Jan
30
A few links for your consideration.
- 10 Universities Offering Free Writing Courses Online. Only a few of these are journalism-related but hey, they’re free.
- Fade to Black. Mark Potts isn’t very exercised that the Detroit Free Press has become the largest circulation newspaper to drop its in-house movie critic. I’m a little torn on this: most local movie reviewing is pretty lame, but there are some very good, perceptive reviewers out there whose writing is a joy to read.
- Afghanistan’s Senate endorses reporter’s death sentence: official. The appeals continue and the decision ultimately rests with Karzai. It’s shameful if the Canadian government, which has our troops engaged in the fight for the future of Afghanistan, isn’t pressing Karzai to overturn this decision.
- How to tell good stories in audio slideshows. The strongest point of the Alfred Hermida’s post is this: “Being a multimedia journalist isn’t about coding, but about using tools such as Soundslides to tell stories.”
- Why newspaper sites will continue to struggle with reader participation. I’m not sure where Howard Owens finds the time, but this is one of two exceptionally good posts he’s written today. (The other is Yes, Virginia, blogs are a competitive threat to MSM businesses.) Both deserved to be read if you’re making decisions about how your newspaper deals with community.
- Is journalism a good career choice for most of you? No. Well. Pat Thornton is pulling no punches. Nobody tell my classes about this, okay? (Actually, that’s just foolin’-around talk. Last week, when I asked my first-years how many wanted to go to work for a newspaper, not a single hand went up. These kids are already smarter than I am.)
- Learning Your Craft In The New Media World. Very interesting advice for those (like my first-years) who don’t necessarily see their futures in traditional terms. Includes this: “That’s the freedom of new media. No one is blocking your access. You put crappy stuff up, no one will watch it. You put good stuff up, they will. Go ahead and watch your stuff sitting next to someone and tell me you can’t sense when they are bored or engaged. Learn from that.”
