Page 101 - Convergent Journalism an Introduction Writing and Producing Across Media

One Story, Multiple Graphics

So, how does a multimedia graphics package come together? The
answer to this question really depends on the nature of the partnership.
In some cases, reporters from each publication/broadcast work together
to develop the story and gather reference materials. A text-based and/or
graphics reporter from the newspaper, a field reporter or videographer
from the television station, and a producer from the Web site might
work together to conceptualize the entire story package. However,
when it comes to the creation of the graphics for all three formats, it’s
usually more efficient for the same graphics reporter or team of graphics
reporters to develop them all. That’s because the main illustrations and
much of the key information will be shared among all of the graphics.
Graphics reporters at the Sun-Sentinel often develop graphics for
both the newspaper and the Web site. Occasionally, they also produce
broadcast graphics intended for use by a broadcast “news partner.”
Although Tribune Co., the media conglomerate that owns the
Sun-Sentinel, doesn’t own a broadcast station in Ft. Lauderdale, this
doesn’t stop the paper from collaborating with broadcast journalists.
In 2002, for example, Sun-Sentinel graphics reporters successfully cre-
ated three graphics packages to cover a single local news story. When 91
Florida officials tried to sink a decommissioned Navy ship, called the
Spiegel Grove, to construct an artificial reef off the coast of south
Florida, a mishap left the 5,000-ton vessel upside-down and sticking
out of the water for more than a week. In a collaborative effort with
CBS Channel 4 News (WFOR), graphics reporters at the Sun-Sentinel
covered the story by developing information graphics for print, the
Web, and broadcast. Sun-Sentinel graphics director Don Wittekind said
a team-based approach was adopted for this project. Graphics were
designed to show how a salvage company brought in to properly resink
the vessel was planning to accomplish its goal (see Figure 6.7).
The team consisted of five people, each in charge of one of the
following responsibilities: research and reporting and print page pro-
duction, 3D modeling of the Spiegel Grove, 3D animation of the
3D Spiegel Grove model, Web design for online animation, and video
production and special effects for broadcast. The team started by get-
ting the graphics reporter to research the salvage company, while the
3D artist worked on the model of the ship, Wittekind explained. As
soon as the model was roughed out, a copy was given to the animator
and a rendering was made for the print product. Although these were
not finished images, they were complete enough to allow work to
continue on three fronts.