It is the end of the semester and the beginning of professional careers in journalism for my Columbia University students. It is a time to celebrate, to try on caps and gowns and to prepare for visits from Mom and Dad as the University’s graduation ceremonies near May 18.
For students in my class, Multiplatform Design & Storytelling, it is time to present those mobile, linear stories they have been working on for weeks.
The goal of my course is to prepare the students to become mobile visual storytellers. In the course of the semester they have learned the importance of creating for the smallest of platforms –the iPhone—and then adapting their stories to larger platforms.
They have practiced with linear, mobile storytelling, where the narrative and the visual assets blend to form a cohesive streaming of the story as readers scroll down the screen of their phones.
I show the students’ work with much pride, but also hoping that some of you reading about the stories will be interested in publishing them. See info about this at the end of this blog post.
The assignment
I required the students to prepare a mobile, linear story on a subject of their choice.
They also are required to show me a single screen style guide relating their use of type and color through their story.
Most importantly, each student must present how he/she would promote the story via social media—a useful learning experience since many reporters must do that on their jobs these days.
The style sheet
I emphasize utilizing a simple, easy to follow style sheet, as the examples here show:
The new brand of journalists
This was my 11th consecutive year teaching this course, and so I can make observations about the type of topics that students gravitate to on a regular basis: interviews of political leaders, sports figures, entertainment celebrities, profiles of places, occasional “I was there” first person accounts.
This semester, however, the centerpiece of many of the stories leads me to believe that the journalists graduating today are more interested in issues that affect society, the marginalized people who often don’t have a voice, and the people who are doing something to remedy the situation.
More than half of the stories this semester deal with timely issues such as climate change, homelessness, racial inequality and immigration. Of course, we also have the usual travelogues and stories to delight foodies.
The Class of 2022 mobile stories!
For each of these I offer you the name of the author, the topic, and show the first screen for the story and its social media promotion.
Story 1
Author: June Van Thillo
Topic: Community fridges around New York City to feed the hungry
Social media promotion:
First screen:
Story 2
Author: Rebekah Robinson
Topic: Reminiscing about those old New York City roller rinks
Social media promotion:
First screen:
Story 3
Author: Alexander Han
Topic: Discovering a Hawaiian island paradise
Social media promotion:
First screen:
Story 4
Author: James Ihn
Topic: Technology can’t replace sense of community at nursing home in NJ
Social media promotion:
First screen:
Story 5
Author: Marlene Cruz
Topic: Climate change and its effects on LGBQT community
Social media promotion
First screen:
Story 6
Author: Peter Anthony Gallett
Topic: Food for Soul–bringing food in style to those who need it most
Social media promotion:
First screen:
Story 7
Author: Alison Sun
Topic: Hate crimes up against NY’s elderly Asian Americans
First screen:
Story 8
Author: Isabella Stoller
Topic: Is Tik Tok the best thing to happen to perfume? An influencer thinks so.
Social media promotion:
First screen:
Story 9
Author: Maria Erives
Topic: Mexico meets NY pancakes–how a Brooklyn restaurant does it!
Social media promotion:
First screen:
Story 10
Author: Amira Williams
Topic: Black women and child birth: Brooklyn hospital record makes it worse.
Social media promotion:
First screen:
Story 11
Author: Akane Ka
Topic: Animal versus plant milk: Debunking the myths
Social media promotion:
First screen:
Story 12
Author: Kaye Paddyfote
Topic: African immigrant opens his own Faso Cafe in Harlem
Social media promotion:
First screen:
Story 13
Author: Ahaana Malhotra
Topic:Concert brings attention to trans housing issues
Social media promotion:
First screen:
Story 14
Author: Nuri Illini Ahmad
Topic:For Liverpool fans, this NY City bar is the ideal spot
Social media promotion:
First screen:
Story 15
Author: Kaniya Rogers
Topic: “I moved to New York City and hated it.”
Social media promotion:
First screen:
Story 16
Author: Amira Castilla
Topic: Tips on how to act in case of allergic reaction at a restaurant
Social media promotion:
First screen:
Want to publish these stories?
Anyone interested in publishing these stories, please contact me directly at mario@garciamedia.com and I will establish a direct connection with the author.
Our mobile storytelling workshops now available remotely
Professors: get your review version of The Story on time for summer, fall classes
As an academic, I know the importance of having the right tools to advance our students, especially on the important subject of mobile storytelling. Please drop me an email if you would like to sample The Story in its digital edition: mario@garciamedia.com
Start writing or type / to choose a block
The full trilogy of The Story now available–3 books to guide you through a mobile first strategy. Whether you’re a reporter, editor, designer, publisher, corporate communicator, The Story is for you! https://amazon
TheMarioBlog post # 3348