Blog
What you need to know about social media/blogs as journalists
- By: ASNE staff
- On: 09/16/2014 23:23:01
- In: Convention
By Kyra Senese
Columbia College Chicago
Independent visual journalist Alex Garcia hosted a session on social media and blogs for visual and print journalists from 4-5:30 p.m. Monday.
Columbia College Chicago
Independent visual journalist Alex Garcia hosted a session on social media and blogs for visual and print journalists from 4-5:30 p.m. Monday.
Independent visual journalist Alex Garcia hosted a session on social media and blogs for visual and print journalists from 4-5:30 p.m. Monday.
Garcia opened the session by discussing his past experience at the Chicago Tribune and detailing how he became an active blogger and social media guru.
Garcia opened the session by discussing his past experience at the Chicago Tribune and detailing how he became an active blogger and social media guru.
He said that while he was at the Tribune he realized that he wanted to start a blog and asked his editor for permission to do so. When his editor turned down his idea to start a blog, Garcia decided to start one anyway and showed the blog to his editor after he established some followers and a visually appealing design.
After seeing the blog in action, Garcia's editor decided that it was in fact a good idea and gave Garcia support to continue. Garcia said the major motivation for his blog was his desire to educate other photojournalists and student journalists about being a successful photojournalist and being active on the blogosphere and social media.
Garcia listed his five benefits of a blog:
1. Increase traffic to other sites, such as in the case of his photo blog Assignment Chicago driving traffic back to the Tribune website.
2. Builds authority and adds a name and voice online.
3. Increases engagement with readership.
4. Raises [the writer's] profile.
5. Expands reach of readership.
Garcia also spoke from personal experience and cautioned journalists that while he thinks more journalists should blog, they must be aware that blog content can be taken out of context even moreso than regular journalistic pieces.
He told the attendees that when approaching social media—especially for those with little to no experience—it is best to choose just two forms of social media to start with and become familiar with, what he called the Rule of Two.
Garcia also said he thinks that people are online in search of a voice and that there is a lack of editors blogging. He said he thinks people do respect authority online and they want to know what the decision-makers are thinking.
Garcia ended the session by listing his tips for a successful blog:
1. Determine your audience.
2. Be helpful to your readers to increase readership loyalty and popularity.
3. Engage with your audience.
4. Choose 2. (Rule of 2)
5. Anticipate trolls.
6. Allow time (to become popular.)
7. Context is King.
7. Context is King.