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Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Newspaper Video Assignment

After doing a bit of research focused on newspapers that have ventured into the realm of online video, I decided to check on the Chicago Tribune's photography and video platform. I immediately noticed that the video page, while very professional and eye-catching, was buried deep within the paper's website. I had to navigate to the bottom of the homepage sidebar and then scroll down the accompanying webpage before I reached the Tribune's video gallery.

Once there, I browsed the site and watched several clips, all of which included firsthand information and tried to tell a journalistic story. However, the Tribune's videos started and ended much more abruptly than typical news segments and often didn't follow the format of a TV news package. Instead, they featured collections of interviews, b-roll and natural sound, and even time lapses and other unique elements. The Tribune's videos also varied significantly in length, with some lasting only a few minutes and others running much longer.

Ultimately, I think the Chicago Tribune's video gallery is a neat feature that complimented some of the publication's "harder" written journalism pieces. However, it is quite difficult to navigate and many of the videos don't have enough context to an outsider like myself to have much journalistic relevance. I certainly wouldn't rely solely on this particular video gallery for my news of the day. It has a professional tone, but the content isn't substantial enough to hold my interest for a prolonged period of time. In my opinion, the Tribune's video gallery is a less engaging version of iReport. It's similar in style and approach, but lacks the content to pull a reader away from a written web story.

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