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Book Review: The Multimedia Journalist: Storytelling for Today’s Media Landscape, by Jennifer George-Palilonis

Jennifer George-Palilonis The Multimedia Journalist: Storytelling for Today's Media Landscape. New York: Oxford University Press, 2013. 278 pp.Storytelling across many platforms is a necessity today in news media. However, educators often have a difficult time integrating the right kind of instruction in their multimedia classes or workshops. Simply, because myriad digital methods for storytelling exist, multimedia journalism is blazing new trails in the news profession- and at a rapid pace."There's no doubt that traditional news organizations are struggling to prove their relevance in an increasingly digital media landscape," Jennifer George-Palilonis wrote in her new book,And the web has turned traditional media business models upside down by providing a free and open exchange of news, information, and ideas. Thus the concepts of media convergence, cross-platform ownership, backpack journalists, and multimedia content production have all surfaced as ways for future journalists to stake a claim. (p. 7)George-Palilonis, the George and Frances Ball Distinguished Professor of Multimedia at Ball State University and a veteran journalist, recognized that multimedia journalism is a primary focus for journalism schools across the United States. Her book is designed to help both educators and students embrace multimedia journalism with a clear understanding of issues unique to this form of reporting. Plus, she reinforces the idea that student journalists should have a comprehensive knowledge base of how multimedia content is produced, how stories are developed using different story forms, and how a story changes across the platforms. "In this sense, the student journalist prepares for a career path that may make stops at several different media outlets" (p. 11).The textbook, which mixes theoretical concepts and practical skills, is divided into three units. In unit 1, "Multimedia Journalism," the tone is set for the rest of the book. "In some ways, the future of journalism has never seemed more uncertain. Yet, for some of the most innovative and brave, it has never been a more exciting time to be a journalist" (p. 2). Four chapters comprise the first unit. Chapter 1 defines multimedia and discusses the role of multimedia in today's journalism landscape. The second chapter explores the role of collaboration-within and among news organizations-in multimedia storytelling. Chapter 3 offers guidance to assess whether stories need multimedia elements. The fourth chapter in this unit encourages the student to think about the user experience when determining how to cover a story with multimedia elements. …