Print, Pixels & People 2009

Print, Pixels & PeopleIdeas for today’s

student journalistLogan Aimone, MJE, executive director

National Scholastic Press Association

Print, Pixels & People

PrintWhat’s working?


Print• For generations, the printed page has been

the dominant medium in scholastic journalism.

• Although it has faced challenges from broadcast media, it remains the most common, widespread and portable form of mass media.


Print: Benefits• It’s pretty inexpensive.

• It’s relatively easy to produce in a basic form.

• It’s portable.


PrintWhat’s not working?


Print: Drawbacks• It’s more expensive than it used to be

• It’s not easy to teach the skills necessary to produce quality.

• It’s hard to get people to pick it up and read it.


PixelsWhat’s new?


Pixels• While the printed page has been the

dominant medium in scholastic journalism, online publishing has started to take off.

• More student newspapers — and even magazines and yearbooks — are turning to the Web for a variety of reasons.


Pixels: Benefits• The Internet allows for instant publishing

of content rather than the infrequent publication of print.

• Compared to the expense of printing an edition of the newspaper, a Web site is dramatically less expensive — maybe even free.


Pixels: Benefits• Online tools allow a media staff to combine

multiple media to deliver content in the most appropriate format: text, audio, images or video.

• Online networks like MySpace, Facebook, Delicious and Twitter allow users to build a community and to customize and share content.


PixelsWhat’s not working?


Pixels: Drawbacks• Students and advisers may not have the

necessary skills beyond the basics of uploading text.

• It’s easy to get caught up in the behind-the-scenes system administration.

• Technology limitations: cost, availability, time to produce.


PeopleWhat’s it all about?


People• Ultimately, it’s the content that matters.

• You have to be in a position to deliver the content in the most appropriate format and platform.


Putting it together

What does today’sstudent journalist

need to think about?


Convergence!• The term convergence means a “coming

together” — and that’s what you have available to you today.

• Members of Generation Y (that’s you!) are comfortable with and operating in a converged media environment.


Social Media• Because teens are comfortable in this

environment, you need to shift your focus to take advantage of where your readers/viewers are.

• Engage your readers in a way that helps them (they get news) and helps you (you get tips for more news).


Social Media• Do you have any idea how big of an impact

social media are having on every aspect of our lives?

• Let’s watch a short video and see…


Social Media• A few highlights from the video:

• Nearly all of you (96%) are on a social network.

• That’s the #1 Web activity.

• More than 300 million people are on Facebook.

• Fastest-growing segment is women 55-65 (that’s your mom or grandma!).


Social Media• More highlights from the video:

• 80% of Twitter use is by mobile device.

• That’s instant discussion, good or bad.

• Studies show Wikipedia is more accurate than Encyclopedia Brittanica.

• But that’s not an excuse for using it as your sole source.


Social Media• More highlights from the video:

• 78% of people trust peer recommendations. Only 14% trust ads.

• 25% of Americans watched a short video in the last month on their phone.


13 Things you should be doing

Improving your operation in 2009-2010


1. Be excellent• It probably goes without saying, but I’ll say

it anyway: Strive for excellence.

• Excellence isn’t settling for pretty good.

• Good enough is not good enough.

• Set goals to improve with each edition or deadline.


2. Get out there• You can’t really get a story unless you get

out and talk to people. In person.

• Yes, in person!

• You can always tell the difference when a writer has observed and interviewed in person.

• E-mail or chat interviews fill a need, but they are not as effective as being there.


3. Find stories• Establish a solid beat system in place to

gather the routine news.

• Expect that each beat will yield some briefs and longer stories.

• Demand enterprise from reporters (editors, too). That means digging around to find something newsworthy and writing it in a compelling, interesting and useful way.


4. Show us• Probably the most widely read (and most

liked) stories are those that tell interesting stories about people.

• Your school and community are full of these stories.

• Localize national issues with the stories of people around you.


5. Get a Web site• There’s really no excuse today for not

having at least a basic Web site

• Basic: You could post a PDF version of the printed paper.

• Advanced: You could update news throughout the school day.

• An online presence opens up a new universe of multimedia opportunities.


6. Get social• MySpace and Facebook accounts are free.

• You can use the pages to interact with your readers not just by posting links to stories but by getting tips from them.

• Ask them to let you know about events occuring outside the school (or at school but not known).

• Let them submit photos, letters, etc., to you through these pages.


7. Start Tweeting• Twitter is a free “microblogging” site that

works in 140-character messages.

• As you gather “followers” you will be able to pass along messages to a wide group of people. That means instantly informing your followers when news happens (sports scores, lockdown, free burritos at Chipotle).

• Use hashtags (#word) to label and search.


8. Get Delicious• Delicious.com is a social bookmarking site

that is, guess what, free.

• You can post links there that will be useful to others.

• The links can be labeled and sorted in a number of ways.

• This is a way to enhance content beyond the printed page.

• You can also see what others bookmarked.


9. Do multimedia• With a Web site, not only can you update

news and information as frequently as you want, you can improve the content.

• The newspaper can showcase one or two images from an event. Online, you can have dozens — with audio and captions.

• Yearbook staffs can promote the book through “sneak peeks” or extras that are posted online.


10. Be the #1 source• Be serious about being the top information

source for all things about your school.

• If someone wants to know a fact, score, date, record, time or whatever — be the place they turn for that information.

• Own sports stats, especially JV and lower squads.

• Scoop the local paper. Doesn’t it feel good when that happens?


11. Do fewer…• Horoscopes and advice columns

• Superficial columns (carpe diem, senioritis, slow drivers, etc.) that could be in any year

• Double-truck stories on “hot topics” that aren’t tied to a news event. Make sure you have a news peg if you’re committing that much space.


12. Follow the law• Obey copyright.

• Only use “fair use” images or get permission.

• Use copyright-free music unless you pay a royalty.

• Saying it’s “for education” doesn’t let you off the hook.

• Know privacy rules.

• Know your rights. In Kansas you have more!


13. Remember…• Your role on campus is to inform and

enlighten your audience.

• You have a responsibility — an obligation, even — to take that seriously and to do it well.

• Your audience needs you to tell them the things no one else will tell them.


SummaryTime to wake up if you

have been sleeping!


PrintKeep doing it.

• It’s perfect for long stories.

• People can pick it up and take it with them.

• It’s permanent. (You can’t tape a Web page in your scrapbook.)


PixelsGet more digital.

• It’s instant.

• You build a community.

• Readers expect you to be online.

• If you don’t someone else will.


PeopleIt’s always about them.

• Whether in print or online, it’s the story that matters most.

• Find the platform that is most appropriate.

• Converge multiple platforms to experiment.

• Be excellent.


Thanks!Twitter: @NSPA

Facebook:National Scholastic

Press AssociationAny questions?

Business

Print, Pixels & People 2009