimulated and engaged in the best way.

This story from the MSN Entertainment home page includes a list of the ten most successful midseason replacement shows. It’s more a fluff piece, but there’s not room for a lot of impactful stories on super bowl Sunday. The story is a written piece that comes with a slideshow of pictures from the ten shows. Using a slideshow with this story is probably the best option to take. Seeing pictures of the characters will do a lot to trigger memories for people who already like the shows, and perhaps sway people who have never seen the shows into trying them out.

While using a slideshow was better than just running a print story, I think the wisest decision for a story about television shows would’ve been to use video clips. Obviously, videos would’ve have captured the tone of the shows better and been a more effective way to engage readers. Copyright issues abound when it comes to using videos, though, so perhaps a slideshow is the best choice after all.  

Media Convergence

On a more serious note, a topic that has and will continue to dominate the media is the Republican primaries. As we inch closer to November, we’ll continue to be bombarded by Election ’12 stories. Sticking to print for these kinds of stories can quickly get boring and stale so when we tell these stories using a broad platform of methods, they become more effective.

Last week, Mitt Romney won the Nevada primary so of course, every news outlet in every platform had to report on it. ABC7 reported on it in their evening newscast which was probably the most engaging and effective way to do it. It’s short and sweet and tells us everything we need to know in a short amount of time.

The Republican primaries and candidates aren’t anything new at this point, so there’s only so much we can say every time someone wins. BBC also reported on this story, but they used a short video and a much longer written companion piece. The BBC’s piece was yet another example of multimedia journalism. Using the video would’ve sufficed, but including the print portion was a good choice for people who maybe wanted a more in-depth analysis of the primary, a history of the candidates and anything else related to the upcoming election.  I found the print piece to be a little dry and too long so I definitely preferred ABC7’s report.

Media convergence is essential in this day and age, though, because it ensures that everyone has a chance to hear the story. The upcoming election is hugely important so everyone wants to be informed. Media convergence makes it possible for everyone to stay up to date, no matter which method they prefer.

Assignment #1 - Convergence & Multimedia Examples

Media Convergence


In the news around Los Angeles recently has been the disturbing story of elementary school teacher, Mark Berdnt, who was accused of feeding students his bodily fluids. Now, the Los Angeles Times is reporting that a female student of Berndt's was transferred to the classroom of Martin Springer, where she was touched inappropriately. The story wasn't just covered in print via the Times, it was also covered in broadcast by local station KTLA 5, making it an example of convergence of news content.

As we saw with the story of the chess team, this is an example of convergence of news content because it's the same story being covered across various media platforms. Our textbook, "Convergent Journalism," also defines storytelling convergence or convergence of news content as : "convergence coverage driven by the significance of the news event... convergence is about doing journalism and telling stories using the most appropriate media. The importance of the news event should dictate the depth and type of coverage." (pg 7) The news about the same female student being victimized by two elementary school teachers is clearly a significant news event that garnered the attention of both print and broadcast media.

Each content had its strengths and weaknesses, depending on the platform it was presented. The LA Times article was more in-depth, it presented the details of Berndt's previous accusations by parents and it also explored the possible connection between the two teachers, stating they might've been working together since the two took their classrooms on field trips together. On the other hand, the KTLA news segment was more like the spark notes version of the story, but since its broadcast, the segment had a reporter outside the elementary school interviewing mothers of students who were very admit about wanting to protest.

Not only are the news and broadcast story an example of convergence of news coverage, they're also an example of industry convergence since both the LA Times and KTLA are owned by the same company.

Multimedia Journalism


In lighter news, the CNN website recently posted an excellent example of multimedia journalism. As a cold snap is wreaking havoc and eastern and central Europe, Rome received its first snowfall since 1985. Along the CNN article reporting about how cold it is in Europe, the reporter included a slideshow, complete with captions, to not just tell everyone how cold it is, but to show the snow as well.

As with the multimedia journalism example in class of the General Motors slideshow with the news story, the CNN article also had a slideshow to accompany a short print story. One of the benefits of using multimedia journalism as a product of convergence is the ability to "expand the way we tell stories." (convergence PPT) In this example, the reporter's print article about the cold is a little flat but by including pictures, readers are able to get a good visual of the snow and be more inclined to click through the slideshow than reading the drab print article.

This article is also a great example of the benefits of using multimedia journalism online. By being posted on the CNN website, the reporter has the ability for interactivity with the readers. At the bottom of the article is a comment box where readers can leave comments using their CNN, Facebook or Twitter accounts. In the top right hand corner of the article are social media buttons, where readers can "recommend" this article on Facebook or Tweet about it, not only allowing for greater dissemination by CNN, but allowing for an added layer of interactivity with readers.


Posted By: Amelia Lerutte
:]

Blog Assignment #1

Submit one example of media convergence and one example of multimedia journalism

Each example should be accompanied by a 250-word analysis of what makes your selection an example of media convergence or an example of multimedia journalism.

You must provide links to each example in your blog and you must refer to the readings in the text in your blog.