Blogging is great, but microblogging is an effective tool if you just want to make a quick point or comment. It is usually limited to 140 characters or less, which makes it popular because it is both easy to publish and consume. This chapter gives you the tools you need to be an effective microblogger.
Some popular microblogging sites are Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Status updates, quick announcements and small thoughts have made microblogging incredibly popular without people even realizing they were doing it at all. News outlets now use microblogging as a way to release breaking news before there is an opportunity to release a full story.
Rob Quigley, online editor of the Austin American-Statesman, gave these tips on the power of Twitter for journalism:
- Every tweet you send should have personality. Quality over quantity
- Ask for story tips from your followers. Pass them to reporters.
- Keep control over the account. Don’t turn the automatic feed back on.
Learning the basics of twitter is a necessity for a young journalist in this era. It is useful for growing a following as well as creating sources and story ideas.
- Post — 140 words or less
- Reply — put the @ symbol in front of the username of the person you are commenting on, or just click the arrow on their tweet
- Direct Message — click the direct messages link and select the person you wish to contact. This is a way of keeping the message private.
After you get the basics down, it is time to start tweeting. Post about what you are reading, thinking and doing. You can also tweet questions or answers to other peoples questions. Make sure to follow what others are tweeting and make comments. This will help to build your following.
Twitter can also be used from many mobile phones. This makes it possible to tweet where ever you are instead of waiting to get to a computer. Many reporters are using smartphones to release breaking news on twitter while at news conferences, local sporting events and other events not covered on tv
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A blog is an important tool for a young journalist. Many working journalists have blogs on top of their traditional stories, so it can’t hurt to start early. This chapter gives advice for starting and maintaining a good blog.
The three characteristics of a blog are:
- A frequently updated website that displays entries in reverse chronological order.
- Each entry, or post, has a headline and a body. Many contain links, pictures or video.
- Contains a place for readers to leave comments, although some blogs leave this part out.
Blogs make it possible for anyone to publish stories or information and share their thoughts and ideas on different subjects. They have helped journalism to become more immediate and interactive. Stories can be easily published as soon as possible without having to go through an editor. However, this increases the importance of self editing.
Before you start a blog, you should read a few to get familiar with the style. It is also important to get aquainted with the terminology:
- Post — entry on a blog.
- Permalink — a link on each post that directs readers back to the post, helpful for people emailing links to your blog.
- Trackback — lets bloggers know when others are linking to their material.
- Blogroll — a list of sites the blogger frequently visits that is located on the sidebar of the blog. Helpful for readers.
Making a blog is easy if you have a plan. Decide on a name, a description and what to write about. Blogger.com and WordPress.com are the two sites the book reccomends, although there are other options. After you have a name, it is time to pick a theme. Blogger and WordPress have their advantages when it comes to themes, so decide which is better for you.
Once you have a blog, you need to get readers. It is important to write quality attention-grabbing headlines, publish quality posts regularly and becomes active in the blogging community. Nothing bad can happen from commenting on other blogs and it might just get you a few new readers. You should also make an effort to update your blog daily.
There are a few things that can be done to make your blog more appealing to readers. It is good to have a specific topic so that your blog becomes a dependable source within the chosen topic. Posts should be scanable and include links and pictures. An RSS Feed is also a useful tool to include on the sidebar of your blog.
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