As video editor here at the Emerald, I’d like to officially say hello to the University community. As trends in media converge into a hodgepodge of television, newspapers, radio and the Internet, we are excited to be on the frontier of this popular new direction.
I’d like to present this fact: According to a 2007 U.S. Census Bureau report, the amount of time the average consumer spends with online media and video on demand (VOD) will increase by 1,000 percent from 2002 to 2009. VOD is essential for a media outlet that wants to survive. As these trends emerge further, the Emerald will continue to provide the latest to the University.
As some may not be aware of me, or what I do at the Emerald, I’d like to offer this brief recap. In November we began experimenting with online video. The reaction was tremendous. We got many positive responses embracing the new direction the Emerald is heading, and even garnered attention from KVAL news. Since then we have expanded our coverage and have increased the number of videos we do every week. Video stories have included how freshmen are settling into the residence halls, the LLC flooding, the snowstorm and most recently, the Iraq war display. If you haven’t yet taken a look at our Web site, or video reports, you should visit. The address is dailyemerald.com and then just click on the “videos” link.
I recently spoke one on one with Andrew DeVigal, the Multimedia editor at The New York Times, and here is what he had to say: “There will be a time in the near future where media will come out of the same box. Whether it’s television, a computer screen or an iPhone, the blending of media will undoubtedly challenge the storytellers to captivate their audience in any channel possible. Media companies that refuse to offer the best way to tell their stories regardless of medium will be left behind in this ever-changing landscape.”
Mr. Devigal’s words couldn’t ring more true today. The increased variety of content will set apart those newspapers that will succeed and those that will fail and we here at the Emerald cannot imagine a world in which we are the latter. This is why it is ever so important to make this switch.
One of our goals at the Emerald is to serve you, the reader. In order to do this, I would like to embrace your ideas. If you have any comments on the videos or features we could add to the reports, or on our Web site in general, let us know. As we increase the number of videos we make we will need your help in growing. This is an exciting time for everyone: For us journalists to be adapting to new technologies and for media consumers like you to be setting the trends and benefiting from all these new offerings.