April 2012
17 posts
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May Mojo is coming! Weekly series of brainstorms,...
Feel like you’re in a rut? Need some inspiration?
I’ve been on an innovation kick lately, so I’ve put together a weekly series of brainstorms and webinars in May to help get those creative juices flowing. Let’s get our mojo back by the summer, shall we?
Mark your calendars …
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Brainstorm...
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A meaningful (and creative) farewell gift from the...
I was going to put together my own CD mix as a farewell gift to super journalist/online editor Meg Martin (who has inspired me before with her custom playlists). Instead, I opened it up to the newsroom (and a bunch of folks from around the company). Such a fun and touching project …
Meg’s Ultimate Roanoke Times Tribute Mix
To drive (and remember us) by
1. Robert Anderson: “Time...
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My Top 5 Twitter tips to rock your reporting and...
Thanks to everyone who joined us for the first Tuesday Talk … this week we talked Twitter (with helpful tips and stories from Nona Nelson, Lindsey Nair and Amy Matzke-Fawcett, among others).
I plan to follow up with one-on-one training with a handful of you, so don’t be shy if you have a burning question …
Not sure where to start? Don’t be afraid — take baby...
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Social (Media) Butterfly is about to hatch for...
My wings and glitter are ready to go.
How’s your superhero persona coming along?
We have a few ideas if you need some help …
THE FOIA-LER: Look out, crook. Your corruption scheme will be FOI(A)LED!
SHUTTER BUG: You will shudder as her monster flash blinds you!
*THE* RED PEN: Yes, that’s THE Red Pen, Megan points out. I’ve been marked.
NUT GRAF: Spreading context...
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The superhero team is assembling for Saturday's...
Rebecca Barnett is the first to ask about the costume part of our ”Superheroes of Journalism” VPA party Saturday night.
She is awesome — and totally game. But not sure what to wear.
Her bravery has unleashed my creative juices … Rebecca shouldn’t be alone.
So I’m willing to bring together …………
An old bridesmaid’s dress...
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Photo editing fail! Picnik.com shuts down Thursday...
Thanks to Amanda Codispoti, who reminds us that Picnik.com is shutting down this week.
Many of us used Picnik to easily crop and resize photos for our blogs and such.
So what now?
Back in January, Meg Martin graciously pulled together a list of alternatives, which I’m sharing below —- and please take note of her Picasa warning ….
I’m curious to hear which...
Thanks for the webinar summary
Stephanie, thanks for that great account of today’s webinar. I should clarify one point: Journalists and newsrooms should absolutely post breaking stories to Facebook, just not as frequently as to Twitter. But when you are looking for social media content on a breaking story, Twitter is more useful because people are more likely to post there more immediately and more frequently. Again,...
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My takeaways from today's @Poynter Twitter webinar...
Good news for those who couldn’t join today’s Poynter webinar with @EricaAmerica of Twitter — the webinar will be available for replays starting early next week. If you’d like to watch, let me know and I’ll hook you up with a login.
Not sure if it’s worth your time? Here are my takeaways to lure you in …
» Tweet more photos and behind-the-scenes...
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Tweet-tweet! Advanced Twitter for Journalism...
Not only are we set for the Advanced Twitter for Journalism webinar tomorrow (2 p.m., news conference room), but I’m planning a follow-up Twitter roundtable for TUESDAY, APRIL 24, at noon in the news conference room.
The purpose of tomorrow’s webinar is to get lessons from the experts — and it will be available for replays.
The April 24 brownbag/roundtable will be a time...
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Highlights from Facebook/Twitter webinar for...
Thanks to everyone who made it to this morning’s webinar on Facebook / Twitter for journalists by Steve Buttry (one of my new favorite bloggers).
I realize many of you had conflicts and/or geographic issues, so I took some pretty thorough notes. Below you’ll find my top takeaways — you can see Buttry’s full slideshow presentation here:...
How do you build (and engage) your audience?
You might have noticed Andy Bitter’s popular live Virginia Tech football chats this past season (his latest one is going on now, in the middle of spring practice).
That’s just one way Andy’s dominating his beat and engaging his audience — and part of the reason why he’s our top blogger and most-followed Roanoke Times journalist on Twitter.
But Andy’s not the...
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Webinar alert! How to improve reporting w/...
Mark your calendars … two social media webinars happening this week.
Hopefully you’ll be able to attend at least one …
How journalists can use Facebook and Twitter When: 10 a.m. Wednesday, News Conference Room Who: Steve Buttry, Director of Community Engagement & Social Media, Digital First Media: Who should attend? Any newsroom person who needs to know ways that social...
Calendars, ready? Bloggers summit coming soon
Good morning!
As I mentioned in a previous email about 13 ways a reporter should use a beat blog, I’ve been toying with the idea of organizing a bloggers’ summit, where we can get together over lunch and chat about what’s working and what’s not.
What wisdom could you share with the group?
I’m penciling it in for noon on *Thursday, April 19* — leading up...
Buttry: 13 ways a reporter should use beat blog
Here’s a helpful post from one of my new favorite bloggers — Steve Buttry, Director of Community Engagement & Social Media at Digital First Media. I think I want to be him when I grow up.
This post is rich with advice — especially the tip about liveblogging and a smart way to use video clips (it doesn’t have to be a big production!).
Read on:...
Help me promote your work
If you didn’t know, I’m usually the one pulling together the teasers you see on page A2 of the newspaper each day.
The focus is what’s on roanoke.com — and I try to highlight the best conversations happening on our blogs (like reaction to a restaurant closing), special projects that should get some extra love (like the All-Timesland gallery) and reminders of events...
What's up with these different bit.ly numbers?
Thanks to a question from Rebecca Barnett, who asked why you might see different numbers next to your bitly-ized link, like this example (20 out of 48???):
Here’s the answer, from bitly:
“The numbers next to your links might say “8 out of 8” or “14 out of 648,” or something else. The top number is the number of clicks that your bitly link specifically...
