Online Writing is Different From Print
Newspaper Writers Should Modifying Their Style for the Web
Dec 7, 2008 Robert Courtemanche
As traditional journalism makes the transition online, journalists should study how consuming news on the internet is different from reading a printed news product. Too many journalists continue to produce for the web the same way they wrote for print or their news organization shovels their print stories onto a website without any thought about the differences in audience.
Reading Text Online Is Different
- Online text is harder to read. Even though CSS, modern web browsers and operating systems allow the user to control the size and often the font of the text; reading on a computer screen is more difficult than reading on a piece of paper.
- The format of online text is important to keeping readers more than in print. Even though users want shorter articles, they will read to the end if the writer gives them a reason to keep reading. Writers should use bold subheadlines throughout the article gives the reader signposts to see where the article is going. Whenever possible writers should use bullets for lists of items the reader may find interesting.
- Because reading online is harder, online readers skim articles and are much more likely to quit reading than print readers. Writers need to keep distractions in their copy, like jumps or advertisements to a minimum. Breaking up long articles into page after page of click through links will most likely lose readers. Keep readers engaged with lively description, insightful quotes and useful information.
Online Readers Tend to be Younger or at Least More Media Savvy
Writing for an online audience means that your audience will have higher expectations when it comes to multimedia. Just adding a slide show of photos is not enough to keep their attention.
- Online writers demand useful information. Gone are the days of lazy, sloppy journalism where the writer can push out a mediocre story and expect it to satisfy his editor. The reader rules online metrics like page views, click through rates or comments. If the information is incomplete, unusable or wrong the user will let the writer know and they will not come back because the writer has lost their trust.
- Readers online want interactive content that enhances the story and is not just there for decoration. Page designers can not expect pretty cut outs or animated web graphics to impress readers anymore. They have seen that circus already and want more. They want useful information that they can use. Give them an interactive graphic that shows crime statistics by neighborhood and can be sorted by type of criminal activity. Something like that can be generated in Google maps.
- On the internet, readers want video of events that give them an unfiltered view of the story. Video on newspaper sites does not need to emulate TV news. Many times the reader has the facts from the written story and wants to see video of the event. Online video shooters need to focus on taping the event and with less emphasis on recording interviews, and b-roll.
Online Success Requires Writers to Use Community Building Tools
Newspapers that want to succeed need to emulate rather than denegrate online communities and services like Facebook or Twitter. News organizations need to believe in web first publishing, which means cell phone applications, text messaging and online communities.
Newspaper web sites need to use the tools that are readily available such as RSS feeds and comment boxes. They also should stop requiring users to register in order to view content. Online, your job is to make it easier, not harder for the reader. And they should encourage linking to stories to avoid outright theft.
Newspapers Must Change
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