Week 11: PSAs and Writing for the Web

Monday- 11/2

Professor Eisman handed back the Press Release Assignment.
Congrats Amy, Jess, and Brittany for doing a fantastic job on them!

Special congrats to Brittany for Eisman's praise of her writing style - "You have the crispest writing style of anyone your age!"

CHANGE IN SYLLABUS: Feature Article is now due Nov. 12th (this Thursday!!!)

Eisman is willing to read the first paragraph of our features, so sent them her way if you are interested!

Some important things to remember about the feature:

• Length: 5 pages or less
• Include your sources and their contact info at the end
• Don't forget to attribute information and use credible sources
• Audience: AU Students

Eisman assigned a new PSA project today.

• Due Date: Mon. Nov. 9th
• We were split up into group of 2-3 people to either record a 30 second audio PSA or film/storyboard a 20 second visual PSA
• More information can be found on blackboard if needed.

Eisman gave us the last 30 minutes of class to work on our PSAs in groups.


Thursday- 11/5

Class began with Carol exhibiting some Ohio pride and then quickly becoming embarrassed because we had a prospective student and his father sitting in on class.

The topic of class was "The Media Landscape" and we dived into writing for the web.

We discussed with how people read online. Some of us students had some good examples of why web writing is different:

• People can be more selective about what they read
• The transmission of info is instantaneous
• Content can be stolen much easier

We then discussed the importance of social networking sites, such as Facebook and Twitter. Eisman told us, "I was very upset when TMZ was right about Michael Jackson on Twitter."

As a class we decided that the most important aspect of writing for the web is to get the reader hooked and keep the reader hooked. According to studies that have been published, people read in an "F' shaped pattern. This means that important information must be right at the beginning, and that the topic sentence has to be very focused, clear, and well written.

Eisman coined the term "visual editing" for the way we must edit writing for the web, because really we are writing for the eye.

We also learned the when people read a webpage they "Glance, scan, then click," so it is VERY important to make websites user friendly.


According to a poll about how in depth people read an article had the following results:
77% online
62% broadsheet
57% tabloid

Here are important tips when writing for the web:

1. Find an intriguing story
2. Break up long blocks of text
3. Deliver what you promise
4. Have one thought per paragraph
5. Avoid lists of numbers, use sidebars
6. Write for the eye

Eisman also dished out some more praise today when she said, "Mitchell I just adore you! You're on fire today!"

Before giving us a short assignment on writing for the web Eisman made it clear she has once again lost control, however she did remind us that she is still going to get us all jobs!