Guest University Lecture - My Experience As a Pro-Blogger & Online Freelance Journalist - UTS Introductory Online Journalism - 5th May 2011

1. My Experience As a Pro-Blogger &
Online Freelance Journalist
UTS Introductory Online Journalism
Guest Lecture 5th May 2011
www.neeravbhatt.com

2. Neerav Bhatt - Who Am I?
Portfolio Worker - multiple work
contracts/industries/companies
(Pro-Blogger, Freelance
Journalist, Research Librarian,
Photographer).
UWS B Business (Computing &
E-Business) plus UTS Grad Dip
(Information Management).
I started blogging in 2004 when
Wordpress 1.0 was released. I
had already worked as a Web
Designer and SEO consultant.
www.neeravbhatt.com

3. Continuous Learning
Try to learn principles as well
as specific tools,
technologies and software.
“In times of change,
learners inherit the earth,
while the learned find
themselves beautifully
equipped to deal with a
world that no longer exists.” Photo credit: “Rich13” on Flickr
- Philosopher Eric Hoffer
www.neeravbhatt.com

4. Flexibility & Diverse Skills
Careers in the future including
online journalism will be a lot
more flexible and require a
diverse range of skills.
To survive and succeed you’ll
need a flexible mind, willingness
to try new skills and gain
specialist knowledge in more
than 1 area so you aren't
caught unprepared by shifts in
the economy or workforce.
www.neeravbhatt.com

5. X Media: Text/Photo/Audio/Video
Bloggers and online journalists are often
expected to file text, photos and video all by
themselves and very fast.
Get the necessary tools and practice so you can
quickly create quality stories with them.
More info http://tinyurl.com/OnlineJournoToolkit
www.neeravbhatt.com

6. Build Your Brand & Reputation
“Beat The Drum”. No one will do
it for you … stand out from the
flock.
Register www.yourname.com to
create online Hub.
Create Linkedin, Twitter, Flickr,
Storify, Youtube + Vimeo
Channels, Gravatar. Link or
embed content from all these on
your online Hub site.
For branding & SEO use same
avatar photo and username on
all sites.
www.neeravbhatt.com

7. Online Hub yourname.com
Setup Wordpress blog on
www.yourname.com
Publish content regularly
including best:
– Uni & Media intern work
– Paid Journalism work
– Stories you’ve written out of
interest in a topic
– Photos/Audio/Video
Your site has 10 seconds to Photo credit: Wordpress
impress. If it looks abandoned, creator Matt Mullenwegg
that reflects badly on you.
www.neeravbhatt.com

8. Micro, Photo and Video Blogging
Blogging isn’t just about writing articles. It’s also
complemented by the quality of your micro, photo
and video blogging and how professional they are.
www.neeravbhatt.com

9. Tips from My Journalist Friends
@Wendy_Bacon. Journalism Professor, UTS.
Don't be wordy
Not PRy also key
www.neeravbhatt.com

10. Tips from My Journalist Friends
@ValerioVeo. Manager News & Sport, Ten Digital
It's more about perseverance
than talent. You can learn most
skills but without passion for the
job you'll never succeed.
www.neeravbhatt.com

11. Tips from My Journalist Friends
@JuliePosetti. Journalism Lecturer, UC.
www.neeravbhatt.com

12. Tips from My Journalist Friends
John Flint. Chief of Staff, The Sunday Times (WA)
The old structure of the newspaper
newsroom is gone. It's all about content
delivery across a range of platforms -
newspaper, website, tablets & smart
phones. There are more deadlines &
newsrooms operate around the clock.
The modern journalist can work across all
these platforms, videoing interviews,
writing news leads/features and taking still
photos on their iPhone when a
photographer is not present.
Many are also adept at social networking,
so they can link to their stories as soon as
they are published, drawing extra traffic.
www.neeravbhatt.com