I don't really know if I prefer audioslide shows or video. I think that it really depends on the story. Action stories obviously come across a lot better with video. But at the same time, there can be something very poignant about the sound of a crowd cheering while stills of fans screaming flash on the screen. To think more about it, I think I am very impartial to the art of audio slideshows. For how easy they can be to put together, the effect is amazing.
As far as the specifics of the audio slideshow - I think that images should be kept on the screen for a good amount of time.... and by a good amount, I mean longer rather than shorter. People need time to process the photos.
Panning across an image can give a great effect and lead the readers eye toward an important spot, rather than leaving them to scan the whole picture.
As far as other tools go - I am very impartial to iMovie. As a fairly new mac user, I was amazed at how easy the software is. After returning from a trip to Rome I quickly put together a movie for my friends with images, sound and video from our trip. It really couldn't have been any easier.
GarageBand, oddly enough, I don't care for. I think there are other programs that do what it does much better.
This all coming from one of the most media-unsavy people around.
Friday, November 30, 2007
Monday, November 26, 2007
Thoughts on the readings
The Potter Box:
I have studied this ethical decision making model in other classes and for the most part I find it rather unhelpful. The box has the following steps:
1) Appraising the situation
2) Identifying values
3) Appealing to ethical principles
4) Choosing loyalties
It is very straight forward. The process in journalism decision making is so similar to decision making in other areas of our lives. We asses our options, think about what others would want us to do, and pull from past experiences. All of this goes into making our decision.
While ethical decisions can be discussed, teaching how to make these decisions is difficult. So much of it is based on personality, upbringing and other subjective factors. Still, I do believe that it is important to discuss the tough ethical decisions that journalists are bound to face in their career in hopes of starting the mental dialogue before the issue comes up.
Freebies -
For the most part I believe that freebies can get in the way of journalistic objectivity. I think it tarnishes journalistic integrity and causes readers to question true motive in stories. I like the Chicago Tribune's take on freebies: reporter can accept nothing over the value of a keychain. No reporter is going to sway the direction of a story over a ballpoint pen, notepad or keychain. I think one acceptable type of freebie would be tickets to an event which the paper plans on covering. Entertainment writers are in this position every day. From the perspective of a news writer, I see this as no different than accepting a press pass to a major speech or convention.
Advertising -
If the journalism world were perfect, advertising would have no say in what was printed.
period.
I really hate the idea of advertisers pushing for stories that highlight specific industries. It ties into the issue of impartiality and objectivity. Still, it is a reality in today's newsrooms. I think that all journalists can try to do is remain as separate as possible. By deciding early on that you will never change the direction of a story or publish something based off of advertising and not news value, it will be come easier to make these decisions when they come up.
My verdict - I think that the most important thing a young journalist can do to prepare themselves for making ethical decisions is to practice. Reading what other writers have decided in tough situations and assessing what you would have done in the same place will lead to a higher level of thought. While you will never be able to entertain every possible ethical dilemma, simply considering major issues will help tune your instincts toward ethical decisions.
LOVE IT
Just this weekend when flying back to Houston to Ithaca and had a 2 hour layover in the Newark airport. I was watching the breaking news of the fires in California. In 2 hours no new news was reported. They interviewed people who had the same things to say, repeated footage of the same houses being burned, and really annoyed me in the process. It is not to say that there is no value in this kind of news. Broadcast can get out breaking news in a way that print just can not. But I think that overall print journalism is able to offer a more comprehensive view of an issue. With more time to contact valid sources and check new leads, print journalism offers an all-in-one approach.
And as the quote about demonstrates - this tendency is spreading to newspapers websites and online media. Television-like video clips and packages put up on newspapers websites seem to me to be more comprehensive than television alone. Also, with easy searching on websites multimedia pages and toolbars, it is very easy to navigate to specific issues.
Covering a Catastrophe
I think that this article really speaks to one of the main tenants of journalism: personal stories. Localizing major issues through individual stories is one of the most effective journalism tools (in my opinion.) For major national catastrophes, the story can reach a new level of import for people across the country when individual stories are highlighted.
I have studied this ethical decision making model in other classes and for the most part I find it rather unhelpful. The box has the following steps:
1) Appraising the situation
2) Identifying values
3) Appealing to ethical principles
4) Choosing loyalties
It is very straight forward. The process in journalism decision making is so similar to decision making in other areas of our lives. We asses our options, think about what others would want us to do, and pull from past experiences. All of this goes into making our decision.
While ethical decisions can be discussed, teaching how to make these decisions is difficult. So much of it is based on personality, upbringing and other subjective factors. Still, I do believe that it is important to discuss the tough ethical decisions that journalists are bound to face in their career in hopes of starting the mental dialogue before the issue comes up.
Freebies -
For the most part I believe that freebies can get in the way of journalistic objectivity. I think it tarnishes journalistic integrity and causes readers to question true motive in stories. I like the Chicago Tribune's take on freebies: reporter can accept nothing over the value of a keychain. No reporter is going to sway the direction of a story over a ballpoint pen, notepad or keychain. I think one acceptable type of freebie would be tickets to an event which the paper plans on covering. Entertainment writers are in this position every day. From the perspective of a news writer, I see this as no different than accepting a press pass to a major speech or convention.
Advertising -
If the journalism world were perfect, advertising would have no say in what was printed.
period.
I really hate the idea of advertisers pushing for stories that highlight specific industries. It ties into the issue of impartiality and objectivity. Still, it is a reality in today's newsrooms. I think that all journalists can try to do is remain as separate as possible. By deciding early on that you will never change the direction of a story or publish something based off of advertising and not news value, it will be come easier to make these decisions when they come up.
My verdict - I think that the most important thing a young journalist can do to prepare themselves for making ethical decisions is to practice. Reading what other writers have decided in tough situations and assessing what you would have done in the same place will lead to a higher level of thought. While you will never be able to entertain every possible ethical dilemma, simply considering major issues will help tune your instincts toward ethical decisions.
LOVE IT
"At their best, the newspapers’ online videos are, minute for minute, superior to TV news. As I write, CNN is airing a live press conference by Anna Nicole Smith’s lawyer and a loop of Smith vamping, while a significant breaking news story—the U.S. claim that Muqtada al-Sadr has left Iraq for Iran—is running in tiny type across the bottom of the screen. Given the dumb-and-dumber choices, I can easily imagine newspapers’ Web-video portals becoming the TV-journalism destinations of choice for smart people—that is, in the 21st century, the dominant nineteenth-century journalistic institution, newspapers, might beat the dominant twentieth-century institution, TV, at the premium part of its own game."My main problem with television news is that in my mind, it has a tendency to become watered down. At very little fault of the broadcast journalist, 24 hour news stations end up running the same stories continuously, rarely adding new information. I sympathies. Really - it must be tough to be a broadcast journalist for CNN. But seriously - sometimes it gets ridiculous.
- http://nymag.com/news/imperialcity/28152/
Just this weekend when flying back to Houston to Ithaca and had a 2 hour layover in the Newark airport. I was watching the breaking news of the fires in California. In 2 hours no new news was reported. They interviewed people who had the same things to say, repeated footage of the same houses being burned, and really annoyed me in the process. It is not to say that there is no value in this kind of news. Broadcast can get out breaking news in a way that print just can not. But I think that overall print journalism is able to offer a more comprehensive view of an issue. With more time to contact valid sources and check new leads, print journalism offers an all-in-one approach.
And as the quote about demonstrates - this tendency is spreading to newspapers websites and online media. Television-like video clips and packages put up on newspapers websites seem to me to be more comprehensive than television alone. Also, with easy searching on websites multimedia pages and toolbars, it is very easy to navigate to specific issues.
Covering a Catastrophe
I think that this article really speaks to one of the main tenants of journalism: personal stories. Localizing major issues through individual stories is one of the most effective journalism tools (in my opinion.) For major national catastrophes, the story can reach a new level of import for people across the country when individual stories are highlighted.
Friday, November 23, 2007
Immigration backlog leaves possible voters out of luck
A backlog of citizenship applications filed with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services could cause repercussions in the 2008 presidential elections, according to the Associated Press.
Due to a fee increase scheduled for this summer, the amount of applications has increased drastically. According to the Agence France- Presse, the department has received twice as many applications as it normally would. They have hired an extra 1,5000 employees, but still believe that those who recently filled for citizenship will be waiting 16-18 months.
According to an article from the BBC, the department is adamant that there is no political motivation driving the backlog.
Still, the problem will keep thousands of would-be voters from participating in the upcoming election.
From the AFP:
Due to a fee increase scheduled for this summer, the amount of applications has increased drastically. According to the Agence France- Presse, the department has received twice as many applications as it normally would. They have hired an extra 1,5000 employees, but still believe that those who recently filled for citizenship will be waiting 16-18 months.
According to an article from the BBC, the department is adamant that there is no political motivation driving the backlog.
"We are going to process these cases as responsibly and as quickly as we can, but we're not focused on any of the election cycle," Michael Aytes, associate director of the agency, told the Washington Post.
Still, the problem will keep thousands of would-be voters from participating in the upcoming election.
From the AFP:
Cecilia Munoz, executive vice president of the National Council of La Raza, predicted to the daily Sun-Sentinel that hundreds of thousands of immigrants could miss their chance at the ballot box.
"It's an unhealthy thing for a democracy when you invite people to the door, but slam it in their face when it comes time to participate," Munoz told the Fort Lauderdale, Florida paper.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
USA Today State-by-state coverage
Something kind of cool in the world of political journalism: USA Today recently published on their website a "State-by-state lookahead: What's at stake in 2008."
As a sample of what is covered for each state, here's the blurb for NY:
As a sample of what is covered for each state, here's the blurb for NY:
After reading the notes about my home state, Illinois, I officially love this feature. It very astutely points out that three major Republicans, including the speaker of the House - Dennis Hastert - are set to retire. Those races will become pivotal in who controls the House. Also in the Ill. post:The last two presidents have been Southerners, but both parties' 2008 front-runners for the top job have New York credentials: Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and former New York mayor Rudy Guliani.
A number of potentially competitive House races loom here. Democratic Reps. John Hall and Kirsten Gillibrand and Republican Reps. Jim Walsh and Randy Kuhl could all face tough re-election bids. Hall, of the 1970s pop group Orleans, won his seat from Republican Sue Kelly in 2006, with Kelly facing questions about her tenure on the House Page Board following the Rep. Mark Foley page scandal. Hall hopes voters will think he's Still the One in 2008, with Republicans Andrew Saul, a businessman, and Kieran Lalor, an Iraq war veteran, challenging the freshman congressman.
Kuhl's seat lies in one of the state's most heavily Republican districts, but Democrats consider him vulnerable. Democrat Eric Massa, a Navy veteran, narrowly lost to Kuhl in 2006 and plans to repeat his challenge.
2004 results: Sen. Kerry won the state's 31 electoral votes with 58% of the vote.
I love the fact that it shows the results from 2004. It gives their coverage context.Illinois, home to Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama, has moved its primary up to Feb. 5.
2004 results: Sen. Kerry won the state's 21 electoral votes with 55% of the vote.
Thoughts on the readings
Chapter 19 - Writing News for Radio and Television
The first thing that I noticed when reading this chapter was the similarity between news value for broadcast and print journalism. As a mainly print journalist, I value timeliness just as much as broadcast journalists. Broadcast simply speeds things up a bit, and from my point of view, often gives shorter bits of news, which are updated more often. All of their news is breaking. Print can afford to take more time to get all of the details before an issue comes out, often giving more information in one package.
While the book points out the importance of visual impact for broadcast, I tend to see this distinction as becoming less important. Captivating photography is one of the most important aspects of a newspaper. I know that at The Ithacan, the photography section has really pulled the paper through this semester and strengthened each section. And with multimedia becoming a regular for print, it is just as important for newspapers to get good video and audio as it is for broadcast. I think as time continues, the distinction between the two will continue to blur.
Where print and broadcast do differ is in writing style. When simply looking a verbs: broadcast uses 'says' while print uses 'said.' Broadcast writing can also be more conversational. While much news writing is meant to be void of emotion, broadcast allows pauses, inflection, and other vocal devices which bring the listener along and make the experience entertaining.
Like print, however, broadcast writing is tight and to the point. As in print, there is not always enough room for a story, which means choosing facts carefully and phrasing things crisply.
There are a lot of stylistic things that will be different for a print writer to become use to. Abbreviations, for instance, are used less often. Only when the abbreviation is very well known is it used. In writing copy, word rather than symbols are used. A broadcast copy sheet would never have %, while in print it is standard.
The first thing that I noticed when reading this chapter was the similarity between news value for broadcast and print journalism. As a mainly print journalist, I value timeliness just as much as broadcast journalists. Broadcast simply speeds things up a bit, and from my point of view, often gives shorter bits of news, which are updated more often. All of their news is breaking. Print can afford to take more time to get all of the details before an issue comes out, often giving more information in one package.
While the book points out the importance of visual impact for broadcast, I tend to see this distinction as becoming less important. Captivating photography is one of the most important aspects of a newspaper. I know that at The Ithacan, the photography section has really pulled the paper through this semester and strengthened each section. And with multimedia becoming a regular for print, it is just as important for newspapers to get good video and audio as it is for broadcast. I think as time continues, the distinction between the two will continue to blur.
Where print and broadcast do differ is in writing style. When simply looking a verbs: broadcast uses 'says' while print uses 'said.' Broadcast writing can also be more conversational. While much news writing is meant to be void of emotion, broadcast allows pauses, inflection, and other vocal devices which bring the listener along and make the experience entertaining.
Like print, however, broadcast writing is tight and to the point. As in print, there is not always enough room for a story, which means choosing facts carefully and phrasing things crisply.
There are a lot of stylistic things that will be different for a print writer to become use to. Abbreviations, for instance, are used less often. Only when the abbreviation is very well known is it used. In writing copy, word rather than symbols are used. A broadcast copy sheet would never have %, while in print it is standard.
Sunday, November 4, 2007
BARACK OBAMA OPENS SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE
i love barack obama.
So it's about time I devote a whole post to him... as if it hasn't happened before.
In what CNN is calling a pivotal speech of his campaign, Obama came out with harsh words against Hillary Clinton. During the speech in Spartanburg, South Carolina, he said the following:
"Much has been said about the exchanges between Senator Clinton and myself this week," Obama said. "Now, understand that Hillary Clinton is a colleague and a friend. She's also a skilled politician, and she’s run what Washington would call a 'textbook' campaign. But the problem is the textbook itself."
And the beating only continued. Toward the end of his speech:
"I don't believe we can bring about real change if all we do is change our positions based on what's popular or politically convenient," Obama said, in a clear reference to Clinton.
Still, CNN points out that many of his comments were less harsh than his opponents. John Edwards criticized her earlier this week for what he called "double talk."
In other crazy news... DICK CHENEY AND BARACK OBAMA ARE RELATED!
Well kind of ... Barack's wife and Cheney are distant relatives. And in marvelous Obama style... he went on to refer to Cheney as "the crazy uncle in the attic."
Thoughts on the readings
Chapter 18: Investigative Reporting
Got to love it. It's the exciting part of journalism... or at least the part that seems most exciting to outsiders. Practicing journalists find most reporting exciting... but this... this is drama.
And it all starts with a question. A hunch. A tip
The basis of investigative reporting comes as instinct to many journalists. We tend to sense when something is off, and we ask why. That inquiry is the first step in investigative reporting. From there it gets tricky. It is the journalists job to find sources. Investigative reporting often means scouring records and sniffing out the right facts.
It is important to remember that with investigative reporting, as with all journalism, people tell the story best. Especially with sensitive stories, it is best to attribute and quote correctly, and to tell the story through other people's voices and stories.
I think the most important obstacle to investigative reporting the book listed is the lack of courage. So many journalists - myself included - are afraid to take on tricky topics. I did it once... and did it poorly ... and it took me a good 6 weeks to take even the most basic reporting assignment from my editors. But I think the more hard stories a reporter takes ... and the more guidance they get from their editors ... the easier it will be for them to build their confidence.
Extra! Extra!
Cool stuff -
Got to love it. It's the exciting part of journalism... or at least the part that seems most exciting to outsiders. Practicing journalists find most reporting exciting... but this... this is drama.
And it all starts with a question. A hunch. A tip
The basis of investigative reporting comes as instinct to many journalists. We tend to sense when something is off, and we ask why. That inquiry is the first step in investigative reporting. From there it gets tricky. It is the journalists job to find sources. Investigative reporting often means scouring records and sniffing out the right facts.
It is important to remember that with investigative reporting, as with all journalism, people tell the story best. Especially with sensitive stories, it is best to attribute and quote correctly, and to tell the story through other people's voices and stories.
I think the most important obstacle to investigative reporting the book listed is the lack of courage. So many journalists - myself included - are afraid to take on tricky topics. I did it once... and did it poorly ... and it took me a good 6 weeks to take even the most basic reporting assignment from my editors. But I think the more hard stories a reporter takes ... and the more guidance they get from their editors ... the easier it will be for them to build their confidence.
Extra! Extra!
Cool stuff -
- Earmarks added $11.8 billion to defense bill
- One-third of S. Florida gas pumps inaccurate
- Investigation finds animal corpses in Colorado Humane Society trash
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