When I was ready to start writing my blog, I started thinking about the importance of being prepared for media convergence. Convergence is changing the journalism industry, but nobody knows where it is actually going.
As I have said in some of my previous blogs, some schools are incorporating into their curriculum some courses and even majors with the new media focus, but I think it is difficult to fully prepare students for something that is still in a developing stage.
Multimedia packages give websites’ visitors a great amount of knowledge through the convergence of different storytelling techniques, such as text, video, audio, graphics, and photography.
Aside from this, these types of projects also generate the need for constant teamwork and interaction between the content providers and the designers. A small miscommunication can significantly affect the assignment, especially those with deadlines.
One of the assignments for my online journalism class was the creation of a multimedia page. For this project, our professor designated a couple of partners’ students from a web designing class to join us – the journalists and content providers.
Some of the teams experienced miscommunication and some misunderstandings. It was a learning experience for all of us. It wasn’t about blaming anybody; it was more about recognizing the importance of getting prepared for the real world in the new media convergence industry.
The melding of media formats requires more multi-tasking from the reporter, more technology knowledge and definitely a higher level of teamwork.
It is exciting to be part of a new revolution in the journalism industry and it is even better to have the support from professors that truly care about their students in this discovering process.
No one knows where it is all going. But there is no question convergence is here to stay. We’d better be prepared and get used to it.
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