Live event blogging was originally conceived as a substitute for video coverage- a way of keeping web users up to date in the absence of any pictures.
It started in the mainstream sphere through sports coverage- a chance for people in the office or without Sky to access some form of coverage.
Its success is clear- a simple look at the Guardian Sport website shows that whenever live sport ‘minute by minute’ coverage has been available on any given day, it invariably is one of the most read items. As you can see from the image (right) – today’s live coverage of the India vs Pakistan cricket World Cup match is the most viewed page in the sports section.
More recently the phenomenon has moved to news coverage. Staying with guardian.co.uk, they are currently running Middle East daily live blogs, as well as their regular politics live feed.
But, crucially, video content and live blogging do no have to exist entirely in separation; particularly in journalism, where holding the rights to various sports’ is not necessary to stream video content.
This screenshot from bbc.co.uk demonstrates how successfully text and video can be integrated into live event coverage
Here, text, graphics and tweets are used to augment video feeds from BBC World and the BBC News Channel, to add an extra dimension to the news coverage. Additional reports and viewer feedback further build on the video journalism.
Sky News’s ‘Live Plus’ service, available via skynews.com offers a less text rich service. Instead of a timeline of text updates for major events Sky tends to use tweets from their own journalists to build up a picture of the news to add to their video content.
As is visible from Sky’s screenshot, they also offer users the opportunity to ‘Chat’ via Facebook during political events- further incorporating social media into the experience.
It is clear, therefore, that the recent developments in the online coverage of live events have blurred the divide between traditional web journalism and live video content.
They exist not in separate spheres but instead in symbiosis- with each adding to the others’ strengths.
Regular readers of this blog will know how important online video content is to both Sky News and the BBC News Channel
But I wonder how many readers actually watch news channels online? Both stream their news channels live through their websites at the click of a button, but is this a service which goes unnoticed?
The first thing to consider is the vast extra audience that this could add to both channels. While everyone in the world of journalism regards both channels as essential watching- tools of the trade, in terms of a national picture they hardly figure in the multi channel ratings. Last week, for example, neither channel could achieve more than a 2% share of the audience.
But their websites attract a far greater and broader reach- and therefore the opportunity to distribute their live news channels to a huge additional audience.
Usefully, the BBC News Channel’s controller Kevin Bakhurst regularly tweets audience figures for the Beeb’s output- and taking a look at these demonstrates the power of the Beeb’s online audience to grow the News Channel’s viewers.
On Monday, Kevin tweeted that as well as a large audience for the News Channel on TV, he added that the channel was also viewed nearly half a million times online.
Bearing in mind the channels’ relatively small daily audience, this is a major figure, which is not counted by the Rajars.
The News Channel live feed almost always crops up in the most viewed video content at any time on the BBC News website, so it does seem that more and more people are taking to watching live news online. Meanwhile, both Sky and the BBC stream their news channels via their iPhone services too.
Moreover this is a rare example of the BBC streaming live content online- and very successfully, more evidence of the boundaries between TV and online journalism became less definable, and increasingly merged.
Building on Chris Creegan’s post about the role of video journalism on radio station websites, for our latest post Video Journalism Online has been speaking to the BBC’s Vassos Alexander about the ever expanding use of video content on the 5 Live website.
Vassos is the voice of sport on the 5 Live Breakfast show, and also presents many of 5 Live Sport’s outside broadcasts from around the world.
Vassos told us that video content is a key growth area on the website: ‘5 Live are trying to offer a fresh and distinctive product online, and an important part of that is our live streams of the shows. Not only can you, of course, listen live and back to programmes on the iPlayer, but you can also watch them, as they go out, live.’
Vassos continued that ‘this is a completely different way of offering content to the consumer, and I think it has been very successful’.
But what about the presenters themselves? Does the increasing role of video content change the way they broadcast?
‘To be honest, we forget that the cameras are there and get on with it, we aren’t treating it like TV, and constantly thinking where the cameras are and so on. I mean the thing is, essentially all your are seeing is a load of people in a studio talking into the mics, we aren’t looking into the cameras or anything, the audio still drives the experience- but web users seem to like being able to see what we’re doing’.
In addition to this, the 5 Live website offers highlight clips of big name guests in the studio, which allows one to watch edited clips of programmes.
There is a lot of discussion on this blog and elsewhere considering the relationship between TV and web video- but it seems that the radio is successfully getting in on the act too.
The vlog, vodcast, video blog… its an increasingly tamed beast. It’s also becoming more and more popular in the realm of online journalism. In this exclusive vodcast on vodcasting, I ask what exactly is video blogging, and what makes it stand out from conventional journalism:
In my journey through the world of video journalism, I’ve been asking experts for their advice for aspiring video journalists. We’ve already established that the area of video journalism is growing. The internet is a great platform for those wanting to practice their film-making skills and build a profile. However, a wider platform and more opportunities don’t necessarily make you a professional or successful VJ. The web is like a training ground but the hard work must come from the individual.
In this post, I will look back at what some of the interviewees said regarding skills needed to succeed, before bringing in my final interviewee.
The question:
What sort of advice do you have for aspiring video journalists?
David Parkin, TheBusinessDesk.tv
“The media is changing and so must the journalist. As the founder of the Business Desk, any journalist working for me needs to have three important qualities.
Firstly, know your subject. In our case that’s business. We need people with a genuine passion for business news.
Secondly, be multi-skilled. The modern-day journalist needs to be able to shoot, edit, write and work online.
Thirdly, just be enthusiastic. We’re looking for people who can create powerful and interesting content and are fascinated about the future of the technology.”
Lewis Wiltshire, Editor, BBC Sport Online
“I think it’s important for trainee journalists to be as multi-skilled as possible and video is a huge part of it, as is social media and written content. So the journalists at the BBC are always encouraged to have as many skills as possible. In terms of video, it’s a growing industry and an exciting industry to be in so good luck to all those involved because you never stop learning.”
Tom Chown, freelance video journalist, DigiTomTV
“In terms of advice for aspiring video journalists. Get yourself a camera, learn how to use some simple editing software and then go out there and find a story to tell. I remember when Michael Rosenblum was training us at the BBC, one think he said was that everyone’s got a story to tell and they have. You just have to engage with people and develop your journalistic skills. You have to learn, and you will learn the right questions to ask people to draw themselves, out of themselves. Put people at ease, make them relaxed and they’ll tell you the most fascinating things you never thought possible.”
Wise words from the three experts. I think David pretty much covers all ground in terms of journalistic qualities. Lewis from the BBC places emphasis on being multi-skilled and Tom speaks as an experienced video journalist.
My next interviewee is Abrar Hussain, Creative Director at Life Of This World Media. He started the company around 5 years ago and specialises in video production for charities. I met Abrar outside Finchley Central Underground station to discuss video journalism online.
Abrar provides a very good explanation of how the internet is slowly transforming his business and video journalism. Once again we see emphasis on how video is being produced only for the online world, when he says that the number one question in any kind of production meeting now is “how can we make this work online?“ However, for me, I think Abrar’s advice to aspiring journalist comes from the heart and he captures this overarching principle of ‘passion’ really well. There is no doubt that the modern-day journalist has to be multi-skilled and work across platforms. In video journalism, he/she must be able to pitch, shoot, edit, script, voice and deliver content for the target audience. Yet equally as important is the passion for pictures, the enthusiasm and the willingness to just go for it. Video journalism is an area where you’re constantly learning by watching and making mistakes so the passion must be there.
Here’s a transcript of Abrar’s response when asked to give advice to aspiring video journalists.
Abrar Hussain, Creative Director, Life Of This World Media
“Just make sure you’ve got a passion. Don’t be doing it because you think ‘oh this is cool, I’ll do this and get into it because it’s cool.’ Look at me, I was running around with a video camera when I was 10 years old, I was filming the family events. I had a video camera, I was doing it and I loved it because it was my passion. At University, I studied Business and IT, not media but I started making documentaries for my university and they were paying me for it. It was a passion and I grew up with it. Don’t think ‘I’ll get to meet celebrities’ or ‘I’ll get to travel,’ they’re the wrong kind of motivations. Just be really really passionate. The other thing, work very very hard. Work while other people are sleeping and you’ll get ahead.”
It’s all about motivation.
Finally, here’s another plug for the “Online News Video Watchers Survey” with some interesting entries in so far, so keep them coming. In the next few posts, I’ll be disclosing the results from the survey and look into some of the technology/devices used to film the interviews.
Carry on filming!
* The links in this post can be accessed and shared on the VJO delicious page.
Last week, I met up with Tom Chown (@DigiTomTV), a BBC-trained freelance video journalist with 13 years of experience in the industry. Tom’s career is a great story in itself which has seen him spend 5 years at the BBC, before working on an Online TV channel (Ten Alps IPTV) and freelancing for several news agencies (PA, AFP). He’s even traveled to the North Pole to produce a series of features for BBC News 24 (beat that!).
Tom’s observations are fascinating because he started out back in the early 2000’s, a time when the internet was reletively new. Since then, he has seen it develop and utilised it as a powerful tool for video journalists. He is, in his own description, a “self-shooting journalist” and looking at his work, a pretty good one. Here’s the interview.
A quote that stands out from the from Tom is his description of video journalism online as “a fantastic tool for telling really short stories.” I think the key word is ‘short’ and Tom is spot on in his elaboration that “people are searching for short bite-size bits of content.” These words reflect the biggest advantage of video journalism online, flexibility, allowing producers and broadcasters to create content solely for the ‘online’ audience.
There are, in my view, two ways in which content is being made for a definitive audience.
All in all, the web is great for implementing the classic business model of “doing more with less” and for any enthusiastic video journalist, it’s a brilliant platform to build a profile. Tom Chown’s wise words highlight the impact of the web on video journalism. It’s all about flexibility and opportunities.
* The links in this post can be accessed and shared on the VJO delicious page.
Well they do like to be ‘First’, and a day early the Sky News Ipad App is out and available to download.
Its streams the main Sky News channel live, in line with the website and iPhone app. You can also rewind and pause the live channel- rather like Sky Plus.
But the really interesting thing about the App is the way it lets the user choose the news through video content.
Last night Sky’s Political Editor Adam Boulton held a preview session for tech bloggers in Sky’s Westminster newsroom, and the general consensus seems to be overwhelmingly positive.
It’s interesting to note that the blogger says that she believes that the app ‘will revolutionise the shape of our news consumption going forwards’, echoing up Sky’s promotional publicity.
But why is this such a potentially important step forward?
Clearly as befits the nature of the Ipad, the App is very video heavy- that’s visible from the screengrabs and demos available. But crucially Adam Boulton says that the way that the interface is designed allows you to essentially build your own news bulletin, with related video appearing immediately along side content being viewed.
This backs up my preview post yesterday, which suggested that it turns the user into a vision mixer, directing online video content so as to make bespoke and individual news programming.
Sky have an editorial team of fourteen people working full time on the App, so clearly it is something they have heavily invested in and expect big things from.
At the moment it is free to all users, but in the future they say they plan to charge non Sky subscribers to use the App.
If you have the App leave a comment and let us know what you think of the App. Revolutionary or style over substance?
The area of video journalism online is expanding and this week saw the launch of a new business video channel from the team at ‘The Business Desk.’
David Parkin from TheBusinessDesk.tv
It’s an example of how specialist websites are now using the medium of video to deliver news content for a more specific audience. The website has been the hub of regional business news since 2007 with focus on Yorkshire, North West and and the West Midlands.
The latest development, Business Desk TV is the UK’s first dedicated regional business video channel. I spoke to the man in the middle, David Parkin, based in the Leeds office.
Q1: Hi David, thanks for giving up your time to speak to Video Journalism Online. Tell me a little about Business Desk TV.
“Well it’s an online business news video channel specifically focusing on business video content for our regional membership. At The Business Desk, we’re keen to provide good quality video content for our members be it news, debates, seminars or interviews from the world of business and this channel will allow us to do that.”
Q2: David, this is a video channel online, why video and why online?
“We believe fundamentally that the online technology with the speed in particular allows you to provide a great video news service. On top of this and perhaps more importantly, our focus is on a regional and specific video-watching audience. The online service allows us to focus our content and direct it to the audiences based in the regions we cover.”
“In relation to your question about video, well it really is the media of the future isn’t it? We know our audience and it’s needs well enough and so video allows us to provide them with the vital information in 2-3 minutes.That’s what they want and that’s what we’ll give them.”
Q3: Have you hired a dedicated team of video journalists to put the content together?
“We don’t need to. We’ve already been filming about a dozen events around the UK every month and the team will continue to work hard to add content to our online library. In terms of technology, our journalists who write for the website are multi-skilled. They all produce video content with a number of flip-cams available to them for personal use.”
“We’re also working with professional video companies to produce quality HD content. I’ve invited several media agencies to provide us with high quality editorial content so we’re encouraging more businesses to submit video footage that can help and help us report news and events. Above all, quality of content is massively crucial for our members.”
Q4:Finally David, for our readers who are aspiring to step into video journalism what sort of advice do you have?
“The media is changing and so must the journalist. As the founder of the Business Desk, any journalist working for me needs to have three important qualities. Firstly, know your subject. In our case that’s business. We need people with a genuine passion for business news. Secondly, be multi-skilled. The modern-day journalist needs to be able to shoot, edit, write and work online. Thirdly, just be enthusiastic. We’re looking for people who can create powerful and interesting content and are fascinated about the future of the technology.”
I think David has taken the idea of bringing business news to life and decided to experiment with it. The invitation to PR companies and other businesses is interesting and the online library of content is a cracking idea. This model is one being used by several niche websites to provide content for their audience. Let me know what you think about David’s comments. You can tweet: @UmarOnline / @videojournos or e-mail: videojournalismonline@yahoo.com.
And while we’re at it, here’s another plug for the “Online News Video Watchers Survey.” Some interesting entries in so far, so keep them coming video fans.
* The links in this post can be accessed and shared on the VJO delicious page.
Later this week Sky News is launching a new service- ‘Sky News for iPad’, a new take on its existing iPad app. Many news providers have been capitalising on the ever increasing smartphone and tablet market, offering what are essentially paired down versions of their online content.
However, Sky News promises something different with their service for the iPad. They claim that it will offer ‘an entirely new way’ of delivering news events- allowing users to ‘decide what they watch and how they watch it’.
Sky is well known for pushing the boundaries and trying to innovate at every step, so what does this new app mean for online video journalism? Details on Sky’s app are still sketchy, and essentially are confined to this intriguing promo video.
The app is out on March 17th, and until then we can only speculate, but judging from the video it does seem as though it will go some way to putting the online viewing experience into the user’s hands. This raises the fascinating idea of taking editorial judgments out of the news provider’s control. Instead the user picks and chooses which video to watch and when- becoming an amateur vision mixer.
Sky have form on this, their Sky News Active service, which has since been paired down, used to offer eight screens of video content for the viewer to flick between. This seems to be an advanced version, using the touch screen versatility of the iPad to create a polished and intuitive app that crucially puts the online video journalism experience firmly in the hands of the user.
Come back on March 17th for a review of the app, and to find out whether it lives up to the hype.
Many of the posts on this blog have been looking at how powerful user generated videos have been at documenting the unrest throughout the Arab world.
Clearly, the power of social media offers a glimpse into events which otherwise would go undocumented, as mobile phones and digital cameras become powerful tools at offering the outside world glimpses of events.
But some of the professional journalism which we have been watching throughout the unrest has highlighted the flaws in citizen video journalism.
Youtube clips of demonstrations and atrocities do not offer a coherent picture- instead they are snapshots into events, often presenting a dislocated narrative which it is hard to form a clear picture through.
Recently, Sky News has been showing a report by its mulit-award winning Asia correspondent Alex Crawford, which documents the battle for the Libyan town of Zawiyah with extraordinary clarity and power.
If you haven’t yet watched it I recommend you click on the video below- it is a brave and compelling piece of journalism.
Most importantly, this is a rare opportunity to gain a full idea of what was happening on the ground. Instead of snatches of footage from the protestors, this is a linear narrative of a full weekend in the town, as it came under relentless assault from pro-Gaddafi forces.
The fact that it is also presented from a personal perspective, the first person narrative is particularly striking, adds both to the coherency, and also verifiability of the piece.
Crawford is a trusted journalist, we know when watching the report that isolated incidents are not being hyped upped- it is instead a sober and realistic view into life under assault in Libya.
It is a staggering piece of journalism, and although online video content delivered via social media has essentially been the heartbeat of media coverage of regime crackdowns in the Middle East, this report should make us all take stock, step back, and remember that on the rare occasion that it is possible- professional journalism from the scene remains the most powerful way of reporting global news events.
Here, text, graphics and tweets are used to augment video feeds from BBC World and the BBC News Channel, to add an extra dimension to the news coverage. Additional reports and viewer feedback further build on the video journalism.
As is visible from Sky’s screenshot, they also offer users the opportunity to ‘Chat’ via Facebook during political events- further incorporating social media into the experience.
VideoJournalismOnline 