“How digital transformed the newscycle - and what you can do about it"
Martin BelamHacks / Hackers, August 2011
Lead User Experience & Information Architect,The Guardian@currybet
I am not a hack
13th century miniature of the Siege of Jerusalem
I am not a hacker
This is what home computers used to look like
I joined the Guardian in 2009
1. Write newspaper
2. Print newspaper
3. Wrap fish‘n'chips in newspaper
1. Write newspaper
2. Print newspaper
3. Wrap fish‘n'chips in newspaper*remember to have sent the British Library a copy
**and our own library
***and send the front page to @suttonnick in advance
*****and sub-edit it, check it with legal, write the headlines,clear the rights for the images, make late changes, re-sub it,
syndicate the best bits, and get the files packaged up
****and publish it all to the web
1. Write newspaper
2. Print newspaper
3. Wrap fish‘n'chips in newspaper*remember to have sent the British Library a copy
**and our own library
***and send the front page to @suttonnick in advance
*****and sub-edit it, check it with legal, write the headlines,clear the rights for the images, make late changes, re-sub it,
syndicate the best bits, and get the files packaged up
****and publish it all to the web
Oh. Did I say “web”?
1 Stop the shovelsMobiles are not tablets.Tablets are not desktops.Neither of these types of devices are print.
There are more and more platforms to come
We are in “the animated gif years”
Not all content works for all mediums
Getting it wrong sends the wrong signal
2 Be fastThe audience expect news inreal-time.
Most people can publish faster than most news orgs
Print seems slower and slower and slower
Live blogging is a native digital format
The BBC’s tools now seem ahead of the pack
Story-telling tools are appearing all the time
It is vital to let journalists experiment
Paul Lewis - was that a riot #Twitrip?
3 Be permanentThe web is forever.And it should be right.
Our content now lasts longer than a day
We need better digital corrections
Wikipedia-style “di!s” may be a step too far
But we should be avoiding this...
4 Organise & ownFind people to “own” thedark corners of your digitalpresence
You get some metadata and “furniture” in print
but there is so much peripheral digital content
Teams of people agonise over the words on the left
The words on the right? Not so much...
You need a web governance mindset
5 Metadata is a friendUse semantic mark-up.The future will thank you.
Metadata is your friend
And so is semantic mark-up
There are many flavours to choose from
6 CurateNot all news is born equal.Help readers get to the beststu!.
Not all news content is born equal
Context is often lost in digital transformation
Context is often lost in digital transformation
Give clear signals to the user
Help them find the best of your content
Help them find the best of your content
7 Expand and re-useExploit your archives.News organisations areuniquely placed for this.
News has been recorded for centuries
Many sites charge for archive access
Guardian Shorts extend the life of our content
1.2.3.4.5.6.7.
Stop the shovelsBe fastBe permanentOrganise & ownMetadata is a friendCurateExpand and re-use
This made me cross yesterday
“The top four most important skills cited by editors were: writing, finding news stories, interviewing and legal knowledge - while at the bottom of the list came social media, web skills and interaction with readers.”
This made me cross yesterday
The article didn’t link to the source
And the source has basic usability issues
8 Don't stop learningThe digital revolution isperpetual revolution
8
Thank you. Questions?