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Riding the Engagement Wave: How Engaged Journalism
Can Boost Your Career
Visiting research fellow, 2013-14 academic year
Jake Batsell @jbatsell [email protected]
Assistant professor, Division of Journalism
SPJ Fort Worth Careers Conference #spjfwnow February 21, 2015
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#spjfwnow • @jbatsell • 2.21.15
News used to be a one-way lecture.
Audience attention was taken for granted.
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#spjfwnow • @jbatsell • 2.21.15
Today, news is a perpetual conversation.
Audiences have infinite options. How can news organizations build loyalty?
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Engagement, Loyalty and Revenue • @jbatsell • 6.11.14
• Based on visits to more than 25 news organizations in U.S./U.K.
• 100+ interviews
• Aimed at journalists, academics, students and anyone else interested
in the future of news
• Part of CJR Books series
• More details: j.mp/engagedj
ENGAGED JOURNALISM (Columbia University Press, Feb. ‘15)
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JEM 499 • @jbatsell • 10.7.14 #spjfwnow • @jbatsell • 2.21.15
What is engaged journalism?
My definition:
The degree to which a news organization actively considers and interacts with its audience in furtherance of its journalistic
and financial mission.
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I found that news organizations are trying to engage audiences in five main ways:
#spjfwnow • @jbatsell • 2.21.15
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1. Face-to-face engagement #spjfwnow • @jbatsell • 2.21.15
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2. News as conversation #spjfwnow • @jbatsell • 2.21.15
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3. Serving the ‘passionate vertical’ #spjfwnow • @jbatsell • 2.21.15
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4. Search, explore, play #spjfwnow • @jbatsell • 2.21.15
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5. Measuring and monetizing the audience relationship
#spjfwnow • @jbatsell • 2.21.15
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The book, boiled down to a tweet:
#spjfwnow • @jbatsell • 2.21.15
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How can embracing engaged journalism help your career?
#spjfwnow • @jbatsell • 2.21.15
Meet Karen
Workman.
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Since I interviewed her in August 2012:
• Promoted by Digital First Media to Project Thunderdome in NYC
• Now: Social Strategy Editor for The New York Times.
#spjfwnow • @jbatsell • 2.21.15
Her advice to her successor as The Oakland Press’ engagement editor:
“Don’t cheapen it. This is not all about pushing links out on social media ... Really, it boils down to caring about our audience.”
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Other young journalists who were promoted since I interviewed them for the book:
#spjfwnow • @jbatsell • 2.21.15
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Audience engagement skills also are essential for advertising, PR, content marketing …
#spjfwnow • @jbatsell • 2.21.15
@SM_Dallas
@smcfortworth
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Thanks!
Visiting research fellow, 2013-14 academic year
Jake Batsell @jbatsell [email protected]
Assistant professor, Division of Journalism
More info: j.mp/engagedj