Cell Phone Reporting. Executive Summary. By Lexa Deckert and Sarah Redohl Mentors: Karen Mitchell, Steve Rice and Mike McKean.

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1 Cell Phone Reporting By Lexa Deckert and Sarah Redohl Mentors: Karen Mitchell, Steve Rice and Mike McKean Executive Summary Project Summary 2011 was a big year for breaking news, with the Arab Spring, the earthquakes in Japan and Occupy Wall Street. Concurrently, it was yet another year of fewer resources, fewer journalists and smaller budgets. One potential way to cope with this is mobile journalism (MoJo), our team s capstone project. We ve been working with Vericorder, which sells mobile journalism tools, including Voddio, an application to edit audio and video on the iphone. Vericorder and the Industry We began our project by researching existing mobile journalism tools and trends. Once familiar with the tools, we interviewed Will Sullivan, the director of mobile news for Lee Enterprises, who gave us further insight into how some newsrooms approach the new technologies available for cell phones. Our next step was to conduct a survey to see how translatable Sullivan s experience was to other newsrooms. Based on this research we were able to better understand how viable Vericorder s technology is to the industry as well as what the industry needs from mobile technology. Vericorder at the Missouri School of Journalism Through personal experience with the equipment and two focus groups with Missouri School of Journalism students, we have outlined a number of recommendations for our client, Vericorder, to use to improve their product. We also created a method of how the Missouri School of Journalism can implement mobile reporting into their curriculum. We also blogged about our experiences on our personal blog and the RJI blog. Although the technology had glitches that we will later explain in detail, the Vericorder system was well received by the classes and our capstone team. We outlined our recommendations for the incorporation of the curriculum into the Missouri School of Journalism, from which classes should incorporate the equipment and how students might receive the best mobile training without disrupting additional class work and newsroom shifts. We hope this will not only provide insight into the mobile technology, but also produce a future plan for Vericorder and the Missouri School of Journalism.

2 Cell Phone Reporting Journalists across the world are watching as the media landscape rapidly evolves. Mobile journalism is inevitably a part of that evolution. Although industry professionals have been talking about MoJo for years, the current climate may be its time to break through into mainstream media. What began as a tool of person-to-person communication is now a tool for mass communication, from updating social media to uploading photos and videos, cell phones and their attachments can now provide up-to-date news from anywhere with cell phone service. MoJo gives greater freedom to newsrooms at every level: the technology is better than it was in the past, and the equipment is more compact and affordable. Year by year, MoJo is granting more flexibility in the field of news. Our project encompasses mobile journalism as a whole with an emphasis on Vericorder technology. Our purpose is to give media companies and professionals updated insights, focusing on MoJo and the industry, the Missouri School of Journalism and us. The current state of mobile journalism in the industry When we first began our capstone project, our team was unfamiliar with mobile journalism. Starting from the basics, we began to research how people in the industry, as well as citizen journalists, were using cell phones to report news. From the use of geolocation to find sources to sending pictures and videos of breaking news, mobile journalism has been developing for years and has just begun honing a reputation for convenience and quality. According to Will Sullivan, director of mobile news for Lee Enterprises, as the tools continue to get better and better, more newsrooms are adopting them. There s definitely a focus on the big benefit of mobile journalism; a lot of times it s the speed and convenience. So, stories that are very timely, like breaking news and sports, tend to do very well using mobile tools, he said. I think, especially as competition continues to heat up and the news cycle becomes an every second news cycle, that kind of competition to get information as quickly as possible will be increasingly important. Lee Enterprises, which owns 48 daily newspapers and nearly 300 specialty publications throughout the country, has its own strategy to incorporate cell phones into reporting. We re not forcing them, we re just trying to give them tools that help them do their jobs better, and they ll see the perks, Sullivan said. Lee Enterprises subsidizes the use of smartphones for its reporters, making the goal of incorporation easier to achieve. To see if Sullivan s perspective was shared among other newsrooms, we conducted a survey that was sent out to 1,500 newspapers with circulations of 50,000 to 100,000. We chose newsrooms within that circulation range because we wanted papers large enough to have some mobile resources available, but small enough that an extensive budget was unlikely. Additionally, the number of newspapers with circulations of more than 100,000 is minimal. Based upon our research, cell phone technology has a great opportunity for use in newsrooms of this size. Today, everything a journalist needs to publish a story is only a few clicks away. In addition to speedy publication, inexpensive reporting allows less-endowed news outfits to blanket an area with more reporters, wrote Greg Ferenstein, a contributor on Mashable.com. We used Reynolds Journalism Institute resources to contact the newsrooms. In the end, the response rate was seven percent, and the results were across the board. Despite Nielsen s report that 2012 as the year smartphones overtook dumb phones, 45 percent of survey respondents said less than one in four of their newsroom staff have smartphones. Furthermore, 80 percent of respondents said their newsroom does not subsidize smartphone use, limiting the number of staff with mobile journalism tools available. A number of respondents said cost was the main reason they did not use cell phone tools. More than 50 percent of respondents were interested in reporting with cell phone tools and thought they were necessary, but both cost and lack of training made the tools less accessible to this audience. In fact, nearly 80 percent of respondents said that their newsrooms planned to spend less than $50 on cell phone tools for each reporter in the next budget year, while only seven percent said their newsroom planned to spend more than $350, the amount it would cost for a fully-functioning high-quality mobile toolkit, as we reported in our blog: Using the previous mobile journalism capstone team s tool guide, a top-notch kit would cost about $420, while a bare-bones kit would cost around $100, twice as much as most respondents said they were planning to spend. With the low wages paid in journalism, at least in my location, I feel that cost is a big factor in the lack of cell phone use, one respondent wrote. Another wrote, Improving our budget and bottom line seems to be our first priority versus having cell phones that can actually do everything mentioned in the survey. Based on our research using the RJI MoJo tools guide and additional web resources, it is possible to build a cell phone reporter s kit inexpensively; however, there seemed to be a greater problem than cost among respondents. For every survey comment about cost, there were at least two about not understanding MoJo.

3 When asked for specific suggestions to improve cell phone technology for newsgathering, respondents said: We re so far behind now in cell phone technology that I can t answer the question. Many journalists aren t aware of possible usage beyond recording audio, video and taking photos. You might as well ask a kindergartner about making calculus easier :) This sentiment was made more obvious by the apparent lack of integration of cell phone tools in reporting, shown in the graph below. preconceptions that it is expensive, difficult to learn, and lacking in quality. One might think, based on the apparent lack of mobile technology use in newsrooms, that there may be no need for cell phone reporting in the newsrooms surveyed, or perhaps even on a larger scale. We do not agree. Based on responses about barriers to use, an overwhelming majority responded that it was not disinterest of lack of necessity, but a preconceived idea that mobile journalism is expensive. Pair that with the many comments related to budgetary problems existing in these newsrooms already, and it seems like a viable market for mobile technology. Vericorder s role in the industry Vericorder is a company based in Canada that focuses on providing new tools and technology for journalists, particularly in the mobile journalism arena. It sells mobile journalism hardware and software. This includes attachable lenses and a light, a mini mic and a handheld mic, a holding case for the iphone (known as a Bubo), as well as a monopod and a carrying case. Individual equipment prices range from $25 to $60 and can be purchased separately or in kits. The MoJo kits range in price from $240 to $300 for a full kit, or $120 to $170 for a kit with fewer pieces of equipment. After seeing such interesting results from the survey, we decided we needed to get more detailed information on how newsrooms might use the Vericorder equipment. Lexa went to the Boone County Journal located in Ashland, Mo., and Sarah spoke with Andrew Denney at the Columbia Daily Tribune. The Boone County Journal is a weekly journal that distributes about 10,500 copies per week. Bruce Wallace, editor and owner of the paper, says the extent of their mobile reporting is posting things to Facebook and Twitter two or three times a week. It s really a lack of knowledge. I m still learning what my iphone can do for me. I m trying to make a better habit out of grabbing my phone and posting updates, said Wallace. The Boone County Journal s news staff consists of four people and the only mobile equipment their budget covers is Wallace s phone, so cost is an issue for them. But what seems most important to Bruce is the matter of time. It s easy to post things to Facebook, it would take much more time to upload them to our Web site. The more steps there are, the more time it requires and I sometimes just have to go with what takes less time. Even though time and money may have Wallace discouraged, he was very interested in the potential mobile reporting had to offer. Lexa showed him the mobile kit we have been using and taught him how to use Voddio. Wallace kept the equipment for a week and was able to create three different projects with it. Before Wallace used the equipment he thought it would be a time hassle and way too complicated. I was totally wrong about it being too complicated, said Wallace. He has previously worked with Flip recorders, a Sony Handicam and YouTube but said, Out of the four or five video systems I ve used this was by far the easiest. The top three uses of cell phone reporting are photography, note-taking tools and updating social media. Video and audio gathering were nearly equal, with about 35 percent using the tools seldom, at the very least. However, video and audio editing on cell phones was minimal. Nine out of every 10 respondents said they never used these tools. We also found that one-third of respondents use MoJo often for breaking news, and one-tenth use it always in breaking news. One-third said they never use MoJo for sports or feature news. Across the board, respondents called for improvements in mobile technology, including better quality photos, larger screens like tablets and less clumsy editing software. Overall, the results of our survey were insightful into the workings of newsrooms and barriers to mobile journalism. Based on our findings, it seems that although many journalists are not using this technology, they have Wallace had some of the same difficulties we ourselves have come across, such as the Bubo being too heavy, a small screen being hard to edit on and the telephoto lens wasn t as great of quality as he would have hoped. Overall, though, Wallace was very impressed with the equipment. The Bubo is great, I thought it was kind of goofy at first but it s actually good because I m standing there forever and it worked really well. The lenses more than do the job and the small microphone surprised me with how good the quality is but when it comes down to it, it s all about the app. The app is terrific. It s in his OWN marketing of the project that Wallace really proves he likes Vericorder. First, he showed the equipment to his adult children and now his son is buying it for his personal home videos. Of greater significance, Wallace manages two newspapers in Kansas the Parsons Sun and The Chanute Tribune and he is planning on buying the kit for those newsrooms. Neither of these newsrooms have a single iphone among the employees, so Wallace plans on buying the iphone and the kit for each newsroom by June.

4 What s different about Wallace s plans for the mobile kit within these newsrooms is how he s planning on utilizing it. Instead of using the equipment for reporting, he s planning on using it to sell ads. It s a cash cow for advertising, said Wallace. Currently, some of their ads on these two news Web sites are video promotions. Wallace plans to pitch the idea of video advertisement to more companies. We ll tell them we can come shoot a short video and put it up on our Web site for $100 a month. If just one company decided to do it for a year, that pays for the equipment right there, said Wallace, As long as you re creative, there are so many different opportunities for this technology. Based on Wallace s interests, advertising may be an area in which Vericroder might consider expanding. Wallace s interest in the equipment proves that there is a spot for this in the news industry. He was adamant that he wouldn t be the only one interested. And not only is he excited to use the equipment, but he wants to pay Lexa to train the newsrooms. Just one semester capstone project has given her valuable expertise that people are going to pay for. As Wallace said, It s not the quality of the equipment bringing it down, the quality is awesome. The biggest problem is the quality way out-distanced the ability of the guy using it. The Tribune, however, was a different experience. Andrew Denney is a city reporter and also blogs for the Tribune, which has a circulation of more than 20,000 and is one of two daily newspapers in Columbia, Mo. Denney uses his Blackberry to post pictures to Twitter and Facebook while reporting, but does not use his cell phone in other reporting capacities. He said this may have more to do with his choice of smartphone than with a lack of need. When we first contacted Denney about the project, he was excited to use the equipment and saw potential for mobile reporting in his newsroom. At the training session with Sarah, Denney was impressed by how easy the software was to learn. In 45 minutes, Denney had produced a short video from inside the conference room and was ready to take the equipment with him on his beat to city hall. After experiencing the equipment in a couple different scenarios, both at his beat as a city reporter and at a street fair, Denney saw the potential of the equipment. I could see this being a great tool for a very visual beat. Unfortunately he said that was not the case for his own beat. I barely have time to make my deadlines anyways, Denney said. Bringing this equipment and remembering to use it may mean my print story won t be as good and I ll miss good quotes. Most of his stories are less than visual, and often getting the photo desk to even come to a meeting to take a supplementary photo is difficult. He could see using the equipment to that extent, but doubts he would create multimedia projects with it. Specifically with the Vericorder kit, Denney was impressed by the quality. The photos and videos were high quality, and the audio was good enough for web use. He thought the Bubo was useful and liked the compactness of the case. The editing experience, however, was less than expected. When we were sitting down together, it seemed so easy, he said. When I got out there, it seemed like everything went wrong. The biggest problem he faced was with his fingers on such a small screen. I can t see through my finger to know what I m actually doing, he said. Denney thinks that a stylus should be included in the kit so it s less clumsy to use the editing software. However negative some of his experiences may have been, he said he wanted to keep playing with the equipment. There s definitely potential for this sort of thing, he said. Vericorder s role at the Missouri School of Journalism Two years ago, Vericorder approached the Missouri School of Journalism seeking a few students to test out its equipment at the Olympics in Vancouver. Knowing that the school sets many university standards, it was a good way to try to get their product into the hands of future journalists. Though the students and faculty enjoyed the experience working with Vericorder, there were some major shortcomings that they reported back to Vericorder. Once back in Columbia, the technology was barely used for the next two years, until our capstone. The professors liked the product enough not to rule it out, but because Vericorder needed to make some adjustments, the equipment was not incorporated. Now the technology is better and the industry has evolved, they see a demand for the students to have this knowledge. Though our team focused its efforts on Vericorder, the work from a previous team to create a Mobile Journalism Reporting Tools Guide provided insight as to how Vericorder s technology compared to its competitors. In all categories equipment from the Vericoder kit was considered highly recommended by the capstone team. To further test and troubleshoot the Vericorder application and its hardware system, we did our own reporting and enlisted the help of students of two MU journalism classes. We chose a beginners and intermediate class to use the Voddio application. After the classes had their own reporting experiences, our team conducted a focus group with each class. The beginners class, Multimedia Journalism, was very excited about the chance to use the Vericorder technology, though its students had minimal training beforehand. They all watched a training video produced by Vericorder but had no hands-on training. They seemed to think that the equipment was very intuitive. Below are some findings from the beginners class. Preconceptions -Cool and new because you get to use your phone -Much simpler with less equipment to worry about -You have it on hand, so anything around you can be captured Observations -Surprisingly similar to Final Cut editing software beneficial to beginners experience with the equipment -Crashed sometimes, but always saved projects automatically Quality -Decent quality; didn t notice much different compared to video cameras Best Use -Quick stories not long-term projects -Profiles, following someone around, easy to use in a moment s notice -Night side and day side reporting -B-Roll -For fun -Breaking news The insight from the beginning multimedia class was useful, but as more experienced journalism students, the Multimedia Sports Journalism focus group provided insight based more on industry needs, rather than personal needs. The difference in experience level allowed the students the base knowledge necessary to provide more depth and discussion. As juniors and seniors, they have had years of experience with multimedia journalism already. They have used many types of technology and can better recognize the preferable qualities in reporting equipment. Below are some findings from the intermediate class. Preconceptions -Worried about quality thinking of it as situational and not as the only tool to use -Good for a tight deadline or crowded situation

5 Preconceptions, cont. -Trying too hard to use technology for the sake of using technology -Very innovative, but skeptical about quality -Interesting; many didn t know this technology existed -Would be good for interviews, especially up-close interviews since it does not require the use of heavy equipment Observations -Can get into places that you possibly wouldn t have access to with big equipment -Clumsy to edit with such a small screen -Seemed good to have in case of an emergency but unnecessary in slow environment Best Use -Press conferences -Interviews -Sports --if the iphone had zoom capabilities -Citizen journalism--the input from citizens would be a lot better; the interest is there An announcer rallies marchers in the True False March March to kick off the annual documentary film festival in Columbia, Mo. Our team blog, cellreporting.wordpress.com, shares our experiences and showcases what we produced during our semester. The RJI blog, on the other hand, is more of a resource for newsrooms. Alternating each week, we covered a variety of types of news around Columbia, including but not limited to sports, community events, meetings and performances. Our experience with Vericorder Throughout the experience, we learned a number of lessons. At the True/False Film Festival, we realized how the small equipment could make journalists jobs easier. People were less timid about being on camera, it took much less time to set up. In her blog post, Lexa wrote: Overall, there were some common experiences between both the beginners and the intermediate groups, including what worked and what did not. They also had suggestions for future development of Voddio. Difficulties -Bubo (case to hold the iphone) is heavy and hard to keep steady when also using a mic on a cable A strap for the Bubo would be nice Too heavy -Crackles with the handheld mic -Batteries die fast (maybe a longer charging cable would help or a charging Bubo) -Lack of zoom -Editing Small screen, clumsy fingers Annoying that you have to name files as you record, makes you miss things The X being so close to the save Suggestions -Make app available on other phone brands -Vericorder could have its own Cloud system -Invest in a stylus to improve the editing process -Market to everyone, not just journalists -Buttons on the Bubo even more game controller-like In both classes, the majority of students were using smartphones and would like to keep using the Voddio application, especially if it were free. Students from the intermediate class are already thinking about future jobs at which Voddio could excel and thought it would be a good tool to have in their pocket. Overall, even though students were skeptical about the demand for mobile journalism technology, they seemed to have fun using the equipment. As a supplementary tool to help train the classes on the equipment, we created A help file, which is included at the end of this document. Much of our personal experiences were in line with those shared in the focus groups. Throughout the semester, our team reported with the equipment. All of these experiences and more are recounted in our two blogs. It also made a huge difference on my stress level. Instead of carrying a tripod, a camera, a Marantz and a wireless mic, I had a kit that could fit into my purse or my coat pocket. I felt like I could move around more, get different angles and have time to approach more people. Every time we went out it seemed, people would tell us how interested they were in the equipment; a few asked where to buy it. It was also quite easy to learn, so difficulty would not be a barrier to non-journalists using the equipment. Though somewhat oversimplified and a bit primitive for journalists with experience in Avid, Final Cut or the like, the software was approachable on our first outing. Sarah wrote in a later blog post: Much of the Voddio interface is similar to other video editing software, but somehow, on a smaller screen, Voddio is a bit more welcoming for video editing newcomers. With all the usefulness of the equipment, there was also a learning curve to overcome. There were times we didn t know a function existed, such as the ability to extract audio from a video. Also, if there are unnecessary splices in the video, or symbols in the title, the software will not render the video and crash. Other times, the problems were no fault of our own. For example, if the user overloads the software with too many commands (often two at a time is too many), the software will crash. It doesn t delete the project, but nevertheless, it can be frustrating. Additionally, using the mobile kit is very different from creating a longer piece with larger equipment. The amount of b roll and interview that needs be to gathered is much smaller. Multiple times, we each took more b roll than was necessary; one or two minutes, shot in 10-second increments, is enough. A journalist can definitely learn the differences of using this equipment, but it does take time to get used to. Though the software mostly produced quality work and was easy to use despite complications, some of the hardware Vericorder have partnered with are not very effective. For example, the mini mic may sometimes pick up inexplicable pops. The cord for the handheld mic is so short, we had to be very close to the interviewee and we were unable to do interesting angles. This was particularly problematic with the light attachment. The height was right at eye level for the source and could be distracting. The biggest problem, however, was the iphone s lack of zoom ability. Though the telephoto lens let us get a bit closer, for performances, sports, and other types of news from a distance, this is impractical.

6 Despite the problems we faced, we found that this equipment would be very useful in situations where a journalist would benefit from getting the story up first, or when something newsworthy happens unexpectedly. That in and of itself is a benefit of the equipment--being able to edit quickly and upload from anywhere. Though our team did not get the opportunity to use Vericorder s content management system, even with the roundabout method of exporting and sending to camera roll to or post to YouTube is faster than going back to the newsroom to log tape and edit there. The equipment also comes in handy as a backup if the big equipment stops working, runs out of batteries, etc. Although the equipment took time to really understand, beyond basic functions, it was enjoyable to use, has an edge in breaking news, and is of good quality. Recommendations for Vericorder After a full semester of experience and research with Voddio, Vericorder and MoJo in general, our team has a few recommendations for our client, Vericorder, its software, the kit it bundles and sells and its future. The software was easy to understand but also frequently crashed if prompted with one too many commands. Improving this problematic experience would certainly make using the application less frustrating, and fewer projects would be lost to sudden inexplicable crashes. Additionally, in the clip sequencer the X to close is right next to the check mark to accept changes. It s very easy to press the wrong button on such a small screen, so perhaps a prompt to ask if the user is sure they want to exit the sequencer without saving would be valuable. One issue we saw during the focus groups was how problematic a lack of zoom capabilities was to one of MoJo s most promising niches sports journalists. Without the zoom function when shooting video, use at games is limited to a field or courtside wide view. Having chosen to partner with the iphone, Vericorder may be limiting itself. Focus group participants with Android phones were disappointed they could not use the equipment with their own phones, even though many of their phones seemed better-suited for mobile reporting. Multiple Android phones have zoom capabilities, and they are growing in popularity. Johanna Zorn explains why her company, Third Coast Audio, decided to come to True False Film Festival. She said audio is just like any documentary, but the images come from the listener s memories. Vendors organize produce stands at the farmers market in Soulard, a disctrict of St. Louis. Peg Crawford explains how she plans to use the pecans from the pecan tree she picked up at the Arbor Day Tree giveaway in the baked goods she sells at her stand at Columbia s farmer market. In addition to Vericorder s partnership with the iphone, the partners it works with to build the kit sold on the Vericorder website have some additional limitations. The mini boom mic crackles often and sounds far way from the subject. The add-on light is a promising answer to the poor video quality under low-light conditions, but it is so bright it distracts interviewees. The short cord to the handheld mic makes creative shots during interviews difficult. Perhaps it would be beneficial to address these problems with partners and consider other options. Despite the technical issues with the iphone, there are larger implications of the partnership. The popularity of Android-based phones is growing, and Microsoft is about to launch another platform, Windows 8. These are two potentially large markets Vericorder cannot reach if it doesn t expand to other platforms. It is also one barrier to wider use at the Missouri School of Journalism. When ipod Touches and iphones were required equipment for incoming freshmen, it was not a popular choice. In order to avoid those requirements, the Missouri School of Journalism, as well as other interested universities, would benefit from a system that works on multiple smartphone platforms. One potentially promising path is to embrace citizen journalists and encourage their use of this equipment because it is so affordable and accessible. We saw a lot of potential in this market because every time we went out to report people asked us where to get the equipment. One time in particular, employees of Columbia s forestry department asked where to get the equipment, telling Sarah it would be useful to take video of the department s various events around Columbia. Andrew Denney of the Columbia Daily Tribune also mentioned that he would prefer to have the kit for non-work activities and gave the example of creating a video of the Earth Day Fesitval for his own blog. Bruce Wallace, of the Boone County Journal, showed the kit to his son and daughter and now his son is interested in buying a kit. He is not interested in using it for his job, but for his family life. A new idea Wallace brought to us was that of using the Voddio system for advertising. If Vericorder was interested in marketing this system for more purposes, other than reporting, they could target a larger audience. The largest problem we encountered during our semester, though, was a lack of awareness. People thought the equipment was interesting once they learned about it, but many didn t know anything of the sort even existed. At the same time, media professionals from the survey were very concerned about quality and called for vast improvements, but many also responded that they had never really experimented with current technologies and wanted to incorporate more cell phone reporting in their newsrooms. For many, cost was a big factor in using mobile equipment, but for smaller newsrooms, Vericorder and MoJo may be the answer to shrinking budgets. However, quality, cost and convenience are the three key benefits of this technology and need to be proven to the journalism world before widespread acceptance occurs. As more people use Vericorder, exposure can be gained and quality can be proven. If no one uses Vericorder, then no one knows it exists, and a useful journalistic tool remains invisible. We believe journalism schools are the place to start. Newsrooms are interested in these abilities, and most journalists in the industry are already buried in too much work in too little time. When students graduate with this knowledge, it may become an industry norm to use cell phone reporting, and Vericorder could be on the front line of that movement by targeting schools. Recommendations for the Missouri School of Journalism After using Vericorder and Voddio for a semester, we definitely think it would be a tool that the University of Missouri-Columbia s School of Journalism should implement. It s another tool that will make students more valuable in the field and allows more options in news coverage. So far, we ve found that the largest reason it s not

7 implemented in newsrooms more often is due to lack of knowledge. If we remedy that during the educational period, we don t see why cell phone reporting can t be used in most newsrooms. Saying we should teach it is one thing but trying to figure out when and how is another. We have ideas on that matter. We don t think that we should apply the equipment the first year in each student s sequence. During 2150, the first multimedia journalism class students are required to take, we believe is too soon to introduce the equipment. After learning how simple this equipment is, and having been through a similar class ourselves, we think students would not have the motivation to learn more complicated equipment if they already had the simple mobile tools. Learning to use the tripods, digital recorders, video cameras, wireless mics, etc. are valuable to our futures and cannot be replaced by the mobile equipment. The mobile tools are additional tools but cannot replace the fundamental tools that journalists already use. We also feel that introducing the mobile tools during the first newsroom classes would be too soon. By the time students enter reporting they have already learned how to use the programs and equipment, but it s the first time that they are using it to produce news on a regular basis. Even though students only produce a story every other week, we think adding additional training to that load would overwhelm the students. This equipment is new and most students in our focus groups were excited to use it. If it s an addition to an already heavy load, then that enthusiasm may not be the same. The last reporting and editing classes before the capstone class seems to be the perfect time to introduce cell phone reporting. The students will have already have had a sufficient amount of time to learn the other equipment the J School provides and this will be the only additional equipment they need to learn that semester. It s also ideal because the students will be working in a variety of newsrooms during that semester. Being savvy with the cell phone kit means that they have another tool that they can offer their newsrooms. We know that there is already a syllabus for this class and adding the mobile kit may seem disrupting but we think the equipment could be implemented into the schedule within two class periods. The training session we have given to a class and two reporters has lasted about 45 minutes each time. We think that the training of this kit could be given on a Friday during lecture class. That gives the students the weekend to make a second project, letting them experience the equipment and figure out what they re still confused about. Then, Monday during lecture the class can go over the projects, what people could not figure out and address that so there s no further confusion. of knowledge is the problem. If the answer to shrinking budgets and fewer resources cannot be met in the industry as it stands currently, but those skill sets are valued, then we believe the Missouri School of Journalism would be best prepared for the future if it and its students were more knowledgeable and experienced with mobile kits, and based on our experiences and the guide created by a previous mobile journalism capstone, available online, Vericorder is a good candidate. As more students become savvy with mobile equipment, we will see a greater use of cell phone reporting in the industry. If not, the interest of non-journalists, and potential citizen journalists, has been piqued by Vericorder s equipment, as we experienced while reporting, either Missouri J-School students can be the ones with these skills, or we can lose this opportunity to others who have seen the value and are interested. Moving forward, the Missouri School of Journalism might also want to offer more mobile journalism insight to the industry, and RJI would be an option. We found that many journalists simply lacked the knowledge of cell phone technology; some didn t know how to work iphones. Wallace with the Boone County Journal suggested a training session starting with the basics to show journalists just how capable phones are becoming--and how relevant they can be to the industry. Furthermore, cell phone reporting is wholly in line with the RJI s goals as a state-of-the-art resources to test and demonstrate new technologies, experiment with new approaches to producing, designing and delivering news, information and advertising, and to host conferences that can be livestreamed around the world. RJI wants to be on the cutting edge of journalism. Mobile technology is available and capable, but we may need to step back and start to train from the basics and introduce the mentality of how to use cell phones to enhance reporting. Conclusion Throughout our experience this semester, we have learned valuable new tools to enhance our careers in journalism. Not only does mobile journalism have a place in the industry, but we think Vericorder does as well. With our recommendations for Vericorder and the Missouri School of Journalism, we hope other students and industry professionals can feel confident using Vericorder s tools and make the most of a growing industry trend that could lessen budget strains and make us more multimedia-oriented, our work more timely and our jobs easier. After the training, the students will be expected to implement the equipment in their newsrooms. First, they will need to come up with three to five ideas about how the equipment would fit best in each of their newsrooms. They will pitch these ideas in class and get feed back from the teachers. After they come up with their final ideas, they will pitch them to their newsrooms. We think that the students should have 3 weeks in the newsrooms, so they can get the feel of the newsroom, before they pitch their ideas during the fourth week at the newsroom. For the rest of the time at the newsroom they are responsible for at least one project using the kit within the newsroom. If they do additional projects, extra credit it a good consideration. Based on our experiences this semester, we believe there is a need for cell phone reporting and the knowledge of mobile reporting in the field. Newsrooms are confused about the quality of mobile technology in general, but express an interest in using the technology. They are also concerned with budgets, as they expressed in the survey comments, and mobile technology, including Vericorder, is much less expensive than large, specialized equipment. Wallace with the Boone County Journal sees a need for the equipment, and the interest among people around us while we report is certainly there. Anecdotally, we have also heard of industry professional interested in people with mobile journalism skills. Through working with Bruce Wallace and our survey we have seen lack

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11 Voddio Help File by Sarah Redohl and & Lexa Deckert Welcome to Vericorder! It s an exciting software to get to play with, but can be a little confusing at first. This guide should help you understand and use Voddio, Vericorder s iphone editing application, and the Vericorder equipment within your kit. First, the kit. Within that little black bag are a bunch of useful tools, as shown below. There s the mic clip and mic with a headphone jack. There are the telephoto and wide angle lenses. There is also an attachable light, with lithium ion rechargeable battery and charger. There s a small boom mic, and a helpful case/holder for the iphone itself, called a Bubo. P2 P3 Once in the files menu, you will go to the projects tab (top left) and in the bottom left corner you will hit new project. Once you ve made a new project and choose audio or video, you will open it up and see a timeline, as shown below. The top two bars are video tracks, and the bottom two are for audio. The best practice is to use the top bar for broll and the second bar for your main interviews. Just click on the bar you want to work on and it will become larger, as in the top bar, shown above. To select a clip, double click on it with one finger. The blue and yellow cursers that appear at the beginning and end show which footage exactly you are editing. They are movable by clicking and holding the white bar above (moves the first curser) and below (moves the second curser). At the bottom of P4, you will see a bunch of gray buttons. From left to right they are: Playback. If you hold this option, a blue row of additional options will pop up. You can opt to play only the selection you ve made, around where your curser is, in fullscreen mode, or only audio. P4 Add. This button will allow you to bring in audio and video clips and pictures you ve captured within Voddio, as well as record a voiceover or other sound. To select which of these two options, you must hold the button down until a similar blue row pops up. P1 But that s just the hardware, let s get to the software. Voddio When you open the application (below), at the bottom will be four options. The first three are used to capture video, photos and audio, respectively, within the software. The fourth will take you to your files page, shown to the right. P5

12 Zoom P6. Pretty obvious, but again with multiple options if you hold down the button. You can zoom to maximum closeness, to the selection you ve chosen, just simply in or our, or to fit the entire project within the screen. Clicking the check mark will return you to the editing screen. Playback2 P7. This option allows you to play footage from a particular point. You can play from start, the clip previous to your selected clip or cursor, the clip following, or the very end. It s really just an easy way to move your curser to the point you need it to be at without risking messing up the project with gigantic, clumsy fingers. (even if you do, it happens!) The next two buttons are audio: Script. The next button is a script writing tool, where you can play back the video you have, so you can type a script to send to the newsroom as well. Save/render. This tool will save your video, but it is also the tool you need to know to export your video. You will click it and choose render to video. When the export options appear, set them to mirror those shown in P8. You ll wait for the video to render and save. P6 Toggle. Clicking this button will show you a screen like the picture below. The video doesn t appear, just the audio waves don t worry, you haven t lost anything. P10 Home. If you hit this, you will exit your project. There should be a prompt that asks if you want to save before it returns you to the File Manager. So those are all the buttons, but that s not all you need to know. What about titles and visual transitions? This is a bit trickier, but you ll get the hang of it. Select the clip you want to add a title or transition to. Then, touch the screen with two fingers hold them until options show up. It may take a few tries, but an option box should pop up to copy, paste or add titles and transitions. P7 P8 If you double click and select a clip, you can edit the volume of that clip. If you select a particular section of that clip, shown below, and move the left and right toggle buttons (the gray rounded squares) up and down, you can add fades in and out. The fades have different options of their own, including concave up or down and a linear fade. Volume shown below. Once you ve selected a bar from your timeline, you can edit the volume of just one clip or the entire timeline. With the button to the left, you can edit the volume of the entire bar of the timeline. The button on the right changes only the clip you ve selected. With the two functions, you could potentially increase the volume of a clip by 200%. P11 P12 Once your video is finished, make sure the curser is at the beginning of the video (hint Playback 2 button: start) and you have no clips selected. Then, choose save and render to video. Below are the proper export settings. After rendering to video, Voddio will automatically place the mixed-down version in the Video Tab of the File Manager. Click on the video you want and choose Send, the last option in the picture to the right. P9 ***if you want to extract audio from a video, you must go to the Video Tab of the File Manager (back where you chose Projects ) and click that video. There s an option there to extract audio *** P13

13 P14 P15 A number of options will be available, shown below. For the time being, select to Camera Roll. Once the video is in the iphone s camera role, you can plug the iphone into any computer and upload the photo to YouTube, or wherever and everyone can see the work you did entirely on a cell phone! Good luck, and we hope you enjoy the experience. P16