Presentation on mobile reporting originally given by Julia Thompson at

1. SMARTPHONES, SMART
JOURNALISM
Reporting today with phones and tablets

2. A powerful tool in your toolbox
 Doesn’t change the underlying journalism
 Improves speed, productivity and ability to capture
moments
 Can replace other tools you’re using

3. Smartphone reporting functions
 Audio recorder  Transmitter (wi-fi
 Still camera hotspot, FTP)
 Video camera  Publishing platform
 Notepad (via social media or
CMS apps)
 Police scanner

4. Gathering news on the go
Police Scanner Competitors’ apps Audio Recorder

5. Distributing news on the go
Social media News blogs Video

6. Become a mobile superuser
 Use your phone for both personal and professional
endeavors
 Best smartphone reporting comes from people
who know their tools
 Download apps for your competitors; become a
mobile news consumer as well as distributor

7. Be ready to capture a moment

12. Mobile devices, apps, gadgets

13. Your device
 iPhone, Android or something else?
 Depends on ease of use – for YOU

14. Useful apps – Photo & Video
 ProCamera (iPhone): Expanded camera options.
Take stills while recording video. Adjust exposure
and focus.
 Ustream Broadcaster (iPhone/Android): Stream
video live from your phone.
 YouTube (iPhone/Android): Upload videos directly
to YouTube for easy embedding on your site.
 Instagram (iPhone/Android): Social photo sharing
often of filtered photos.

15. Useful apps – Photo & Video
 iMovie (iPhone/iPad): Expanded video-editing
capabilities. Add photos or multiple video clips to a
project; trim video clips; incorporate music or
voiceovers.
 AndroMedia Video Editor (Android): Can include
multiple video and audio tracks.
 Photosynth (iPhone/Windows phone): Create
embeddable 360-degree panorama views.

16. Useful apps – Social Media
 Twitter (iPhone/Android/BlackBerry, Windows
phone): Turn on notifications for important sources
you follow.
 TweetDeck (iPhone/Android): Useful to filter
tweets into columns – all tweets, @
mentions, searches and lists.
 Ban.jo (iPhone/Android): Find people recently
active on social networks based on geography.

17. Useful apps - News
 AP Mobile (iPhone/Android)
 USA TODAY (iPhone/Android/Windows
phone/myriad of native tablet apps)
 Circa (iPhone) – Get news bites and follow specific
stories to be alerted of new info.
 Today’s Front Pages (iPhone/iPad): Scan
regional/national A1s from the Newseum.
 Apps from your competitors

18. Useful apps - Organization
 Evernote (iPhone/Android/BlackBerry/Windows
phone): Create text, photo and audio notes.
Synchronize across devices and online.
 Dropbox (iPhone/Android/BlackBerry) : Store
documents, music, PDFS and videos in a cloud that
you (or people you allow) can access
anytime, anywhere.
 Google Drive (iPhone/Android): Access and edit
Google Docs anywhere.

19. Useful apps - Other
 5-0 Radio Police Scanner Lite (iPhone) or Scanner
Radio (Android): Live streaming of police radio
reference feeds for multiple counties.
 CoveritLive (iPhone/Android): Administer, participate
in live chats.
 Skype (iPhone/Android/Windows phone): Call, video
call and instant message anyone else on Skype for free.
 Dragon Dictation (iPhone): Voice recognition for note
taking.
 Image to Text (iPhone) or Google Goggles (Android):
Uses OCR for scanning documents.

20. Gadgets
 Microphones are a necessity for videos
 Tripods help in many situations
 Consider some basics: Bluetooth, car charger, etc.

21. Shooting & editing videos

22. Videos
 Use a microphone
 Zoom with your feet
 Shoot 10-second shots of b-roll
 Think about interview framing

23. An aside on tablets

24. Tablet reporting
 Useful for social networking interaction
 Good for composing and publishing (consider a
Bluetooth keyboard)
 Can be useful for ingesting and organizing
photos, editing videos
 Great for news consumption
 HOWEVER …

25. Don’t be this guy.
Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images

26. Involve your audience

27. Crowdsource
 Plenty of readers have mobile phones – involve
them in the process!
 Ask for mobile photos & videos
 Find sources around breaking news
 Show readers your mobile and news savvy in one
fell swoop

28. Mobile news consumption

30. Market research in central Iowa
 41% of adults own a smartphone
 19% of adults own a tablet
 47% of adults own a smartphone or a tablet
Source: Scarborough 12-month aggregate surveying respondents within the DMA
from September 2011-August 2012

34. Come up with a mobile plan
 Survey your market
 Decide how you’ll deliver news on mobile
platforms
 You don’t have to develop native apps

35. Register examples

36. 5 mobile reporting takeaways
 Become a smartphone superuser
 Take full advantage of your device in breaking news
situations
 Use apps to make your reporting life easier
 Involve your audience (social, crowdsourcing, etc.)
 Come up with a mobile delivery plan

37. Questions?
Julia Thompson
jlthompson@dmreg.com
(515) 286-2560
@JuliaThompson on Twitter