online content

Should you liveblog a breaking news story? Or do a Facebook Live? Or would a traditional news story be the best path? How should I follow it up? What will reach my audience, and what will get me the best traffic? These are the questions journalists, editors and other communicators face every day in the digital age.

The best thing about creating content online is also the hardest thing: we’ve got more options than we've ever had before. There’s a whole new arc of content, starting with news breaking on social media, passing through live coverage, through traditional news, analysis and features, and into explainers and other evergreen content.

How do you choose how to spend your precious time or staff resources on the right kinds of coverage for your audience? And which kind of news story is each kind of digital content suitable for?

This four week online course is designed to help you navigate those questions, and make great decisions on how to use the right style of coverage for the right story.

Led by Adam Tinworth, a digital journalism expert for over 15 years, and a visiting lecturer at City, University of London, this course will bring you up to speed with the cutting edge of thinking about online content, with plenty of real world examples and exercises derived from his work with organisations in the UK and overseas.

We will cover:

  • The essential theory behind content strategy.

  • Issues around timing.

  • The difference between “in the moment” flow content and evergreen stock content.

  • Practicalities of using these techniques in a newsroom of any sort, with plenty of practical exercises, and time for individual.

  • Planning and discussion in small groups.

This course is ideal for people looking to deepen their knowledge of digital content, for journalists, marketers or editors looking to deepen their skillset in planning and resourcing coverage.

It also makes a great strategic digital bootcamp for anyone from the world of print who is not yet comfortable with the world of digital.

The course will:

  • Make you familiar with the whole digital content toolbox.

  • Explain existing and emerging forms of digital content.

  • Explore the role of “in the moment” flow content, and evergreen stock content.

  • Provide guidelines for effective, integrated use of multimedia.

  • Illustrate the role of social media in publishing strategy.

  • Explore content strategies for social, search and paywalls, helping align content to your publication’s business model.

  • Provide strategies for planning and implementing new types of content for long-term traffic or audience benefit.


Getting there

This course will run over four consecutive Mondays starting on 20 September.


About Adam Tinworth

A journalist for 20 years, Adam now works as a consultant and trainer in digital journalism, social media and content strategy.

His clients have ranged from large outlets such as The Financial Times and The Telegraph to smaller publishers and businesses.

Adam is a visiting lecturer on City University's journalism MA course and has blogged for more than a decade at One Man & His Blog.

Find him on Twitter @adders.



Testimonials

"This Intensive course has a lot of very good information, without being overloaded. It filled the gap in my knowledge, and brought me up to date, so that I can offer journalism with confidence." - John Durham