January 20, 2013
Smart ways to use a smartphone
It’s a weirdly good feeling to be able to walk out of the newsroom with nothing but an iPhone in my pocket to cover an event. It doesn’t always work out that way, but often it does.
For example, I hear about a car crash on the scanner. I can just stand up, walk out to the parking lot, hop in my car and go.
While walking to the car, I can tap the scanner app, turn it up full blast, and listen for updates.
Once I’m at the scene I can take pictures and put them on Twitter along with a description. I can also email a picture to the newsroom so I can later put it on the website.
A tap of the Voice Memos app allows me to record interviews of witnesses that I can use to bang out a brief.
Of course, I can also phone the newsroom and talk to editors about what is going on if it turns out to be something that needs more coverage.
In a pinch, the iPhone also takes pretty good video. I do prefer a camcorder, though. The picture and and zoom quality are just so much better.
Check out this article at Poynter for more smart ways to use a smartphone: