Internet journalism: YouTube and more
Internet journalism is a new kind of journalism that appeared at the end of the 20th century with the development and spread of the Internet. The specificity of the Internet made it possible to organize regular information broadcasting to a wide audience without the special deployment of technical infrastructure. Thus, almost anyone who has such a desire has the opportunity to create mass media.
Online publications may or may not have an official media status. A journalist working for an Internet publication (Internet journalist), as a rule, does not face many of the attributes of traditional journalism specialized equipment for television and sound recording, and printing.
The legal aspect of the activities of a journalist on the Internet is important. The journalist is responsible for the published information, but this is not always the case in practice.
The personalization of journalism has gained widespread popularity. This is a new phenomenon that has spread in journalism. Any person acts as a producer and distributor of information without external control and any restrictions. The blogosphere began to develop and gain popularity; the public, press, and academia have wondered if blogs can supplant the so-called “traditional media.” By now, many have concluded that professional journalism and the blogosphere (sometimes called “individual” or “citizen” journalism) complement each other, as the advantages of one make up for the disadvantages of the other, and vice versa.
The main specificity of Internet journalism lies in the form of material presentation: on the one hand, the Internet provides almost unlimited opportunities to bring your projects to life; on the other hand, it requires the ability to take advantage of these opportunities.
YouTube: endless possibilities
All of us understand that YouTube provides great possibilities for people to express themselves. This platform is also widely used by both experienced and beginner journalists. Moreover, if you are interested in mastering your journalist skills, it will also be pretty helpful.
The nice thing is that you don’t always need to sit and watch videos for hours. With the help of a reliable YouTube video cutter you can convert, cut, and download diverse educational and entertainment videos to enjoy them afterward. Isn’t it great?
Let’s now focus on what is needed to become an Internet journalist.
Looking for pictures and videos
Consider a simple example: if a captivating thematic narration fully meets the standards of a print publication, then the realities of Internet journalism are such that a large volume of monotonous text without colorful photos and videos will rather scare away than attract a visitor to an Internet resource. For this reason, a journalist has to either cooperate with masters of photography and video filming or master these professions himself.
Multi-source journalist
The growing popularity of mobile communications has led to another feature of Internet journalism: working with files of various formats significantly expands the audience. Video and audio files for mobile phones today are some of the most demanded sources of information. Communication skills in social networks can be safely called one of the main working tools of a modern journalist since they are the media for many users.
It just so happened historically that each popular social network has its own specifics, which should also be considered. This includes regional characteristics, commercial focus, age, and social groups, and the range of interests varies accordingly. A non-standard approach is no less common, for example, GIF animation on social networks.
A lawyer
Online journalism requires some awareness of the current laws on information, especially those points that relate to its dissemination. In other words, you should think twice before publishing this or that news in the public domain, since in most cases, the journalist himself is responsible for the content of his material.
So, the main features of online journalism are:
- Active cooperation with video filmmakers and photographers.
- A wide range of media files are used.
- Personal responsibility for the content of the information provided.
As for the presentation of the material, practice shows that real-life examples and fictional stories gain more attention than analytics. The presence of a general erudition and understanding of the range of interests of their target audience is important as well; these qualities still remain relevant for any media worker, regardless of what niche he has chosen for himself.