“We haven’t fully taken advantage of the medium,” said Mark Potts, commenting on the vast world of the Internet.
Mark Potts, creator of RecoveringJournalist, his blog, came in to speak to our class today! He offered some useful opinions on great ways to tell stories.
Potts began with Patch.com.
“It’s important because it’s close to you,” said Potts, referencing hyperlocal news and why it’s a big deal. “The Washington Post doesn’t cover it.”
Then, Potts pointed out why bloggers blog. The passion for journalism was quite alive and vibrant back in the days of the Vietnam War and the Watergate incident, but nowadays, it’s not nearly as strong.
Professor Klein, though, pointed out that bloggers are the driving force behind the passion these days. They write because they want to write.
Sites with data collection Potts went over:
- Nate Silver’s blog, FiveThirtyEight, is seriously interesting stuff. Titled off of the number of seats there are in the electoral college, the Web site examines political data and makes predictions. In short, the site is to “give the best possible objective assessment of the likely outcome of upcoming elections.”
- Very, very cool.
Groupon is definitely a useful tool as well, says Potts.
Twitter, though, isn’t. “It’s good for keeping an eye on what’s going on, but I just don’t find it that interesting. It’s too much stuff, and it’s not that interesting.”
What is the most important tool for journalists, according to Potts?
“THIS,” he said, holding up his smartphone.
And lastly, while speaking about a journalist and their work, Potts believes in “getting it right the first time.” Sure, a writer can tinker with their work endlessly, but, generally, write stuff “that’s ready to go.”
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