Trends for high school online newspapers

1. DO
THIS
What to do and NOT to do on your
online news site
NOT
THAT

2. DO
POST
DAILY
This ain’t print anymore
DON’T
POST
ISSUES

3. DO USE
GOOGLE
This ain’t 1985
DON’T
USE
CLIP
BOARDS

4. DO
WORK
AHEAD
Show your readers you know what’s
going on
DON’T
WORK
FROM
BEHIND

5. DO GO
TO
THEM
You ain’t a Newsie –
You ain’t carrying the banner
DON’T
DEPEND
ON
THEM

6. DO
WRITE
ABOUT
PEOPLE
Always ask “Who Cares”
DON’T
WRITE
ABOUT
EVENTS

7. DO
WORK
WITH
OTHERS
The more the better.
DON’T
WORK
ALONE

8. DO
LINK IN
STORIES
You don’t know everything.
DON’T
BE THE
ONLY
SOURCE

9. DO USE
ONE
NAV
BAR
Don’t annoy your reader. Make it
easy. They are online because they
want quick info.
DON’T
OVER
USE NAV
BARS

10. DO LINK
TO
PRINT
PUB
They are online for a reason. They
don’t like print. It turns their hands
black.
DON’T
LINK ON
HOME
PAGE

11. DO
USE
SOCIAL
MEDIA
Social media is how they got to your
home page.
DON’T
USE IT
ON THE
HOME PG

12. DO
THINK
WORLD
WIDE
It’s WWW for a reason.
DON’T
THINK
SCHOOL
WIDE

13. DO
USE A
STYLE
SHEET
Ask your yearbook friends
about this one.
DON’T
OVER
USE
FONTS

14. DO
WRITE
HEADS
FOR SEO
Get in the know about SEO.
DON’T
WRITE
NORMAL
HEADS

15. DO USE
A MIX
OF
MEDIA
And use secondary coverage like your
print publications.
DON’T
JUST
WRITE
OR VIDEO

16. DO
UPDATE
INSIDE
PAGES
One old page equals an older reader.
He’s gone.
DON’T
LET
PAGES
GO OLD

17. DO
USE
GRAPHIC
This ain’t elementary school.
DON’T
USE
CLIPART

18. DO
TELL
ABOUT
YOU
Nobody but you on campus knows
what a Pacemaker, Crown or Star is.
No one cares.
DON’T
TELL
YOUR
AWARDS

19. DO
LOOK
AT
OTHER
SITESOk. There’s nothing new.
DON’T
STEAL
EXACT
IDEAS