Best 6 Journalism Templates for Freelance Video Editors

For freelance video editors, journalism provides a framework for storytelling that can enrich their projects with context, depth, and nuance. Utilizing a Journalism Notion template can streamline the process of researching, organizing, and crafting narratives, ensuring that every piece of content is both informative and engaging. Before diving into creating your own journalism template, explore the options below to simplify the process.

What Should Journalism Templates Include?

Choosing the right journalism template can streamline your reporting process, ensuring you stay organized and efficient. Here are key components to look for in a high-quality journalism template:

  1. Structured Story Outline: A good template should include a clear, structured outline to help you organize your thoughts and ensure a logical flow of information.

  2. Source Tracking: It's crucial to have a dedicated section for managing sources, including contact information and notes on their credibility and contributions.

  3. Editorial Calendar: This component helps you plan and track your publishing schedule, which is essential for managing deadlines and collaborations.

  4. Research Repository: A section for storing and categorizing research materials can save you time and enhance the depth of your reporting.

Ultimately, the best template is one that fits seamlessly into your workflow, enhancing productivity without complicating the creative process.

What Should Journalism Templates Avoid?

Choosing the right journalism template is crucial for streamlining your workflow without compromising the quality of your content. Here are a few elements to steer clear of:

  1. Overly Complex Layouts: Avoid templates with too many sections and complicated navigation. They can distract from the main content and make the editing process cumbersome.

  2. Generic Fonts and Colors: Templates that do not offer customization options for fonts and colors may not allow your personal or brand style to shine through effectively.

  3. Fixed Content Structures: Steer clear of templates that force you to fit your content into a predetermined format. Flexibility is key to adapting to different stories and formats.

Remember, the best template is one that serves as a helpful tool rather than a constraint, allowing your unique journalistic voice to be heard clearly and effectively.

1Newsroom Editor Hub Template

Newsrooms have to keep track of a lot of content. The Newsroom Editor Hub enables you to do just that, with filtered views of your content pipeline so that every editor and journalist can see exactly what they need, without getting bogged down by the things they don't.

A template preview for Newsroom Editor Hub Template

2Journalist hub

These four connected templates contain everything you need as a journalist to research, interview, and write. Keep your relevant interviews and research notes alongside your article drafts so you can easily pull from and reference them. Track all the sources you talk to, their contact info, and any meetings or interviews you’ve done with them. See how and use Notion for their work.

A template preview for Journalist hub

3Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)

At The Daily, we use our SOPs database to ensure consistent and efficient workflows. It helps in documenting step-by-step procedures and maintaining quality standards across various tasks or operations people have to complete.

Some key principles to make sure your use of this template is a success:
1. No SOP is too small to document. Things that may seem intuitive may not be for someone in the future.
2. An SOP can be too big in scope. We don’t want “Use WordPress” but we do want “Publish an article”
3. Make the name of the SOPs something that someone in the future would search for
4. Link between SOPs. If you realize one piece of content relates to another, use Notion's @ key to create a backlink!
5. Tag things, and create new tags. Eventually, we might organize this more. For now, let’s just try something rough.

A template preview for Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)

4Mini Blogger | Publish Your Thought Out Loud

Simple Notion template designed to streamline your entire blogging workflow – from brainstorming captivating ideas to hitting publish with confidence.

Here's what makes Mini Blogger your secret blogging weapon:

Effortless Planning: Organize your content calendar with a breeze using the intuitive calendar view. Drag and drop posts, schedule future publishes, and gain a clear picture of your editorial strategy.

Draft Like a Dream: Focus on crafting stellar content in a clean and distraction-free writing environment. No more juggling clunky platforms or scattered notes – Mini Blogger keeps you laser-focused on what matters most – your writing!

Collaboration Made Easy: Do you have guest contributors? Mini Blogger boasts a dedicated contribution database. Manage contributor information, track guest posts seamlessly, and foster effortless collaboration.

Notion Powerhouse: Tap into the unbeatable functionality of Notion. Mini Blogger integrates flawlessly with your existing workspaces, ensuring your blog content remains organized and readily accessible.

A template preview for Mini Blogger | Publish Your Thought Out Loud

5The Journalist's Hub

A place for journalists to organize their sources (both human sources and documents), their interviews, their big ideas, their story structure, and their deadlines. Databases where you can map out the story's timeline, characters, and locations help transform reporting into a finished product.

It includes spaces to write a nut graf and keep track of your lingering questions, as well as pages dedicated to your notes, your outline, your first draft, as well as a final and "ready for publication" version.

I've included a link to a page of journalistic tips I find really helpful, as well as links to some tricks-of-the-trade articles I find really clarifying.

At the bottom, I've included a space to write a pitch, some tips on pitching, as well as a database for publications you've pitched to, in case you are a freelance journalist.

I hope this can serve as a one-stop-shop for organizing complex stories.

A template preview for The Journalist's Hub

6Medium.com Writers Dashboard

As a writer, staying organized and keeping track of your ideas and articles can be a challenging task. That’s why I have created a Notion template specifically for Medium.com writers, to help streamline their workflow and keep their ideas and articles organized.

A template preview for Medium.com Writers Dashboard

Closing Thoughts

Utilizing these templates streamlines your workflow, allowing you to focus more on creativity and less on administrative tasks. They ensure consistency and professionalism in every project you undertake.

Adopting these tools not only saves time but also enhances the quality of your output. Start integrating them into your projects today to see immediate improvements in efficiency and client satisfaction.

What is a B-roll?

B-roll refers to the supplemental or alternative footage intercut with the main shot in interviews or documentaries to add visual interest and context.

What is a Lower Third?

A lower third is a graphic overlay placed in the lower area of the screen, often during interviews, indicating the speaker's name and other relevant information.

What is a Vox Pop?

Vox Pop is short for 'vox populi', a Latin phrase meaning 'voice of the people', used in broadcasting for clips of interviews conducted with members of the public.

Keep reading

Powered by Fruition