Online Media Forms

Print Plus: NY Mother Who Drowned 3 Kids Pleads Mentally Ill

Reading this article, I realized that, as the site said, this article clearly wasn't written specifically for ABC. This was ABC's exclusive; it was written by the Associated Press. While online news is the primary way that I do keep up with current events, I realized that I am getting the same exact piece of information, delivered in the same exact way, with the same exact pictures that the girl who is reading the story on CNN's website, and the boy who is MSNBC's website. We more than likely have the same exact pictures too. I understand the reasons why this type of media is used, and although its one of the traditional ways, it also seems like the lazy way. I know every news source can't write their own little blurb everytime, but its probably the type of coverage is the least artistic and creative. How difficult is cut and paste?

http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/wireStory?id=6840319

Slideshows : Shattered

This form brings forth the expression, "A picture is worth a thousand words" - clearly, something are better expressed shown, rather than told. Such captivating pictures in "Shattered", and surely, any other slideshows, tell a story that words can't. You can't write someone's expression, or capture something falling, the way that a camera can. Emotions can't be communicated in words, and sometimes it takes away from whatever the journalist is trying to communicate. Pictures have always been my favorite way of learning about something; just text alone can not only be boring, but just unimaginative (if the situation can be expressed with pictures). Of course somethings can't be expressed with pictures, or with the usage of a slideshow, thus having to be communicated with print plus, but with a tragedy like 9/11, there clearly has be some sort of visual display.

Audio Stories: Audio Man On The Street

One of my favorite ways to get a new story when I am watching the news on television is when the reporter will ask an eye witness. I always feel like that is THE way to ensure that whatever happened, actually happened. There was actually someone there who heard it, saw it, felt it, or knows who did it, and I generally don't believe a story until I see the concerned neighbor or the scared young child giving their account of the event being covered. The same goes for the audio; even though I can't see them saying however they feel, or what they saw, I can hear it in their voices. I really appreciate that aspect, especially online. The fact that people can upload these voices to make the reader (or listener's) experience better, makes for better reporting.