Demand for video content on the rise

An interesting study has been flagged up by Francois Nel, project leader on the annual Preston Report news site audit, on the increase in user demand for online video content.

According to Ad Week, polling for the report - conducted amongst eight to 64-year-olds by Metacafe (whose Web site is devoted to professionally made video) and research/consulting firm Frank N. Magid Associates- found 50 percent of Internet users saying they watch online video at least once a week, up from 43 percent saying so last year. Thirteen percent said they watch on a daily basis.

There's good news in the report for advertisers too, with forty-eight percent said they find ads in online videos "just as acceptable as ads in TV shows," and another 7 percent find them "more acceptable."

The demand isn't simply for funny YouTube home-video clips either, with 75 percent saying they watch professionally-produced content.

"As online video evolves, we can expect to see more professional and exclusive online-video content created specifically for the Web," Erick Hachenburg, Metacafe's CEO, told Ad Week, including "more creative ads and more immersive experiences that allow brands to more effectively reach the highly fluid, empowered and engaged consumer."

He continued: "we will also begin to see the lines blur between online video and TV, which will create a tighter integration of content across media channels."

From API to Yahoo Pipes: The Journalist’s guide to the digital jargon

For some, “tweeting” is something birds do and our colleagues’ conversations may sound like a script from Star Trek. But let’s face it, the speed of technological development means that even some of the most dedicated technophiles can struggle to keep up with the pace.

So praise be for the charming guys and gals at Poynter Online, headed by Jennifer 8. Lee (pictured), for instigating the compilation of a comprehensive A to nearly Z of the lingo you need to know to convince your colleagues you know your Mashup from your IPad.

The glossary relates to Web standards, programming, online tools, social networking, online advertising and basic technology and even defines the most common terms such as “app” and “blog” for the seriously technologically challenged.

The glossary was created by the Hacks/Hackers group and was released June 22, 2010 under a Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike 3.0 License. The original glossary can be found here.

A tale of caution

We start this week with a reminder that breaking news can be a dangerous career move. The Tabloid Watch blog is just one of many highlighting the resultant egg-on-face for hapless Daily Mail hack Richard Ashmore.

Ashmore fell foul of a spoof Twitter account set up for Apple CEO Steve Jobs and wrote a story based on one of the tweets. Not only did he apparently fail to spot the disclaimer, pointing out that the account was a parody, but also apparently failed to bother to check any basic facts with Apple themselves.

The article was swiftly removed when the error was pointed out. Now, it seems fairly clear that Ashmore has been a bit of a plonker for seemingly failing to do even the most basic of factchecking, but surely it also reminds us about the fine balance between good quality journalism and stealing a march on your competitors in a 24/7 digital age.

At a time where redundancies are rife and getting audiences for your advertisers seems paramount, you can feel a little spark of sympathy for someone thinking they'd managed to break what would have been a major scoop if only it were, um, even vaguely true.

So whilst Ashmore will probably have derisive laughter echoing in his ears for quite some time, perhaps we should take on board the lesson of the dire consequences when either time pressures or plain laziness stop you from doing your job properly.

Welcome!

As the title and description suggest, here you'll find a daily dose of news on the latest innovations and practices relating to online and digital journalism. Alongside the big news stories of the day, you'll also find more off-the-wall stories of how journalists are dealing with the challenges of the 21st century.

With Trinity Mirror's Head of Digital Matt Kelly reported by Press Gazette as saying that the general news business is dead it is clear that the road ahead is still difficult, with no-one yet finding the silver bullet to make online content pay.

But those with either nerves of steel or deep enough pockets continue to experiment with technology as fast as it is being invented. It is those brave (or foolhardy, dependent on your point of view) attempts that are chronicled here. Enjoy!