WHAT I DO
I am a Digital Producer for the Midwest DOT for the USA Today Network. I’m part of a team that oversees the digital promotion and audience engagement plans for up to 25 sites in Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky. I monitor trends and suggest story ideas to the various newsrooms and help guide them to the best practices to stay on top of SEO for their stories.
(I also publish stories, manage their website fronts, and share articles on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.) I’m the Canva and social media champion and can’t get away from looking at our analytics board to dive deep into what’s working.
WHAT I’VE DONE
I was temporarily a breaking news editor for the Louisville Courier Journal, where I stay late into the late to make sure none of our Kentucky politicians tweet something important (or at least something we should write about). I also manage journalists out in the field during the 2020 Breonna Taylor protests that lasted more than 100 days.
Previously, I was a Digital Producer specifically for the Louisville Courier Journal.
WHAT I’M READING
I firmly believe it’s important to read if you want to write for a living. So my goal every year is to read 100 books. I actually hit that goal last year for the first time. BUT I’m already behind this year. My TBR list is long still and I have plans to reread several stories I’ve grown to love.
WHAT I’M LISTENING TO
First thing you should know, I was in band in high school. No, I wasn’t great. Yes, I played clarinet. Yes, I’ve heard most, if not all, band camp jokes.
I’m a huge fan of music from movies or TV shows. If I hear something I like, I immediately look it up and add it to my playlist.
I’m not a fan of no background sounds. So often while writing, I want to listen to something- but if it had words, I either got caught up in what they were signing/saying and procrastinated like the pro I am – or wrote down what they were saying in the story.
So instead of listening to songs with words, I listened to movie soundtracks. And Hans Zimmer (who has only won an Oscar for The Lion King!!!) is the best of the best.
Shannon Hall 