Monday, April 21, 2008

Sen. Barack Obama prepares for presidential primary at town hall meeting in Reading, Penn.















Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) pauses during a town hall meeting in Reading, Penn. He and Hilary Clinton (D-N.Y.) have been campaigning in preparation for for the presidential primary scheduled on Tuesday, April 22, 2008. (Reuters photo by Bradley Bower/April 20, 2008)

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Teach For America

Wow. I didn't realize how much of a challenge that was going to be. Getting strangers to call you back is not the easiest thing ever. Again, I resorted to someone I knew personally. My friend's sister was a teacher for Teach For America and she gave me a whole bunch of good information. Omari gave me some good information, but everything he said I pretty much already knew just from reading the website. He was a nice guy, but I could tell he had other things to do, which is understandable. Laura, however, was SO helpful! She inspired me to want to join the program. I know this girl personally and she is not the teacher type. The fact that she enjoyed this so much and had so much to say really made me think about this for myself.

Here's the link to my story. Enjoy!

Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Picture Post!

Here's my picture blog! I'm actually really excited about this because I love love love photography. All of the pictures were taken by me (except the one I'm in and the Spice Girls picture). Read the captions to see where everything is from! :)




This picture tells a story. It's my little brother (not so little anymore, he's 17 now) on our cousin's boat in Sicily. It was our first time on the Mediterranean Sea. Woo hoo!















This picture doesn't really tell a story, but it's pretty! This is from the balcony of my aunt and uncle's home in Palermo (I'm related to about 75% of the people in the distance!) ;)















This picture fills the frame. It touches two points in the picture (rule of thirds). This is from our family cemetery in Sicily.















This is an example of a picture that doesn't fill the frame. It's a pretty flower, but there is a lot of awkward space around it and the most attractive parts don't follow the rule of three lines.















Action! This was me on the day of Alpha Xi Delta's Big/Little Reveal last semester! This is me trying to quickly put together a puzzle with my big's number on it.

One huge pile of puzzle pieces + 27 girls = forever to finish!












No action, but really funny. My friend did this to my car while I was still in class. This was from my senior year of high school. LOL






















Candid. This is Will Pugh, the lead singer of Cartel (one of my favorite bands). This was from my first time seeing them. :-D





















Not candid. I didn't take this one (obviously), but these girls are my life! I've been a fan since 4th grade and I saw them for the first and last time on February 24th. It was their second to last show.

Best. Night. Ever.


Monday, April 7, 2008

Feature story progress

My progress with this story and the interview picked up a lot last week. I was able to get in touch with Omari and we had a great discussion. He really loves Teach for America. He seemed excited to share his experiences with me.

This is the rough, rough, rough draft of my feature lede:

Teach for America is a corps program for college graduates that changes the lives of children all around the country.

I want to really focus on the fact that this job may pay back your loans, but it's so much more than that. By becoming a teacher for these less fortunate kids, these graduates are changing their lives and giving them an education they may not have gotten the chance to have.

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Crime Story Reporting


(2) Campus police are reticent to talk, but they released a press release last night stating that three guns and two pipe bombs were found in a student's dorm room, along with a scrapbook of newspaper clippings describing in detail how the Virginia Tech shootings were carried out. They suspect the student had similiar plans and say they are relieved to have discovered the plot before anyone got hurt. The Towerlight editor has assigned you to cover the story.


First of all, I'd try to get all of the information that I can, especially the bulleted items from Chapter 13. So far, there are no victims so that's out. I'd need to get the status of the investigation (suspects, charges, etc). If someone has been charged, I'd get all of their basic information, and if a single person has not been identified, I'd need to get any details on that person. For this specific case, I really want to know what dorm complex this student lives in, his/her major, hometown, and any significant history.

The most important thing to get (in my opinion) are the details of the crime. Everyone loves drama!

In this scenario, the police aren't talking very much, and Towson isn't looking for bad PR. Getting them to cough up the good stuff is going to be a challenge, but they aren't the only people I can go to. The Housing and Residence Life Staff (RA's, CC Workers, etc) are sure to know details as well.

I think some cool media components could include an interactive video on what exactly a pipe bomb is, because I don't even know and I'm the one who is covering the story. I also think that it would be good to publish some safety tips for college students.


Interview...ugh

Trying to get an interview with someone from Teach for America Baltimore has been a little bit of  pain. Interviews for my last story were so much easier to do. I knew all of the people personally, however, which I'm sure had a little something to do with it. 

I've been trying to get in touch with Omari Todd, who is the Executive Director of the Baltimore region. I read his bio and he seems like such a nice guy. He actually started out as a teacher and taught for four years. He didn't go to undergrad in Baltimore, but he got his master's at Johns Hopkins (clearly he's smart too).

As much as I'd like to talk to Omari personally, I'm not sure that it's going to happen very soon. I've only been shooting for him, but all I've done is left voicemails and send e-mails. I feel like this is kind of strange because when I clicked "contact" on the website, his name was the only one to show up. Shouldn't he be calling me back?!?!?

I've decided that if I don't hear anything from him tomorrow, I'm going to just ask for anyone who has some free time to speak with me if they can. I want to start making connections asap!

I'm kind of nervous for my interview. I hope I can go to meet with these people face to face instead of doing a phone interview. I can't stand talking on the phone about important things. I really like to see people's facial expressions and have their full attention.

I'm also nervous because I've never really done a serious interview with someone I didn't know at all. For my last story, my biggest stretch was the financial guy from Wachovia, and I've met him a bunch of times with my mom and he helped me set up a new savings account. 

Either way, I want to start getting these interviews done so I can pick an angle for my feature story and get this ball rolling. :)

Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Washington Post Field Trip

My trip to the Washington Post was SO great! About three hours, we sat in a conference with Rob Curley, the Vice President of Product Development. In most situations, sitting and listening to someone talk for that amount of time would put me to sleep. This time, however, it did the exact opposite. I was so intrigued by everything Rob was talking about. He gave us an overview of the Washington Post, washingtonpost.com, news websites from his hometown, and so much more.

We also talked about the future of news and technology, and how the two have already met and are growing side by side. Rob stressed the importance of news being available on cell phones – especially the iPhone. He strongly believes (and knows) that in a matter of time, everyone is going to have a phone with this kind of style. The Post has already recognized this and has made changes to their website. They have made their website iPhone-friendly, unlike some newssites that aren’t easily read on small screens.

One of my favorite features from the Post’s website is their dining guide. After a little bit of typing and the click of a mouse, sushi places that are open at midnight appear right before your eyes.  I think something like this should be created for the Towson area.

We also got a tour of the Washington Post offices as well as the washingtonpost.com offices. The Post is very typical, and it looks like it popped out of All the President’s Men. The website’s offices are completely different. The 4 levels look a lot like a Real World house! It was totally modern and I loved it.

Annie, Danielle, and I are very inspired to start our own blog-type of website for TU students. There is so much that we’re missing out on and we’ve got big plans to change it. ;-)

 Thanks so much to Rob Curley, Thomas Lieb, Stacy Spaulding, and the entire staff of the Post for giving me such a wonderful opportunity to learn such valuable information. I had a wonderful time!

Feature Story - Teach for America

For my feature story, I want to write about Teach for America. As soon as I heard about it in class, I thought it was such a great program. In fact, it’s something that I’d even be interested in doing.

According to the website, Teach for America’s main goal is to eliminate the lack of education by hiring top college graduates. They don’t just take everyone; it is a very selective program and those who are interested must be highly qualified to get a position.  

There are currently about 5,000 “corps members” who work in 26 urban and rural areas. Each of these 5,000 people went through the application process and come from diverse backgrounds.

I can’t wait to meet a teacher for this program. It sounds so wonderful and by the sound of it, these people are great! J

Proofreading

Honestly, I really enjoy proofreading. I think it’s SO important and such a crucial part of writing. Just one word can change the entire meaning and interpretation of a statement. For example, I’ve learned that when stating my opinion, I shouldn’t use too many words and be firm in what I say. Newswriting is similar in that meaning gets lost in wordiness.

Grammar mistakes are also a problem. I can’t take anything seriously that has a grammar error like “your” or “you’re” being mixed up.

The best way for me to proofread is write something and read it the next day. At that point, I’ve forgotten most of what I’ve written and can read my work objectively. I also like to read things out loud. I’ve made so many mistakes by just scanning my papers because I only spot really obvious problems.

Helmet Laws

Doctors strongly oppose the Maryland State Legislature consideration to change motorcyclist helmet laws.

 

Many physicians in Towson are opposed to the bill. About fifty of them held a press conference Monday morning on the front lawn of Memorial Hospital. An audience of over one hundred nurses, paramedics, and other healthcare workers was present. The doctors unveiled a petition to legislators asking them not to pass the bill. Doctors from Johns Hopkins University Hospital, Mercy Hospital and Greater Baltimore Medical Center were present at the press conference.

 

The doctors have gotten nearly four hundred signatures so far on the petition and hope to have at least five hundred by the time they send it to the legislature.

 

The number of serious head injuries caused by motorcycle accidents in Maryland is over 70% less now then when the helmet law was adopted 25 years ago, said Dr. Karl Sodergreen. He said that reduction is directly related to passage of the law.

 

Dr. Hector Rivera said a study from last year about health-care costs related to motorcycle riding by the state medical society showed that emergency room costs alone could go up by more than 45 percent if the helmet law is repealed.

 

Dr. Sodergreen said the physicians plan to send their petition to the legislature on Monday. The bill is to be considered by the legislature next Wednesday.

 

Ironically, there was a motorcyclist accident during the press conference. The driver of the vehicle was not wearing his helmet, and the aftermath was available for all to see. This executed the perfect example of why so many medical professionals are against this bill change. 

Helmet Laws

Doctors strongly oppose the Maryland State Legislature consideration to change motorcyclist helmet laws.

 

Many physicians in Towson are opposed to the bill. About fifty of them held a press conference Monday morning on the front lawn of Memorial Hospital. An audience of over one hundred nurses, paramedics, and other healthcare workers was present. The doctors unveiled a petition to legislators asking them not to pass the bill. Doctors from Johns Hopkins University Hospital, Mercy Hospital and Greater Baltimore Medical Center were present at the press conference.

 

The doctors have gotten nearly four hundred signatures so far on the petition and hope to have at least five hundred by the time they send it to the legislature.

 

The number of serious head injuries caused by motorcycle accidents in Maryland is over 70% less now then when the helmet law was adopted 25 years ago, said Dr. Karl Sodergreen. He said that reduction is directly related to passage of the law.

 

Dr. Hector Rivera said a study from last year about health-care costs related to motorcycle riding by the state medical society showed that emergency room costs alone could go up by more than 45 percent if the helmet law is repealed.

 

Dr. Sodergreen said the physicians plan to send their petition to the legislature on Monday. The bill is to be considered by the legislature next Wednesday.

 

Ironically, there was a motorcyclist accident during the press conference. The driver of the vehicle was not wearing his helmet, and the aftermath was available for all to see. This executed the perfect example of why so many medical professionals are against this bill change. 

Revised Lede

Towson students say they are more willing to use credit cards on food and alcohol after they have been drinking.

Two Ledes I Liked

I really like Annie’s lede a lot. It directly relates to me, which is a big flashing light for me. I’m also really interested in what she finds out about how onecards relate to college credit card debt. I can’t wait to read her story!

I also really liked Danielle’s lede. I think the fact that she created Debt 101 was catchy and kind of funny. She made the lede really tie both topics together.

Source Ideas

I definitely have some ideas about who I’d like to talk to for my interview. I have a little bit of an advantage because of my job. My boss is actually the owner of Pizans, so I can go straight to the top and not get second hand information from a manager. We also see so many different customers, and I would like to ask a college student and an adult their opinions on my thought and direction of my newsstory.

I also want to talk to a bank representative. I think I’m going to go to a bank near my house because I’m sure a lot of people are going to talk to the people at Chevy Chase in the Union, and I’d like an opinion of someone that doesn’t work directly with students.

Monday, March 24, 2008

After reading the three feature stories and Chapter 6, I not only have a good understanding of what a feature story is, but the technical parts as well. Whenever I buy a magazine, I always go straight to the feature stories. They are typically really interesting, tell a good story and give me some insight.

Feature stories can vary in length, from fairly long to fairly short. They have a lot more descriptive words, which is something I like (I have that problem with my news writing, so this should be a little bit easier for me :))

I paid special attention to each of the leads in the stories. I especially liked the Shake, Rattle and Sell lead. The entire story was told in a really vivid way, and it all started right at the very beginning. I could picture what was going on the whole time. I don't even like baseball, but now I'm in the mood to go to a game and pig out. I also had no idea how hard these people work. It's pretty obvious that they're carrying around a bunch of food, but 20-40 pounds is a lot more than I thought. The imagery in the story allowed me to imagine myself trying to carry that much food up and down stadium stairs for hours, and it gave me an appreciation for how hard these guys work.

The bottom line of each story isn't exactly important, but that's what feature stories are all about. Feature stories are able to make a big deal out of something that could be told in a few sentences. They can be biographical, like the lemonade guy's story, or they can just tell a cute story, like the girl and her recovered wedding ring.

Sunday, February 24, 2008

Here is the rough draft of my lede for my story:

College students tend to rack up the most frivolous credit card charges at the bars and restaurants after they have been out drinking.

Sunday, February 17, 2008

Credit Card Debt

I think that three people who would be great to interview for the topic of college students & credit card debt include a student who does actually have some credit card debt, the parent of a student with credit card debt, and someone who works for a credit card company (it would be quite ironic if this employee was a student who did, in fact, have some credit card debt).

I talked to a girl that I work with who isn't exactly in debt, but she does have a little bit of outstanding money owed to her credit card company. It frustrates her because she wants to pay off the bill, but she slowly but surely continues to dig herself a deeper hole. When she gets a paycheck, she spends it on bills. She's pretty much stuck between a rock and a hard place.

For my news story, I want to talk about how even if students get themselves in debt, it isn't just because of irresponsibility. Sure, there are students out there who spend their money like it grows on trees and then complain about the bill later, but there are also those students who pay for everything themselves and find it difficult to balance everything.

Tuesday, February 5, 2008

Credit Card Debt

Credit card debt is a horrible thing to deal with, especially if you're a college student. According to MSNBC, about 75% of the 17 million college students have credit cards. In 1998, 67% of college students had credit cards. 

The number of credit cards isn't the only number that has changed, however. MSNBC also says the "freshman 15" is no longer just a phrase to describe the beer and pizza pounds packed on in the first year of college. It now represents the thousands of dollars that some students have in debt. That's right -- $15,000. Only a few students have gone this far, thank goodness.

Young Money says that the average credit card debt of a college student is around $2,700 and only 10% of these credit card holders have gone above $7,000. They also provided some pretty interesting facts about these big spenders. Nellie Mae, a leading provider of higher education loans, analyzed last year's applicant information. Most students have about three credit cards, and 32% had four or more. I personally don't understand why people need that many.

All I have to say is that I'm really glad I don't have a credit card. I'd be packing on the freshman 50 if I did.

Saturday, February 2, 2008

Oh No They Didn't!

A great example of a well-written and designed blog is Oh No They Didn't. Created only a few years ago, ONTD has blown up into a widely known celebrity gossip blog with over 100 million viewers. This blog is run by an administrative team and its members. Any member of the community is allowed to post an entry, and the admin approves it. Repeated articles rarely show up and the information sources are always listed to ensure credibility. As long as you are a member of the community, you are free to post and comment. Not to mention, it is highly addictive. ;-)

This blog is different from other types of news writing for quite a few reasons. As mentioned in class, people can comment on these articles and edited as needed. There is a very distinct sense of humor that is present in the blogs as well as the comments which makes them fun to read. While this is the only blog I read regularly, I'm sure there are others out there that are just as entertaining!

To be honest, I do not know many students that read blogs. The closest thing to a blog that I know is enormously popular among students is Facebook. There are just so many blogs out there and it is hard to pinpoint one that appeals to you (I learned about Oh No They Didn't through a friend). I think that blogs would be a successful tool for journalists and public relations professionals to use if they are advertised in a very public place, such as a magazine or ad on a popular website. If no one has heard about it, the chances of multiple finding and reading it are very slim.

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

Newsrooms use Google Maps to improve wildfire coverage

Newsrooms use Google Maps to improve wildfire coverage is the title of an article that covers a new kind of journalism that I haven't even heard of. Combining two different types of media to express an idea or current event is exactly what these newsrooms did. Google maps is a tool that is mostly used by people in their homes searching for directions. However, this time they were used for something that benefits a wide range of people. By using this effective tool, millions of people around the country were able to more effectively keep track of the wildfires that occurred in Southern California.

While the blog entry I recently posted with my own mad is an example of convergence journalism, it isn't quite as effective because not as many people are reading it. Either way, I am still writing and publishing an article and the public can view it. Of course, only my classmates will benefit from my post because my peers' residential locations aren't exactly a prime interest of the rest of the country.