Assignment 1, Chris Leyden

Jour 203 Video Slice Assignment #1

For many years journalists went to school to learn the skills needed to work at a newspaper. While many journalists share those same aspirations today, most understand the need to be a well-rounded reporter. To get a job in today’s shrinking market it is important that a journalist not only know how to write, but also how to shoot video and edit it.

It is an important that early on in a potential journalists training they learn how to take and edit their own video so that it becomes second nature to them. While many of the older journalists in the profession are struggling of late to make the transition, an entire new younger class of journalists has mastered the multimedia aspect.

The biggest challenge facing a journalist who in creating video content for the web is the concept that people’s attention span when surfing the Internet is only a few seconds per page. Because of this, the video that is put together needs to be extremely engaging right away.  Another aspect that is important to keep in mind when in the field is that any story that can be told in words can be told better with visuals. This means that not only do reporters have to go out into the field and find quotes to write a story, but they also should take video or pictures of the subject to attach to the story online.

Producing video itself is not that easy, as there is a lot that goes into making a piece look good. With the invention of pocket cams reporters can easily have a camera on them at all times. The problem with these cameras is that unless they are on a tripod it is very obvious that they are shot handheld. It is also important that print journalists understand the rule of thirds, and use that as a visually appealing technique. There is a lot more that goes into shooting video than just setting up a camera and talking into it, and reporters in the future will have to do this instinctively.

The concept of being a strictly print journalist is completely gone from the journalism landscape, and the reporters who get jobs are going to be the ones who can do video also.  That is why it is so important the students learn the skills from a young age so they can apply them moving forward.