F2018 COM 315 Writing for Digital Media Exam 1

(ESSAY) In his essay, "Politics and the English Language," George Orwell bemoans the use of "dying metaphors." What did Orwell mean by this term? Provide at least one specific example in your answer.

(Reeve's Answer) A dying metaphor is a figure of speech that has largely lost its meaning due to overuse. The phrase "beat a dead horse" is an example.

(ESSAY) In reference to web page design, what are key words and why are they important?

(Reeve's Answer) A key word is a word that is used as a reference point by search engines for finding other words of its kind or any information regarding those words. In a blog post, using key words in the headline and post text help search engines clearly identify what the post is about and to rank the post when people use those key words in their searches.

(ESSAY) Brian Carroll, the author of "Writing and Editing for Digital Media," considers the concept of "writer's block" to be a myth. In a few sentences explain why he feels this way and identify some habits or strategies that a writer can use to make sure the work of writing stays on track.

(Reeve's Answer) Brian Carroll writes: "First, know that writer's block does not exist. It is a fiction, a fabrication, a myth, a crutch, and an excuse. Writing is a job, so we have to go to work...If you think you are suffering from this mythical malaise, follow what has to be one of the best single pieces of writerly advice, again from the master Hemingway: Write something that is true. "Writing is, or should be, 'a rational, purposeful activity' that you can control, as Joan Acocella pointed out...If you can't think of a beginning, start in the middle or at the end. Establish habits and strategies."

(ESSAY) Explain what is meant by the advice to "find your voice" in blog writing? Provide an example in your answer.

(Reeve's Answer) The writer's voice is the individual writing style of an author, a combination of their common usage of syntax, diction, punctuation, character development, dialogue, etc., within a given body of text (or across several works).

(ESSAY) Explain what is meant by the term "multimedia story." Use an example. Your example can be real or hypothetical and should help to clearly explain your understanding of the term.

(Reeve's Answer) This refers to a digital media story that uses a variety of media. For instance, the New York Times story "Snowfall" referenced in the textbook uses text, video, audio, maps and charts to communicate with the reader.

From a pure SEO perspective, you need a minimum of _____ words in an article or blog post, because articles shorter than this find it difficult getting indexed by Google. In Google's view, a shorter piece cannot offer real value.

300

Which of the following uses of copyrighted material would fall under the "fair use" exception?

A blogger writes a movie review and includes a short clip from a film she is reviewing in a blog post.

What is Creative Commons licensing?

A licensing concept that allows copyright holders to designate how others can use their work.

Which of the following would be an example of a blog?

All of the answers describe blogs.

If you are a blogger, which of the following is an item you can use on your blog without violating anyone's copyright?

All of these answers are correct

Which of the following was used to capture the written words of ancient societies?

All of these answers are correct

Which of the following would be an example of plagiarism? Select the best response.

All of these answers are examples of plagiarism.

Legal protection afforded to an original work so that the creator of the work maintains control of how it is used is known as:

Copyright

An individual who posts a graphic she has created to the Internet gives up her copyright to that graphic because it is now considered to be in the public domain and legally available to anyone who wants to use it.

False

As a general rule, blog posts should be written in a linear fashion with a beginning, a middle and an end.

False

Blog readers generally respond negatively to the cultivation of transparency by bloggers.

False

Blogs are automatically protected under copyright law due to the fair use exception so a blogger can use any material he or she wants without having to worry about breaking the law.

False

Writing long headlines with key words clustered toward the end of the headline are a good way to promote SEO (search engine optimization) for digital articles.

False

Which of the following sentences uses correct parallel structure?

James likes hunting and fishing

Although the Koreans were the first people to make multiple copies of a work using a printing technique, what is the name of the German man who gets credit in most histories of printing for creating a press that used movable type?

Johannes Gutenberg

In addition to the essay about writing, "Politics and the English Language," George Orwell is also famous for writing which of the following?

Nineteen Eighty-four

"Public domain" refers to:

Original works that anyone can use in any way because the works are old enough that the copyright has expired

Research shows that Web users prefer what kind of language?

Plain English using short sentences and simple, common, concrete words

Which of the following applies to web writing but not usually to print writing?

Readers expect text to be interactive

Which of the following sentences is written in active voice?

The baseball player fielded the ball.

You have a great idea for creating a new version of the hymn "Amazing Grace" written by John Newton in 1779. What provision of copyright law would enable you to adapt the words and melody of the piece into a new piece of music?

The hymn is in the public domain

In describing attributes of a printed book, what is meant by term "fixity"?

The information contaiend in a text is fixed by existing in many copies of the same static text.

If a piece of music on the Internet is marked with a Creative Commons license that says "Attribution-NonCommercial," it means that the music composer is happy for anyone to use the music as long as he is given credit for writing the music and the music is not being used for a commercial purpose such as the background music for a TV spot.

True

Reading copy backwards is a technique that a digital editor can take to help catch typos and spelling mistakes.

True

In thinking about the attributes of a printed book, to what does the concept of "linearity" refer?

Unless it is a reference book, the work likely is meant to be read from front to back, in sequence, one page at a time.

Attempting to persuade a publication's editor to pay an independent writer for a story is referred to as making ___________________.

a pitch

An independent writer who makes money on a project-by-project basis is said to be working __________________________.

as a freelance writer

When 17th century philosopher Blaise Pascal said, "I have made this letter longer than usual only because I have not had the time to make it shorter," he was extolling the good writing virtue of ___________________.

being brief

Providing a lot of information clearly and in a few words describes which of the following writing virtues?

being concise

An interactive map that identifies the locations of all of the universities in South Carolina and allows a viewer to quickly identify the best route to all or any one of the universities from her current location is one example of how ___________________ is used on the Internet.

big data

Putting a main idea in the middle of a page and linking as many related ideas as you can think of to that idea is an example of using ______________________ to develop writing ideas.

clustering

A _____________________ is a sophisticated software system that automates many of the process or functions of updating , moving and archiving copy and content on blogs or websites. WordPress and Bloggr are examples.

content management system

Editors who fact-check, clean up writing, correct grammar and punctuation, write headlines and photo cutlines, and generate key words for search engine optimization are most commonly referred to as __________________________.

copy editors

An Anderson area food blogger who writes a blog post in which he or she lists all of the Mexican restaurants in Anderson County is using the blogging skill of __________________.

curating

Reporting a news story using such tools as a Twitter feed, interactive map, audio clip, video, podcast, and/or photo slideshow can be referred to as ___________________.

multimedia reporting

According to Born to Blog, which of the following is one of the most important keys to creating a successful blog?

posting strong content consistently

Working to make sure the coding and content of a web page is written so that search engines can easily find the page is known as:

search engine optimization

Writing that uses a conventional, formulaic, and oversimplified conception, opinion, or image is using a:

stereotype

Writing that "journalists are cynical" or that "lawyers are sharks" is an example of _________________________.

stereotyping

A writer who is "precise"...

uses the exact word that is called for, not one that is close or sounds close.