HTML

Definition

HTML, or Hypertext Markup Language, is the standard language used to create and design documents on the web. It serves as the backbone of web pages, allowing multimedia journalists to structure content with elements like headings, paragraphs, links, and images. Understanding HTML is essential for journalists as it empowers them to create engaging and interactive web articles, enhancing the reader's experience and ensuring that content is accessible across various platforms.

5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test

1. HTML uses tags to create elements, such as <h1> for headings and <p> for paragraphs, which help structure the content on a web page.
2. The latest version of HTML, HTML5, introduced new semantic elements like <article>, <section>, and <nav> to improve the organization and accessibility of content.
3. HTML documents are plain text files saved with a .html or .htm extension, making them easy to create and edit using simple text editors.
4. HTML allows the integration of multimedia elements such as audio, video, and images through specific tags like <audio>, <video>, and <img>.
5. Proper use of HTML improves search engine optimization (SEO), as search engines use HTML structure to understand and rank web content.

Review Questions

• How does understanding HTML enhance a multimedia journalist's ability to create web content?
  • Understanding HTML allows multimedia journalists to structure their content effectively by using various tags to organize text, links, images, and other media. This knowledge enables journalists to create visually appealing and user-friendly articles that engage readers. Additionally, by knowing how to manipulate HTML, journalists can ensure their stories are well-organized and accessible across different devices.
• In what ways do CSS and JavaScript complement HTML in creating dynamic web experiences for users?
  • CSS complements HTML by providing styling options that enhance the visual appearance of web pages. While HTML structures the content, CSS determines how that content looks—like colors, fonts, and layouts. JavaScript further enhances web experiences by adding interactivity; it allows users to engage with the content dynamically. Together, these three technologies enable multimedia journalists to produce rich, immersive stories that capture audience attention.
• Evaluate the significance of HTML5 in modern web journalism and how it impacts storytelling techniques.
  • HTML5 plays a crucial role in modern web journalism by providing new semantic elements that improve content organization and accessibility. This version allows journalists to integrate multimedia seamlessly with tags for audio and video, enhancing storytelling techniques. As a result, stories can be more engaging through interactive features that captivate readers. Moreover, with HTML5's focus on responsive design, journalists can ensure their work looks great on any device, expanding their reach and audience engagement.

Related terms

CSS: Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) is a stylesheet language used to describe the presentation of HTML documents, including layout, colors, and fonts.

JavaScript: JavaScript is a programming language that enables interactive features on web pages, allowing for dynamic content updates and user interaction.

Responsive Design: Responsive design is an approach to web design that ensures web pages function well on various devices and screen sizes, enhancing user experience.