Source: Elmhurst University
A multimedia journalist (MMJ) is someone who can tell stories in multiple forms of media like print, broadcast and social media. In Chapter 10 of the book, “Mobile And Social Media Journalism: A Practical Guide for Multimedia Journalism by Anthony Adornato,” the author, Anthony Adornato speaks about the importance of being able to have a diverse set of skills.
Additionally, Adornato mentions that most internships expect applicants to be able to use multiple platforms while reporting, which is something that we’ve been doing all semester with each package that we’ve produced.
Also in the chapter, the late Dylan Lyons mentioned that many journalists should be trained in social media upon entering college. When I first entered the Ithaca College Journalism program, being social media savvy wasn’t a large focus for me because I thought that was a skill that I knew well since I used social media regularly in my personal life
Even though a lot of aspiring journalists and content creators in my generation possess adequate social media skills, the work doesn’t stop once you post. As Adornato mentioned, MMJs regularly measure their analytics on social media, which is new to me. In the past, whenever I would post something, I just paid attention to the number of likes that I received on a post, but now, I track engagement and the number of people that visited my page each week.
While it's important to track your analytics, it can also sometimes be discouraging if, for example, you have a week that you don't have strong analytics. It can get to your head — especially if you put a lot of work into the content you created. But at the same time, it's important to be your critic and figure out ways to better present yourself online.
Overall, being an MMJ does provide its set of challenges, but is still rewarding if you’re able to put in the work and be your best advocate. How do you feel about MMJs? Are they making the media better or worse.
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