Written Critiques
(Graduate students: Your critique assignments are different!)
These are short (500–1,000 words), double-spaced, print-ready papers to be handed in on each of three separate deadlines. The student chooses one example of online journalism for each critique.
In each critique, the example must be from a different category (your choice, but choose a new category for each one of your critiques) on this list from Chapter 1 in Flash Journalism: How to Create Multimedia News Packages:
- Photo slideshow with audio (not included*)
- Animated infographic
- Story package
- Interactivity
- Interface or navigation design
* The first category is not permitted for your critiques because most slideshows nowadays are produced with Soundslides or presented in a video player, so the production and design are quite standard (there is very little variation to be discussed).
Each critique uses ONE example from ONE category.
Among your three critiques, you will use three categories.
NOTE: You can read a good example of a critique (PDF, 49 KB), written by a student (used by permission).
Guidelines
NO COPYING, NO PASTING, NO BORROWING, NO QUOTING FROM ANY OTHER CRITIQUES OR REVIEWS OR BLOG POSTS OR ANYTHING.
Academic dishonesty = a failing grade for the entire course. I am not joking.
- The examples do NOT need to use Flash.
- The examples MUST be journalism.
- Do not use any examples that were shown in class!
- Do not use any examples that are in the book chapter (those are all very OLD).
- Do NOT use a whole news site (e.g. BBC News, The New York Times, MediaStorm) as your example.
- Do not use an example that is only one video or only one slideshow. (Know your categories! They are explained in Chapter 1 in Flash Journalism: How to Create Multimedia News Packages.) If you choose an information graphic, it must have more than one page/screen/frame, and things must MOVE.
- Ensure that your example fits well into the category to which you claim it belongs.
- Length: 500–1,000 words.
- Format: Double-spaced, print-ready, MS Word document or equivalent.
Where to Find Packages or Stories to Critique
Some places to find good journalism examples include:
- 2010 Online Journalism Awards finalists (use ONLY the links in the four "Multimedia Feature Presentation" categories)
- 2009 Online Journalism Awards finalists (use ONLY the links in the three "Multimedia Feature Presentation" categories)
- Innovative Interactivity (II) blog: Multimedia Journalism category. NOTE that some things in this category are ONLY video, and those are NOT acceptable for your critiques.
- 2009 Society for News Design Best of Multimedia Design Competition Winners
- Multimedia Projects You May Have Missed in 2008 (follow links in this story to choose a package)
- Interactive Narratives (you can find some very good recent work here; make sure any example you choose is really journalism)
You are NOT restricted to these sites.
How to Turn It In
- Make sure your paper is double-spaced, coherent, interesting, and correct in all spelling, punctuation and mechanics.
- Make sure the link to your example is complete and clickable.
- Save as a MS Word document or equivalent (e.g., Open Office).
- Attach it to an e-mail with the subject line "Critique 1" (or 2, or 3) and e-mail it to me at the usual address before the deadline.
Grading Criteria
Each critique is worth 5 points.
- 1 point -- Appropriateness of the example. Is it really journalism? Is it a good example for the selected category? (You lose this point if you use an example that was shown in class or included in the book chapter.)
- 1 point -- Quality of writing.
- 2 points -- Quality of critical thinking and analysis. Make sure you discuss why this is a good example of the category. (If you do not clearly identify the category, you will lose 1 point.)
- 1 point -- Balance of completeness and brevity. Is the paper 500 to 1,000 words? Does it cover everything it should? Is it "padded" with unnecessary description? Is the URL working, and can I find the example using the URL you provided?
Lost points:
- You will lose 1 point if you do not include a functioning link that takes me directly to the package itself.
- You will lose 1 point if you do not clearly name the category for your choice.
- You will also lose 1 point if you critique a package that is in the same category as a previous critique you submitted.
Three critiques are required.
Meeting the deadline is necessary. Late assignments always receive a zero.