“Yes We Did”: Black Americans Rejoice
November 5, 2008
A perfect example of multimedia reporting. A feature with accompanying video report. The summary intro report recaps the civil rights precedents to the Obama victory. Maya Angelou is a perfectly chosen interview subject for the occasion and the spark between the interviewer and interviewee is great. To conclude with Angelou’s poem “I rise” caps this off.
Maya Angelou: ‘I’m So Proud’ Video – CBSNews.com
November 5, 2008
A perfect example of multimedia reporting. A great intro summary report, a well chosen interview subject and an accompanying written feature
Multimedia reporting
November 5, 2008
A perfect example of integrated mutimedia this report has a summary report beforehand a great live interview and a written piece as well
Interviews:plan your tactics
April 15, 2008
Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Eric Nalder repeats the advice of many journalists: be prepared. However he adds a twist – be tactical:
Make a tactical plan. Discuss it with colleagues. Whom should you interview first? Where will you interview the person? How much time will you have? Will you tape or not? The best place is usually where the person is doing the thing you are writing about. However, whistle-blowers and reluctant targets are best contacted at home. You might calm a nervous source by taking him or her for a walk. A lunch appointment requires a person to spend at least an hour with you. A phone interview is the least desirable, but also the most common.
Bindi Sings
April 14, 2008
Famous interviews
April 14, 2008
Asking the hard questions
April 14, 2008
Andrew Denton can be charming but he also asks the hard questions. In this video he puts Terri Irwin on the spot about Bindi.
Interview tip: be charming
April 14, 2008
One of the problems that first time interviewers have is feeling awkward. Interviews are both a natural situation – it’s just like a conversation – but also a highly unusual one: you want someone to tell you their secrets. The first step to overcoming nerves is following the old scout motto: be prepared. But Chris Frost also has some other sage advice: be charming. As he notes this does not come without practice:
Start by being polite. Remember people do not have to be interviewed – they can easily tell you to push off. Only courtesy and charm is likely to change their minds and so you need to practise these. The only person that can improve on this is you. Practice being charming to people (it’s a skill after all) even if it’s just your friends…Watch guests on chat shows and copy those you thought charming and witty. It’s perfectly possible to pick this up as an act until it becomes automatic everyday behaviour. (Frost, Reporting For Journalists)
He should have added watch the chat show hosts – they are the real masters of charm. Andrew Denton has a way of making his guest feel totally comfortable. Oprah is great at it too but in a very American way.
White flight
March 9, 2008
The Sydney Morning Herald covered the issue of “white-flight” from NSW schools this morning. A report says that students in rural towns are enrolling in catholic and private schools to avoid going to local schools with high indigenous enrollments.
In their report, principals say this is so the students can “get away from their local school”.
“This is almost certainly white flight from towns in which the public school’s enrolment consists increasingly of indigenous students,” the report says. “The pattern is repeated in the Sydney region. Based on comments from principals, this most likely consists of flight to avoid Islamic students and communities.”
