Live Blogging

Live blogging can be defined as a blog post which is intended to provide a rolling textual coverage of an enduring event, similarly to live television or radio. In an article published by Matt Wells on the Guardians website he outlines a number of key benefits of live blogging.

Wells says that blogs provide a useful way of telling stories which are characterised by incremental developments and multiple layers. “They are open about the limitations of journalism and draw in the expertise of the audience – and even take input from journalists on rival publications,” he says. One of the key benefits he outlines is that live blogs give the ability to post significant developments quickly without the need for editing and re editing like in a news article. Furthermore they allow the author to link provide links to other coverage such as comments from Twitter or Facebook and multimedia (pictures, video and audio), and also to include the audience through the use of comments below the post. As Neil McIntosh, the online editor of the Wall Street Journal Europe states, "It's a form that's charming in its directness; at its best it generally does away with any writerly conceits, and demands the author just get on with telling you what's just happened.”

However, much like a live news broadcast there certain drawbacks are associated with live blogging. Wells explains that when covering stories without a defined timescale, such as the Arab Spring uprisings, live blogs have the potential to become long and confusing. Robert Mackey, who writes live news blogs for the New York Times, states "You are more or less providing readers with raw material rather than telling them a story. You also tend to get swept up in the rush of events, and don't have nearly as much time as you'd like to think about what's happening and make connections, or write any sort of news analysis."

In conclusion, Wells states that almost everyone involved in live blogging experiences these drawbacks. “The potential for confusion, and the difficulty that users can encounter if they come across a live blog in the middle of a story, is clear,” he says. Despite this however, the beneficial features unique to live blogging including its transparency with regard to sources and audience involvement, significantly outweigh these drawbacks, and as Wells states the live blog is surely the embodiment of the future of journalism.

Sources:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/mar/28/live-blogging-transforms-journalism
http://louseandflea.wordpress.com/2011/02/22/the-guardian-newsblog-and-the-death-of-journalism/
http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/top-stories/87930/live-blogging-how-it-makes-us-better-journalists/

Steve Jobs: The man who changed Journalsim

Steve Jobs: "I believe in media, and in news content." (2010)



This week the world was saddened by the news that Apple Co Founder Steve Jobs had passed away. Part of the legacy this man left behind however, was forever changing the nature of journalism and the way news is consumed and distributed. Whether you view the current shift from print media to digital content as a change for the better, or see it as the end of quality journalism, no can deny the impact this man had in facilitating the change.

The invention of the iPhone and iPad changed many aspects of mobile consumer technology, through its full face touch screen, high speed internet browsing and use of third party apps, it’s clear that Apple revolutionised the way audiences could access news content. As Jeff Sonderman pointed out, the majority of media companies have had to adapt to the market created by Apple; “Currently 88 percent of national U.S. newspapers already have an iPhone app and most that don’t already have an iPad app are probably planning on one.” Despite this however, Jobs repeatedly insisted how much he valued professional journalism. In a 2010 press conference he was quoted as saying, “Anything that we can do to help The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal find new ways of expression so they can afford to get paid, so they can afford to keep their editorial operations intact, I’m all for it,” and later at the same conference, "I don't want to see us descend into a nation of bloggers myself." For journalists, time will tell if his legacy was for the better or for worse.


Sources:

http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/media-lab/mobile-media/144051/how-steve-jobs-has-changed-but-not-saved-journalism/

http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Science%2Band%2BTech/Story/A1Story20111007-303787.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/judy-lubin/steve-jobs-and-the-future_b_1000180.html

Final Story

Brisbane City Cat terminal fails to be used

Brisbane’s newest City Cat terminal at Hamilton may be of little use until planned residential development has been completed according to local business owners.

The $5million terminal was unveiled two weeks ago by Lord Mayor Graham Quirk as part of a series of upgrades to Brisbane’s ferry terminals planned by the Council.

The terminal is located in the Northshore Hamilton Urban Development Area where apartments and townhouses are currently under construction and are expected to be completed mid way through next year.

View Untitled in a larger map

Map showing the location of the new terminal

In a media release, Councillor for Hamilton Ward David McLachlan said it would provide a fabulous destination for residents of Brisbane and visitors, particularly on weekends.

However local business owners fear that opening the terminal before people had actually moved into the area may have been a costly mistake, worrying poor patronage might lead the council to abandon the weekday service.

Northshore Cafe owner Simon said he had not seen anyone using the terminal since it opened and was upset it had failed to bring him any extra business thus far.

“At the moment it’s always closed and I haven’t seen anyone using it,” he said.

“It’s a great idea but I would like to see it being used by more people.”

Simon said that more people would probably use the terminal once the units were completed but until then it would remain of little benefit to his business.

The terminal gates remain locked for most of the day with only six services run daily

City Cat driver Mark said also that very few people were using the terminal, with as few as two people using the ferry on some weekdays.

“I think the Council is just trying to get its foot in the door before the apartments are built,” he said.

Mark said he wasn’t aware of any plans for the Council to add additional services at the moment but suspects more will be added upon completion of the nearby units.

Currently six services are being run from the terminal to cater for morning and afternoon commuters.

Weekend services run approximately every ten minutes between 9am and 4pm.

The successful north side Bretts Wharf terminal, approximately three kilometers up river, runs 41 services a day, during the week, with a City Cat departing approximately every ten minutes during peak hours.

  

Inside the terminal - the design supposedly resembles that of a shipping container

Construction of  another terminal at Teneriffe has also recently begun and is due to be completed by the end of the year.

New terminals have also been proposed for 6 existing sites that were damaged during the January floods including the University of Queensland, Regatta, North Quay, QUT Gardens Point, Holman Street and Sydney Street. 

@MitchDunkiii Mitch Dunk

#QUTOJ1 New City Cat terminal at Hamilton is of no benefit to local businesses: remains unused for most of the day