Snap. Snip. Send.: How Mobile Media is Transforming Storytelling in the Classroom

Snap.

Presented byBrett Atwood

How Mobile Media is Transforming

Storytelling in the Classroom

Snip. Send.

My Background

Product Launches & Campaigns

Millennials in the Classroom

• Most of my students are millennials – but also “Gen Z” • Here’s what I’ve observed:• Messaging and social apps preferred over email• Internet use is “near constant”• Mobile preferred over desktop• Phones rarely used for voice calls• Voicemail? Never!• Multi-taskers & Multi-screeners

Here Comes “Generation Z”

• Connected from Birth• Ephemeral > Public Square• Creation > Curation• Images/Video > Text• TL;DR = 8 Seconds or Death

SOURCE: SproutSocial (http://sproutsocial.com/insights/gen-z-vs-gen-y/)

Mobile Storytelling Platforms

My Worst Fear as a Journalism Teacher

Challenges from the Classroom

• Quality – “Damn, Daniel” be damned!• Eliminate bias – go beyond the selfie!• Privacy issues – “no teacher/parent” zone needed• Credibility – who can you trust?• Limited editing abilities – in-app editing is minimal• Lack of archives - everything is ephemeral

Best Practices for Mobile Storytelling• Ideal number of Snapchat posts per

story is 15-20• Vary photos and videos• Always start with an intro to orient the

viewer• Add context with use of location-based

tags/filters and large text• Many viewers aren’t using audio – so

add text and captions when someone is interviewed

Mobile in the Classroom

• Many university communication programs are experimenting with mobile media in the classroom

• Partnered with NBC News for Snapchat and Instagram coverage of the Republican primaries in South Carolina

• “Journalism for Mobile and Emerging Platforms”

• JEDI Desk

• Partnering with Austin-Statesman for Snapchat Stories

• Social media takeover!

• Future of Flight Foundation for the final flight of Boeing 727

• Coming Soon:• MN8

The Next Wave: Mobile VR & 360 Video

Final Thoughts: Advice from Gen Z

• The number of followers you get by graduation for your stories might soon be as important as experience.