Guillermo Franco, content manager of the new media unit of Casa Editorial El Tiempo and eltiempo.com, answers these questions. 

“We still see users being very annoyed by audio – especially unannounced audio -- and frustrated when video content that does not allow them to "scan" to the part of the message they care most about.

In this respect, "richer" media can actually be "poorer" than text, because they are essentially linear, synchronous formats. Text on the other hand can be scanned, chopped, summarized and repurposed (and translated, formatted, hyperlinked and transmitted) far more easily than video and audio content,” says Franco. 

To him, audio and video in news sites are not inherently bad, as both can be instructional and can be used as entertainment. The internet is only beginning to embrace these forms of content. “It will take some time for these media to reach the level of online integration that text currently has. It is more likely that they will augment rather than replace the need for text”, assured Franco.

As for the journalistic style for online text, Franco considers it important to make texts easier to read. “The larger and complex issue is deciding what to write in the first place. Good writing techniques will never go out of fashion”. 

He suggests the following:

- Use the inverted pyramid. Start with the conclusion.

- Write abstracts or summaries for longer content.

- Tell readers what questions they can expect an article to answer.

- Make small chunks of content with one or two ideas in each chunk.

- Group content that is similar.

- Write unique titles, headings and subheadings.

- Make lists, not paragraphs. Bulleted lists and white space break up text.
 

Although the inverted pyramid could kill creative storytelling, Franco thinks that the approach should change depending whether the article is informative or for pleasure.

When readers seek specific information, they usually appreciate brevity and concise writing. “We find that when users are task oriented – when they are trying to find information or solve a problem -- almost 80 percent of them scan the page for relevant information. Many of the guidelines that we suggest are aimed toward fulfilling these users' needs. Users will only read the whole text when they are highly motivated to get extended information,” says Franco. 

Writing for pleasure or entertainment is obviously different, says Franco. Although the approach can be more creative than in print, it is important to rewrite for the online audience, because it has completely different expectations.

In conclusion, the style of writing for internet news sites should use the findings about online readers’ behavior. Franco recommends the incorporation of any writing technique that can be helpful to ease comprehension, such as reader signposts. “These signposts may be summaries, titles, bold or linked text, lists or many other tools that are taught to journalists.”

Source: The Poynter Online