Mobile microlearning works! Sample the first course in digital journalism delivered to your phone
Three-quarters of the journalists who responded to a recent survey conducted by an RJI Fellow supported the idea of bite-size lessons delivered via smartphone.
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SNPA columnist is co-author of writing book
A 2019 third edition of "The Writer's Toolbox: Blueprints for Successful Communicators" is now available to help journalists improve their craft. Longtime SNPA columnist Randy Hines, a University of North Georgia professor, is co-author of the book, published by Kendall Hunt.
MOREBuy latest AP Stylebook, use it
By Randy Hines
Since it wasn't an official federal holiday, many of you may have missed National Grammar Day, which quietly passed without any fanfare March 4. The noncelebration event was established in 2008 by author Martha Brockenbrough, also founder of the Society for the Promotion of Good Grammar.
Despite her stellar efforts, grammar, spelling and other writing errors still crop up too often in my classroom assignments and in media outlets. Perhaps a concerted effort should be unleashed for National Associated Press Stylebook Day, or Month, or even Year.
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AP to add automated stories previewing NHL games
The Associated Press has begun previewing all National Hockey League games with data-driven text stories generated by automation from HERO Sports and data from Sportradar.
AP staffs all 1,250 NHL regular-season games and all playoff games each season, but the global news agency has never before delivered previews of every game.
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Visual impact equals high readership
Do you want to grab the attention of your readers with your very first page?
Of course you do! With every issue, you want your front page to have high readership. You want it to be your best-read page.
You can get that strong readership by making sure the design of the front is compelling. And the key to that compelling design is a strong visual element.
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It's almost here: March Madness bracket and coverage pages
Starting with a NCAA Hoops bracket page, the Center for News & Design can provide SNPA member newspapers with regional playoffs and paginated page coverage all the way through the NCAA playoffs, up to the Final Four weekend.
MORERJI Fellow working on solution to 'future proof' data-driven news applications
ProPublica's Dollars for Docs is an elaborate data-driven news application that allows readers to interact and engage with it as they learn about the money doctors receive from pharmaceutical companies.
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Only one deadline? Why?
You've done it again. Success! Every page in this week's (or day's) paper is in by deadline. It took some doing, but like almost every issue before it, you've created another miracle: cramming thousands of words and photos together into your latest newspaper. And ... you've done it on deadline.
Well, before you stroll from your desk brimming with pride, let's take a closer look at the "miracle." Every page is in, perhaps, but most of them went to prepress in the last half-day (or last hour).
So, yes, all the pages are "in," but you've created a problem for those who have to turn those pages into files that can be processed and printed.
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AP to bring Indian Ocean exploration to audiences across the globe
The Associated Press has announced that it will provide live underwater video from a deep-sea research mission that aims to unlock the secrets of the Indian Ocean.
AP is the only news agency working with a team of British scientists from the Nekton research team, who will explore depths of up to 300 meters (1,000 feet) off the coast of the Seychelles in two-person submarines.
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#StudentPressFreedom Day: Issuu's toolkit for rising journalists
Issuu has published a new resource for up-and-coming student journalists to get informed of their rights for Student Press Freedom Day this Wednesday, Jan. 30.
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AP environment series asks: 'What Can Be Saved?'
The Associated Press will roll out a series of in-depth, multimedia stories beginning today that will chronicle 12 examples of intense efforts being waged around the world to save or revive ecosystems, reversing some of humankind’s most destructive past actions and preserving vital natural habitats on Earth.
MoreThere's a reader revenue revolution happening. Will legacy news miss it again?
There are seven changes news organizations need to adopt to succeed during the reader revolution. Jim Brady, CEO of Spirited Media, lays them out in a recent post for the Reynolds Journalism Institute. They include: serving your audience first (not your newsroom) and having a point of view.
MoreAP, GNI to build tool to help local newsrooms collaborate
The Associated Press is launching a pilot project aimed at increasing local news coverage and improving the way member news organizations collaborate with one another.
With support from the Google News Initiative, AP will build an online tool that enables members to share their coverage plans to more efficiently cover local news.
It will also allow participating news organizations to share their journalism, increasing the amount of local news stories in their communities.
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