Five Tools Every Journalist Should Use

JN 325Reporting & Writing Across Media

Presenter: Ryan Phillips

The Age Of The Mobile Journalist

As the landscape of information dissemination changes, those in the industry must change with it.

Journalists have at their disposal a wide range of tools aimed at making the concept of a “Backpack Journalist” more of a reality.

For the first time since the advent of the internet, journalists are forced to become tech-savvy.

Utilization is key

Despite the negative stigma, immediacy has become paramount (Don’t forget accuracy)

There are tools available that will make your job as a journalist easy ,but can that be a bad thing?

What benefits have you experienced with using multimedia tools in your work?

While tech tools are nice, they are no replacement for sound journalistic fundamentals (I.E writing, interview skills, intuition, etc)

ToolsDictation software

Online video platforms

Visual-based social media

Mobile Word Processors

Mobile note/recording software

Dictation Software

When dealing with in-depth interviews, transcribing can be time-consuming, especially when deadlines are involved.

There is new software emerging that aims to help with the transcription process, but be wary that this will handle the bulk and not the entirety of the interview process in terms of accuracy.

Examples: Dragon, Listnote Speech, Mac iOS dictation software

DRAGON

Dragon Systems founded in 1982

Free in iTunes App store

Runs on Windows Platforms

Called DragonDictate or Dragon for Mac on Apple Platforms.

Offers text-to-speech function along with dictation

Advantages of Dragon

Saves time with transcribing long interviews

Converts speech to text or vice versa

Is free on mobile platforms.

Simple interface, making it the favorite among those who need dictation software.

Dragon Drawbacks

Has difficulty with punctuation.

Has difficulty translating regional dialects.

Paid version can cost $$$

Online Video Platforms

As the internet becomes the primary means of travel for information, more online video platforms continue to pop up including Vine and Tout.

Allows users to instantly watch short videos by only scrolling through a feed, meaning instant uploading and instant viewing.

Platforms have been incorporated by journalists to promote immediacy.

Vine

Released January 2013, owned by Twitter

Maximum upload size, 6 seconds

Can embed videos via social media.

Free app across platforms

TOUT

Functions like Vine but offers 15 second uploads.

Allows you to follow other users and also functions as a social media platform.

Simple interface which makes it good for taking and uploading videos on the go.

Drawbacks of Vine and TOUT

Neither allows users to edit—What you take is what you get.

The short time allotment can narrow the scope of use.

Video quality may be questionable.

Visual-Based Social MediaNaturally, Instagram more

than 100 million users has become the most popular and widely used form of Visual-Based Social media.

Others include Snapchat and Pinterest.

Allows users to see the story as opposed to reading it.

w/Instagram, users can edit photos (to a degree)

Advantages of Visual Based-Social Media

Personal connectedness with your audience.

Allows users to build their own audience

Allows for a small degree of internal editing

Allows users (or journalists) to instantly upload photos that may be relevant to readers or followers.

Videos can be embedded in other social media outlets

Disadvantages

Content overload

Competition with an ever-changing market.

Mobile Word Processors

Often when journalists are out in the field (at least in the old days) their content output was restricted to a typewriter or desktop computer.

With new software available, Word Processor and Office Suites are now available on mobile platforms.

With this in mind, an entire news story can be put together and formatted from a smartphone.

Docs To GO

Currently $49.99 in app store.

Allows user to access and edit word documents and spreadsheets

Is a better format than note taking software for constructing written news stories that need to go directly to publication.

Has a visual component that is comparitevly equal to desktop office suites.

Mobile Note-Taking Software

Many new apps are attempting to converge the many tools that professionals use into a single platform.

This combines note-taking software, recording software and organizational tools into one app.

Many try to do this, but the most popular has proven to be Evernote.

EVERNOTE

Combines concepts mentioned previously, primarily functions as organizational tool but can prove beneficial to journalists.

Advantages- streamlining the journalistic process

Disadvantages- can cause dependency if relied upon too much, thus causing a qualitative drop in journalist fundamentals such as personal note taking and listening skills.

Thoughts

Tools are great, but not a replacement for old-fashioned, time-tested journalistic techniques

They should be approached in a way that asks “How can this improve the skills I have learned and are currently using?”

With the push for immediacy in the media, it is crucial to remember: DO NOT let your apps do your job.