The lazy sub’s guide to keeping it legal online

Don’t get banged up the slammer. Here’s a handy 10 tips for media law online post, courtesy of Richard Sharpe of ETC – just in case you need an update from print subbing.

‘I would not become a sub-editor now…

… The future for sub-editing is bleak,’ said Justin Williams, assistant editor of the Telegraph, at the NMK ‘What happens to newspapers?’ event. [Full story here.]

The reason? Because The Telegraph is trialling a post-moderated sub-editing system online in which reporters publish directly to the online edition and await moderation.

Whether moderation is by users via comments or subs direct into the story isn’t clear (to me anyway). But what is noted is that ‘[The future] will not be about the interminable multi-staged editing process’.

Williams notes instead a trend towards content generation (a theme visited in earlier posts as subs are shifted into multi-tasking).

But while newspapers have a brand and quality to protect, they are likely to suffer an amateurisation in the quality of their content through the publish-then-filter model. While this may be acceptable in a fast-paced news environment, which can be corrected over time in a rolling news story, the model could be dangerous for certain topics areas (eg, medical stories), but also for client magazines and websites with a brand to protect.

I don’t agree that the production process has to be ‘interminable’ but a second pair of eyes at least should be in place. Once it’s out there, wrong information goes to RSS almost immediately and an edit even a minute later won’t appear. As a writer I’d be very wary of sending in work without at least some kind of checks in place.

As for client-branded media, they may risk their good name and trusted reputation if they follow The Telegraph‘s lead.

Want a job in the Maldives?

If you’ve ever wanted to do your funky journalistic thang somewhere other than a booth in an office in a big city, then check this job out. Copy editing and reporting in a coral atoll…

Print journalist, $9,000, accomm provided.

Your beach hut awaits…

Re-styling print copy into web conversation

Want a quick tip on how to tone up your copy for the Web? Dave Taylor at Copyblogger provides…

[I] read what I write out loud rather than just subvocalize it as I write. Not only is this a great way to learn which sentences are too long or need commas … but it also helps you “hear” which of your sentences are awkward and stilted rather than flowing and relaxed.

Basically, write the way that you speak. While Dave’s suggesting this helps him create a distinctive tone of voice, his tip also works as a generic trick for copy editors having to re-style print copy for Web.

How to host an online conversation

Following on from the last post on joining the conversation as being essential to get the tone right, I just found this piece from the OJB‘s Paul Bradshaw (here are some edited highlights; find the full story here):

An online journalist should be a mix of the ideal party guest and the ideal party host, taking part in – and stimulating – conversations in a number of ways:

• Be involved in your communities.
• Open up your own work for others to contribute editorially.
• Make your content portable by providing an RSS feed; widgets users can place on their webpages; wikis for them to edit; or even raw data for mashups.
• Respond to contributions.
• Show explicitly that you are part of the conversation, by linking to sources (who will in turn know that they are being quoted either through pingback or traffic)
• Listen! That means reading blogs, forums and other media in their sector, and then starting from the beginning again: comment, respond, link, open up.

It reminds me of how on citizen journalism sites, there is usually a team of professional facilitators behind the scenes who help the content and contributions come alive and pull out the growing stories.

Of course, the image of being both a party host and a guest sounds a lot nicer.

But essentially it is a way to think of a potential future role for journalists – particularly sub-editors and copy editors who like to have the overview – rather than focusing on feeling defunct in the new media age.

Wrestling with online tone and etiquette

Being sort-of-flamed in a forum a while ago was a wake-up call to getting the tone of online writing right. It’s something I’m still working on and something subs, copy editors and writers moving into online work would do well to learn.

Because unless you’re actively writing for the Web – blogging, contributing to forums, commenting and so on – then the Web’s more natural, conversational tone and transparency won’t come easily. In fact, your writing may end up sticking out like an academic essay delivered on the radio.

I’m learning that one of the best things you can do to make a successful transition to online work is to take part in the culture of the Web – just as your readers do.

Writing a blog, making comments, joining a forum or discussion – these are all ways to join in and develop your online voice.

The problem for print journalists is that we’re used to operating in a vacuum. We’re used to telling the reader what to think in a one-way distribution of information that is forgotten as soon as it goes to press.

And too often, the reader has felt like a nameless, faceless entity summed up by market research as an ABC1 type.

Not so on the Web. Expect them to talk back and respond directly to the content you upload. And be ready for them to click through to you from Bratisalava or Boston as much as from Birmingham or Bognor. Cock it up or come across as superior (even if you are!) and you can expect a flaming for you and/or your brand.

Dan Gillmor (author of We The Media) says journalism is in the process of evolving from ‘journalism as lecture to journalism as conversation’. Which means…

Online editors need to be ready to engage at a grassroots level. We can now write in the second-person, ask direct questions, start debates and reply to commentors, critics and detractors.

Btw, don’t think having a site which with comments disabled lets you off – anything you publish can be linked to, commented on, blogged about or discussed openly for anyone to read, ad infinitum.

But get the tone right and the readers are more likely to buy into what you’re saying.

(For a commercial rationale on this, check out why being likeable online is an important business strategy. Being controversial brings in traffic but if you’re selling something it’s likeability that makes people want to buy.)

And if you do cock up? Don’t respond in anger. Be humble, be honest, apologise for getting it wrong, ask what they suggest doing and avoid tit-for-tat responses. People will usually forgive you for being an arse. Once anyway.

Now it’s the media crunch

If you weren’t depressed before then check out Guardian digital editor Emily Bell’s prediction of ‘two years of carnage’ for western media.

Top 10 checks – a starter kit for online copy editors

The Web may be creating a publish-then-filter environment but when you’re looking after your publication or brand’s reputation, traditional pre-publication copy editing checks still stand. And you need to get to the info quickly and get it from a reliable source… or at least find a fast trail to one.

Here’s an off-the-shelf starter kit.

1. For general enquiries, it’s gotta be Google. Blackle is a cute ‘energy-saving’ alternative – and it acts like a mirror on your screen for checking you still look damn good.
2. For a subject-specific starter, Wikipedia is hard to beat, despite its detractors. Well-visited pages tend to get more accurate over time (for various reasons), but it’s wise to skip to the external source refs at the bottom of the page to double-check the ever-editable posted info.
3. Bookmark your own set of reputable resources, eg, for the travel sector, your local Foreign Office site (this is the UK one) and the CIA World Factbook are sterling reference points.
4. Bookmark an e-dictionary – try Dictionary.com, Your Dictionary and Hyperdictionary. Many don’t differentiate between British and American English spellings – though with a global readership this may not be an issue. Merriam-Webster does but it has pop-ups 😦
5. For celebrity names, it’s gotta be IMDb.
6. Crowdcheck spellings on Google – type in each name variant and see if there’s a big difference in volume of references. Think of it as an ‘Ask the audience’ for when you can’t find the answer yourself.
7. Check trademarks – this is the UK Intellectual Property Office right here.
8. Convert currency at XE.com.
9. Convert measurements/weights at OnlineConversion.com. Or just type your amounts into Google, eg, 10m into cm, 50g into oz, and the answer miraculously appears.
10. Find statistics at UK Statistics Authority and YouGov.

Okay, so this list is a touch UK-centric and possibly more mag/brand-oriented than hardcore news so open to adds. Probably missed some lovely check spots, too. Any others?

Mag subs, look to the future now…

…it’s only just begun. Wanna view a potted history of your industry as it goes digital and online? Check out this link from Twitter, courtesy of Paul Bradshaw of the Online Journalism Blog.

Non-stop top headline service launches

Thanks to twblog on Twitter for pointing out this lovely header:

bmi to stop non-stop Jeddah service

See the story in all its glory on Travelmole.