Lily Canter

My former employer the Northampton Chronicle & Echo announced earlier this month that it would be switching from a daily to a weekly newspaper and developing its online and tablet outputs.

The move will see the loss of several editorial staff, many of them my friends and former colleagues.

The swift transformation, which will happen in under two months, is part of a Johnston Press strategy to cut costs whilst also meeting the needs of the modern consumer.

The past two weeks I have been receiving phone calls, texts and Facebook messages from reporters and department editors at the Chron asking for my advice. My former colleagues, many of whom are having to reapply for their jobs, have been after interview tips or seeking information on how to make money in the world of self-employment.

I left the newspaper, and my role as features editor, three years ago to undertake PhD research in local newspaper websites. In particular I have been studying audience participation and its civic and economic impact.

Leaving a full time salary to become a student once more meant I had to think of innovate ways to make enough money to continue to pay my mortgage. Over the past three years I have worked as a cycling instructor, meetings minute taker, NCTJ exam marker, freelance journalist, and lecturer, whilst also making money doing freelance PR work for a number of charities and businesses.

Hence my former colleagues wanted advice on the latest trends in local newspaper websites and also, conversely, advice on life after local newspapers.

The one word which keeps popping out of my mouth is ‘hyperlocal’. If local newspapers are cutting staff and yet expecting them to provide multimedia content for print, web and tablet formats then it is inevitable that they will only be scratching the surface of local news. There will be a vacuum of local news, investigations and information and instead even more of a focus on top lines, regurgitated press releases and superficial stories whose sole purpose will be to attract lots of website hits.

The picture being painted may seem like a very sorry state of affairs for local news, but in reality it is a fantastic opportunity. If local newspapers aren’t doing their job properly then there is a niche to be exploited.

The automatic response from journalists is that “you can’t make money online” but I have to agree with the author of Entrepreneurial Journalism Mark Briggs and say that this is absolute rubbish.

Conglomerate publishers like Johnston Press with millions of pounds worth of debts and ridiculously high profit margins,  might not be able to make enough money online but that doesn’t mean nobody can. In the online arena the ‘economies of scale’ mantra does not necessarily apply.

My own PhD research has revealed that the very thing holding back local journalists from truly engaging with their audiences is the restrictions placed upon them by their publishing companies who are too cautious, slow and inept, to adapt.

 In fact the biggest businesses online have grown out of the hard work of innovative individuals and this is continuing to be the case.

So what advice do I give to local journalists facing redundancy? Start a hyperlocal website. There is a market for it especially if local newspapers are failing to provide decent coverage for their area. There is a growing online audience and the overheads and start up costs are virtually nil. However you do need to be prepared to work for free in the beginning, you do have to have some business sense and you need to be able to think beyond display/classified adverting models.

My advice would be to spot an area of coverage that the local newspaper will no longer be providing in enough depth be it geographic or topical. Perhaps it is education, or entertainment or village news.

Hyperlocal websites to date have been a mixture of successes and failures, particularly when key people move on, but if you look at what is happening in America it is possible to believe that they have a profitable future.

Indeed there is now start-up funding in the UK from NESTA to help test and develop hyperlocal media services. Applicants can apply for up to £50,000 as part of the Destination Local scheme.

Journalists are the very people who should be driving these projects as they know their communities and have the skills to provide accurate, fair and authoritative news. But similarly journalists need to step outside their corporate comfort zones and collaborate with commercial and technical partners in order to create sustainable digital news platforms.

To mark its fifth anniversary Film Northants has commissioned a documentary about the making of a bicycle wheel of death which will be showcased in Northampton this summer.

The short doc will follow a team of bicycle enthusiasts who are hand-building a vintage circus attraction (see example photo below) before testing it out in front of a live audience.

The attraction, named the Bomberdrome – AKA the Bowl of Harm – is currently being constructed following a successful fundraising campaign. Local people have supported the £4,000 project by sponsoring planks on the wheel in return for having their names featured on them.

Once built, the Bomberdrome will be taken to bicycle festivals and village fetes where the Ministry of Bicycles will brave the wooden wheel on their fleet of exotic bicycles including tall bikes and clown bikes.

The project is the brainchild of brothers Bill and George Pollard, who run ‘Monday Night is Project Night’ from a shed in Kingsley.

George Pollard said: “The idea came from the States where some guys made a whiskey drome. We intend to build a sizeable wooden drome which will be five feet high and 26 feet in diameter at the top. It will be quite a spectacle to see a team of crazy cyclists whizzing round the drome and I’m sure there will be plenty of injuries along the way but we hope at least it will bring a smile to people’s faces.”

A launch event will be held in Northampton in the early summer with the madcap Ministry of Bicycles dressed as the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse as they display their daring cycling skills. Following the event the Bomberdrome will be taken on the road to events across the county.

The documentary of the building and showcasing of the Bomberdrome will be screened at the Film Northants festival held in Cineworld, Northampton on September 17th 2012.

Video: Monday Night is Project Night

The future of journalism education in a digital world was the topic of a fruitful symposium at the University of Sheffield in March, 2012. Practical and academic staff from universities across the UK attended the event to share journalism research project results and discuss degree programme structures. Ten guest speakers presented papers at the well-attended event, which was simultaneously discussed on Twitter using the hashtag #rdwsheff

Here is an outline of each of the papers:

Scott Elridge II, University of Sheffield (@selridge)
Professional identity in a digital era: exploring how journalism defends its identity in response to WikiLeaks

• Journalists still see themselves in traditional roles
• A perception exists that journalists exist within a professional framework
• WikiLeaks relationship with definitions and understandings of journalism is contested
•  WikiLeaks also claims to be activism and filling space left by journalism

Jonathan Hewett and Neil Thurman, City University
Facing both ways: how can journalism educators address the challenges of networked, disruptive technologies in the news media as well as in teaching and in learning?

Carried out survey of postgraduate students’ use of Twitter and found that City students found it useful for:

• Learning from others in the profession
• Learning about how to use Twitter
• Learning about journalism
• Extending professional contacts

Carried out exploratory case study at guardian.co.uk exploring liveblogging

• Concluded that live blogging is meeting the needs of the ways people are consuming news
• Most people view live blogs during the working day whilst in the workplace
• Audiences prefer textual content to audio/visual content when viewing live blogs since this allows them to continue getting on with other things such as work
• Live blogs at the Guardian online have more page views than articles and pictures on the same subject, and they are viewed for a longer period of time
• Live blogs are updated on average every nine minutes, their duration is 360 minutes with an average of 40 updates
• Subbing of live blogs is non-existent, but readers tend to point out mistakes and corrections are made within the live blogs
• Journalists work with trusted sources and known Twitter accounts to verify information online rather than using generic search terms or hashtags
• Live blogs use “cursory” verification and transparency of sources is important, with third parties signposted
• The impact of live blogging includes: changes in practices, compressed deadlines, transparency of sources, giving readers and reporters a subbing role, corrections more explicit, forces a looser culture of corroboration

Dr An Nguyen, Bournemouth University
Integrating news audience knowledge into the professional toolkit: a new mission of journalism education

• New Media is often seen as a threat to the traditional order rather than as an opportunity for new services, new publics and new markets
• Journalists traditionally neglect audience needs therefore journalist educators must address this urgently
• Journalists needs to have a mindset that encompasses a due respect for and full integration of audiences’ needs, demands and concerns in the news production and dissemination process
• There needs to be a clear recognition that there is more than one news audience/public
• Journalists needs to know: a) who audiences are b) what audiences expect and think about the news c) why audiences use the news d)how audiences integrate news into their everyday lives e) where journalists can position themselves in that daily life
• Audiences should be seen as news consumers and as members of the public i.e citizens but not at the risk of treating audiences primarily as commodities through the guidance of online audience tracking

Lily Canter, Sheffield Hallam University (@lilycanter)
Research, teaching and practice: why educators, students and journalists need to hold [virtual] hands as they enter the interactive age

• A more pragmatic engagement is needed between journalists and educators the results of which can inform and develop digital teaching in the classroom
• An understanding of the cultural and economic context of the integration of digital technology into the newsroom is vital
• Journalism educators and researchers must understand that there is great diversity in the industry and therefore students must be taught to be flexible, adaptable and have a diverse technological knowledge and skillset
• Only by carrying out research can journalism educators have a greater understanding of what is happening in such a disparate industry
• Research can inform journalists about emerging patterns, best practice and audience expectation
• Journalism educators should be leading the industry rather than following it
• The news industry is restricted by self-censorship, resources, legalities and attitudes
• Regional newspaper websites need individual identity, editors need to be encouraged to innovate and lead, homogenised content doesn’t work
• Journalists need to interact more with their audiences
• If journalism educators teach students to be interactive, when they enter the workplace they will automatically drive audience interaction which needs to develop fast to meet audience demand and expectation

Professor Miguel de Aguilera, University of Malaga
The journalism and social communication education in Spain: a new focus

• Journalism degrees in Spain have become very fashionable particularly due to the rise in celebrity journalism
• Spanish universities are saturated with journalism students with more students than the labour market requires
• Universities want to uphold traditional journalism functions of selection, evaluation, and control of content but they are having to change to the 2.0 model of participation, transparency and interaction
• Journalism degrees need to be providing more than traditional journalism skills and should provide more transferable skills

Professor Sarah Niblock, Brunel University (@BrunelJourSarah)
Envisioning journalism practice as research

• Practice as research is eligible for AHRC funding but it must meet certain academic criteria
• In order to obtain funding journalism practice as research must:
  -define a series of research questions
  -specify a research context
  -specify the research methods
• Theory first research can include practice based methodology and is driven by a question
• Practice first research is driven by a problem to which practice is the movement towards a solution

William Carmichael, David Holmes and Marie Kinsey, University of Sheffield (@Bill_Carmichael @spikefodder @journotutor)
The digital crucible: reshaping the student newsroom

• Not every journalism students needs every skill but they each need a little bit of the other disciplines
• Sheffield University has introduced at postgraduate level an intensive week of multiskilling and guest lectures
• Sheffield University degree programmes have an expanded core of journalism skills which include newsgathering, reporting, interviewing, law, ethics, public affairs, web research, using CMS, web audio/video, writing for the web, audiences
• Surrounding the core skills are four specialist platforms of broadcast, print, magazines and web
• The days of a settled curriculum are gone and there is a need for constant re-assimilation and redesign with built-in flexibility
• Assessment is sometimes aimed more at familiarisation than mastery
• Students can explore and experiment and teach their lecturers
• But if journalism is to stand apart it must be distinctive and authoriative

Whether you are an ambitious journalism student or a practising journalist it is vital that you have a strong grasp of social media platforms and understand how to use them effectively, appropriately and efficiently. Here are some basic tips on how to use Twitter and Facebook to build your audiences and improve your journalism.

1. Social media platforms have three main journalistic functions:

-Newsgathering and contact building

-Broadcasting platform

-Interactive service to build relationships with audiences

2. If you have a public profile on a social media platform keep yourself in check. Avoid swearing, detailing embarrassing moments, bitching, ranting or attacking other people or organisations. You never know who you might be working for in the future. You can include personal information but always ask yourself first who will be reading it and is it appropriate?

3. Including some personal information in your posts can attract audiences particularly if you are building a brand around your personality or you work for a large homogenous organisation. Seeming more personable and ‘human’ can encourage audiences to interact with you and share common interests which can ultimately lead to better contacts and stories.

 
4. Always think carefully about how you can verify information. Who is the source? Can you speak to them? Can they describe the scene? Can you verify their location using GPS or apps like Facebook Places? Do you have more than one source? Does the information match up? What is the information from official sources?

 
5. Never retweet/share something if you cannot verify the information yourself. You want to be known for sharing reliable information not spreading unsubstantiated rumours.

 
6. Learn how to use external applications like Tweetdeck, Twitterfall or Hootsuite. These will help you to manage multiple accounts, multiple lists and multiple hashtags or key words without being overwhelmed.

7. Industry practice is moving towards tweet first, broadcast/publish second, so you should be replicating this. However make sure you have something to broadcast or publish within a short time scale after your tweet otherwise audiences will look elsewhere for information.

 
8. Ignore your audience at your peril. The best journalists engage with their audiences by responding to posts, messages and @usernames and ask their audiences for feedback, tips and advice.
 

9. Think of innovative ways to be interactive. Use apps, photos, videos to evoke a response from audiences, or use Twitter to liveblog and use a hashtag so others can join in the conversation.

10. Always think of ways to join in current trends or ask big players to share/retweet your posts. Hook your post to a current story and try to build on its momentum.
 

11. Self-publicise. Audiences will only know about you, if you promote yourself. Post on every relevant Facebook wall available, @username as many relevant people as possible, leave links on blogs, forums and news websites.
 

12. Use key words, the names of people and places or trending words/phrases for  the ultimate search engine optimization.
 

13. Finally – remember you are building a brand so keep your profile consistent across all social media platforms and make sure they all link smoothly to one another.

For more advice take a look at these links:

http://www.journalism.co.uk/news-features/seven-ways-the-new-york-times-is-using-social-media-for-deeper-engagement/s5/a547827/

http://mashable.com/2012/02/17/social-media-bloggers-tips/
http://www.toprankblog.com/2011/10/get-optimized-start-engaging-tips-for-taking-your-business-to-the-next-level/
http://technorati.com/technology/it/article/five-tips-for-utilizing-social-media/

Do you have any more top tips? Let me know and comment below.

Photo by Johan Persson

Fifteen years ago I was sat in a stuffy classroom pouring over Greek tragedy Oedipus Rex, delighted at the fact that we were allowed – and actively encouraged – to read a text filled with murder, self-harm and incest.

The Greek playwrights certainly seemed to relish in the portrayal of extreme sex, violence and gluttony mixed with a heavy helping of satire to wash down the cathartic misery. Spymonkey’s madcap production of Oedipussy, currently showing at Royal & Derngate theatre, is therefore not as far off the mark as would first appear. As the director Emma Rice asks “ever noticed how closely comedy and tragedy sit?”

 
Turning extreme tragedy into extreme comedy works wonders for the ancient text and I would like to think that author Sophocles would be chuckling to himself in his grave. For those unfamiliar with the story it is a simple tale of prophet-ridden baby is abandoned, baby grows up to be a man, man unwittingly kills his father, man unwittingly marries his mother, man finds out what he has done, man has to face up to blinding consequences.

The Spymonkey theatre group, which specialises in bizarre physical comedy, largely sticks to the plot of Oedipus Rex but allows itself to simultaneously, develop the theme of “the tragedy of aging” thanks to the surreal skills of writer Carl Grose.

But the unquestionable stars of the show are the troupe of four energetic, comedic and physical impressive actors made up of Petra Massey, Stephan Kreiss, Toby Park and Aitor Basauri. The quartet dance, play, sing, climb, roll, jump, joke, scrap and scamper across the stage in all three dimensions. Their talents range from stand up comedy to playing wind instruments, to performing Egyptian dances and singing rock ballads whilst somehow managing to just about stick to the traditional narrative of Oedipus Rex. Dramatic devices include a play-within-in-a-play, multi-dimensional staging and elaborate retro-contemporary-traditional costumes.

 
As the name of the play implies, the show is a blend of 007 movies (Octopussy) and 1960s/70s sexploitation (Barberella) with the slapstick humour of Carry On and Keaton. It is an almost impossible task to describe, let alone explain, the funny, surreal, distasteful, delightful yet strangely poignant theatrical experience that is Oedipussy.

 
How on earth do you describe a show where a man wearing futuristic diapers wears a sprayed-white rubbish bin on his head and the crowd interaction involves everyone singing along to the song “Leprosy’s Not Funny”?
 

Bold, bonkers, brilliant and irreverent all at once Oedipussy cannot fail to make you leave the theatre with a bewildered smile on your contorted face.

Oedipussy is showing now at Royal & Derngate theatre until February 18th. Book you tickets online here or call 01604 624811. Tickets from £13.

Watch a video of the cast discussing the play:

Read other reviews of Oedipussy here:

Oxford Times

Hilary Scott

What’s On Stage

Twelve months of tireless dedication has finally come to fruition for Film Northants winner David Easton.

On a budget of just £800 David has pulled off the seemingly impossible feat of making a feature length film, all shot in Northamptonshire.

Bloodline is a mystery thriller that sees the past come back to haunt a police officer and his suburban-living family.
To say much more would be to give too much away but the film echoes the unsettling tone of current Brit hit Kill List (fantastic film) and explores the themes of various rape revenge flicks.

David was inspired to make the film after winning Film Northants 2010 with his twisty short Love Is…which like Bloodline was also written by former policeman Colin Hill. Many of the cast of Love Is… star in Bloodline including James McCabe who makes a convincing turn as a henchman with a heart. Actress Clare Jukes, the ‘victim’ of Love Is… is subjected to even more brutality in Bloodline but rises to the challenge. She appears in illuminating flashbacks throughout the film from the perspective of lead character Ray – played by an impressive Greg Caine. The pair pull off an extremely uncomfortable scene without trivialising or exaggerating the content.

However the main strength of the film is the strong storyline which gives rise to debate and leaves the audience with a moral quandary. This is because the film is not afraid to tackle uncomfortable subject areas and is evocative without being exploitative. The line between heroes and villains has not been drawn and no-be appears to be entirely innocent. It is difficult for your sympathy to lie with any one character but that is to the film’s merit rather than its detriment.

 Another great strength of the movie is the strong pacing which is probably due to the endless hours David spent in the editing suite. The plot unravels at an appropriate speed and the slow build up helps to create an atmosphere of anxiety and anticipation.
 
In line with the ethos of Film Northants, which aims to promote the film-making talent of Northamptonshire and its potential as a film location, Bloodline was all filmed in and around the county. From an audience perspective it is great to see so many recognisable locations such as the Northampton Chronicle & Echo building in Lower Mounts, Mollies nightclub in Abington Square, St Andrew’s Hospital and the grandiose Knuston Hall.

That being said the film was not without its minor problems with some scenes being too long, some predictable twists and some morally dubious subtexts. But for a debut film made with volunteers for the price of a crap second hand car it is a remarkable achievement and far more entertaining than many of the homogenous banal movies released week after week in UK cinemas.

Following audience feedback from three separate viewings David has re-edited the film and is now looking for opportunities to have the film distributed or remade professionally as a low budget independent film.

BLOODLINE STATS:

• 12 months to make
• Filmed in 21 days
• 19 locations used
• 9,500 video clips / audio files created
• 3 weeks to edit
• £800 budget
• More than 40 cast and crew (see a full list here)

Watch the teaser trailer here: