After reading the news story Snow Fall: The Avalanche at Tunnel Creek that was published in the New York Times and posted online, I can honestly say I was blown away by the impact that the addition of this multimedia content had on the story. I was initially struck by the wording of the story because it was so descriptive, I could imagine myself being there on the slopes that day, but then I started to wonder if the images and visual content behind the wording played into my feelings. I have to believe that this multimedia content that showed snow falling on the mountains as the background of the wording, to video clips of the survivors discovering the victims to the slideshow of images of that day all played into the impact that the story had on me.
Images, slideshows and video clips seem to hold the most impact as far as telling a story is concerned. Words paint a picture in the reader's mind but if there is visual content to back this up or videos showing the actual details of what is being written about then it makes the details that much more crystal clear for the reader.
It seems that overall multimedia added to blogs or online news articles definitely adds some additional impactful content, if it is used in the right capacity. It is a struggle for new bloggers on how to add the content correctly and make sure it adds to the story as opposed to distracting the reader with multimedia content that does not need to be there.
Many of us have heard of Brittany Maynard, who is a young wife dying of brain cancer. She moved to Oregon because it is a state that allows a person to end their life legally with medical help, if they are terminally ill. Basically she is choosing when enough is enough and when to end the suffering. I found a great article on the Huffington Post which has a video embedded in the article of Brittany in her own words describing her struggle and her decision. The article also incorporates a slideshow of celebrities who battled cancer before the age of 40. It uses two visual mediums to add more of an impact to the words. However, in this case the story is so emotional it doesn't seem necessary but it definitely adds that much more emotion that it takes the story to a whole new level.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/30/brittany-maynard_n_6075800.html
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The Struggle is Real
Have you ever noticed the cute pictures of cats snuggled up together or cleaning each other because they are so bonded? Well when I adopted my cats I thought for sure this would be the case for my four pawed children...
I guess it's not a perfect world but as long as they tolerate each other then we are one happy family...in my mind anyway.
Betsy Devillier
Hello Betsy,
ReplyDeleteI agree that images and slide shows are some of the best tools for telling a story. You can get exactly the message you want to convey across. Great post this week.
Betsy, I completely agree that the multimedia tools used in The New York Times article really enhanced that article. It wasn't over done and really draws you. I also think you made a good point that images and video multimedia tools can provide a visual confirmation to the content provided. I think now a days without it people read or skim the content and say ok so what, but if there are images and video it makes the content more of a reality that they can relate to or evokes more emotion. Great post this week!
ReplyDeleteBetsey your cats remind me of my "2 legged children"...Hilarious!!
ReplyDeleteMultimedia tools are a creative way to allow readers to conceptualize what the writer is trying to convey. The level of details almost put me in the mindset of when I was younger and would read "pop-up" books. Everyone would fight over the books because the characters seemed to leap off the pages, and all of the little arrows showing you what and where to pull. These were the early version of "multimedia" tools that eventually led us to interactive websites and blogs. Just like the "pop-up" books made reading better, I believe multimedia tools make blogs better, although they can be distracting.
Betsy,
ReplyDeleteI love your post! I completely agree that media adds so much to a story. When I read a story of 9/11, I have hundreds of images going through my mind from all of the media outlets that covered the tragedy. It was incredibly sad of course, but now I can't even read an article without seeing those images. The video and pictures enhance a story because it makes your brain use more areas and almost helps the story stick in there better. The one thing I thought of though was when I read a book I have enough imagination to make the story come to life. In fact, I think that sometimes I do it too much and the story is too real for me! When I go to see a movie of a book I read, it is almost aggravating because the story in my mind and the characters I dreamt up are completely different. I think that multimedia is an awesome tool, but I can't help but wonder if it takes away from our ability to reach into our minds and use our imagination to create our own pictures and video.
Shannon