John Moore, managing editor of the Ventura County Star, told a packed conference session that the key to making online news function well is to have the paper's management be committed to multimedia training.

The Star, a mid-sized California daily, has trained more than a third of its approximately 80-person newsroom in multimedia skills such as Flash, video and audio.

"You need to have the commitment from the managing editor to say 'Let's create the time and energy to do this,'" Moore said, explaining that journalists with newspaper backgrounds often see multimedia as "nice" but not essential.

Moore says reporters should remain focused on good content and stories should be told in "whatever venue is most appropriate for that story."

-- Will Tremain