1. Dr. Mario R. García
Hearst Digital Media Professional-in-Residence, Columbia Journalism School
CEO/Founder, García Media
@DrMarioRGarcia
MULTIPLATFORM
STORYTELLING
TWO TEMPOS FOR THE DIGITAL AGE

2. The news cycle,
then

3. The news ran on a schedule:

4. We read the morning newspaper as our
breakfast ritual.

5. We listened to radio in the car.

6. We seldom missed Walter Cronkite at 6 p.m.

7. If we were late to bed, we could catch
the 11 o’clock news.

8. In between, the news largely left us
alone …

9. … except for emergencies.

10. Technology limited the pace of news.

11. When printing a newspaper on a mass
scale, for example, you could not
update an edition every five minutes to
accommodate the latest news.
Most news sources appeared in regular
editions, allowing for intensive editing
and, eventually, art direction.
Not so today.

12. The news cycle,
now

13. Things began to change in 1991, with
the arrival of the World Wide Web.
www

14. Today, the media quartet

15. We are connected and addicted.

16. The more pings we get, the happier we
seem to be.

17. It is just as easy to put out a tweet about
breaking news as it is a massive, year-
long investigative report.
Both appear instantaneously, at the
click of the “submit” button.

18. If the default “then” was an edited
package of news at a specific time, the
default now is a second-by-second
update.

19. 24/7
curated
That is to say, we observe two tempos:
a constant flow of information
edited & art directed packages

20. Constant coverage
THE HARBOR LIGHT THEORY

24. There is an increasing appreciation for
the role both tempos can play in a news
organization’s offerings.
Let’s examine the legacy and startup
news organizations doing interesting
work with each tempo.

25. 24/7
Interruptions and “everywhereness”
Speed with accuracy
Short over long
Facts more than analysis

26. Breaking News
Breaking News curates the latest pieces of news around the
world, providing brief and fast updates. They combine these
updates into topics, allowing users to be alerted to new
information about their favorite topics or mute those they are
not interested in.
The creators came to the conclusion that focusing on the
consumer goal of “time saved” trumps the newsroom goal of
“time spent.”

27. Breaking News
Breaking News curates the latest pieces of news around the
world, providing brief and fast updates. They combine these
updates into topics, allowing users to be alerted to new
information about their favorite topics or mute those they are
not interested in.
The creators came to the conclusion that focusing on the
consumer goal of “time saved” trumps the newsroom goal of
“time spent.”

28. Circa
Atomic units of information

29. Circa
Editors who rework the top stories of the day—quotes,
photos, maps, facts, background. Users can follow topics
they’re interested in and get updates on
new developments.
Circa doesn’t show you an entire news article, the way a
mobile news app from the New York Times or some
other traditional outlet would: instead, it breaks the
news down into its “atomic units,” which consist of a
series of news facts, background information and other
elements (photos, quotes, etc.) A user can then choose
how many of those atomic units to read at a given time.

33. Google Glass
Bringing technology closer to your senses

35. Smart watches
Computer on your wrist

37. Tempo 2
Curated content

38. Maybe the question could be the interplay
between the 24/7 and the curated. Has curated
been the realm of only print for too long? What
are the possibilities for curation in digital
products? And, that critical question: How do
you ensure that you're not over-extending and
fragmenting your resources by having separate
24/7 and curated products? Why is this better
than working on a single comprehensive 24/7
Curated content has always been the foundation o
printed journalism.

39. So, what is the interplay between the 24/7 and
the curated. What are the possibilities for
curation in digital products?

40. Gulf News
At the beginning: 2010, thinking curated edition in Dubai

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42. NYT Now
Hand-picked stories

43. Hook them, create new addictions

44. New York Times Today New York Times Now

46. NYT Now featuring curated content from
the Times, and unlike the publication’s
current algorithm-powered mobile app, it
will have a dedicated staff responsible for
hand-picking stories and repackaging them
for consumption on your phone.
NYT Now will consist of headlines and
short summaries taking readers to full
Times articles. A “morning briefing” and an
“evening briefing” — presented in a
conversational voice.

47. Yahoo! News Digest
Combines algorithms and hand picked stories

48. Yahoo! News Digest
Yahoo selects stories for the digest using a
combination of algorithms and human editors, and
sends you a push notification when your digest is
ready. It is also one of the best-looking
newsreading apps. I personally look forward to it
when it comes twice a day.
There’s no personalization, no limitless stream of
other stories they could read. Just a list of around
a dozen stories and you’re done.

51. Cartoon Network Anything
Cartoon Network will release an app later this year that will
deliver original 15-second content bites — videos, games, polls,
and trivia — solely to mobile devices.

52. The Guardian’s #Open001
This one is a PRINTED newspaper that knows what stories you
share!
Algorithms based on what your social-sharing activity.
Sorry, no room for serendipity.

54. Breaking News
Breaking News curates the latest pieces of news around the
world, providing brief and fast updates. They combine these
updates into topics, allowing users to be alerted to updates on
their favorite topics or mute those they are not interested in.

55. Esquire Weekly
When an iconic monthly turns weekly

57. The Atlantic Weekly
A highly curated lean back experience to “let the mind roam”

59. Paris Match
Weekly in print, nightly on smartphone

72. Doing print happily
Printed newspapers were the first curators

78. 5 takeaways

79. 1) Make sure to have a clear philosophy in
place for the flow of a story—how it evolves
from the first tweet to a retrospective
analysis.

80. 2) Consider curated digital editions, which
can allow for a different editorial
perspective along with a clear start and
end for users.

81. 3) Mobile is certainly extraordinary for
breaking news, but consider curated
editions as well. But keep it short and
sweet.

82. 4) Do print happily, connecting the dots for
readers. Give printed edition its place
within the media quartet.

83. 5) Today we are not in an environment
conducive to solo performances.
Emphasize interdisciplinary teams,
bringing design, tech, business, editorial
together to conceive these products.

84. 6. The industry needs well-trained mobile
editors who can tell stories across
platforms. In fact, two years from now, a
person who can’t work across platforms won’t
find a job in media.

85. These are the best of times to be a storyteller.

86. Email: mario@garciamedia.com
Twitter: @DrMarioRGarcia
Daily blog: garciamedia.com
Thank you!
Dr. Garcia is the 2014 Hearst
Digital Media Professional in
Residence at Columbia
University’s Graduate School of
Journalism