Craig McGinty

Using databases to open up locked in info

NEWSPAPERS publish plenty of great information that is so difficult to access online, for example, events coming up in the next few weeks, sports fixtures or just simple business directories.

Often the difficulty lies in the format the data is being produced, or there are not enough hours in the day to update it.

But what if a simple online form and display of information was available via the use of databases and input fields?

Online publishing networks

WHETHER you are a staff journalist or a freelancer I think it is vitally important to get a handle on where online publishing is going.

Be it words, photographs or video an awareness of blogging, community driven websites and the way your work can be spread around the web is vital.

And although you might struggle to get to New York by next week, it will be well worth following the Networked Journalism Summit, being overseen by Jeff Jarvis, via its RSS feed.

Business and blogging in Salford

I HEADED over to Salford University last night to listen to three talks aimed at helping smaller businesses use the internet to promote themselves.

Simon Wharton, of PushOn, really sparked off the conversation with his mention of using a blog for your business.

He highlighted how many people online are looking for detailed information on a subject before making a decision, and that a four or five page website will struggle against a site that features an often updated blog offering up interesting articles.

Blogging local news - what works, what doesn't?

THE next meeting of the Digital Editors' Network, at UCLan in Preston, will be focussing on what works in online publishing, getting the best out of video and how blogs and the established media can work together.

The three discussions will form part of the 7th Journalism Leaders Forum, on October 16, featuring the regional editorial director of Trinity Mirror Neil Benson, who is amongst the panelists considering the global impact of the local news business.

The schedule for the get together is:

Brushing up your PR skills

MANCHESTER journalist Judi Goodwin offers up her Seven Deadly Sins of PR as part of a course she is running a little later this year.

Judi started her career in public relations and calculates that in her 30 years as a freelance journalist, she has received more than 20,000 press releases.

She claims the Seven Deadly Sins that turn journalists off and make them press the delete button are: