JO304 Fall Semester blog discussing the all thing online journalism, Boston University happenings and the occasional discussion of Today.com and the Today Show on NBC. A favorite morning news show since birth.
Today.com is the go to source for Today Show viewers to find a story
they may have missed online, get a link to the best sites for holiday shopping,
or re-watch the adorable video of Santa Claus signing to a deaf child. To ensure
that Todays' TV viewers will also be a part of their website following, the
shows hosts will announce at the end of a segment that viewers can read more,
find a recipe, or re-watch a clip again, all on today.com.
Almost every top story of the day, in every section (news,
lifestyle, parenting, health, etc.), there is a written article, accompanied by
photos or screen shots of social media pages with hyperlinked words, as well as
the video segment seen on TV. This use of multimedia makes a story come alive
on the screen for a viewer. They are able to pause at each photo laced in
between the article, read the article that gives a synopsis of the video
segment, or simply watch the segment.
Additionally, some articles use video, photo, written articles, social media links, and interactive graphics such as a voting poll (as discussed in interactivity). Using all of these media forms to explain one story makes it easier for a viewer to fully understand every aspect. Today.com’s greatest strength is its ability to promote its on-air video segments with highlights written out in the article and photos for added flare. Giving viewers the option of how they receive their information through this convergence, makes its pages more user-friendly and interchangeable.
In comparison to sites like nytimes.com, with its interactive maps and vibrantly moving graphics to tell a story, today.com
seems to lack in the interactivity department.
Today.com
is very user-friendly site, with accessibility to videos, and quick links to
articles viewers may be looking for. However, it lacks in its ability to use a
great amount of multimedia and graphics.
An
important aspect of a site’s interactivity is not being strictly content
driven, because the reader needs to see what they are reading. Normally an
interactive graphic will found within a multimedia article, like the stories
within the multimedia stories on nytimes.com. I was able to find an interactive map after using today.com’s search bar. An article or any other content did not
accompany this interactive map, which can be another aspect of various
interactive stories as well, however seemed lackluster to me compared to the
pieces that included an article, photos, and possibly a video.
Most
of today.com’s interactivity stems from interactive maps covering a variety of
topics, however there was one interactive graphic that caught my attention: a
voting poll. In a recent article discussing the candidates for TIME’s 2015 Person of The Year, today.com posted an interactive voting poll, in which site
viewers can select who they believe should be the winner.
After
they cast their vote, viewers can see the latest results. I found this interactive
aspect to be not only beneficial to the viewers but also to today.com who
broadcasted this interactive option of their live show most likely sparking an
increase site viewer number.
Because today.com is a site that stems from its television show counterpart, it is not surprise that content on today.com is not full of widely interactive multimedia articles. That being said, if today.com were to incorporate a multimedia section to their site, viewers may be inclined to stay online after they re-watch that video of how to stay skinny for the holidays!
Historically, college students and caffeine have shared a close relationship because of their inherent need for the other. Increased workload and stress need energy and energy means caffeine. But how much is too much when it comes to a quick pick-me-up, and, is it actually helping us study?
The national recommended caffeine intake is roughly 200-300 milligrams, or three cups, a day. Comparatively, from Marshall University to the University of Kentucky, college students consume over five times this amount. This number increases further during periods of heightened stress, such as finals week.
Roughly 30 percent of students drink 3 or more cups of coffee before completing an exam or project Source
Caffeine intake is intensified across college campuses because of the heightened stress that students are under. Students at the University of New Hampshire say that they rely more heavily on caffeinated products in their daily routines because of their hectic schedules of balancing exams, homework, and socializing.
The number one reason for caffeine consumption is to feel more alert
Boston University students share that sentiment. "I almost never drink caffeine," said Rivkah Smith (SAR '17). "The only time I rely on it is during finals."
Smith studies in Mugar Library with Starbucks in hand
Students at The University of Kentucky cite similar trends to the above campuses. According to a study conducted by Dr. Melody Noland and doctoral student Gary Eugene McIlvain, more than 78 percent of students at UK consume above the recommended 200mg of caffeine per day. On average, students are consuming three to five times more than this recommendation. Noland finds that the most significant contributing factors to UK's increased caffeine intake are focus, to stay awake and remain alert.
Caffeine consumption at American University has received so much attention that psychology professor Laura Juliano released a study that indicates that more people are dependent on caffeine and suffer withdrawal symptoms than ever before. Juliano says that the solution is to treat caffeine addiction like any other drug addiction - with psychological therapy.
NPR shared survey data from the NPD group that shows a drastic increase in caffeine consumption, namely coffee, in 18-24 year-olds. In ten years, from 2002 to 2012, coffee consumption in this age group jumped to 39 percent from 25 percent.
While college students find that quick pick-me-up all too alluring during times of high stress, too much of it can warrant undesirable side effects.
According to NPR, coffee is getting in the way of a good night's sleep for college student and directly affects academic performance. Aside from keeping students awake, too much caffeine consumption can lead to anxiety and raised tension and blood pressure.
The way in which college students consume caffeine - all day, every day - makes them extremely susceptible to caffeine addiction.
Katya Gonzalez-Willett, a junior at BU (QSB '17) warns, "Caffeine is not worth the complications; I used to live on diet soda, especially around finals time. It started causing all kinds of stomach problems, so my doctor said I had to stop."
Caffeine addiction can destroy the stomach lining, leading to constant discomfort
According to Business Insider, some campuses are more jittery than others. Data from GrubHub shows that some students pack up to 10 percent of their online food orders with coffee, espresso and energy drinks. The delivery site ranked the student bodies with the highest percentage of their total orders that contain caffeinated beverages.
GrubHub finds that the most common caffeinated orders are vanilla lattes and Red Bulls
94 percent of college students admit to consuming caffeine on a daily basis, making it the most widely used drug on college campuses.
A daily live broadcast news
show and video reporting? Yes I would say those two go hand-in-hand. Everything
that takes place and is seen on air during the show can be found almost
instantly on today.com. As variety news program, today.com has video that
ranges from how-to reports to avoid holiday weight gain, to the top headlines of the day, or
even the dangers of this year’s hottest holiday gift. A recent video report
covered the presidential address and D.C reaction to the San Bernardino shooting.
Video
reports can be done in regular news report fashion, or in other formats such as
supercuts, B-roll reports, a subject-narrated report, a mobile social video, a
how-to, or a wrap. Surprisingly enough today.com as video content that covers
each of these formats.
Additionally, user-generated video is very popular
within today.com’s video content. Most user-generated videos can be found as
video clips within full video reports, however there are certain cases in which
the user-generated video is the story itself. Today.com will posted social media site links with a user-generated video.
Most of Today’s Shows on-air video reports are
regular news reports, covering the major news locally, nationally, and internationally.
However, because Today is a family based news program there are also various
subject-narrated reports that usually cover a family going through a rough
time, or a light-hearted feel good story.
In general video reports make up the majority of
today.com. Whether it is a headlining story encompassing a video and written
article, or clips from the live shows in the ‘video’ section on today.com,
users can get their fill of video reporting daily on today.com
As a live news program, most
of the Today Show's content is comprised of video reports, on-air interviews and performances;
audio is a vital part of the show and today.com. On today.com viewers can find
video clips covering just about any report from the live shows, as well as
links to other video streaming sites that may have been used on the show.
I was unaware today.com had
any sort of audio only reports, seeing as most of its content is video based.
However, with a research I came to find that today.com does in fact offer audio
reporting podcasts. The audio reports encompass news straight from NBC news
along with celebrity interviews, newsmakers and more. The podcasts are uploaded
every weekday after 11 a.m. According to the information posted to Today.com,
listeners can get the full first hour of the Today Show by subscribing to the
Video or Audio podcast offering systems.
Much to my demise when I attempted to open the podcast link in
iTunes I was unable to find the podcast and iTunes informed me that the
episodes from Today were currently not available in the U.S. Aside from Today
Show podcasts, today.com has a page dedicated to NBC, MSNBC, and NBCNews.com,
podcasts links in which users can find other news based audio reports with the latest
news from NBC. Although, according to the above photo "NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams" is still posted with Brian Williams as the host, whom for several months now as not been. This led me to believe that the page may not be as updated as it could be. It is possible that today.com felt its viewers would be more inclined to search for video clips, and not audio-only reports.
Audio reporting, though not a major part of news coverage for today.com,
is still available (apparently everywhere but the United States, however that
glitch could be caused by failing technology) for those you prefer audio only
news on the go, and if updated with proper links could be a great source for up-to-date news podcasts.
