Homework assignments

Due by 4 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 15

Publish your video story in a blog post, either via YouTube or Vimeo. Include an SEO-friendly headline and 2-3 grafs introducing the video. Tweet a headline and link to your video story.

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Due before the start of class Thursday, Dec. 1

1. (Optional) Read this iMovie HD 6 tutorial.

2. Finish collecting all your raw footage for your video story, including b-roll and interviews with at least 2 sources.

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Due before the start of class Thursday, Nov. 17

1. Read this iMovie HD 6 tutorial (optional)

2. Edit your video sequence and publish it on your blog.

  • The total length of the video should be roughly 30-60 seconds. Each shot should be about 3 seconds long.
  • If the audio is not important in your video, you can include a soundtrack. You can download free tracks from the Free Music Archive. (Don’t use copyrighted music w/o permission.)
  • Include a text card at the beginning of your video (a title, a credit, and any text necessary for the viewer to understand the video).
  • Write an SEO-friendly headline for your post.
  • Upload your video to YouTube and embed it directly in your blog post. You should be able to watch the video on your blog without having to click through to YouTube.

3. Continue gathering interview and b-roll footage for your video story, due Dec. 8.

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Due before the start of class Thursday, Nov. 10

1. Read:

2. Share a favorite example of video journalism. DM me the link or share via Google+. Nothing too long — 10 minutes or so max.

3. Begin gathering footage for your video story

  • Interviews
  • B-roll

4. Post at least one entry on your blog. It can be a written post (250 words minimum, with a generous amount of hyperlinks), an audio interview (3-4 mins.), an audio story (4-6 mins.), a photo story (6-8 original images, with captions), a Storified story (at least 20 tweets or other online elements), or a video (2-4 mins.). Tweet a headline and link to your blog post.
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Due before the start of class Thursday, Nov. 3

1. Read:

2. Collect the raw footage for a sights and sounds video

  • Must be related to your blog (assume this for all assignments, unless otherwise specified)
  • Gather 20 minutes or so of footage
  • Shoot in sequences, vary your shots (wide, medium, closeup)
  • You do not need to edit the video yet, but plan for the length of finished piece to be 1-2 minutes long

3. Post at least one entry on your blog. It can be a written post (250 words minimum, with a generous amount of hyperlinks), an audio interview (3-4 mins.), an audio story (4-6 mins.), a Storified story (at least 20 tweets or other online elements), a photo story (6-8 images, with captions) or a video (2-4 mins.).

4. Tweet a headline and link to your blog post.

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Due before the start of class Thursday, Oct. 27
3. Storify our meeting with BART’s Jim Allison, Luna Salaver and Frank Lucarelli. Readers should be able to get a full picture of the conversation. It must include the following:
  • A descriptive, SEO-friendly headline (with a verb!)
  • A brief summary (deck)
  • At least 10 tweets of your own
  • At least 10 tweets from others (e.g. classmates)
  • Written transitions between tweets or groups of tweets, where needed
4. Optional: You may also include Flickr photos, YouTube videos, links to stories, etc. wherever appropriate.
5. Publish your Storify. Tweet a headline and link to it. You do not need to embed it on your blog.
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Due before the start of class Thursday, Oct. 20

1. Review the grading rubric for written blog posts, then post at least one written entry (at least 250 words long) on your blog. Tweet a headline and link to your post.

2. Read:

3. Review (if needed) “Building blocks of a multimedia story.” Develop and pitch me a story idea (via Google+) for a 3-minute video feature. Describe in some detail what your story is about, why your audience should care, who you plan to interview, where you plan to shoot, and what you plan to shoot. It must be an actual story.

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Due before the start of class Thursday, Oct. 13
1. Review the grading rubric for written blog posts, then post at least one written entry on your blog. Tweet a headline and link to your post.
2. Read: Building blocks of a multimedia story (Mark Berkey-Gerard)

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Due before the start of class Thursday, Oct. 3 6

1. Review “Better Writing Through Radio” Part 1 and Part 2 (if necessary).

2. Finish writing the script for your audio story. If you want, you can ask me to edit your script before you voice your narration. Your story should be no shorter than 3 minutes and no longer than 6 minutes.

3. Record and edit your narration, and mix your story according to your script.

4. Upload your audio story to SoundCloud and embed the player in a blog post.

5. Write a 2-3 graf intro/teaser to your audio story.

6. Write an SEO-friendly headline for your post, then publish it.

7. Tweet (publicly!) a headline and link to your post.

8. Non-photojournalism students only – Read:

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Due before the start of class Thursday, Sept. 29

1. Review the slides from class. Edit your first audio interview using GarageBand.

2. Read these instructions on how to embed a Soundcloud file in a blog post. Publish your edited interview in a blog post. Include a 2-3 graf introduction explaining/teasing the interview. Give your post an SEO-friendly headline.

3. Read “Better Writing Through Radio” Part 1 and Part 2 by Nancy Updike.

4. Develop an idea for an audio story. Conduct interviews (10-20 mins. each, unedited) with at least 2 sources. Upload your interviews — mp3 files only — to Google Docs and be prepared to log them in next week’s class.

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Due before the start of class Thursday, Sept. 22
1. Read:
2. Conduct a 7-10 min. interview with a source relevant to your blog. Don’t just gather information — get stories: anecdotes and reflections. Be sure to include a LIVE intro and outro. No re-recording questions!
3. Save the raw file as an mp3 file, upload it to Google Docs and share it with me.
4. Review the grading rubric for written blog posts, then post at least one entry on your blog.
5. Tweet a headline and link to your blog post. 
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Due before the start of class Thursday, Sept. 8
1. Read the following and be prepared for a group exercise next week:
2. After you receive approval for one of your blog ideas, launch your WordPress.com blog. Choose a visual theme (not the default one). If your chosen theme automatically comes with an “About” page, fill out that page with 2-3 paragraphs explaining what your blog is about (use present tense, e.g. “This blog is…” rather than future tense, e.g. “This blog will…”). If your theme doesn’t include an “About” page, create one (instructions). Your “About” page should have a paragraph about the blog’s mission and a graf about yourself, along with your full name and an email address. Example.
3. Create a blogroll with five to 10 blogs related to your subject area (instructions).
4. Direct message to me on Twitter with a link to your blog so I can subscribe to it in Google Reader and follow your work throughout the semester.
5. In your first blog post, introduce yourself and the blog (2-3 grafs). Then, in the same post, write at least 5 grafs about how other bloggers are covering your subject area. Include hyperlinks to at least 5 specific posts/stories (i.e. NOT home pages of news sites or blogs) and any other relevant media (photos, videos, etc.). Someone reading your post should be able learn the latest about what’s happening on your beat. Therefore, you must summarize actual news items and link to credible (not necessarily mainstream) sources.
6. Tweet a headline & link to your blog post.
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Due before the start of class Thursday, Sept. 1
1. Finish the Twitter exercise we started in class.
2. Read the following and be prepared for a short quiz next week:

3. Before the start of class next week: Pitch me, via Google+, two ideas for a beat blog. Make sure you have done all the reading before pitching. Your pitch should include:

  • The name of each blog
  • A tagline for each blog (a one-sentence description)
  • 2-3 paragraphs explaining the mission of the blog and who you hope to reach with it
I’ll respond in the comments section with questions. After some back-and-forth we’ll agree on a plan for your blog. Your blog will be the home for your journalism work in this class, the primary way your progress will be assessed, and, I hope, a tool for community engagement.