Multimedia and Interactivity
Multimedia and Interactivity Interactivity Allows users to manipulate information and to contribute to the story Promotes user involvement and understanding Results in an online journalism story that is a collection of contributions from journalists, experts and individual readers
Multimedia and Interactivity
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Presentation Transcript
Interactivity • Allows users to manipulate information and to contribute to the story • Promotes user involvement and understanding • Results in an online journalism story that is a collection of contributions from journalists, experts and individual readers
Types of Media Elements • Graphics • Sound • Video • Rich content • Databases and interactive mashups
Graphics • Photographs—Help convey the emotion or essence of the story • NYT Year in Pictures
Techniques and Aestheticsfor Gathering Images • Picture composition (framing) • Three basic shots: • Long shot • Medium shot • Close-up • Rule of thirds • Eye space • Depth of field
Graphics • Maps—Specify geographical location of the news story • NYT and Weekend Explorer
Graphics • Technical illustrations—Show how a system works • NYT @ the Met • NYT Crane Collapse
Graphics • Information graphics—Show relationships between numbers or concepts (bar chart, line chart) • NYT and The Ebb and Flow of Movies
Sound • When to use sound • Does it help tell the story? • Does it convey to users a sense of being there? • How to integrate sound with the story • With basic HTML, a plug-in plays the sound clip • Supplement HTML with Java or Flash for a more immersive effect
Digital Sound Formats • Streaming (RealAudio) • MP3 (best compromise for music) • Combinations • NYT and The Lourdes of Twang • NYT and Voices from the Polls
Microphones • Three main types: • Hand-held • Lavaliere • Shotgun
Recording Devices • Volume level and sound quality are important aspects • May choose format and quality before recording • Selection of digitizing quality includes additional parameters: • Sampling rate • Bit depth • Channels
Video • When to use video • Does it help tell the story? • Does it show something unique? • How to combine video with the story • With basic HTML, video clips disrupt flow of story • Users should be allowed to choose whether they want to view video
Video Aesthetics • Aspects of still photography apply to video • Camera moves: • Panning • Tilting • Zooming • Additional video considerations: • Compression, Sequencing, Sound bites
Digitizing and Editing Audio and Video • Tradeoffs = higher quality but larger files require more bandwidth • Requires a specialized video capture card • Compression can make files smaller • MPEG-1 or MPEG-4 • Choose settings based on individual preferences, e.g., smooth motion or frame detail
Rich Content • Additions to HTML that allow greater interactivity and control of individual media elements • Java • Flash • USAToday and Gasoline • MSNBC “Battle of the Bags”
User-Generated Content • Forums and blogs • Databases • Crowdsourcing • Open-source journalism
Making Media Decisions • Nature of the story • Target audience • Available resources