Friday Fast Five

By Benét J. Wilson, DJTF co-chair, Online Managing Editor-Business Aviation, Aviation Week Group

For our new readers, every Friday, I dish up five links that show you new tools, tricks and techniques to enhance your new/social/multimedia skills.  They come from my Google Reader, where I have RSS feeds covering all of these areas.  If you like what you see below, I encourage you to add them to your RSS feeds.  Enjoy!

1. 100000 Words – I am a HUGE fan of multimedia journalist Mark Luckie and I always lead this column off with one of his blog posts.  This week he offers us 15 Awesome interactive maps from the New York Times.
2. Mashable – this is my go-to site for the latest trends and tricks for journalists.  Here’s 10 of the Best Social Media Tools for PR Professionals and Journalists (I happen to use four of them).
3. Social Media Today – whether you are a Twitter newbie or a pro, this list of 20 Top Twitter Monitoring and Analytics Tools can be of help.  I especially like Twitter Analyzer and Monniter.
4. Teaching Online Journalism – Professor Mindy McAdams is among those teaching journalism that are leading the charge in preparing the next generation.  Here she offers us 7 examples of exceptional Flash packages.
5. Multimediashooter – I love this site because it gives you hands-on, simple instructions on how to do something.  This week, it’s ShowCase: Create a slideshow in the palm of your hand. Demo and Sample for those of you with iPhones.

And speaking of iPhones, NABJ Digital will be holding a Webinar June 15 on Smartphone Reporting.  Join DJTF Task Force VP Serbino Sandifer-Walker and award-winning reporters Gio Benitez of CBS4 Miami and Jeremy Jojola of KOB-TV Albuquerque with tips and also highlighting the pros and cons of using smartphones to report news stories.  We’ll be doing it using CoverItLive, and it’s FREE!

Follow Proceedings From Journalism That Matters

By Benét J. Wilson, DJTF co-chair, Online Managing Editor-Business Aviation, Aviation Week Group

The Journalism That Matters conference, co-chaired by DJTF co-chair Andrew Humphrey, is now being held in Detroit.  This conference is where NABJ members and others have the opportunity to start new media and/or technology companies NABJ members and other individuals and communities, especially those of color.  To listen to a radio program on the event, click here.

Click here to follow the event live on Ustream.  The event’s Wiki page is here.  The Twitter feed (#jtmdetroit) is here. And finally, a list of participants is here.

Smartphone Reporting Webinar June 15

By Serbino Sandifer-Walker, DJTF V.P. – TSU Journalism Professor

The smartphone is becoming a must have for today’s journalists. From iPhone to Android and Blackberry, these mobiles are turning reporting into a seamless experience.

NABJ Institute and the Digital Journalism Task Force (DJTF) will host a “Smartphone Reporting”  webinar Tuesday, June 15, 12:30p.m. (ET) on the Smartphone Reporting blog.   

DJTF’s Serbino Sandifer-Walker, a journalist and journalism professor, will be joined by award-winning reporters Gio Benitez of CBS4 Miami and Jeremy Jojola of KOB-TV Albuquerque.  Benitez and Jojola are producing groundbreaking reports with their smartphones.

Benitez was the first reporter to shoot and edit a television package using an iPhone 3GS in June of 2009.  His report garnered international buzz and set-off a global conversational about mobile phone reporting.  Click here to see the report.

Jojola is an Emmy award-winning investigative reporter who uses his iPhone to gather elements for his investigative pieces, including using it as a hidden camera.  Jojola was one of the first reporters in the nation to conduct a live shot with his iPhone. Click here to see the report.

Tech-savvy college students are also making the most of mobile phone reporting. Texas Southern University journalism major Samii Noel Thompson will showcase her mobile reporting skills.  She told the story of a blind journalist using her iPhone.  Click here to see the report.  

The one-hour interactive session will include tips and highlight the pros and cons of using smartphones to report news stories.