I have written blog posts before starting my MA Magazine Journalism course, but developing Filter(ed) Online over the academic year with close supervision of my teachers was beyond useful.
At the beginning of the year I was granted the job of the social media editor. Because the team only had a concept of the magazine, but nothing solid yet, I had the liberty of putting together our Twitter and Facebook accounts from scratch and design them to look the way I felt reflected the magazine’s concept best.
When I applied for the job of social media editor, I didn’t realize how much work it will require. Because Filter(ed) started out as a website first, social media ended up being the magazine’s gateway to the world and the first encounter the readers would have with us. Maintaining the magazine’s presence online required daily attention – tweeting every new article, and attracting the readers by uploading witty posts. To make the process quicker and easier I have used Hootsuite and wrote tweets and Facebook posts in advance.
Digital journalism course taught by Adam Tinworth was very useful preparing me for the content editor role I was offered later on. I learned how to come up with engaging web content, how to use keywords, tag the article correctly, embed images and video straight into the text, and use hyperlinks efficiently. The first few pieces of mine on Filter(ed) website weren’t linked or tagged, but after a couple of lectures we fixed those mistakes.
One of my articles that was featured in both, the print and online version of the magazine, was my short profile on indie-pop band Adult Jazz. Online I have used external links to their website and to the examples I have referred to in the copy. I have also embedded their latest video at the end of the copy.
The work on Filter(ed) taught me the journalism of the digital age. It made me aware of the growing blogging community and the tools that are available to reach it.
Ignas Bautrenas' Hands-On Journalism Blog 