To-Do List #14

NYT’s Jan Hoffman (Monday, 12/3)

Jan Hoffman, a reporter with The New York Times, will visit us tomorrow. Please research her background. In addition, she has asked that your read two of her stories. Be prepared to discuss these:

The Price of Cool: A Teenager, a Juul and Nicotine Addiction 

Popular Grain-Free Dog Foods May Be Linked to Heart Disease

Advertisements

To-Do List #13

Reading & Guest Speakers (Wednesday, 11/28)

• Read Chapter 8: Mobile and Social Media In Your Career. With the semester winding down, I want to shift our focus back to how we began this semester: building your brand online. Now is a good time to revisit and polish your website and social media accounts.
• 10 a.m. Section: Amber Smith (@AmberSmith1011), digital director for Gray Television stations in Nebraska, will chat with us Wednesday. Check out her Q&A in Chapter 8.
• Noon Section: We’ll chat with IC journalism alumna Christine Loman (@ChristineLoman), who  manages social media at The Washington Post.

To-Do List #12

Live Tweet

• Live tweet this using #ICParkSM: We’ll chat for part of tomorrow’s class with Allie Healy (@allieehealyy), an alumna of the IC journalism department and #ICParkSM. Allie has worked in various roles at Advance Media New York since she graduated in 2014. She is now social media lead at Syracuse.com, a role that was previously occupied by another alumna, Christine Loman, who recently joined the social media team at The Washington Post.

Multimedia Story #4 (Due Wednesday, 11/14)

By the end of class, upload the story submission document to the Forum section of our Sakai page.

To-Do List #11

Election Day Coverage 

• Review Google document with all the details of our coverage. Come to class tomorrow with any questions.
• Best practices: begin your coverage with an initial tweet that explains what you’re covering. Also, in that tweet, you can link back to our live blog, @mention Ithaca Week, and use one of our Election Day coverage graphics (you can find these in the Google doc).

Multimedia Story #4 (Due Wednesday, 11/14)

Pitch your story ideas to me ASAP. Remember two out of your four stories must be related to your beat. 

By the end of class, upload the story submission document to the Forum section of our Sakai page. 

To-Do List #10

Election Day Coverage

• If you have yet to do so, sign up for an Election Day reporting shift. The Google doc link is posted in our FB group.
• Become familiar with details of the project and key races.

Multimedia Story #3 (Due Monday, 10/29)

By the end of class, upload the story submission document to the Forum section of our Sakai page. 

Website Story

• 550-600 word story with mobile-friendly layout.
• 2-3 images taken with a mobile device.
• Video (1-1:30) produced using your mobile device (you choose the video app) embedded in the story.

To-Do List #9

Election Day Coverage

• Become familiar with local and national races and issues.
• Sign up for an Election Day reporting shift [details to come].

Analytics

• Visit your analytics, using the analytics worksheet as a guide. (Note: If you use Wix for your website, you have to install the app called Visitor Analytics.) You should jot down a few notes about your analytics once a week from now until the end of the semester. Your analytics will be part of your end-of-the semester portfolio assignment.

To-Do List #8

Complete the following items by 11:59 p.m., Saturday: 

Blog Posts

• Two blog posts related to your beat. Think of these as your reporter’s notebook.  Share blog entries to Twitter and your professional Facebook page. When you share them to social media, be certain the posts are optimized.

Complete the following during the next week:

Tweet About Your Beat

• Tweet at least 8-10 times about your beat. This can include retweets, but I recommend providing context when you retweet something. You should be retweeting, replying , and using hashtags on a regular basis—important for engagement. You do not have to use #ICParkSM for these items.
• Don’t forget to check your beat-related Twitter list for ideas.
• Also, I recommend building your “following” by routinely following others who will provide you with valuable content and by sharing as well as liking their content.

To-Do List #7

By the end of class on Oct. 10, upload the story submission document to the Forum section of our Sakai page. 

Multimedia Story #2

All of these items will be published together on your website by the end of Wednesday’s class. In my feedback to you, I will let you know if you should publish on Ithaca Week as well. Follow the instructions for posting to Ithaca Week.

• 550-600 word story with mobile-friendly layout.
• At least two images taken with a mobile device. Remember to caption all photos.
• Video (1-1:30) produced using the iMovie mobile app and embedded in your story.

Social Media

These items must be spread out during the reporting process and completed by the end of class on Oct. 10. You’ll once again create a Wakelet with these items.

To-Do List #6

Be ready to pitch three story ideas tomorrow. Remember, two of your four stories this semester must be related to your beat. 

I plan on setting aside time tomorrow to work on revisions to your stories. Please come with questions, if you need clarification about my feedback. 

Complete the following items by 11:59 p.m., Saturday: 

• Two blog posts related to your beat. Share blog entries to Twitter and your professional Facebook page. When you share them to social media, be certain the posts are optimized.

Complete the following during the next week: 

• Tweet at least 8-10 times about your beat. This can include retweets, but I recommend providing context when you re-tweet something. You should be re-tweeting, replying , and using hashtags on a regular basis—important for engagement. You do not have to use #ICParkSM for these items.
• Don’t forget to check your beat-related Twitter list!
• Also, I recommend building your “following” by routinely following others who will provide you with valuable content and by sharing as well as liking their content.

To-Do List #5

By the end of class, Sept. 26, upload the story submission document to the Forum section of our Sakai page. 

Multimedia Story #1

All of these items will be published together on your website by the end of Wednesday’s class. In my feedback to you, I will let you know if you should publish on Ithaca Week as well. Follow the instructions for posting to Ithaca Week.

• 550-600 word story with mobile-friendly layout.
• 2-3 images taken with a mobile device. Remember to caption all photos.
• Video (1-1:30) produced using the iMovie mobile app and embedded in your story. Remember to include the Ithaca Week logo in the open and close.

Social Media 

You should have a social media game plan for every story before heading out the door. Below are the items you’re required to share while producing your first story. You do not have to use #ICParkSM. Remember, posts should be social media optimized. For example, they’ll  include @mentions, hashtags, tags, and visuals — items that lead to increased engagement. Also, it’s a good idea to periodically mention you’re covering the story for Ithaca Week by @mentioning in posts. These items must be spread out during the reporting process and completed by the end of class on Wednesday, Sept. 26:

• At least four tweets. Give your audience meaningful info: use quotes from sources, ask a question about the story, provide a behind-the-scenes look. Don’t simply write, “here’s a tease of my story” or “package coming soon.” This is newsroom jargon and doesn’t engage our audiences. You could use the Videolicious app for one of these.
• A “readable” social media video produced with the Adobe Spark Video app. Share to Twitter and your professional Facebook page. Keep this around :30 seconds.
• Share at least two photos to Twitter and your professional Facebook page. Provide context about what you’re showing followers.  Remember to “speak the language” of the different platforms.
• Create a Wakelet (this replaces Storify) with the items mentioned above. This is how I will evaluate and grade your social media engagement for your first story.