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How to Submit News

Overview

For information about who can submit news and what types of news are appropriate for Computing at Cornell, see the News Guidelines.

Where is my news item going to appear?

News items have three parts:

  • Headline
  • Summary (optional)
  • Full story

After you submit your news item, CommonSpot displays one or more of the parts in different locations on the Computing at Cornell web site.

  • Computing at Cornell Home Page: 4 most recent news headlines and summaries.
  • News page: All news headlines and summaries.
  • Individual article page: News headline and full story.

You can also set options to have your news item displayed on the home pages for particular audiences (faculty, staff, students, guests, etc.) or interests, for example, security.

Before Submitting a News Item

The CommonSpot form you'll use to submit your news item does not allow you to save drafts of your item or preview it before posting. It's a good idea to do some prep work before you enter your news item on the CommonSpot form.

  1. Decide if you're writing a new item or if you'd rather link to a full story found at another source such as The Cornell Chronicle.
  2. If you are creating a new item, write a draft including a short teaser or summary (255 characters or less), a headline (80 characters or less), and the full news item. For items you're linking to at a different source, compose a summary and a headline, and locate the correct link.
  3. Gather links or pictures you want to include with the news item. You can upload pictures and create links in news items you submit.
  4. Check the CommonSpot form to be sure you know the details you'll be asked to provide including a posting date, the date you want the story to move off the active news page and into the news archive page, etc.
  5. Decide on your audience for the news item. You can target any or all of the following groups:
    • IT Professionals
    • Faculty
    • Staff
    • Students
    • Alumni
    • Guests
    Your news item will appear on the home page for any of the audience groups you choose.

Add

  1. In your web browser, open the Submit News page.
  2. If you see a Kerberos login box, enter your NetID and NetID password.
    The Submit News page opens. You may want to bookmark this page.
  3. Headline: Enter a headline for your news item. Shorter headlines are better. Try to keep your headline under 80 characters. (Longer headlines wrap in the News box and may be more difficult to read.)
  4. Summary: Enter a summary for your news item. The summary is a short teaser for your news item. It is limited to 255 characters.
  5. Full Story: If you are writing an original news item, enter the text of your news item. You can either type in the Full Story box, or paste text from another program. If you are linking to a news item at another source, leave the Full Story box empty. If you place a graphic in the Full Story box, it appears on the page with your news item. If you want a picture to display with the headline on the Computing at Cornell home page, you'll upload that later.
  6. Use the tools at the top of the Full Story box to edit and apply formatting to your text.
  7. Publish Date: If your news item's first appearance should be delayed until a future date, enter that date here; otherwise leave today's date as is.
  8. Archive Date: If your news item should move from the All News page to the Archived News page on a specific date, enter that date here; otherwise leave the default date. The news item remains available on the site in the archives for one year from the Publish Date.
  9. Click Show on the Computing at Cornell Home Page, to display your news item's headline on the home page. Only the 4 most recent news items display on the home page.
  10. Audience: The Computing at Cornell site includes pages and RSS feeds targeted for particular audiences including IT Professionals, Faculty, and Guests. Check the appropriate boxes to display your news item on those pages. Visitors to the main News page can search for news items using the Audience tags. Select all audiences that might be interested in your news item.
  11. Area of Interest: If you want your news item to display on the home page and RSS feed for a particular section of the Computing at Cornell site, for example, Security, select an Area of Interest box. Visitors to the main News page can also search for news items using the Area of Interest tags.
  12. Contact information: Your contact information is not displayed on the site. It is used only by the news moderator to contact you about your news item, if necessary.
  13. Source: If you are linking to a news item from another source, enter the name of the source, for example The Cornell Chronicle. If you've written your own news item, leave this box blank.
  14. Source URL: Enter the complete URL for the news item. If you've written your own news item, leave this box blank.
  15. Thumbnail: If you want to include an image with the headline of your news item, upload it. You can also choose from the Gallery of images. This image is only displayed while your news item is the first headline on the Computing at Cornell home page. If you want to include an image in the body of your news item, place it in the Full Story box. If you don't select an image, a standard image is displayed with your news item.
  16. A news moderator must review your news item before it is posted. If your item needs an immediate review, check Immediate Review Needed. Your item will be reviewed as soon as possible.
  17. When you're ready, click Submit. You may be asked to enter your NetID and password. Your news item is sent to the moderators for approval. After a moderator approves your news, they will check the Reviewed by CIT Communications and Outreach box and your news item will appear on the site.