Yvonne Leow
Senior Snapchat Editor at Vox
Yvonne Leow, a Senior Snapchat Editor at Vox, works remotely from San Francisco with her team in New York City. Her video production career did not start at Vox. Leow initially realized her passion for video production while she was working for The Daily Bruin. Post-grad she interned with The Seattle Times. Then, Leow reached out to Vox and was offered an interview, and later a job.
Leow spoke at the University of Oregon’s School of Journalism and Communication on Friday, May 20,2016. There were many takeaways from her lecture, which I have explained in further detail below:
Network. Leow mentioned the importance of networking, and networking well. “Cultivate relationships, not contacts” because it is important to build relationships and make good impressions. A network is not about the quantity of people, but rather about the quality and authenticity of the relationships you build.
Teamwork. Teamwork is key. Always “prioritize people over products” because if you want to build something great, you cannot do it alone. Leow expresses the importance of finding your “tribe.” In other words, find the people who understand you and your work, as well as people that you are able to identify with. She reminded us that we do not have to do this journey alone. Once you find your tribe, it helps maintain your sanity, especially in new environments. Leow touched briefly on how she attempted her own start-up company, but could not do it alone. She enlightened us that failure is not always a personal thing. Plus, it is worth it because you tried and you will learn from the experience.
Vox. Vox has been on the Snapchat discover page for six months and it has been going well for them. Leow and her team have produced a variety of stories on many different topics. We, the audience, asked how Vox chooses content. She mentioned that Vox has to choose wisely because some topics, like LGBTQ, are hard to convey. Another example is abortion. Abortion stories are hard to visualize in a compelling way. With topics like these, it requires some filtering when it comes producing content. The story itself may need some reframing and it must be put into a perspective that a younger person will understand, since Snapchat has the youngest audience.
Snapchat. Snapchat has the youngest audience across social media platforms, therefore they must adjust their content to their audience. Due to the popularity of Snapchat, people live on it and Leow believes that news should too. Snapchat is a way to spread news through short videos, which is more intriguing than reading a 200 word article. Prior to Leow’s lecture, I did not visit the discover page very often and definitely did not consider Snapchat a news source. Today, I have different views and plan to visit the discover page more often, especially for news updates.
Visual Storytelling. Leow pointed out a few valuable aspects when producing visual news. It is important to report the story first, and produce second. The reporting aspect takes so much time, and has been challenging for the journalism industry. Reporting is time sensitive and resource intensive. Once you have produced your story, test your product quickly. You lose nothing to test your product and it is vital to collaborate and get feedback about your work.
Challenges. After her lecture, Leow sat down with a small group of us to answer some additional questions. We asked about some of the biggest challenges as a Senior Snapchat Editor at Vox. She said that the time difference between San Francisco and New York is challenging, since she works remotely with her team. Because of the time difference she had to change her lifestyle, including early mornings, eating dinner at 6pm, and going to bed earlier than most people her age. Day to day management and communication with her team is difficult because she cannot see when someone is stepping away from their desk or gage if someone is having a difficult day. However, she loves being able to wake up and start work without a commute.
Additional Quotes.
“Question everything.”
“Embrace uncertainty.”
“There are no shortcuts to hard work.”
“There is not one path to journalism. Be bold and discover your own.”
