This document provides instructions for an Audacity exercise in a multimedia journalism class. It outlines the following: 1. Lab time is built into class for projects, and there are also open lab hours outside of class. Lab time is for production exercises - students must complete specific project steps to receive full credit. 2. Students import an MP3 audio file of raw Trump speech into Audacity. They create a new track and copy/paste selected audio bites from the raw file into the new track to edit them. 3. Students edit the first two bites as instructed - removing extra words to tighten them up. They must save their work regularly. The document emphasizes completing the work during allotted lab

1. AUDACITY
EXERCISE:
PART #1
C O M M 1 0 6 : M U LT I M E D I A J O U R N A L I S M

2. LAB WORK STRUCTURE
• LAB TIME is built into the structure of the class in order to work on
projects. Even so, students work at different speeds so there are also
OPEN LAB hours you can use to work on your projects outside of
regular class meetings.
• LAB TIME = PRODUCTION EXERCISE; simply stay on track with
specific project steps to receive a 100; if you don’t, it’s a 0
• You can also download the software we use to work on your projects
outside of class.
• We have to stay together as a class so once the class lab time
allotted for a project is completed, we’re moving on. Remember -
NO CREDIT FOR LATE WORK! You will have plenty of time to
complete projects, but in order to do so you must attend class and
use the allotted time wisely

3. • You should each have an AUDACITY icon on
your desktop and/or on your START MENU
that looks like this:
• Double click it to open the program
• Go to appropriate week and download the file
“PRODUCTION EXERCISE MP3 AUDIO FILE-Raw
Trump Audio”; make sure you’ve moved this file
to your USB drive in the “MMJ AUDIO” folder
you created earlier
AUDACITY EXERCISE

4. • Within AUDACITY select FILE – IMPORT – AUDIO and
select “PRODUCTION EXERCISE MP3 AUDIO FILE-Raw
Trump Audio” which you just saved to your USB drive
AUDACITY EXERCISE

5. • After the MP3 file imports, your audacity canvas/layout
should look like this with one audio file visible – the file
has a wavelength graphic element that allows you to
“see” the sound within the file
AUDACITY EXERCISE

6. • Within AUDACITY select FILE – SAVE PROJECT AS (click through the
box that appears) and save the project as “YOUR LAST NAME-
AUDACITY EXERCISE #1” in the MMJ AUDIO folder on your USB
drive
AUDACITY EXERCISE

7. • This .AUP file is the project file you will work on for this
exercise – ALWAYS OPEN PROJECT FILES DIRECTLY FROM
YOUR USB DRIVE – DO NOT DRAG THEM TO THE
DESKTOP! ALWAYS LEAVE THEM ON YOUR USB DRIVE!
AUDACITY EXERCISE

8. You can now listen to the imported file through your
headphones
Simply hit the SPACE bar to start the audio playing
You use the control buttons at the top to run the audio
AUDACITY EXERCISE

9. We are going to take the audio bites from your RAW
AUDIO and place them on a new track so make your new
track first
Go to TRACK – NEW TRACK – MONO TRACK
AUDACITY EXERCISE

10. Using the supplied script as your guide, listen to your file
and highlight the TRUMP AUDIO BITE #1 that you WANT
to keep (00:18.47 – 00:31.04)
You highlight the audio by clicking inside the audio file
and dragging to the left or right while keeping the mouse
button depressed
AUDACITY EXERCISE

11. Now go to EDIT –
COPY (or Ctrl + C) to
copy the highlighted
section
AUDACITY EXERCISE

12. Now go to PASTE –
PASTE (or Ctrl + V)
to paste the
highlighted section
into the NEW TRACK
you made
Wherever you place
your playhead line in
the NEW TRACK
space is where the
pasted audio will go
AUDACITY EXERCISE

13. REPEAT THIS PROCESS FOR
EACH OF THE BITES YOU WANT
TO KEEP – THAT’S FOUR BITES
TOTAL!
DO NOT OVERLAP THEM
WITHIN THE NEW TRACK
AUDACITY EXERCISE

14. GET IN THE HABIT OF
REGULARLY SAVING
YOUR WORK BY CLICKING
SAVE PROJECT ON THE
TOP MENU
TIP: You only use the
“SAVE AS” option if you
are making a new
project file, NOT if you
are working on an
existing one
AUDACITY EXERCISE

15. WHEN YOU’RE DONE YOUR LAYOUT SHOULD LOOK
SOMETHING LIKE THIS:
AUDACITY EXERCISE

16. Now click the MUTE button on the RAW AUDIO TRACK –
that will gray it out so you won’t hear it but it’s still there
AUDACITY EXERCISE

17. You are now going to do the edits as directed for BITES
#1 and #2
• TRUMP AUDIO BITE #1 (00:18.47 – 00:31.045) “WE HAVE A (edit out
the extra “A” to tighten up the bite) VERY BIG PROBLEM AND A
VERY DANGEROUS PROBLEM FOR THE WORLD WITH NORTH
KOREA”
• TRUMP AUDIO BITE #2 (00:31.18 – 44): “WELL, I THINK CHINA HAS
(edit out the “uh” to tighten up the bite) TREMENDOUS CONTROL
OVER NORTH KOREA…WHETHER THEY SAY SO OR NOT IS UP TO
THEM (edit out “BUT THEY HAVE TREMENDOUS CONTROL OVER
NORTH KOREA” as it is redundant) I THINK THEY COULD SOLVE THE
PROBLEM VERY EASILY IF THEY WANT TO.”
AUDACITY EXERCISE

18. HIGHLIGHT THE AREAS FROM BITE #1 YOU WANT TO
EDIT OUT:
 “WE HAVE A (edit out the extra “A” to tighten up the bite) VERY BIG
PROBLEM”
AUDACITY EXERCISE

19. MAKE CERTAIN THAT’S THE PART YOU WANT GONE!
HIT THE DELETE BUTTON ON YOUR KEYBOARD AND IT
WILL REMOVE THAT AND CLOSE THE GAP
WHEN YOU PLAY IT BACK IT SHOULD BE SEAMLESS AND
SOUND NATURAL – IF IT DOESN’T UNDO YOUR EDIT
AND REDO IT!
AUDACITY EXERCISE

20. NOW DO THIS FOR BOTH
EDITS AS INSTRUCTED
WE WILL NOT MOVE ON
UNTIL EVERYONE HAS DONE
THESE BASIC EDITS
AUDACITY EXERCISE

21. BE CERTAIN YOU SAVE
YOUR WORK BY CLICKING
SAVE PROJECT ON THE
TOP MENU
TIP: You only use the
“SAVE AS” option if you
are making a new
project file, NOT if you
are working on an
existing one
AUDACITY EXERCISE

22. LAB REMINDERS
• There’s only one of me so learn to help yourself
by using readily available resources about the
AUDACITY software USE THE SUPPLIED
RESOURCES AND THE INTERNET – there is no
shortage of Audacity Help out there
• SAVE YOUR PERSONAL WORK TO YOUR OWN
USB DRIVE! IF YOU LEAVE IT ON THE PC YOU’RE
WORKING ON, YOU COULD LOSE IT WHEN IT IS
REBOOTED! Lost work due to improper saving is
the same as not doing it in the first place

23. LAB TIME ATTENDANCE
•If you don’t come to class during LAB
TIME sessions you will most likely fall
behind – the PowerPoints are
designed to be as simple to follow as
possible but there is simply no
substitute for in-person instruction