Multimedia Reporting Fall 2016
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The people’s engagement with government: An election season’s approach.
Phillip Torres
The presidential election season for 2016 has offered the people of the United States a host of concerns regarding safety, opportunity and honesty. While the spectacle that was the primary election was underway, the American people were introduced to presidential candidates that boldly represented their stance on what it means to be the more qualified contender; while every candidate bolsters their own traits as leaders, the candidates deftly fabricate an image of each other in unconventional ways.
Such rhetoric provided by the candidates can have an all-together obstructed effect on the voters’ perception of a candidate who is campaigning for office; with so many character-flaws surrounding the current candidate’s reputations, it is evident that people from different upbringing view governmental positions differently. I, Phillip Torres went to a community college to hear what students had to say about their engagement with this year’s election season.
TRACK: As I walked the halls of LaGuardia Community College, I found plenty of students who had a lot to say about their engagement with the election. Steven Roa, a Business Administration major, says he’s been keeping up with current events mostly through social media.
Steven: I’ve come across certain news sources on facebook, I’ve seen a couple of posts about the candidates on instagram as well, I’ve discussed politics amongst friends, and I’ve seen a couple of the debates on TV as well.”
Track: Not long after, I encountered Tony Walker, a Human Services major, who mentions he stays up to date with the election through major news networks.
Tony: “I’m very engaged. I watch CNN, MSNBC, and I even watch FOX to see anything I can about the candidates running for presidency.”
Track: Lastly, I interviewed Ashley Bullard, who is a Commercial Photography major, and she seems less certain of her engagement to the election season.
Ashley: “Honestly, I don’t necessarily connect the same way to the government as anybody else does because I don’t support the government the same way. I feel the government is very biased and corrupt.”
Track: After the initial inquiry, the students were asked their concerns with the election season. Steven Roa is a bit uncertain as to who is the better candidate.
Steven: “In terms of the election season, I’m not really sure which candidate to pick; I believe Hillary makes some good points, but then, in general both Hillary and Trump have views that either contradict or don’t sound too appealing to me. Otherwise, it makes me actually want to look at other parties that may not be as endorsed.”
Track: Ashley Bullard conveys her concern with ambivalence, yet is hopeful for the candidate’s goals, rather than party associations.
Ashley: “I’m very nervous. I can’t necessarily say I am more to one side than the other, but I’m probably in the middle, because I am still trying to learn about what they’re bringing to the table and how they’re going to go about accomplishing their goals.”
Track: Finally, the question that would assess the influence of people’s engagement to government was offered: “If you knew nothing about a candidate campaigning for office, would you vote for them if his/her opponent held beliefs that opposes your views?” Steven states:
Steven: “No I would not, because that would just be ignorant, and that’s just me judging by my will as well as my emotions as opposed to knowledge. If I don’t know about a candidate and the person has opposing views as me, I find out more about the candidate I don’t know about, and then I will make my decision.”
Track: Tony also stresses the importance to knowing the candidates when he states:
Tony: “I would have to make an educated decision on that. I would have to learn about the candidate that’s running, and I would have to make the decision. Is this another situation of voting for the lesser of the two evils? Voting for somebody that’s not going to hurt me, other than voting for someone who is going to hurt me, and that situation you have to weigh your odds with which one is more dangerous and detrimental to you.”
Track: Although those interviewed shared little between each other besides their alma mater, the students reveal a forlorn sense of anticipation for the incoming president. With the students’ expectation of altruism, transparency, and honesty on the line, I’ve learned that the students at LaGuardia Community College are actively aware of their engagement to governmental offices. For Baruch College, this Phillip Torres.
Hello my name is Rachel Opatowski, and I decided to interview some international students of voting age because I felt like they really cared to belong in America because they it was a choice to come here, and I felt that with a dual perspective they understood some of the more current issues that Americans are now coming to terms with politically this election season.
What does “multimedia” journalism mean and how is it changing?
Traditional forms like writing, radio and broadcast have moved online and can complement each other when it comes to telling a complete, dyanamic story.
Snow Fall: revolutionary in 2012, now this type of interactive multimedia-heavy layout is fairly common.
The old forms of traditional media still exist, but they have adapted to new methods of delivery and consumption.
Radio stories on the air –> downloadable/streamable podcasts
TV news –> online video (compositional framing changes, video length changes, formatting optimized for mobile)
Newspaper-style photography and landscape orientation –> Instagram and Snapchat (portrait orientation contains more information)
The availability of online multimedia content has also made aggregation easy (tweet roundups, etc.) and helped to create a click-driven economy. Twitter and other social platforms have changed the way news breaks.
Latest trends:
–Snapchat and Instagram stories
-Facebook Live
With video, we build on the compositional techniques of photography with one obvious additional element: Motion.
How does video storytelling for the web and mobile differ from TV and film?
How important is audio?
When is narration necessary?
Sometimes, you can let the subjects of your video tell the story all on their own — as long as you edit with care, presenting what they’ve told you in a way that makes narrative sense. Non-narrated videos feel more organic. There’s no disembodied voice stepping in and you don’t have to insert yourself into the story.
But sometimes, for clarity’s sake or for stylistic reasons, narration is necessary, or text .
Narrated videos
Non-narrated videos
Shooting Your Video
There are two main components to any video: your interviews and your B-roll. The rules of composition we learned for photography (thirds, colors, patterns, symmetry, etc.) all apply here, but you also need to keep an eye out for motion. Tracking shots involve following the action with your camera, while static shots involve keeping your camera still while you let the action go in and out of the frame.
What is B-roll? And what difference does it make?
Things to keep in mind while you’re shooting B-roll:
Things to keep in mind when you’re shooting your interviews:
The Five-Shot Sequence
Shooting Your Video
There are two main components to any video: your interviews and your B-roll. The rules of composition we learned for photography (thirds, colors, patterns, symmetry, etc.) all apply here, but you also need to keep an eye out for motion. Tracking shots involve following the action with your camera, while static shots involve keeping your camera still while you let the action go in and out of the frame.
There are two main components to any video: your interviews and your B-roll.
What is B-roll? And what difference does it make?
Things to keep in mind while you’re shooting B-roll:
Things to keep in mind when you’re shooting your interviews:
Pitches for your video will be due next class. Your assignment is to shoot a 60-second to 90-second character-driven, non-narrated video about a person with an interesting profession. This will be a quick turnaround assignment, with the one and only version (no rough draft) due in two weeks, on November 16. You will have another opportunity to revisit video journalism in your final project if you so choose.
Monday Nov. 7: Pitch workshop
Wednesday Nov. 9: Five-shot sequence exercise and video editing tutorial
Monday Nov. 14: In-class production
Wednesday Nov. 16 In-class production, videos due. Pitches due for final project.
Final project draft due: Nov. 30
FINAL PROJECT
Your final assignment will be a multimedia story on the topic of your choice. Your project must contain two of the three main media elements we have learned this semester so far, plus a written portion of about 500 words that ties those elements together. Remember that these elements should complement each other and help flesh out the story, rather than doing exactly the same thing but in a different medium.
LATIN COMMUNITY ON TODAYS PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
LAURA P
We are slowly approaching the Presidential election of 2016. Hillary Clinton is the first woman President candidate of the Democratic Party in the United States of America. Millennials born from 1995 to 1998 will be allowed to vote for the first time in a Presidential candidacy this year. After the last eight years of President Barack Obama being in the big office, his Presidency is coming to an end and another four years with our new President is about to begin. History is being made and millennials are first in line to see it. Hillary Clinton has been judged based on her ability to run a country, for many reasons but half of it being because she is a woman. Celina Rivera spoke with some millenials about the barriers Hillary Clinton has faced so far.