Off The Written Path

Photo by Daniel Zanetti

        Another ingredient in the recipe for feeding an audience’s insatiable need for instant news can be found by “going mobile,” so says Mark Briggs in Chapter 5 of “JournalismNext.”

        Going mobile allows a reporter to provide immediate multimedia storytelling as a news-worthy event happens, from the location where it is happening. All you need is your phone, or in the case of “gearhead” journalists a mobile back pack that acts as your office. Mobile reporting includes print, video, photo and audio aspects, which can be done with the latest cell phones in the market, according to Briggs.  

        However, not all stories lend themselves to mobile reporting says Briggs. Before deciding to file a story on the go, journalists should consider if it is the right story for a mobile format. Briggs says if it is a breaking news story where timeliness is imperative then it is probably a good ‘mobile’ story to report.

        According to Briggs other stories that lend themselves to mobile reporting are:

• Criminal and civil trials
• Important speeches or announcements by public officials, celebrities, and business leaders
• Most breaking news events
• Public gatherings
• Grand openings

        Briggs reminds journalists, though, that all events covered should be guided by the reporter’s news sense, and not to do mobile reporting for its own sake.

        Mobile reporting is fast and furious, and it does not replace in-depth reporting. Chapter 5 says that mobile reporting is a bit like filing headlines; it is a teaser to more in-depth coverage, not a replacement for it.