Sona Patel

I’ve used Soundslides Plus several times to make audio slideshows. I’ve made slideshows using Flash, but after being introduced to SoundSlides a couple years ago by Tribune photographer David Middlecamp, I don’t think I’ll ever go back to creating slideshows in Flash. Michelle Johnson from Emory University continued skills week at Maynard with a little sound editing using Amadeus. I use Adobe Soundbooth and Pro Tools at The Tribune for editing, so it was good to learn a new program.

Amadeus is free and easy to use. Besides learning how to edit audio clips in Amadeus, Michelle talked about whether it’s OK to enhance audio and the rules on altering audio. It’s an important detail that can be easily overlooked in the newsroom, especially when using high-end audio editing software that allows you to add scores of effects to your tracks. Some of those features are tempting, especially when you want to clean up that perfect clip. The Radio-Television News Directors Association published a series of guidelines to help determine whether you’re going too far with your editing. Here are a few tips for gathering audio out in the field and what you can do in case your audio doesn’t turn out as expected:

Location: Depending on what your story is about, choose a good location for capturing audio. If you’re doing a man-on-the-street interview, make sure there’s not a truck roaring in the background or a train crossing. If it happens during the middle of the interview, politely ask your subject to repeat his or her answer.

Microphone: Hold your microphone or audio recorder at a comfortable distance from your subject. Don’t hold it up too close, but just enough so that your elbow is comfortable and you can still hear the audio at a decent volume level. Make sure to watch your arm throughout the entire interview. If you let it drop, you might not be able to hear your subject clearly. Remember, try to wear headphones whenever possible!

Clean up static: It’s best practice to do whatever you can to capture good audio, but just in case you capture any annoying white noise in the background, there are features in Adobe Soundbooth, Audacity and Amadeus that allow you to clear it up to produce NPR-style audio (after all, that’s always the goal, right?)

After editing our audio tracks, we started assembling our Soundslides projects. Michelle showed us a Web site that generates embed code for your Soundslides presentation so that you can post your project directly onto your blog or site. I thought this would be a great tool for some of our Tribune bloggers such as Sarah Linn (who writes She Likes to Watch) and Pat Pemberton (author of Sidetracked) who might want to use Soundslides to create audio slideshows. Note: your Soundslides project does not need to have audio, hence, a simple slideshow with the beauty of Flash effects.

*Here are a few Web sites for royalty-free music, in case you want to add music to your presentation. Be sure to credit whomever’s music you decide to use! Most of these sites are based on Creative Commons licensing, which pretty much allows you to share audio selections in exchange for a credit. However, these licenses allow creators to specify which rights they reserve, so be sure to read the legal terms on each site*

FreePlayMusic.com

FreeSound.org

CreativeCommons.org (I learned about this site after watching the farewell video that The Rocky Mountain News posted on its Web site. They used music from CC. The video is excellent because it, in my opinion, demonstrates powerful storytelling on an emotional issue. You can check it out here.)

Here’s a short Soundslides project on my recent trip to the Pacific Northwest. I love Seattle and Portland in the fall!

What are your tips for capturing good audio?

Sona Uncategorized

We spent two days discussing media ethics will Melissa McCoy, who was until this spring, a deputy managing editor of the LA Times. She was in charge of copy desks, standards and the editorial library.

She joined the Times in 1992 and worked as an assistant managing editor, copy desks, foreign desk copy chief, suburban assistant copy chief and metro copy editor.

It was definitely a comprehensive discussion that could have gone on for several hours. Unfortunately we had to stop at some point. We talked about ethical issues surrounding photos, headlines, social media, and terminology. Melissa raised some excellent points that I had never thought of when it comes to what we’re doing on the web.

And ethics isn’t just about what you’re putting in the paper. Employees should know what their internal ethics policies are. Are you familiar with yours? For instance, do you accept freebies? Can you give money to political candidates? There’s no right answer to these questions, just make sure you know what your company’s policy is … and stick to it!

Keep in mind that the world of print and online really merge. Everything has to have standards, no matter what medium it’sin. Readers are counting on you to use good judgement. And editing is nothing more than excercising good judgement, she said.

In any situation surrounding ethics, it’s important to remember that “going with you gut” won’t cut it, so you have to always think clearly.

Making good decisions involves a couple factors:

1. What’s my journalistic purpose? For example, would you run a photo of someone committing suicide?
2. What are my concerns?

Going back to to my point about ethics and the Web. The Web is a place where you get into the most trouble because you’re publishing in real time. I’d say things are taken more lightly when it comes to content being posted on the web. Stories go up unedited, headlines are sometimes not double-checked for errors, etc. I think online content producers have the mindset that anything on the web can be easily removed. That’s not necessarily the case, though. The best way to work around ethical questions is to involve others in the decision-making process. That’s difficult these days, mainly because everyone in the newsroom is already multitasking, but certain situations, if handled incorrectly, can hurt your news organization’s credibility.

As Melissa pointed out, credibility is everything.

Accuracy: The single most important application of ethics. Are all your facts correct? Is the story fair and balanced? Remember, if you lose your journalistic integrity, you’ve lost everything.

Tone: Do you use certain words that aren’t needed? For example, do you add unnecessary adjectives in your stories?

Balance: Are you doing enough reporting to ensure that all sides are being represented fairly?

Voice: Editors need to let reporters have a voice. But remember that too much voice = no balance.

Sometimes the best way to achieve transparency in your news organization is to be up front with your readers.

Think about being up front with your readers in the following situations:

1. Manipulating photographs: If you’ve manipulated an image, make sure to explain why. Several major news organizations sometimes use cropped images from several photographs and morph them into some sort of illustration. If you’re going to do that, again, be up front with your readers. You must be careful anytime you’re manipulating images.
2. Inappropriate photos: When might a photo be inappropriate for publication? What if you’re using file art from several years ago to illustrate something that’s happening now? How do you know if you’re crossing the line? (For more on photo ethics, see Maynard fellow Virginia Griffey’s blog post, Ethical use of photos.) She has a comprehensive list of ethical issues surrounding the use of images.

Finally, to the Web. This is an extensive topic that I’ll continue in another post, but for now, remember this: It’s way more important to be right then it is to be first. This is a basic but important concept that tends to be overlooked because the Web is sometimes treated like a mish-mash of content.

More later …

Sona Uncategorized

After participating in the Maynard Multimedia Editing program in July 2009, I learned that videos can best be told in certain categories. I plan to use this video to train my colleagues on how to shoot a profile video. I also use many of the techniques I’ve learned over the years, including shooting wide medium and tight shots, the rule of thirds, etc. The video was shot with a Sony HDV 1080i and edited in Final Cut Express.

Sona video

So our Tahoe trip has been postponed because of rain.  Unfortunately, it has been raining in Reno since we arrived last weekend.  Definitely wasn’t expecting that, but I guess we’ll figure out a way to work around it.

We were issued video cameras on Friday to use for our video projects.  I didn’t get a chance to test mine out because we don’t have tapes for them yet, but I’m guessing it’ll function similar to the Sony Hard Disk Drive camera I use at home.  That said, I don’t have a project idea yet.  If you have tips, please share!  I’ll probably do a tourist/destination piece on Lake Tahoe and the area where Bonanza! was filmed.  I’m looking to get more practice on lighting techniques, setting white balance and learning video settings rather than producing content.  Bottom line, I’m trying to get out of my comfort zone!

One of Maynard Fellows, Henry Lopez, Web editor of the Santa Fe New Mexican, shared some tips on some of the key elements it takes to make a good video.  I learned a lot of those same tips from two multimedia training courses I attended last year: a multimedia bootcamp at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and at the Knight Digital Media training at UC Berkeley. John W. Poole, a producer at NPR, taught us several solid techniques, many of which are included below.

Here’s a list of tips on how to shoot video.  Henry wrote most of them, but I’ve tweaked them a little and added a few of my own points, most of which are in parenthesis.

Story idea: Have an idea of what you expect to get out of the project; be ready to change what you think you’re getting out of the project.  (You can also expect to be in a different setting than originally anticipated so be prepared for that.  Also, make sure to bring a camera cover in case of bad weather.  You don’t want to have to worry about whether you’re going to break your $5,000 camera because it’s getting wet!)

Details: Get close enough to your subject to see details. Remember, Web video requires lots of compression in which detail gets lost so get close enough to capture fine detail that survives compression.

Zooming: Don’t rely on zoom. Think positioning of your body first, zoom second.  (Also, don’t zoom unless you absolutely have to.  Same goes for panning.  Both techniques are used for taking home videos, not for work to be posted on your news organization’s Web site!  I was taught to do it if you have something to actually zoom on, i.e. don’t do it for the special effect.)

Watch the sun: Don’t get it behind your subject or they’ll be nothing but a silhouette.  (Also, don’t underestimate the amount of light in a room.  Make sure to have the proper lighting!)

…Watch the sun: Get it behind your subject when you want to create a dramatic silhouette.

Sound: Hush! Nothing will frustrate you more than hearing uh-huh, mm-hmm and yeah on your audio track. (Also make sure to avoid unnecessary background noise.  If a car drives by, politely interject and ask the subject to repeat his or her answer.  If you’re interviewing inside a home, politely ask if the subject would be willing to turn off, let’s say, the refrigerator, to eliminate any humming, buzzing, or clicking in the background.  Also, lapel mics should be fed inside clothing.  It’s a bit of an inconvenience for your subject, but it looks so much better on the screen.)  Oh, and have a microphone.  You. must. have. an. external. microphone!

Get comfortable with your subjects: Talk to your subjects before turning on the camera. Know what they’re going to say, then let them say it on camera. Then shut up! Let them talk until they’re done. (I’ve always politely asked my subjects to repeat the question when they give an answer so as to get a full sound byte I can use.  Some people may disagree, but it’s better than coming back with a good soundbyte that I can’t use because it has no context.)

Sona Media, Reno, Uncategorized Maynard, Multimedia, online, video

What a day. I finished my first week at the Maynard Multimedia Editing Program with a two-hour phone call with the customer service department of a communications company handling our Internet back at the apartments.

A little bit of background: The 14 Maynard fellows are staying in apartments a few miles away from campus.  We each have wireless Internet access. That is, until last night.  About four apartments lost their signal completely.  I called the company’s customer service department today (call time 56 min.) to have a technician come to the complex and address each of our connection issues.

After spending one hour trying to explain my network problems to Jane Doe, I was transferred to another rep … and a couple more after that.  Of course, like any service call, I was somehow disconnected while I was put on hold. Go figure. I called again. Call time: 36 min 34 sec. Not bad. They finally sent a technician out to the apartments and all was restored by 7 p.m. Problem? The modem reset itself to its original settings. How does that happen? Your guess is as good as mine.

The whole incident reminded me of the most awkward service call I’ve ever been on.  I had recently bought a laptop that was on the fritz 10 days after I took it out of the box.  I called customer care which ended up being some guy in call center in South India. The conversation went a little something like this:

Customer Care: “Hello, this is XXXX of [computer company], how may I help you?”

Me: “Yeah, hi, I recently purchased a laptop and the speakers aren’t working.”

Customer Care: “Sure thing, ma’am. Right away ma’am. We’ll hopefully be able to resolve the problem over the phone, ma’am. Can I have your first and last name please?”

Me: “Yeah. It’s Sona. S-o-n-a, Patel. P-a-t-e-l.”

Customer Care: “Thank you ma’am. [one minute pause]. Are you from India?”

Me: “Yes. But I live in the U.S.”

Customer Care: [laughing] “Ah, yes, I can tell.”

I didn’t know exactly what that meant, but I’m sure it had something to do with my “American” accent.  He didn’t resolve my issue, by the way.  He did however ask what part of India I was from, whether I had been back to India recently, and whether I had gone to college in the U.S. or in India.  I’m usually the one asking most of the questions, but not this time.

Anyway, we got the Internet fixed and now I’m happily back to Tweeting and Facbeooking in the comfort of my living room.

Sona Uncategorized

I’m now trying to update two blogs at once.  It’s getting a little tiring, but I’ve never used blogs.mu before (group blogging software) so its been a fun ride.

We just finished our fourth day of class for the Maynard Program.  Today was non-stop learning, but at a good pace.  We started off with an extensive workshop on social media led by Susan Mernit, a former VP at Netscape and AOL and senior director of product development at Yahoo! Currently, she is a consultant to the Knight Foundation, working with the Knight News Challenge, a program that gives away $5 million annually.

Mernit talked about ways to attract people to your blog and gave some tips on marketing your blog.  We also talked about privacy, and the role privacy settings play in a reporter or editor’s choice to add sources to Facebook and Twitter.  It’s a moving target, but she essentially said that it’s good to make a social media networking policy so you’re upfront on who you will or will not add to Twitter and Facebook.

She brought up a good point, mainly because my news organization does not have a social media policy.  I hope to create one when I get back.  Does your news organization have a social media policy? If so, I’d love to hear about it.

Sona Reno, Uncategorized

I was browsing some of the front pages around the world on the Newseum’s Web site and came across our Inauguration edition in the archives. I loved the design. Here’s hoping we have the opportunity to do more of that in the future. Definitely turns the newspaper into a keepsake, in my opinion.

Sona Uncategorized Obama, The Tribune

Ahh, the smell of casinos.  A couple Maynard fellows and I walked through downtown Reno this afternoon to get a taste of the city.  Not quite like Vegas, but definitely a place for hardcore gambling.  I was surprised to see a lot of vacant storefronts surrounded by newer condo complexes.  It made me wonder whether the city of Reno has a makeover in the works.  Nonetheless, it was fun checking out the cheesy souvenir shops, express wedding chapels and antique stores.  I didn’t play any Blackjack or craps today.  I don’t plan on gambling, but some of those slot machines looked pretty tempting.

Sona Media, Reno Maynard, Reno

The results were announced awhile ago, but I had to mention it on my blog.  The Tribune won several awards in the 2009 Associated Press California/Nevada journalism contest.  Environmental reporter David Sneed and I took first place in Business Writing in our circulation category for a three-day series we co-wrote on the collapse of the fishing industry in Morro Bay.  Dave focused mainly on environmental issues whereas my stories circled around how the city’s economy suffered as a result of the decline of the fishing industry.

I also compared the seaside town of Morro Bay to the Northern California city of Eureka, which also suffered financially in the wake of the decline.

Hooray for The Tribune … and a hearty congratulations to all of the other winners!

Sona The Tribune AP, Media

In two days I’ll be in Reno, getting ready to experience what other journalists have told me will be a truly life-changing experience.

I was recently selected as one of 12 fellows to attend the Maynard Multimedia Editing Program June 1 to July 10 at the University of Nevada.

I found out about the program well after the selection committee opened the application period.  I didn’t think my editors would give me six weeks off work to attend, however I figured it was worth a shot.  I applied and received a call from Dori Maynard, president and CEO of the Maynard Institute, telling me that I was a good fit for the program considering my potential of becoming The Tribune’s next Online Editor.

After receiving an informal offer for the fellowship, I still hesitated since I’d have to take unpaid time off to attend.  And since I completed twi fellowships last year, I didn’t know if I would learn anything different during the Maynard program. But after reading a former fellow’s blog and checking out the curriculum, I truly felt that it would be one of those experiences I wouldn’t regret. I also strongly believe that you can never be an expert on a particular subject no matter how much training you’ve had.

I was also compelled by the story of Robert C. Maynard and his commitment to expanding opportunities for minority journalists at newspapers across the nation.

Maynard was the co-founder of the Institute for Journalism Education.  In the past 25 years, the organization has trained hundreds of America’s journalists of color, more than any other organization.

In December 1993, following Maynard’s death, the Institute was renamed the Robert C. Maynard Institute for Journalism Education.

According to the Maynard Web site, Robert C. Maynard was a board member of journalism’s most prestigious organizations including the Pulitzer Prize, The Associated Press, and the American Society of Newspaper Editors. It was his lobbying in the 1970s that nudged the ASNE to adopt the goal of diversifying America’s newsrooms by the year 2000.

While newsrooms have made strides in diversifying their workforces, more must be done, especially at a time when news organizations across the world are focusing on staying afloat and cutting costs while maintaining a sense of strong journalism. Still, newsroom leaders cannot undermine the importance of diversifying their staff.  And diversity isn’t just black and white.  It’s about using several perspectives to plan news coverage that fits the needs of the community.  It’s about valuing diversity and making the print and online product a tool which is valued across the community.

One of the things I hope to learn from the Maynard program is not only the copy editing and multimedia skills necessary to be a good storyteller, but how to cover topics that appeal to a wider range of readers in our (The Tribune’s) demographic.

As an aside, I have to mention another pioneer in the industry who helped push for more minorities in newsroom: John C. “Chipps” Quinn.

Quinn was a newspaper editor and journalist who valued diversity.  When he died at the age of 34, his family could think of no better way to honor and remember Chips than a program to encourage newsroom diversity.

The program began in 1991. Since then, more than 1,000 journalists of color have been Scholars during daily newspaper newsroom internships. I was lucky enought to be selected as a Chips Quinn Scholar in May 2006 and was placed as an intern at The Tribune. I’ve been at the paper ever since.

So, to the Maynard Institute and the Chips Quinn Scholars program: Thank you for empowering me to be a better person — and a better journalist.

Sona Uncategorized Chips Quinn Scholars, Maynard