flip the media guidelines
TRANSCRIPT
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Guide to Collaborative Blogging
TableofContents
Preface–AboutFliptheMedia
Acknowledgements
Chapter1–GuidelinesandTacticsforSuccessfulBlogPosts
Chapter2–WhatMakesaGoodFliptheMediaPost?
Chapter3–EverythingYouNeedtoKnowaboutWordPressBlogging
Chapter4–HowtoEditaFliptheMediaPost
Chapter5–SocialMediaStrategies
Chapter6–UsingMetricsandAnalysisWisely
Chapter7–CoveringUniversityofWashingtonEvents
Chapter8–GuidetoShootingBetterVideo
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Preface
AbouttheFliptheMediaBlog
FliptheMedia(FTM)istheblogfortheUniversityofWashingtonMasterin
CommunicationinDigitalMediaprogram.ItwascreatedinFebruary2008byMCDM
DirectorHansonHoseinandinstructorAdrianaGilMiner.
ThesuccessofFliptheMediacomesfromitsuniquecollaborativenatureand
academicsetting.Itwassetupusingdistributedauthorship,meaninganyonewiththe
appropriatepermissionscancreateandpublishapost.Thisapproachallowsstudents,
instructors,professionals,andexpertsfromthefieldofdigitalmediatoeasilyaddtheir
voicestotheblog.
FliptheMediahasevolvedalongwiththeMCDMprogram,andnowoffersinsighton
topicsasdiverseasnewmedia,gadgets,socialmedia,breakingnews,education,
journalism,andpolitics.Inadditiontowrittencontent,FliptheMediafeatures photography,slideshows,andvideo.
TheblogusesWordPressasitsbloggingsoftwareandcontentmanagementsystem.It
hasacustomizedthememodifiedspecificallyforFliptheMedia.
ThefollowingguidelineswerewrittenandcompiledbystaffandfriendsofFlipthe
Mediainthesummerof2011toprovideaclearandhelpfulreferencebookforcurrent
andfuturecontributorstotheblog,aswellasanyoneinterestedintheinnerworkings
ofasuccessfulblog.
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Acknowledgements
ThestaffandwritersofFliptheMediawouldliketothankthefollowingpeoplefor
theircontributionstodevelopingandmaintainingtheblog:
KatyBalatero,CoreyChristiansen,JonathanCunningham,ToniDelRio,Brook
Ellingwood,AdrianaGil‐Minor,KathyGill,SunaGurol,NickHolz,JeffHora,Hanson
Hosein,ElizabethHunter,MaryJanisch,BrianJohnson,PeterLuyckx,ScottMacklin,
NicaPelc,HelenPitlick,AmyRainey,RubiRomero,KenRufo,CarlosSanchez,Inge
Scheve,AaronSeeley,TheresaStone,AlexStonehill,SarahStuteville,Daniel
Thornton,AnitaVerna‐Crofts,andSeanWang.
Wewouldalsoliketothankourprofessionalcontributors,studentwriters,and
readers.YourinsightsandcommentselevateFliptheMediafromanacademicblog
toadynamicandinspiredmeeting‐placeofideas.
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Chapter1
GuidelinesandTacticsforSuccessfulBlogPosts
Coveredinthischapter:
• FOCUS
‐Topic
-Audience
• PERSONALITY
-PassionandInterest
-Titles/Subtitles
-Readability
• DIALOGUE
-Commentback!
-LinkLove
FOCUS
Topic
Understandingwhatmakesablogdifferentfromanewswebsiteisimportant,and
oneofthemostelementaldifferencesisthatblogposts,unlikenewsarticles,must
beextremelyfocusedinscope.Sticktoonetopiconly.Assoonasthepostveersoff
intoanothertopic,realizethatyouhavetheopportunityforanotherpost!Seriesof
postsaboutasimilartopiccanleadtodozensof“click‐throughs,”especiallywhen
thetopicistagged.Foragoodexampleoftaggedblogpostseries,visit
www.shakesville.comandsearchfor“HillarySexismWatch.”Theblogmonitored
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themediaduringtheleaduptothe2008PresidentialElection,writingabouteach
sexistoccurrenceagainstHillaryClinton.
Trytomakethetopictimely.NoonecaresabouttheWindowsphoneanymore.But
theydidbackinNovemberof2010,whenthepost,“CouldMobileGamingbe
Microsoft’sTicket?”waspublished,garnering21comments(http://bit.ly/a3CN6V).
Ifyourpostisn’taboutatime‐sensitiveissue,findawaytodrawitbacktothe
presentbymentioninghowthingsaretoday ,orevenbetter,what’scomingnext .
Audience
Focusyourpoststotheaudienceofyourblog.FliptheMediahasadiversearrayof
bothreadersandauthors,butthecommonthreadlinkingallpostsisdigitalmedia.
Everysuccessfulbloghaseitheratopicoraperspective.Theblogusedasan
exampleabove,Shakesville.com,hasateamofbloggersthatcoverculture,media,
politics,andmore,buttheyallwritefromafeminist,progressiveperspective,andso
theblogiscohesivewhileremainingdiverse.
Wewillgofurtherintothistopicinthenextchapter,“WhatMakesaGoodFlipthe
MediaPost?”
PERSONALITY
PassionandInterest!
Peoplewhocarewritethebestblogsdeeplyabouttheirtopicand/orexaminingissuesfromapersonalperspective.Yourlevelofinterestwillbeevidentintheway
youwriteyourpost.FliptheMediashouldn’tbeanacademicexercise;itshouldbea
wayforthemembersoftheMCDMtoreachagreateraudienceonanon‐academic
level.Thinkofyourselfasacriticalambassadorforbothyourtopicandyour
program.LCBTadvocacysiteslikeJoe.My.God(http://joemygod.blogspot.com)and
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Pam’sHouseBlend(www.pamshouseblend.com)havepoststhatprovidethe
perfectmixofinformation,entertainment,andpassionthatkeepreaderscoming
back.Don’twriteaboutsomethingyoudon’tcareabout.Itwillbeobvioustoyour
readers.
Ifthereisacauseorculturalmovementyouareparticularlypassionateabout,look
forawaytoexaminethatsubjectthroughthelensofdigitalmedia.Notonlywill
yourpassionshow,itwillofferpeopleauniquewayoflookingatthesubject.That
said,itisoftheutmostimportancetomaintainaneutral/critical/explorativevoice
throughoutthepiece.
Passioncreatesavoice.Trytocultivateyourownvoiceinyourblogposts.Evenif
eachofyourpostsaretotallydisparateinsubject(gayyouthandtheArab
Revolution,forexample)thegoalistohavethereaderrecognizeyourvoice—this
way,youcancultivatefansthatwillsearchforyournametoseewhatyouhave
postedrecently.
TitlesandSubtitles
Titlesmatter!LookatKenRufo’s“TheEndofFacebook.”Asidefromitbeingagreat
post,thetitlehasitall:itisshort,sticky,relevant,andsassy.Anditgarnereddozens
ofcommentsandspikedtraffictoFliptheMedia!
Thatsaid,whenwritingafeaturepostoraverylongpost,considerusingsubtitles—
again,thesearecatchylittleheadersthatlayoutthenextparagraphandbreakthe
postupintodigestiblesections.
Readability
Blogsare,bytheirnature,informal.Thebestblogstrikesabalancebetween
enjoyableandinformative.Youwantyourposttohaveauthority,oryourreaderwill
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gettheirinformationelsewhere.Butyoualsowantyourposttobeeasytoread,so
yourreadernotonlyreadsthewholepostbutsticksaroundtoseemorepostson
thepage.
Readabilityisnotonlyaboutlanguageanddiction.Whereyouputyourjumpand
yourmediaareimportantforbothlandingandretainingreaders.Youwantthefirst
paragraph—sometimesevenjustthefirstfewsentences—immediatelyviewableon
theblog.Aestheticsareeverything.Whenareader’sbrowsercanonlyseeonepost
becausetheauthorhasnotplacedastrategicjump,readerscanbecome
overwhelmed.Jumpsgivethereaderstheagencytochoosethepoststheywould
liketoread,aswellasshowreaderstherangeoforiginalcontenttoperuse.Agood
exampleofthisisTheStranger’sartsandcultureblog,Slog
(www.slog.thestranger.com),inwhichjustabouteverypostviewableonthepageis
thesamelength.Poststhatarelongerplacetheirjumpafteraparagraphortwo.
Asformedia,itdependsonthepost.Generally,showingsomepieceofmediahelps
catchreaders’eyes.However,ifyourpostisONLYmedia(avideo,slideshow,etc.),
youshouldhavesomeframingtextthatexplainswhoorwhatisinthevideoor
image.Forveryshortposts,youcankeepalltheframingtextandtheimagesor
videobeforethejump.
DIALOGUE
CommentBack!
Whethercommentingforaclassassignmentoroutofpersonalinterest,FTMgetsagoodamountofinsightfulandinformativecomments.Anotherpartofwritinga
goodblogpostisrememberingthatablogisasmuchaconversationasitisa
megaphone.Youwillfindthatatwell‐lovedblogs,postauthorsdialoguewellinto
thecommentswithreaders,andsometimesevenprovideupdatestopostsbasedon
readers’comments.
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LinkLove
Blogsareawesomebecausetheycanbecomerabbitholesofinformation.Thereare
twowaysoflookingatlinkingawayfromyourblog:thatyouaresendingreaders
away(bad)orthatyouareprovidingyourreaderswithmoreinformationthatthey
canexploreiftheychoose(good).Thethingaboutlinkingaway,evenifreadersdo
leaveyourpagetoreadelsewhere,isthatyoumaygetrecognitionfromwhomever
youlinkto.
It’sgoodpractice,forexample,tolinktothebusinesspagesofpeoplewhoare
featuredatMCDMevents.It’sanadditional“thankyou”tothesepeopletorecognize
andpromotetheirworkbylinkingtothem.
Checkeverywebsitebeforeyouhyperlinktoit.Itlooksunprofessionaltohave
brokenlinks.
Setyourlinkstoopeninanewwindowortabsoyourpagestaystherewhenthe
readerfollowsthelinkaway.
Makesureyoutagyourpostwithalltherelevantkeywordsandcategorizeitinas
manyappropriatecategories.
Forbreakingnewsposts,linktothebestplay‐by‐playnewswebsitesorblogs.
RememberthatnooneisgoingtogetcompetecoverageofaneventfromFTMonly,
sodon’tleaveituptochancewhereyourreadersendupandrememberyouarecoveringthedigitalmediaelementoftheevent.Directthemtoaplacetheywillget
thebestadditionalinformationwithasimple“Formoreinformation…”atthe
bottomofyourpost.Also,letpeopleknowwhereyougot your informationwith
“via”links.The“ethicalvia,”asmanycallit,isawayofattributinginformationas
wellasdirectingpeopletositeswithmoreinsightonyourtopic.
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Chapter2
WhatMakesaGoodFliptheMediaPost?
Coveredinthischapter:
• TONE
• LENGTH
• STYLE
• TOPIC
TONE
ThetoneofFliptheMediaisconversational,news‐y,andinformal.Wemaintainan
informaltonebecauseweareattemptingtostartadialogue—wewantcomments!
Andwhilewecannotbeabreakingnewssite,weshouldstrivetomaintainan
authoritative,critical,orinquisitiveperspectivesoourreaderstakeusseriously.Finally,FliptheMediaiswrittenbyavarietyofpeople(atthispointover80people
haveauthoringrights),soaninformaltoneisnecessarytoaccommodateallthe
differentwritingstyles.
Titlesandopeningparagraphsshouldbecatchyanddescriptive,allowingreadersto
quicklygraspwhatthetopicisabout.
Herearesomeexamplesofgoodopeningparagraphs:
WindowsPhone7:CouldMobileGamingBeMicrosoft’sTicket?
YesterdayMicrosoftreleasedWindowsPhone7,thecompany’slatestattemptto
gainafootholdinthemobilespace.Withthesmartphonemarketalreadydominated
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byApple,Google,andRIM,somepeoplearesayingitmightbetoolateforMicrosoft.
Butcouldmobilegamingbeitsticket?
URL:http://flipthemedia.com/index.php/2010/11/windows‐phone‐7‐could‐
mobile‐gaming‐be‐microsofts‐ticket/
Inthe‘Post-DigitalWorld,’NewspapersareActuallyHip
Afternewmediaturnedtheold‐mediaworldupsidedown,acoupleofdigital
hipsterstiltedtheirheadsandgaveanalogasecondlook.BenTerrettandRussell
Davies,oftheEuropeandesignfirmReallyInterestingGroup(RIG),spokethis
monthinBostonattheRazorfishagency’sclientsummit.Theywerediscussingtheir
venture,NewspaperClub.
URL:http://flipthemedia.com/index.php/2010/11/in‐the‐post‐digital‐world‐
newspapers‐are‐actually‐hip/
Smokeonthe(SocialMedia)Water
YougottaloveRussianPresidentDimitryMedvedev(ormaybenot!).He’sthe
world’smostpowerfulDeepPurplefan.Anditseemsasifheupdateshisown
Twitteraccount —atleasttheRussian‐languageversion.Ofcourse,it’seasyto
assumethatheadsofstatehaveteamsofhandlerswhodotheirdirectonline
communicationforthem.Forinstance,I’vegonebackandforthonwhetherIranian
PresidentAhmadinejad’snow‐hackedblogbroadcastedhispersonalmusingsdirect‐
to‐the‐people.ButjudgingbythepersonalvoiceofMedvedev’sTwitterfeed(i.e.“My
fathertaughtalotofgraduatestudentsfromVietnam.Itwasverynicetomeetsome
ofthemtoday“),I’mthinkingthatheprobablywriteshisowntweets,butmaybe
getshelpuploadingthephotosfromhisSLR.
URL:http://flipthemedia.com/index.php/2010/11/smoke‐on‐the‐social‐media‐water/
LENGTH
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Onaverage,FliptheMediapostsshouldbebetween300‐800wordslong.
Shorterpostsaretypicallyannouncementsofevents,breakingnews,and“thingsto
watchoutfor,”wherethereisnotalotofinformation.Thesecanbe200‐300words.
Longerpostsaremoredescriptivefeaturearticlesthatincludeintroductionstoa
topicandfurtheranalysis.Thesetendtobeabout800‐1000words.
Besuretoputthejumpafteroneortwoparagraphsorafterthefirstgraphic.
STYLE
TheaudienceofFliptheMediaarereaderswhoareinterestedindigitalmedia.They
arealsopeoplewhoareassociated—asstudents,instructors,orcolleagues—with
theMCDMprogram.
FliptheMediadoesnotusepassivevoice.Forexample,“DirectorHansonHosein
wasintroducedbyProfessorKenRufo”shouldbeeditedtoread,“ProfessorKenneth
RufointroducedDirectorHansonHosein.”Avoidingpassivevoicemaintainsan
authoritativeanddynamicwritingstyle.
WhileFliptheMediaistheblogoftheUW’sMCDMprogram,academicpapersare
nottobepostedtotheblogwithoutheavyrevisiontomatchtheblog’sinformaland
readabletone.Thereisanotherpublication,theFourPeaksReview,foracademic
works.
Postsshouldbewritteninthirdorfirstperson.
Postsshouldhaveanengaginglead—ahook—todrawinreaders.
TOPIC
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Generally,listsgooverwellassubjectsforposts.Theytendtogeneratefeedback
andsometimesevencontroversy,andcanbeveryinformative.
How‐to’s,advice,suggestions,etc.arealsobigtrafficgenerators.
RespondingtoanotherblogpostontheInternet,orevenFliptheMedia,isagreat
waytogeneratefeedbackandcreateadialogue.
Aboveall,topicsonFliptheMediavarybytasteandfocus,butultimatelyMUST
containakeydigitaltakeaway.Forexample,youmayfindyourselfcoveringabig
eventattheUWCampus,butyourfocusmustbethewaytheeventusedTwitterto
furthertheconversation,orhowaFacebookgroupledtheassembly,etc.
Agoodexampleis,again,GregRasa’sarticle,“InaPost‐DigitalWorld,Newspapers
areActuallyHip”.Theprintedmediumisexaminedthroughitsrelationshiptodigital
media:Gregmakesthecasethattangibleartifactshaveactuallygainedvalueasa
resultoftheabundanceofephemeraldigitalmedia.URL:
http://flipthemedia.com/index.php/2010/11/in‐the‐post‐digital‐world‐
newspapers‐are‐actually‐hip/
Anothergoodexample,AlexStonehill’s“TheNewFaceofNonprofitJournalismisn’t
Pretty,”adiscussionaboutjournalismhighlightsnewmedia’sroleinquestionable
journalismpractices.
Finally,ElizabethHunter’s“TheArabRevolutionandSocialMedia”critically
examinestheroleofsocialmediaduringtherevolutioninEgypt—abreakingnewseventexaminedfromadistinctlyFliptheMediaperspective.
Nomatterwhatyoublogabout,FliptheMediaisthevoicefortheMCDM,andthe
MCDMisallaboutthedigitalmediarevolution.Keepthatinmindandyourposts
willbemeaningful.
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Chapter3
EverythingYouNeedtoKnowAboutWordPressBlogging
Coveredinthischapter:
• USERROLES
• HOWTOBECOMEANAUTHOR
• HOWAPITCHTURNSINTOAPOST
• HOWTOBUILDAPOST
• ADDINGANIMAGE
• UPLOADINGAVIDEO
• THINGSTONOTE
• COMMENTING
USERROLES
ThereareseveralWordPressuserrolesformanagementoftheblog.ForhelpandgeneralWordPressresources,visittheWordPressBlog:
http://en.blog.wordpress.com/category/howto/orWordPresssupport:
http://en.support.wordpress.com/.
RegisteredReader/Subscriber
GetsalertedtonewpoststoFTM,butcannotaddposts.Therearecurrently2750+
subscribers.
Contributor
Canaddanewpostandtagit.Canseeallpostsandcomments,buthasnoaccessto
editthem.Contributorshavenoaccesstothemedialibrary,sotheycan’tadd
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picturesorothermediatoapost.TheyneedapprovalfromanEditoror
Administratortopublish.
Author
TheAuthorhasthesamepowersasaContributorbutalsohasaccesstothemedia
libraryandcanaddinnewphotos,etc.Canpublishwithouthigherapproval.
Editor
AllthesamepowersasAuthor,butcanalsoeditallpostsandcanaccessallback
posts.MostpeopleintheFTMIndependentStudyandontheEditorialBoardwill
haveEditorstatus.
Administrator
Cansetandchangeuserroles,installandupdateWordPressplug‐insand
WordPressitself.Thereareabout12administrators.
HOWTOBECOMEANAUTHOR
‐Gotoflipthemedia.comandscrolldowntothebottomrightcolumn.
‐ClickonRegisterandWordPresswillaskforausernameandemailaddress.(Ifyou
alreadyhaveaWordPressaccount,usethesameemailaddresstoregisteronFTM).
‐Atemporarypasswordwillbeemailedtoyou.
‐Clickonthelinkintheemail,logintoFTM,andsetupyouraccount.Youcanchangeyourpasswordatthispoint,andyouarenowconsideredaSubscriber.
‐ContactanAdministratorafteryou’vecompletedtheaboveinstructions,andask
themtochangeyourpermissionlevelfromSubscribertoAuthororContributorand
emailyouwhenthechangesarecomplete.
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‐NexttimeyoulogintoFTM,scrolldowntothebottomofthepage,clickon
Dashboard,andyoucanbeginyourpost.
HOWAPITCHTURNSINTOAPOST
Apotentialauthorsubmitsapitchbyemailingeditor@flipthemedia.com.Thepitch
getsrecordedfordiscussionatthenextEditorialmeetingandassignedanEditor.
Oncetheeditingprocessiscomplete,theAuthorcanbuildthepostthemselvesor
sendthefinaldrafttobebuiltbyanEditor.
Finally,theManagingEditorondutydoesafinalreviewandcopyeditofthepost
andpublishesitorgivestheokaytotheEditortopublishit.
HOWTOBUILDAPOST
‐LogintoFliptheMediaandclickonDashboard.YouwillbetakentotheFTM
WordPressdashboard.
‐Intheleftcolumn,gotoPostsandclickAddNew.FillintheTitleinthefirstsmall
textboxandcontentinthelargeronebeneathit.Usetheformattingpaletteto
formatthetext(Bold,Italic,etc.)
‐Identifyacutoffpointandaddajump,whichisonthesamerowastheformatting
paletteandlookslikeapaperrippedinhalf.
‐Makesuretohyperlinkallrelevantwebsites.Toinsertahyperlink,highlightthe
wordsyouwanttolink,clickthehyperlinkicon,andintheInsert/Editlink,paste
theLinkURLandselecttheTargetas“Openlinkinanewwindow.”Youcanleave
theTitleandClassblank.
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ADDINGANIMAGE
‐Clickonthelittlewindowicon.
‐Thethreetabsatthetopgiveyouthreeoptions—uploadanimagefromyour
computer,aURL,ortheMediaLibrary.
‐FromYourComputerclickSelectFile,addintheTitle(thisisfortheMedia
Library),AltTag,Caption,Description,andchooseRightAlignedforthefirstimage
andLeftAlignedforthesecond.Thisisnotahardandfastrule,forexampleifyour
postisonlyimagesyoumaywanttoCenterAligntheimages.
‐FromaURL,simplyinserttheimagesURLandTitleintheopenfieldsandfollow
thesamedirectionsasabove.
‐FromtheMediaLibrary‐Thisiswherealltheimagesthathaveeverbeeninserted
intopostsarestored.Youcanalwaysre‐useanimage.Scrollthroughthelibraryto
seeifthereareanyusefulones,clickonShow,andthenfollowthesamedirections
asFromYourComputer.
UPLOADINGAVIDEO
‐Theeasiestwaytouploadavideoisfromanexistingsource,suchasYouTube,
Vimeo,DailyMotion,Veoh,orBlip.tv
‐ClickontheappropriateiconandpasttheURLinthefield.
‐AcceptthedefaultsizeandclickOkay.
‐Itwilldisplayinthepageascode,likethis:
youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQ15l4r3HqQ[/youtube]butNOTthe
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videoitself.YoucanseethevideoifyousavethepostasaDraftandclickon
Preview.
‐ThevideowillshowproperlywhenyouPublish.
THINGSTONOTE
‐ClickontheCategoriesthatfitthePost.Don’taddnewCategories.
‐Tagthepostwithanykeywordsyouthinkwilldrivetraffictothepost.
‐WedonotuseExerpts,Trackbacks,orCustomFields.
‐LeavetheDiscussioncheckboxeschecked.
‐DonotdisableSociable.
‐YoucansaveyourpostasadraftbyclickingontheDraftbuttonandcomebackto
edititlater.
‐ClickonPreviewtoviewyourpostasyoueditit.YoucanalsoleavethePreview
openandkeepcheckingasyoueditit.(Notethatthepreviewwillshowyouwhat
thefullpostwilllooklikeafterit’spublished,butwon’tshowyouthefrontpage
withthejump.)
‐HitSaveDraftwhenyouaredoneandcontactyourEditortotellthemitisreadyfor
publication.
COMMENTING
CommentingisautomaticallyapprovedonFliptheMedia.Anyonecancomment,but
youneedtoatleastcreateaContributoraccountorsignintoyourexisting
WordPressaccount.Thereisnoanonymouscommenting.OccasionallyacommentwillbelabeledspanandputinthePendingfile;anEditororAdministratorcangoin
andApproveacommentfromPendingStatus.AnEditororAdministratorcanalso
deletecomments.
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Chapter4
HowtoEditaFliptheMediaPost
Coveredinthischapter:
• PROCESS
-Timeline
-Thingstoconsiderwhenediting
• FOLLOWTHROUGH
-Basicadvice
-Finalpublishing
PROCESS
Timeline
OnceyouhavebeenassignedasanEditortoapieceyoumustmakecontactwiththe
Authorandestablishthelength,focus,andallmultimediacomponentsofthepost.
Settwodeadlinesforthepiece:
1. Thefirstdraftdeadline‐thedraftwillusuallybefartoolong.Itisyourjobtocutdownunnecessarytangents,tightendiction,andfirmupthethesis.
2. Thefinaldraftdeadline‐thisiswhenyouwanttohaveitbuiltasaWordPressdraft,formatted,previewed,andreadytopublish.
AsanEditoryouareresponsibleforseeingthisprojectthroughandstayingin
contactwiththecontributorthroughout.Thedeadlinesdependonthetypeofpost.
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Ifthepostiscoveringanevent,thenthepublishingdeadlineshouldbenomorethan
48hoursaftertheevent.
Afeaturepostmayrequireaslongasamonth,butingeneralturnaroundshouldbe
within2weeksofassigninganeditor.
ThingstoConsiderwhenEditing
Cultivateinterest.Ifyouareboredbyyourwriter’spiece,youcanbesurethe
audiencewillskiprightoverit.Suggestasnappytitle,ahumoroustone—anything
tokeepreadersinterested.
Focus—itcanbeeasyto“godowntherabbithole”butasanEditoryoumustrefocus
thewriter.Ifs/hehasmorethanoneidea,encourageasecondpost!
IsitFliptheMediaappropriate?Youthartprogramsareawesome,butifthepost
lacksacompellinglinktotechnology,digitalmedia,ordigitalcommunications,it’s
notforus.
Isthetoneright?Oftenpostssoundtoacademic,whichwillalienateorborethe
audience.Othertimesthetoneistoocasual.Remindthewriterthats/heisnot
writingforagradenorwritinganemailtoafriend.
Isthereanydistractinglanguage?Newauthorstendtoseeout$10wordsto
impress,butnothingreadsbetterthansimple,relevantterms.Anotherimportant
languageissuetowatchoutfor,especiallyintechnology,istheuseofjargon.Spelloutacronymsthefirsttimetheyappear,listingtheacronymyou’llusehenceforthin
parentheses.Explainunfamiliarterms.
Doesthepostexplainitself?Especiallyinablog,itisenticingtosimplyhyperlinkto
abetterexplanationbutalwaystrytoincludesomeofthewriter’sownwords.
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FOLLOWTHROUGH
BasicAdvice
Keeppeopletodeadlines!It’seasytoletfolksfudgeafewdayshereandtherebut
allowitonceandtheywillkeeppushingtheenvelope.Onthesamenote,be
prepared—somepoststakeonedraft,sometakethree.Theprocessgetseasierthe
longeryouworkwithsomeone,butitcantakesomegettingusedto.
Criticismcannotbeavoided,butitdoesn’tneedtobeawkward.Thinkofthepostas
acollaborationandthusareflectionofyouasaneditorandwriteraswell,andit
willbeeasiertoconveythechangesthatneedtobemade.Justtrytoemphasizethe
partsthataregoodsothatitisnotallnegative.Trytodeliveryourcriticismina
“complimentsandwich!”
Youalwaysneedaheadlineandcaptions!Also,itisasharedresponsibilityofboth
WriterandEditortocomeupwithasnappytitle.
FinalPublishing
Coordinatetheactualposting.Don’tforgettoclosetheloopandgetthepiece
published.Thinkabouttimingthepostformaximumexposureandconsultwiththe
senioreditorsforthebesttimetoputitinthepipeline.Mondaymorningwillalways
bebetterthanFridayafternoon.
Promotethepost!FliptheMediaencouragesbothAuthorsandEditorstopromote
throughtheirrespectivesocialmediaoutlets.
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Keeptrackofcomments.Ifthepieceisgarneringtonsofcommentary,lettheAuthor
knowthats/heshouldgoaddressthis.It’sgreatfortheblogtocontinuethe
discussionandmayevenleadtofollowupposts.
TelltheAuthortheydidagoodjob.Thisisoftheutmostimportance.Wewantthem
towriteforusagain,oratleastlookuponwritingforusasapositiveexperience.
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Chapter5
SocialMediaStrategies
Coveredinthischapter:
• WHYPROMOTEFLIPTHEMEDIA?
• HOWTOPROMOTEAPOST
• MAINTAININGANAUDIENCE
WHYPROMOTEFLIPTHEMEDIA?
Web2.0orwhateveryouwanttocallitisallaboutrelationships—greatfor
reachingoutandnetworkingwithfolkswemaynotmeetinreallife.Somepeople
havecalledchannelslikeTwitteracocktailparty.Promotingyourblogallowsyouto
sustaingoodconnectionsontheInternet.
Wewanttogainnewusersandbuildaudiences.Weareinthebusinessofspreading
thedigitalmedia“gospel.”Withoutsocialpromotion,thegreatcontentonFlipthe
Mediaexistsinanechochamber.WejustneedtodrivepeopletoFliptheMedia—
thecontentwillkeepthemoncethey’rehere.
Conversationisnotaone‐waystreet.Weshouldexpectcommentsanddialogue
fromourposts.Thatalsomeansweshouldrespondandaskquestions,whetherby
sharingthelinkortweetinginterestingfeedback.
HOWTOPROMOTEAPOST
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Unfortunately,peopledon’tjust“find”posts.Wecan’trelyonluck.FliptheMedia
hasa“share”button,whichisagreatanddirectwaytogetthepostoutthere.Here
areafewmore.
1. Twitter‐Thisisprettystandardforpromotinganythingthesedaysandshouldbeadefaultoption.Sendoutauto‐tweetsviaWordPress.This
reinforcestheimperativethatblogtitlesbeshortandcatchysotheyre‐
post/tweetwell.AuthorsandEditorsalikeshouldpromotetheirposts,as
shouldtheManagingEditor.Don’tforgettohashtag(#)yourtopicandtag
@uwmcdm,@flipthemedia,oranyotherrelevantentity.
2. Facebook‐ThesamerulesprettymuchapplyforFacebook,thoughthischannelismorepersonal.ProvidecontexttoyourlinkandtagMCDMorFTM
whenyoucan.SharefellowFTM’erslinks,andconsiderpostingatspikeslike
8am,noon,and5pm.PosttobothTwitterandFacebookinthemorning,if
possible.Wednesdaysareparticularlybusydays;Sundaysarenot.Consider
usingathird‐partyplatformlikeTweetDeck,whichallowsyoutopostto
Foursquare,Facebook,Twitter,etc.withoneclick.
3. Ping‐A“ping”issimplyawayoflettingspecificsearchenginesandotherwebsitesknowyouhaveupdatedyourblog.Itwontcauseanoticeable
differencerightoffthebat,butitwillattractsearchenginespidersandhelp
getyournewblogpostquicklyindexed.
4. Aggregatedemail‐FliptheMediaalreadyhasanRSSfeed
5. AwayMessagewithLink‐ThinkG‐chat—seemssimple,butit’sagreatand
easywaytogetthewordout.
6. Digg.com/Reddit.com‐Explorethesetoseeifyourpostmightbeworthpostingbutdon’trelytooheavilyonthem.
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7. GuestBloggers‐Uniquewritersguaranteewiderreachandhelpbuildbrandreputation.Digitalmediaisaninterdisciplinaryfield,sodon’tlimit“experts”
tosocialmediagurusandtechgeeks.
8. Optimization‐EdityourpermalinksandoptimizeyourheadlinefortheeasiestvisibilityontheWeb.
9. Email‐Surelytheremustbeoneortwopeoplethatwouldfindyourpostparticularlyinteresting.Itdoesn’treachahugeaudience,butifthefew
targetedemailsfindpeoplewholoveyourwork,theymayshareitwith
friends.
MAINTAININGANAUDIENCE
Jointheconversation.Noonelikestheguyatthepartywholovestotalkabout
himself.It’sannoyinganditdoesn’tbringothersintotheconversation.Thesame
goesforonlineconversations.FliptheMediamustestablishitselfasathought
leaderbyfollowingotherblogsaboutdigitalmedia.Leavethoughtfulcommentsand
participateinthediscussion.Don’tforgettoleaveyourtwitterhandleandblogURL
sootherscanfindyou,andlinktoFliptheMedia.Usesocialmediatoolstoseewhat
otherconversationsarehappeningarounddigitalmediaandfollowthoseblogsand
personalities.Don’tbeafraidtoreachoutand@peopletoinitiateaconversation,
especiallyiftheyareconsideredthoughtleadersinthefield.
Whenshouldtheaudienceexpecttohearfromyou?Bloggingcanturnintoachoreifwedon’tsetupsomepostingschedulethatisrealistic.Readerswhosubscribeand
don’thearfromusonsomeregularbasiswilleasilywriteusoff.Areweeveryday
publishers?Onceaweek ?Whenever ?Determiningthefrequencyofpostsallowsus
toestablisharelationshipwiththereadersandbeforeweknowit,they’rechecking
backwithustomakesurewe’vekeptupourendofthedeal.
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Timeisoftheessence!We’renotjusttalkingabouttimelinessinpostingabout
currenteventsorhottopicsinthepublic’sconsciousness.It’salsoabouttimeliness
inrespondingtocommentsorquestionsthataregeneratedbyreaders.Wecannot
justpublishcontentandthrowituponthesite.It’simportantwemonitorthepost
atleastforthefirstweekortwotoseeifanyconversationshaveresultedandtobe
readytoparticipateintheconversation.
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Chapter6
UsingMetricsandAnalyticsWisely
Coveredinthischapter:
• ANALYTICTOOLS
‐GoogleAnalytics
-Quantcast
-Alexa
-Compete
-Othertools
• FTMANALYTICS
-SEOOptimizationExamples
-MonthlyAnalyticsReport
-UnderstandingtheAnalyticsReport
ANALYTICTOOLS
GoogleAnalytics
ThedatagarneredfromGoogleAnalyticsisrepresentativeofpeoplewhoclick
incominglinksfromotherblogs,websites,orsocialnetworks.Thisdataalso
includespeoplewhohaveourblogbookmarkedandvisitwithfrequency.Thedata
doesnotcountpeoplewhoviewcontentviaRSSoremailfeeds.Ifyouvisitonepage
atFTMandclickalinktoviewanotherpage,thatisconsideredtwopageviews.
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Theaveragetimespentoneachpageisimportant,especiallyifyouspenda
significantamountoftimeononepageversusanother.Moretimeonthepage
equalsmorevalue.
Newvisitsarealsoimportant,fortheyhelpindicatereferrallinks,howlikelyyou
aretovisitagain,andhowrecentlyyouvisited.
Quantcast
www.quantcast.com
Quantcastfollowsusersaroundthewebtoseewhereelsetheygoandwhattheydo
toguesstimateage,ethnicity,ageofkids,andmore.Everythingisanaggregate;no
personalinformationistracked.
Quantcastclaimstoprovidedetaileduserdemographicsatthecampaign,publisher,
placement,creative,site,andeventlevel.Theycreateacompositionofthewebsite’s
audiencesoweknowtowhomwearespeaking.
Alexa
www.alexa.com
Alexawillcrawlandanalyzeyourwebsitetogiveanin‐depthviewofyoursite’s
visibilitytosearchengines,andprovideinsightsintotheoptimization,monetization,
andoverallhealthofyourwebsite
Competewww.siteanalytics.compete.com
Competeallowsustogaugewho’svisitingFliptheMediainrelationtootherblogs
inordertoascertainwhatwemightwanttowriteabouttoenticetheirreadersto
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ourblog,whetherviaintelligentcommentsontheirblogpostsorflat‐outwriting
abouttopicsthatsearchengineswilleventuallyindex.
SomeadditionaltoolstocheckoutwhenworkingwithFTMsiteanalyticsareas
follows:
WebConfs.com‐http://www.webconfs.com/keyword‐density‐checker.php
SubmitExpressAnalyzer‐http://www.submitexpress.com/analyzer/
Ranks.nl‐http://www.ranks.nl/tools/spider.html
FTMANALYTICS
SEOOptimization
FliptheMediahasbeenusingseveraltoolstotrackandmonitortrafficandexamine
individualposts.Let’slookatsomemajortrafficdriverstogetabetterfeelforwhat
causesaspikeintraffictoFTM.
KenRufo’s“TheEndof Facebook”
http://flipthemedia.com/index.php/2010/06/the‐end‐of‐facebook/fromJune,
2010skyrocketedto1292hitsandhad2000+thepreviousweek.Why?Well,a
similarlytitledarticlefromMSNBCcameoutonJan.14.Rufo’sposthasgreatSEO,
soitendeduptopofthesearchresults,whichiswhyitgotclickedazilliontimes.It
alsogotatonofcomments,mostlyspambutplentyoflegitimatecommentsaswell.
JonathanCunningham’s“MarshawnLynch’sEpicRunviaTecmoBowlandSuper
MarioBros.”
http://flipthemedia.com/index.php/2011/01/marshawn‐lynchs‐epic‐run‐via‐
tecmo‐bowl‐and‐super‐mario‐bros/
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Thispostsucceededbecauseofperfecttiming.Itgarneredawhopping2245unique
viewsbecauseitwaspostedrightafterthegameandrightasthevideowasgoing
viralontheInternet.Italsogarneredseveralcomments.
HansonHosein’s“DidSocialMediaPropeltheTunisiaUprising?”
http://flipthemedia.com/index.php/2011/01/did‐social‐media‐propel‐the‐tunisia‐
uprising/
Thispostgot491uniqueviewsand4comments,andagaincanbeattributedtoboth
timingandrelevancy.
PeterLuyckx’ssatirical“5Technologiesfor2011”
http://flipthemedia.com/index.php/2011/01/5‐technologies‐for‐2011/
Thispostreceivedtotalof260uniqueviewsand8comments.Itisatestamentto
thefactthatlistsingeneraltendtodowellasblogposts,particularlyiftheyarealso
funny!
Fromthisinfowecanconcludethattimeliness(whethersportsorpolitics)isreally
keyindrivingtraffic,readers,andpostinteraction.Thismeanswewanttofocuson
quickerturn‐aroundstoriesandmaybeevenputoutcallforposts/contributorson
Twitterasnewsbreaks.
MonthlyAnalyticsReport
OnceamonthamemberoftheFTMEditorialBoardwillpresenttheFliptheMedia
Analytics.Hereisanexampleofonesuchreport,fromAugustof2011.
FTMsiteanalysis–August2011
Overview
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AfterabusyJuly,Augustsloweddownabit,with24%dropintotaltraffic.Thisisto
beexpectedduetovacationsandlessnewcontents.Mostvisitedcontentduringthe
monthisshownbelow.
Thisanalysisfocusesonuserbehavior,includingacloserlookatnavigationand
“clickthrough”onFTMsite.
Generalbehavior
Despiteofloweroverallvisits,thereareactuallysignificantreturnvisits,whichisa
goodsign.Andinterestingly,adramaticincreaseinvisitsfromCalifornia.Itishard
topinpointwhythatmightbethecase.
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Trafficsourcescontinuetobedrivenheavilybysearchengine(Google),withalmost
allsocialmediasitesplayingarole.GooglePlusseemstobegainingtraction,given
itsrelativenewentry.
ThechartbelowshowstopkeywordsduringthemonthofAugust.
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UnderstandingtheAnalyticsReport
Theabovegraphicsrepresentapartofthemonthlyanalyticsreport.Somethings
worthemphasizing:
‐BothBitcoinandSpotifyweretrendingtopicsthissummerwithhugecontroversy
andlotsofdiscussiontimedevotedtoboth.Itisnotsurprisingthatevenduringa
slowmonthlikeAugust,thosetwotopicswouldgeneratethehighestnumbers.
‐Google+’sentryintothesocialmediamarketoccurredthesummerof2011andis
worthwatchingfurther.
‐Overallthesereportstendtoreinforcetheimportanceofjumpingontrending
topics,timingourblogpostswell,andusingwordsthatwillbeeasilysearched.It
furtherreinforcestheneedtotagallpostswellinthepublishingphaseandcomeup
withapowerfulrelevanttitle.
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Chapter7
CoveringUniversityofWashingtonEvents
Coveredinthischapter:
• GENERALTONE
• IMPORTANTINFORMATION
• SUGGESTIONSFORANGLES
GENERALTONE
PostsfocusedonMCDMorUWeventsshouldcarrythesamegeneraltoneand
lengthofFTMblogentriesasoutlinedinpreviouschapters,butmustalso
incorporatethefollowingelements.
1. Informativeandfactualeventattributes.Thedate,location,host,attendees,
venue,andotherhelpfuljournalisticdescriptorsmustbeincludedinthe
post.
2. Imagesarecriticaltoframeevents.WhencoveringaneventforFlipthe
Media,makesureyouorsomeoneelseisphoto‐documentingtheeventand
canprovideyouwithimagesforthepost.Yourreadersneedtoknowwhois
there,whattheirexpressionsare,andwhattheyaretalkingabout.
3. RememberthatUWandMCDMeventsareviewedthroughapubliclens.
Theseeventsaremeanttohighlightthescholarlyworkbeingdoneon
campusbutthereisalwaysacriticalpubliccomponentinthatalleventsare
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potentialoutreachopportunities.Writeabouttheeventasthoughyouwere
familiarizingsomeonewiththeUWlandscapeandmakesureyoulethimor
herknowhowtogetinvolved.
IMPORTANTINFORMATION
Trytoincludecommentsandquotesfromattendeesorspeakers.Capturesome
soundbitesthatwillhelppeoplethatdidn’tattendgetafeelofwhathappened
duringtheevent.Therearealwayspeopleateventswithsomethingtosay—ask
whatwasgood,bad,orinterestingabouttheevent.
Includerelevantorinterestingstatistics.Howmanypeopleattended?Howmany
Twitterparticipantsusedtheevent’shashtag?WasthereaLivestreamoftheevent?
Who’stalkingabouttheeventnow,andhowhasitmadeanimpressiononthe
community?
Considermakingaslideshow—just5or6imagescanmakethereaderfeellikes/he
wasthere,orshouldhavebeen!
Attheendofthepost,addresseventsorfollowupconversationscomingdownthe
pipelines.Thereisnothingworsethancoveringaneventandthenclosingthedoor.
Wherecanthereadergotofindoutmoreinformationonthetopic?Willtherebe
futureevents?Considerincludingfutureeventsthatthepanel’shostsorguestswill
beinvolvedin.IfitisaUWevent,linktothatparticularprogram,department,or
college.Forabroaderimpact,includerelevantarticlesorwebsites.
SUGGESTIONSFORANGLES
Researcharoundthetopic.Theeventisjustagathering.Whatisattheheartofthe
eventthatgotpeopleinthedoor?Researchthetopicandmakethatafocus.
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Isthereacompellingangle?Findtheonethingthatreallymakestheeventwhirr.
Maybeit’sthereallycoolvenueorthefactthatitfeaturedinterdisciplinaryvoicesor
anawesomesocialmediastrategy.
Howwasthetopicinformationpumpedouttotheaudiencepriortotheevensothat
theycamemoreinformedandengagedinahigher‐levelconversation?
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Chapter8
GuideforShootingBetterVideo
Coveredinthischapter:
• PLANNINGYOURSHOOT
-Timeline
• TIPSFORSHOOTING
-Sound
-Picture
• AESTHETICELEMENTS
• INTERVIEWS
-Sound
-Lighting
• BASICSUCCESS
PLANNINGYOURSHOOT
Timeline
Writeashortlistoftheshotsyouwillneedandabriefsynopsisbeforeshooting,and
listthekeyvideoelementsyouwanttocompletethestory.Jotdownatimelineof
notesbasedontheimagesyouarelookingtocapture:
1. Establishingshot‐setsthetone2. Fromabove‐wavescrashing3. Left‐revealsmorebeach4. Right‐revealsabitmorebeach
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5. Headonwidelow‐revealssubject’srelationshiptopalmtree6. Backtotheright7. BacktoHeadonwidelow
Thinkofyourshotsascinematicandsequential—asshotsthatallowthestoryto
moveforward.
TIPSFORSHOOTING
Sound
Useheadphonestomonitoryouraudioandsettheproperaudiolevels.Makesure
yourmicrophonesaresetontheproperaudiochannel.Audioisjustasimportantas
video,sometimesevenmoreso.
Whenthecameraisrecordingtheaudiowillpickupeverything.Thismeansyou!
Youwontbeabletoremovetheunwanteddistractionfromthesameaudiotrack.
Thisisofcriticalimportancewhenshootingraworb‐rollofambientsound,likea
bustlingcitycenter,birds,acashregister,orbicyclespokes,etc!Saveyourwitty
commentaryfortheblogorDVDextras.
Picture
Shootresponsibly!Don’tshootunlessyoureallyneedit.Thinkaboutwhatyouwant
toshootandthenshoot.Insteadofcapturingtwohoursoffootageonlytounearth
fiveminutesofwhatyoureallyneed,planahead.Thiswillhelpyousavetimeinediting.
Holdyourshotforatleasttwentyseconds.Thiswayyouwillhaveenoughfootageto
workwithwhenyouareeditinganditwillensureyouhaveenoughincase,say,you
bumpthecameraatthebeginningorendofyourshot.
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Alongerclipisalwaysbetterthanashortone.
Whenshootingfortheweb,youneedtostartwithaclear,establishingshot(usually
awideormediumshot)givingenoughtimefortheaudiencetovisuallycomprehend
whatyouarepresenting.Becausethequalityandsizeoftheonlinevideowillnotbe
verygood,youshouldstayawayfromlotsofpanning,zooming,andfancyshots.
Keepitsimple.
Aftertheestablishingshot,youcanthenzoom/pan/movesidetoside/closeup.
Keepissimplebutincludeatleastonewide,onepan,andoneclose‐up,ifpossible.
Don’tjustusethecameratozoom.Moveyourcameraandyourbodyclosertothe
subjecttogetwhatyouneed!
Whenyouholdthecamera,youaretheaudience.Youareinchargeofselectinghow
thestorydevelops.Shootwhatyouneedtokeepthestorymovingforwardand
makingsenseandshootasmanydetailsaspossible.
AESTHETICELEMENTS
Framing
Payattentionwhenframingyoursubjectduringaninterview.Makesuretheydonot
haveanythingdistractingcomingoutoftheirheadorbehindtheirbody—poles,wires,cornersofbooks,plants,anotherhuman,oryourowngear—whatever.Itwill
irreparablydamageyourvideo.
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Youcanalwaysmovethesubjectorfurniturearoundtheroomifyoudon’tgetthe
shotyouneedorifyouarehavingtechnicaldifficulties.Don’tstartshootinguntil
yoursceneisready—youcannotfixeverythinginpostproduction.
Shootingfromeyelevelcanbeboring.Bendyourknees.It’salwaysfuntogiveyour
audienceadifferentpointofview.Sometimespeoplewalkinginandoutofaframe
addenergy—ifpossible,includelotsofaction!Forexample,ifyouseesomeone
takingadogforawalk,don’tshootheadon—getdownlow!
Again,don’tjustzoom.Moveleft,right,down,below,above,orfromthesubject’s
pointofview.
Youwillneedatripod.Thisisnon‐negotiable.Noonewantstoseeashakyvideo.If
youfindyourselfinasituationwhereyoucannotuseatripod(inacar,onabike)
braceyourselfandyourcamera.Useatabletop,books,wall,theground,ashelf,
anythingthatwillmakeyourshotuseable.
INTERVIEWS
Sound
Makesureyoursubjectlooksatyouandnotyourcamera:setupyourshotassuch
andlockitdown.
Makesureyoursubjectisseatedinacomfortableandquietchairandrollthetape
forafewsecondsbeforeandaftereachquestion.Ifyouareusingahand‐heldmicrophone,placeitabout6inchesbelowandjusttothesideofthesubject’smouth
toavoidrecordingpoppingnoises.Considerusingalavalieremic(whichattachesto
thesubjectonthecollarorshirt).Makesurethemicwillnotpickupnoisefrom
clothing,jewelry,etc.Trytohavethesubjectnottouchthemicandhidethecordas
bestyoucan.
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TheSoundRecordingAutomaticGainControl(AGC)inthecamcorderseeksto
presentaconstantlevelsignaltothetape.Hence,inquietmomentsitwillturnthe
gainupandrecordveryloudambientnoise.Whenthesoundfromthesubjectis
loud,theAGCwillturndownthefinaltopreventoverloadinganddistortion.
Althoughitmayseemconvenienttousethisfeature,manuallycontrollingthesound
isbetter,andAGCisnotalwayspresentoncamcorders.
Lighting
Whateveryoudo,makesurethelightsourcefallsonyoursubjectevenly.Don’t
shootinfrontofawindowbecauseitwillmakeyoursubjectdarkandthe
backgroundoverexposed.Switchplaceswiththesubject.
Itisagoodideatoshootwiththesunatyourback.Justmakesureyoursubjectisn’t
squinting,looksangry,orliketheyhaveblackholesinsteadofeyesandamouth.
Rememberyoucanalwaysmovetoashadyspaceorcreateonebyblockingoutthe
sun.
BASICSUCCESS
Makesureyouhave:
1. Familiarizedyourselfwithyourgear.2. Enoughbatteries.3.
Headphones
4. Atripodyouarefamiliarwith5. Balancedthewhiteonyourcamera6. Turnedoffautofocus
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