Digital Storytelling

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Digital Storytelling

• Jay Small
• Director, Online Audience and Operations
• E.W. Scripps Co., Newspapers Interactive Group
• Owner and Principal Consultant
• Small Initiatives, http//smallinitiatives.com/

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Example A
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Example B
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Reconsidering the processesof news storytelling
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What makes us reconsider?

• 24/7 operations
• Interactive communications forms
• Lets compare print to Internet
• Near-instant online retrieval, delivery

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Processes of news storytelling

• Assigning
• Setting priorities Which stories?
• Newsgathering
• Finding the elements of the story
• Facts
• Controversies
• Opinions
• Personalities/emotions
• Visuals
• Sounds

• Preparing
• Assembling the story
• Editing and refining the story
• Packaging
• Attracting attention
• Retaining attention

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How might assigning change?

• Different priorities for different channels
• Web Fast updates, incremental, dayparts
• Print More robust updates, shelf life
• Know difference between stories suited for
  different digital forms
• What makes great prose story?
• What makes better image, video, sound bite?

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Washington Post OnBeing
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How might newsgathering change?

• Tools in the field
• Recorders audio, video, still, all-in-one?
• Network access from anywhere
• More value than ever in being there
• Hunter-gatherer for all kinds of data, imagery,
  links

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Quad Cities T-shirt folder
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How might story prep change?

• How do I tell this story?Not so simple anymore
• Prose Linear, nonlinear or headline/teaser
  update?
• Imagery Still photo, illustration, infographic?
• Sounds Spoken, ambient, music?
• Motion pictures Video, animation
• Searchable databases
• Links
• Mashups (some or all of the above!)

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Fort Wayne Police report database
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How might story prep change?

• When to tell story? Now and later
• Wire service mode
• Updates as they come in
• Print edition becomes one snap in timeline

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How might story prep change?

• Where to tell story? Everywhere!
• Print
• Web via PC
• Web via mobile device
• Etc. (connected components)

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How might packaging change?

• More, richer, broader design roles
• Graphics
• User experience
• Data architecture
• Search optimization
• Its all Information Architecture, really
• Storage/retrieval vs. doorstep delivery

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How do you preparea news organizationfor
multimedia communications?
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What you saidabout multimedia training

• Of 44 responses
• 10 - more than 50 of news organization trained
• Training investment - from more than 600 hours or
  25K down to zero or dont know
• Biggest holdup Resources, money, commitment

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The best example I know

• Joe Howry, editor, Ventura County Star
• I decided to put all my training budget money
  into one program that would move the newsroom
  into the future. It has evolved from a
  semi-experimental dab into multimedia journalism
  into a full-blown, newsroomwide focus on becoming
  a true multimedia organization.
• To date, we have 24 fully trained multimedia
  journalists. We also have six editors who have
  taken part in some or all of the training. We
  also included a member of our advertising and
  marketing departments in the training. The
  percentage of staff who have been exposed to
  multimedia training now runs over 33 percent.

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The best example I know

• Joe Howry, editor, Ventura County Star
• We simply took the people in training 8 at a
  time out of the daily mix. The training lasts
  six weeks. It required sacrifices from
  everybody on staff.
• If an editor or organization is considering the
  kind of fundamental changes multimedia journalism
  requires, they must commit fully and without
  reservation.
• We can push our readers much further than we
  think. Youd be surprised how little pushback you
  get when you do a five inch story on a city
  council meeting as opposed to the typical 15- or
  20-inch takeout.

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Ventura multimedia projects
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Discussion topics and examples
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Why video news storytelling doesnt have to
mimicTV production values
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Naples Studio55
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Allentown Breaking news video
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Influence of our heaviestonline users

• (Hint Theyre machines,not people)

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YouTube has an SEO edge
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Specialties of the news storyteller of the
future
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Frederick Drug bust video
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AZCentral Steve Nashs hair
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Does digital storytellingbecome more or lessan
assembly-line process?

• Compared to todaysnewspaper storytelling

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DallasNews Yolandas Crossing
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Nacogdoches State parks
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Ottawa Vanishing choirboys
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Newsday Investigating the gap
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Thank you!

• Jay Small
• jsmall_at_scrippsweb.com
• jay.small_at_smallinitiatives.com
• Small Initiatives, http//smallinitiatives.com/