Principles of Convergent Journalism

About the Book

This skills-oriented text is a core book for courses in convergent journalism, an emerging course that looks at the way demands to produce content across media platforms impacts journalism practice. Sections include a brief primer on basic reporting and interviewing skills needed for all media, repurposing broadcast and print news for the Internet, basic principles of broadcast writing and reporting for print reporters, basic principles of print writing and reporting for broadcast reporters, and finally, incorporating convergent journalism techniques into other emerging media. The text is written to work as a supplementary text for programs with a single news writing and reporting course, as well as a foundational text for larger programs with a convergent journalism curriculum.

Table of Contents:
1. Introduction to Convergent Journalism ; 2. Basic Skills and Roles in Convergent Newsrooms ; 3. From Print to Internet: Repurposing Content ; 4. From Print to Internet: New Types of Content ; 5. From Broadcast to Internet: Repurposing Content ; 6. From Broadcast to Internet: New Content ; 7. Basics of Broadcasting for Print Reporters ; 8. Basics of Print for Broadcast Reporters ; 9. Internet News ; 10. Adding Multimedia to Web sites ; 11. Converging with Other Emerging Media ; 12. Your Future in Convergent Journalism ; GLOSSARY

About the Author :
Jeffrey S. Wilkinson is Professor and Coordinator of the International Journalism Programme at United International College (Zhuhai, China), founded jointly by Beijing Normal University and Hong Kong Baptist University.

August E. Grant is Associate Professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of South Carolina and editor of Communication Technology Update.

Douglas Fisher is a veteran broadcast, newspaper, and wire service journalist. A former Kiplinger Fellow, he teaches in the School of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of South Carolina.

Review :
"This text is long overdue! Convergence has been talked about for years but few have put forth the effort to help explain it in a way that faculty can use in a classroom. The authors do a good job of explaining the relationships between the various traditional media while providing evidence that convergence is happening regardless of those who refuse to admit it. The text is skills-oriented, and that is so critical in today's curriculum. Students learn by doing, and this text does a very good job of comparing similarities and differences among media."--Colin Pillow, Arkansas State University

"The authors do an excellent job giving an overview of the essential roles and approaches of different media. [This book] is easy enough for a student to read--and maybe even comprehend while listening to his iPod, chatting on IM, texting, and watching ESPN (don't try this at home)--without sacrificing clarity, content, or substance."--Richard Landesburg, Elon University

"Convergence has already happened and continues to happen in the profession, but those of us in academia have been slow, even stubborn in examining this major force in media which is anything but a passing fad. Wilkinson, et al. have developed a seminal text in this area, and I'd like to recommend this book for every journalism program in the country."--Ralph Braseth, University of Mississippi

"Now into the fray come Jeffrey S. Wilkinson, August E. Grant, and Douglas J. Fisher with the publication of their book Principles of Convergent Journalism. To the authors' eternal credit, there's no diffidence in their approach to the disputed landscape. They attack the philosophy, reasons, and realities of convergence in the first half of the book, giving professors and students much to consider at the beginning of any journalism course. The authors focus on the realities of what's actually happening, which has the effect of allowing students to see themselves as part of this new world without becoming bogged down in a professor's lament about 'how things used to be.'"--Nancy McKenzie Dupont, Electronic News