Today I was browsing the Gainesville Sun's Web site when I realized how different their videos are from actual broadcast news. I watched a video of reporters who were outside their comfort level and commenting on the next Gators game, and then I watched a video called "Silent Football," taken during a football game for the deaf.

http://www.gainesvillesun.com/section/multimedia01
I thought the second video was really interesting because it seemed so uncut, as if I were viewing the whole scene from the field. The clip opens with a coordinator or teacher talking with the referees as they are deciding on the hand signal that is to replace the whistle. It depicts reality so much more than anything on broadcast news because there are no time limits online. It looks like a home video more than it does a story on the 11 o'clock news. A journalist's job is to tell a story in a way that allows the reader or viewer to understand it clearly. A great journalist can tell a story in a way that makes readers feel like they were there. Web sites run by newspapers now have not only the tool -- but the obligation -- to put these videos on the Internet and show viewers the entire story. Online journalism is a different world as the role of gatekeeper diminishes and consumers of the information decide for themselves.

I then watched a video of a Latino festival and it was more of the same type of footage. The only difference was that there were more interviews in that clip. The interesting thing about those interviews, though, was that the people were barely heard over the sound of the band in the background, making it feel more personal and real.