Introduction to Digital Publishing
Do you think that a lot of other journalists will pick up on people’s desire to read longform type articles in the near future? Or will it be just a few?
Why do you think people began to gravitate towards shorter, less narrated type of articles in the first place if storytelling is integral in human interaction?
How hard was it for you to begin to talk about AI in a narrative sense at first?
What did you experience?
My video captured a man who went around India and decided to photograph people while they were laughing. He realized through looking back on his work that he only photographed people when they looked gloomy, so he started photographing people and instructed them to laugh. He even went to laughing yoga and photographed people there. Towards the end, he performed a sort of reflection on his project and himself as a whole and realized how human emotion is a really impactful thing.
What impact do you think VR will have on publishing?
I think with VR, publishers will be able to provide meaningful supplements to the text pieces they put out. They will be able to capture things in video that they can’t do through text alone, and will be able to really get people to be able to picture the ideals they’re discussing in the text. VR can open up a world of possibilities for publishers for things such as travel articles, covering news stories/events that have happened, or even making sure that
Do you think VR can evoke empathy?
I do believe that VR can evoke empathy. There are lots of people who I think would really change their attitudes about humanity and helping people in general if they could somewhat experience what some people go through on a day to day basis. Making that emotional connection between people can really be achieved through “walking in someone else’s shoes”.
A Day in the Life of an Asylum Seeker
Being an asylum seeker in America is complicated, and these women require help and compassion from others in order to have a chance at success. The following stories are fictionalized accounts of what the lives of asylum seekers receiving services at AWE look like from day to day. They are descriptions of how AWE has been able to make use of donations and volunteers in order to help the women of AWE get back on track.
*Disclaimer: The two asylum seekers described in these narratives, including names, are completely fictional. These narratives are based off of compilations of the experiences of many asylum seekers at AWE, and do not reflect any single asylum seeker. No identities of real asylum seekers have been used to preserve their privacy.*
*Asylee Seeker 1: Maria
Headline: Maria wakes up in an AWE provided housing unit. She prepares breakfast for her children and herself with food the center has given her.
In Depth Story: From the donations that AWE has received, AWE is able to provide safe housing for asylum seekers that they otherwise may not have been able to have. Since asylum seekers do not have arrangements made when they come to their hosting country, it is crucial that asylum seekers have access to housing.
Maria is cooking for her children.
Dropbox
Headline: She gets her kids off to school coming down to the center to receive help with her resume
In Depth Story: AWE recipients come from many different backgrounds career wise. These women are doctors, lawyers, professors, cooks, seamstresses, etc. They have many skills to offer from their home countries, and should be able to carry over that experience to America in the form of a well-crafted resume. Help chronicling their work history will remind them of everything they have accomplished, and give them perspective on what they want to accomplish in their futures.
Maria gets help with her resume.
Dropbox
Headline: After classes, Maria eats lunch with other AWE recipients.
In Depth Story: These women have endured traumatic circumstances that can make them feel isolated, alone, or like nobody else understands their struggle. Coming to a different country alone can be intimidating and lonely. With a daily lunch at the center, women can regain a sense of community and be social with one another. While their stories are different, they have all arrived seeking out the same resources. Furthermore, the women can share foods from their home country with one another and the volunteers. Allowing AWE to continue to host these lunches will continue to give women the sense of friendship they need.
Maria is having lunch with other AWE recipients
http://absfreepic.com/free-photos/abundant-meal-on-table.html
Headline: She concludes her day at the park with her children and another AWE family.
In Depth Story: AWE prides itself on being able to provide in-city field trips that allow for the women to get better acquainted with the city of Baltimore as well as take their minds off of the everyday stress of being asylum seekers. Trips include going to neighborhood parks, the Baltimore zoo, the Baltimore aquarium, and sporting events. These trips also help women bond with one another as well as form connections with others in the community at large. Donations help provide with organizing outings as well as providing transportation to and from events when needed.
Maria is being active at the park with her children.
Dropbox
*Asylee Seeker 2: Rima
Headline: Rima wakes up in her room provided to her by an AWE volunteer. She prepares breakfast alongside her volunteer host before they both head to the center.
In Depth Story: AWE provides housing to asylum seekers whenever they have the resources available to do so. However, because of limited housing resources not every asylum seeker is able to live in her own apartment. Volunteers help out by not only donating services while at the center, but also by hosting asylum seekers in their own homes. Since asylum seekers do not have arrangements made when they come to their hosting country, it is crucial that asylum seekers have access to housing.
Dropbox
Headline: Rima heads down to the AWE center with her volunteer host to take beginner English classes.
In Depth Story: AWE provides English classes for asylum seekers that range from a beginning skill level all the way up to advanced English. Since these women are coming from other countries, it is imperative for their success to have a grasp of the English language. Some women come to America knowing just a bit of English, while others come to America speaking fluent English. Making sure communication barriers of asylum seekers are broken down at all levels is a thing that English teaching volunteers at are striving for.
Dropbox
Headline: After English class, Rima takes yoga class.
In Depth Story: In addition to just educational classes, AWE provides other classes that allow for asylum seekers to have more of a sense of normalcy in America. AWE has volunteers come to offer their services for recreational classes with activities such as cooking, sewing, jewelry making and card making. Also, AWE will bring in masseuses from time to time to help them relieve whatever stress they have from the asylum seeking process.
Dropbox
Headline: Rima ends the day with meeting with a lawyer working for AWE pro bono.
In Depth Story: AWE is able to provide services to asylum seekers that they otherwise might not have been able to access. One of the biggest hurdles asylum seekers will face is getting adequate legal representation in America. AWE is able to offer days where lawyers will offer services like filling out applications pro bono to asylum seekers.
Barry, Frank. “15 Techniques Used by Top Nonprofits to Boost Donor Acquisition and Online Fundraising Results.” NpENGAGE, npengage.com/nonprofit-fundraising/boost-donor-acquisition- online-fundraising/. Accessed 28 Mar. 2017.
The author of this article is Frank Barry. Frank Barry is a director of digital marketing at Blackbaud and a blogger for the non profit site npENGAGE. He helps nonprofits use the internet for digital communication, social media, and fundraising. He has worked with organizations including LIVESTRONG, United Methodist Church, American Heart Association, Big Brothers Big Sisters, ChildFund Int’l, InTouch Ministries, Heifer International, University of Notre Dame and University of Richmond. The author claims that there are fifteen donor acquisition and online fundraising techniques that nonprofits can use to get the most amounts of donations.
The intended audience would be people who are trying to actually get more donations for their non-profit, or somebody who is helping a non-profit design their website to be more effective. The people who come to this article would most likely want to try and get information that will help a website attract people to donate, and keep traffic coming to their website. There is a slight slant of the article; it wants people to think that these techniques are the greatest techniques for getting donations, possibly neglecting other techniques that could work just as well.
One strength of this article is that it provides hyperlinks to other websites when it is making certain claims; this allows the reader to check out the why the author said what he said, and draw conclusions themselves about the validity of the claim. Another strength is that the article provides examples of non profits who have used some of these techniques so readers can see the techniques being mentioned in action. Not only does it provide examples, but it also provides snapshots of these examples as well. One of the weaknesses of this article is that it doesn’t really give the reader ways to actually implement these techniques on their site. This information definitely supports the thesis of my research. It is relevant to my research because I suggested that those who come across a donation website will want to see how their money is being spent, and giving a detailed account of an asylum seeker’s day will help show them how they will be helping.
Bray, J.D. Ilona. “Which Countries Do Most People Granted Asylum in the U.S. Come From?” Nolo, www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/which- countries-do-most-people-granted-asylum-the-us-come-from.html. Accessed 28 Mar. 2017.
Ilona Bray, J.D. is an award-winning author and legal editor at Nolo, specializing in real estate, immigration law, workplace wellness and nonprofit fundraising. Bray’s working background includes solo practice, nonprofit, and corporate stints, as well as long periods of volunteering, including an internship at Amnesty International’s main legal office in London. The thesis of her article is saying from which countries do most people granted asylum in the United States come from. Her thesis, based on empirical research from the Executive Office of Immigration Review Statistical Year Book, concluded that the countries who have the most amounts of immigration is as follows: China, Guatemala, Honduras, India, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Nepal, Mexico, Soviet Union, Somalia, Egypt, Eritrea, Syria, Russia, Bangladesh, Cameroon, Albania, Nigeria, Haiti, Colombia, Gambia ,Pakistan, Iraq ,Burkina Faso and Sri Lanka. The author’s intended audience could be anyone who is interested in where asylum seekers coming to America are coming from, whether they want to help them or simply know more about the subject.
There is a bias in the article, but that bias is recognized by the article itself. It says “keep in mind that while these statistics may include applications originally filed affirmatively with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) that were denied and referred to the immigration court, it does not include those asylum applications that were originally approved by USCIS.” This is saying that it should be recognized that about 16000 people who were originally approved for asylum status were not counted in this study. One of the strengths of this article is that it is based off of empirical evidence; statistics taken by a rather neutral source should be acknowledged as a good thing. The information supports my research because I learned that the US is indeed taking asylum seekers from a variety of places. This is relevant to my research because I need to know exactly where the largest amount of asylum seekers are coming from in order to properly document their experiences. Since I am doing a “Day in the Life”, depicting them correctly is a necessity.
“Mission Trip Itineraries.” Food for the Poor Saving Lives, www.foodforthepoor.org/participate/mission-trips/sample- itinerary/. Accessed 28 Mar. 2017.
The author of this article is the organization FoodForThePoor. They are a nonprofit organization that works to get food, housing, and emergency relief to poor people in the Caribbean and Latin America. They also help provide care for orphaned and abandoned children. The author is claiming that the organization is going to provide a relatively set schedule for volunteers who choose to go to various countries. They have each country they send volunteers outlined with an itinerary that volunteers can expect to follow. The organization is claiming that volunteers will help poor people through performing activities such helping to paint homes and harvesting of fish for families. The intended audience would be anybody who is interested in volunteering for this organization. There is a bias; it highlights all of the good things about what people will be helping with solely instead of also shedding light on the toll it can take on the volunteers. The organization wants volunteers, so they are going to highlight the good parts.
A strength of this article is that it really gives a good breakdown of what a volunteer can expect if they decide to volunteer for this organization. Giving a realistic schedule can be the deciding factor of if a person decides to volunteer for a certain place or not, so I can see this being extremely helpful. Another strength is that it gives people the option to contact the organization through email if they have questions regarding anything they read that interests them on the itinerary page. One more strength is that the site offers itineraries for various countries instead of one generic itinerary for people to try and use to get a better feel; they took the time to develop schedules based on the needs of each country. The weakness of this itinerary is that it could do a better job of giving insight to how the volunteers will be interacting with recipients of these services. It largely focuses on what the volunteers will do with one another and leaves out that interaction with recipients. The information supports my research. It is relevant to the material I have researched because I want to recreate this type of article, except focusing on the recipients instead of the volunteers.
Taylor Barksdale
ENG256
Dr. Licastro
We live in a world where the wrongful persecution of humans occurs on an insanely large level. People from countries such as China, Mexico, India, Ethiopia, Syria, Iraq, Nepal. and Somalia are constantly being judged, arrested, beaten and even killed simply because of a part of their demographic composition such as race, religion, nationality or political opinion. Those seeking asylum do not have as many resources afforded to them as refugees being they are not given the same protection as refugees who have applied for protection before arriving to the United States. This being said, any organization willing to aid asylum seekers needs to appeal to the most amount of possible donors.
AWE provides services to asylum seekers such as housing, employment, education, and providing a community for asylum seekers to gain ties to their community and one another. They are specifically targeting members of society who are in a financial position to contribute funds to help those seeking asylum. As many services as they offer, the current “Programs” page lacks in attracting possible donors to actually get excited about what their donations could possibly help with. I think that a revamped version of the Programs page would help to attract more donors, and help get them excited about donating to this cause.
On the Programs page, giving a more detailed account of what services are provided by AWE would help reach readers on a more personal level. With each service, warmer language could be used in order to make AWE sound inviting and not just “another charity”. Detailing the day of an asylum seeker could also complement these descriptions. Writing about an AWE asylum seeker waking up in an AWE provided housing unit, coming down to the center to receive educational classes, eating lunch with other AWE recipients and ending the day at a park with members of their community could be enticing and give people a real want to not only donate, but perhaps venture down to the center as well. Images of women engaged in these activities could give the page a multimedia advantage as well.
One really great example of how a website reflects how a Programs page could be done is Heifer International. They not only offer one Programs page, but several that cover one aspect of their services at a time. Heifer utilizes multimedia by providing images of people who benefit from the work they do, as well as use whitespace so the media on the page doesn’t overwhelm the reader. They also do an amazing job of not only focusing on the services they provide, but also by giving insight as to why those services are really helping the recipients as well as detailing the lives of those being helped by Heifer.
Bray, J.D. Ilona. “Which Countries Do Most People Granted Asylum in the U.S. Come From?” Www.nolo.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Mar. 2017.
“Heifer International | Charity Ending Hunger And Poverty.” Heifer International | Charity Ending Hunger And Poverty. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Mar. 2017.
I chose to do Heifer International for my website analysis. Heifer International is a website that aims to end hunger and poverty in poor countries through donations from people around the world. Heifer provides these people with job skills as well as livestock in order to help them become more self-sustaining.
Audience
The primary audience for this site is would be possible donors that are going to donate to the site. These donors are being targeted because the main purpose of the site is to raise funds to help families become more self-sustaining in terms of giving them livestock and cooking supplies. The secondary audience for this site would be people who are themselves in poor countries and are trying to get access to help, whether that be getting funds for education for their children or to gain means of making a wage. Another secondary audience could be workers that are trying to get their clients (people in need of assistance) in contact with a third party who can help them get everything they need in order to live a successful life.
Purpose
The purpose of this site is to earn funds for underprivileged people. The site is trying to make sure that people will donate to the cause; it allows for people to make donations as well as purchase items that are made by the people Heifer helps such as rugs or ornaments. There is most definitely a bias on this website; Heifer wants people to donate to their foundation, so they showcase all of the good things that Heifer is doing for people through their foundation. There is nothing negative on the site; they want to keep the site positive and shed light to the work being done.
Context
The context that Heifer chose to use was in the form of a website. The layout of this website seems to work extremely well in order to help navigate places. On the main page there are several main tabs; these tabs include the following: “Ending Hunger and Poverty”, “What You Can Do”, and “Join the Conversation”. Providing these tabs at the forefront of the website allows for the site visitor to see the main components of the website at a glance.
The website makes really good use of color. The colors are not all the same; this keeps the reader engaged. The architecture of the menu seems to work well for this website as well; the menu options are rather brief and don’t crowd the page. This helps the user experience; things are easy to find.
Once a reader navigates to the “What You Can Do” page, and then picks an option from the tiles of options, they are brought to the page where that gives more detail to that particular image. The text content is organized in both paragraph form as well as bullet points; this variation helps to make sure the reader gets the content in the most effective format possible. The variation in font between titles, subtitles, and body information helps users follow the path of where they should be looking for information.
Author
The authors of this website are hired workers for the Heifer foundation. These authors have the job of establishing a positive public image for the Heifer Foundation so people will want to donate to the cause. There is an incredible amount of bias that these authors hold; they are trying to make Heifer appear in the best light possible. Heifer appears to be a credible source. The author makes an attempt at establishing a good amount of credibility by showcasing the families and individuals that have been helped by the organization as a whole. The author comes across as vested into helping people get back on their feet.
Genre
The genre of this website could be broadly defined as a foundation/donation solicitation website. More specifically, this text can be defined as a charity website. The key component of this website is how the website is campaigning to raise funds for poor countries. The website makes a call to action for people to donate. They sell items as well, but the proceeds are going to impoverished families.
Color
The color all throughout this site works well. The scheme of mixing warm tones of yellowish gold, pink, blues and purples really connects each page together nicely. The colors help set a tone of a warm. friendly and inviting environment; this may influence visitors to donate due to the site’s warmth.
Font
The fonts that are being used seem to fit each page. There are variations of fonts throughout the webpages, which will help keep the user engaged. Even the font colors help create a sense of structure for the user in a positive light.
Information Architecture
The structure of the information on the site makes finding information very easy. The menu bars at the top of the page provide just enough information about that page; there isn’t too much in the tab names to overcrowd, but not too little to leave the user wondering where to go. The information on the pages are formatted with whitespace in mind; there is no sense of overcrowding on the page, which helps.
User Experience
The user experience appears to have been a priority during the brainstorming and development of this website. From the tabs at the top of the page to the interactive widgets on the webpages, it is easy for a user to navigare the site efficiently.
Summary
As earlier stated, the primary audience for this site would be possible contributors to Heifer International to see exactly what they would be donating to. A secondary audience could include people seeking help in their country of origin. The purpose of this website is to earn money for Heifer to help families in the form of livestock and jobs/skill learning. There is a definite bias toward the site in efforts to persuade people to donate to their site.
The Heifer International foundation chose to make their medium a website. Heifer used a combination of media such as text, pictures/slideshows and videos in order to entice people to get involved with Heifer. These media helped to show the people that donations would in turn benefit; it helped possible donors see the faces of people in need, as well as people who have benefited from donations in the past. Creating a medium such as this website gives people a more personal experience, and may make people want to help out more by Heifer taking a more personal approach.
I selected Jing because it allowed for me to take pictures of only the parts of the screen that I wanted to capture, and cut out the parts that I didn’t really want to showcase as much. Jing seemed to really meet my expectations in allowing for me to annotate the picture to show what I liked about the website as well.