Characters Welcome
July 29, 2008
“The guy who makes pop cans is probably my favorite video this summer, ” says Tileena Leighton, an American Indian Journalism Institute graduate and intern at the St. Cloud Times. Leighton has spent her summer producing one video a day for sctimes.com. The pop can airplane maker is Leighton’s favorite because she likes the character the story is built on. I agree with Leighton, the subject of the story is a character and characters make good video stories. The video also has lots of good b-roll to cover the interview and is edited tightly at about 90 seconds. Great job Tileena!
Tileena Leighton will graduate from the University of Idaho in December 2008 and hopes to pursue multimedia and video journalism at newspapers.
Sourcing — Due Friday, Aug. 1
July 22, 2008
Hey Chipsters!
We know that the more sources contributing to a story, the richer and more accurate the story is. The hard part is working them all into a story that’s only 10 inches or 50 seconds long. Do your papers/eds require a minimum number of sources per story? Do you go beyond the min. no. in your reporting? Do all the people you talk to find their way into your story? How do you get the maximum sourcing bang in such a short space? Examples from your own work? Coach Col.
Multimedia — Due Sunday, July 20
July 15, 2008
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Hey Chipsters!
Please share a tip or question involving the practicalities of multimedia.
Examples of tips: When I’m recording, I try to make sure to ask questions that get my sources to elaborate rather than “yes-no” questions. And: When I’m shooting video of something that involves a process (an emergency drill; a county/state fair animal/plant/mineral judging, etc.), I try to make sure I get footage of each step in the process.
Examples of questions: When I report for an audio slide show, how/when do I switch among notebook, camera, recorder? And where do I physically put the two that I’m not using at the moment? And: Can anyone direct me to an example (or Web site) of a particularly excellent journalistic audio slide show and/or video?
If you can answer a colleague’s question as this thread goes along or elaborate on a tip (including the above), please do! That’s the point of this thread. Thanks! — Your Coach
SOS — Due July 14
July 9, 2008
Good morning, Chipsters!
We’ve got some requests for help:
– “I thought it might be helpful if we exchanged tips on how to stay organized in a hectic news environment. Usually I’m really good at this sort of thing and people come to me for advice. But now I’m struggling to keep everything straight in my head and on paper. I think it’s super important to have some sort of system to organize stories, contacts, important dates, etc. I feel like I’ve veered off the organization path and could use a few bread crumbs to find my way back.”
– “I’ve been having some major anxiety/stress/paranoia about making errors. It’s gotten to the point where I’ve made a mistake more than three times. I always double check my stories and I’ve told my editor that I am concerned and I’m not just trying to blow it off, but I’m afraid that it’s starting to make a bad impression with my editor. My editor has told me that people are human and make mistakes, but they should be avoided. I have gathered tips from other reporters and my editors about fact checking. I know that I can only do my best, but I’m really starting to doubt myself.”
– “I’m not sure how to come up with enterprise story ideas. Every time I come up with one, I think of at least three reasons why it isn’t an idea. Can you talk about finding good ideas and the process of seeing them through to story form?”
What advice or suggestions can we offer “Hansel/Gretel,” “Doubting” and “Following Through”?
Nominations Being Accepted, 2008 McGruder Diversity Leadership Awards
July 4, 2008
The Freedom Forum, in partnership with the Associated Press Managing Editors and the American Society of Newspaper Editors, is accepting nominations for the seventh annual Robert G. McGruder Awards for Diversity Leadership.
Two awards are given annually: one for newspapers with a circulation up to 75,000; one for newspapers with more than 75,000 circulation.
The awards go to individuals, newsrooms or teams of journalists who embody the spirit of McGruder, a former executive editor of the Detroit Free Press and relentless diversity champion. McGruder died of cancer in April 2002.
Jurors will be looking for nominees who have made a significant contribution during a given year or over a number of years toward furthering diversity in newspaper content and in recruiting, developing and retaining journalists of color. The deadline to make a nomination is Aug. 1, 2008.
Announcement of the winners will be made at the annual APME conference, Sept. 8-11, 2008, in Las Vegas. The recognized honorees each receive $2,500 and a leadership trophy.
Who is eligible? Individuals, newsrooms or teams of journalists from U.S. daily newspapers are eligible. A nominee’s newspaper must participate in the American Society of Newspaper Editors’ annual employment census.
The awards recognize achievement for the past 12 months or contributions over a number of years.
What are the criteria? The Diversity Leadership Awards honor an individual, a newsroom or a team of journalists for significant leadership in diversity through:
Recruitment: by providing opportunities for journalists of color to learn about news careers and to enter the newspaper industry in internships and full-time jobs.
Development: by offering opportunities for journalists of color to grow in their current roles and to receive mentoring and training to advance to positions of greater authority, responsibility or expertise.
Retention: by ensuring that journalists of color want to remain in the news industry by providing an inclusive work environment that offers opportunities to contribute and advance.
Content: by reflecting a diverse community accurately and in a way that demonstrates community and industry leadership. The definition of diversity in content includes ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, religious background, political bent and physical ability.
Nominations can be made by individuals, newspapers, professional organizations, schools of journalism and others.
Rules for entries: Send a letter (of no more than three pages) outlining specific information about the achievements and how they benefited the community, the industry and journalists of color. The letter should include the name of the person making the nomination and his/her signature and telephone number.
You may supplement an entry with clips, but please send no more than four. Send copies no larger than 11 by 17 inches.
Send material to: Jack Marsh, HYPERLINK “mailto:jmarsh@freedomforum.org” jmarsh@freedomforum.org, Freedom Forum Diversity Institute, 555 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
Deadline: Materials must be received in the Freedom Forum’s Washington office by Friday, Aug. 1, 2008.
Nominations will be judged by a committee that includes representatives of APME, ASNE, the Freedom Forum and UNITY: Journalists of Color.
Past winners of the McGruder awards
2007
Wanda Lloyd, executive editor, Montgomery (Ala.) Advertiser; and Joe Grimm, recruiting and development editor, Detroit Free Press.
2006
Sharon Rosenhause, managing editor, Sun-Sentinel, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; and the Pacific Daily News on Guam
2005
Argus Leader, Sioux Falls, S.D.; and The Honolulu (Hawaii) Advertiser
2004
Bennie Ivory, executive editor and vice president for news at The Courier-Journal in Louisville, Ky.; and Susan Ihne, then executive editor, St. Cloud (Minn.) Times
2003
Charlotte Hall, then vice president/planning, Newsday, Long Island; and the Greeley (Colo.) Tribune
2002
Don Flores, executive vice president and editor, El Paso (Texas) Times; and Jim Strauss, publisher, Great Falls (Mont.) Tribune
One Man, 449 Miles
July 2, 2008
Jason Simons is the one man between a flat tire and the road on the Tour de Kota. Simons serves as mechanical support on the annual ride which took riders on a 449 mile loop beginning and ending in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
Refugees in Sioux Falls
July 2, 2008
The North Cleveland Apartments in Sioux Falls are home to many refugees like 64-year-old Sudanese refugee Adam Yahya who was a veterinarian and now works at the Morrell meat packing plant. Read the story.
