So as you may have NOTICED, it's been a while since I've last posted. And for good reason. it's been summer time, and not too much has been going on... until now.
As many people are aware, it's an election year, and I have the privilege of working for the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer during their gavel-to-gavel coverage of the Republican National Convention in St. Paul coming up next week. So keep in touch; when the RNC kicks off, I'll be posting here sharing what goes on behind the scenes of such a huge undertaking. I'll also have some pictures to throw up too, so keep an eye out.
Convention begins in FOUR DAYS!
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Capstone progress
So I have a capstone for the fall now! As it turns out, I will be using both of the skills I mentioned from my last entry in the final version.
So here's how it's going to fall. I'll do a package every other week, and these will be under a deadline. At the beginning of the semester, I'll work under a deadline of two days for these packages. As the semester moves on, I'll work towards reducing the amount of time for each package. Also as the semester goes on, I'll have to use VJ gear for some of these packages. The gear will come in midway through the semester, after I've done a few packages, but before I reduce the deadline. By the end, I'll be using both a reduced deadline AND the VJ gear to produce my packages. Later tonight I'll be putting together a specific schedule for the next semester.
That's all well and good, but what do I get out of it that's tangible? Well, I'll put together a resume tape that already demonstrates work that would be close to the deadlines I'd face in a real job. And to help give me feedback on the process and packages, in addition to the department professors, I have also lined up a professional producer from a local TV station. She's a person that I've worked with before at a past internship, so I know that I can trust her to be perfectly honest with me in terms of how well I've put the package together.
It is what it is! (Hope I don't have to say that seriously anytime soon!)
So here's how it's going to fall. I'll do a package every other week, and these will be under a deadline. At the beginning of the semester, I'll work under a deadline of two days for these packages. As the semester moves on, I'll work towards reducing the amount of time for each package. Also as the semester goes on, I'll have to use VJ gear for some of these packages. The gear will come in midway through the semester, after I've done a few packages, but before I reduce the deadline. By the end, I'll be using both a reduced deadline AND the VJ gear to produce my packages. Later tonight I'll be putting together a specific schedule for the next semester.
That's all well and good, but what do I get out of it that's tangible? Well, I'll put together a resume tape that already demonstrates work that would be close to the deadlines I'd face in a real job. And to help give me feedback on the process and packages, in addition to the department professors, I have also lined up a professional producer from a local TV station. She's a person that I've worked with before at a past internship, so I know that I can trust her to be perfectly honest with me in terms of how well I've put the package together.
It is what it is! (Hope I don't have to say that seriously anytime soon!)
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Capstone closing
So it's now almost time for me to turn in my Capstone project for next semester, and as it stands, I'll be digging for approval for my project this week. The department wasn't so much a fan of my proposal in the first place, so I'm kind of making up for lost time, but I have what I think is a better idea and hopefully that will help matters somewhat. I'm actually torn between two elements to focus on, or even the possibility of working in both. I realized that I know I can put together a good package for a TV show, but my usual time frame for them is over a week, not a day. With that in mind, I'd like to try and simulate the deadline pressure that I would feel in a real professional job.
In this case, I'd choose at least one package every other week, and then give myself a timeframe of 24-48 hours to get it complete. While this is still not a true-to-life timeframe, it is one that will at least move me closer to being prepared for a job in the field.
The other possibility is to practice my one-man-band-ing skills. After this semester, I think I'm better than I thought at shooting stories with only myself to be both behind and in front of the camera. More significant than that, it's a style of journalism that is becoming more prevalent in the business these days, and any person studying them would be remiss in not at least becoming familiar with the technology behind this new brand of journalism.
The third option I have, one which I'm leaning to right now, is to combine these aspects into one project, giving the whole undertaking some more depth. For this version, I hope to try and incorporate all of these elements to bring each piece in to my practice. I would keep the every-other-week schedule of deadline projects, but I would also add in the requirement that some of these be completed on my own, as a "VJ," shooting, editing, and writing the story all on my own.
I think this might be the way I go, especially as it incorporates so many important elements into my practice. I'll be deciding tonight, so keep checking here, you'll see more on this tomorrow.
In this case, I'd choose at least one package every other week, and then give myself a timeframe of 24-48 hours to get it complete. While this is still not a true-to-life timeframe, it is one that will at least move me closer to being prepared for a job in the field.
The other possibility is to practice my one-man-band-ing skills. After this semester, I think I'm better than I thought at shooting stories with only myself to be both behind and in front of the camera. More significant than that, it's a style of journalism that is becoming more prevalent in the business these days, and any person studying them would be remiss in not at least becoming familiar with the technology behind this new brand of journalism.
The third option I have, one which I'm leaning to right now, is to combine these aspects into one project, giving the whole undertaking some more depth. For this version, I hope to try and incorporate all of these elements to bring each piece in to my practice. I would keep the every-other-week schedule of deadline projects, but I would also add in the requirement that some of these be completed on my own, as a "VJ," shooting, editing, and writing the story all on my own.
I think this might be the way I go, especially as it incorporates so many important elements into my practice. I'll be deciding tonight, so keep checking here, you'll see more on this tomorrow.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
It IS Happening!
It's now official! This small town guy is off to St. Paul later this summer to go to the Republican National Convention, working for the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer! I just got the final word today, and that's how it'll be! And how about that for a first PAID job in the industry?!
This is really a dream come true in some small way for me. The NewsHour has been the place I go to get news for years now, since I've always thought it to be the most even-handed newscast of any of them. CNN is my second, but that's neither here nor there. I'll be doing all sorts of things there; I really can't yet outline exactly how my time will be spent, but it's going to be great to get my name out there, and the addition of this to my resume I think will be nothing short of invaluable.
I'm so excited for this right now, it's amazing. I'll be hearing more about this over the next few weeks, so I'll be around of that you can be sure.
This is really a dream come true in some small way for me. The NewsHour has been the place I go to get news for years now, since I've always thought it to be the most even-handed newscast of any of them. CNN is my second, but that's neither here nor there. I'll be doing all sorts of things there; I really can't yet outline exactly how my time will be spent, but it's going to be great to get my name out there, and the addition of this to my resume I think will be nothing short of invaluable.
I'm so excited for this right now, it's amazing. I'll be hearing more about this over the next few weeks, so I'll be around of that you can be sure.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
It's Happening!
Wow... what a morning!
It's the middle of Greek Week right now, so life is crazy as it is, but it just got even crazier!
The internship/job that I mentioned in my last post with the NewsHour? Yeah, I'm pretty much sure it's gonna happen! I just got off the phone with one of the senior producers and from what she said, it seems the question is more WHERE to put me, as opposed to whether or not to take me!
Nothing's final yet, but we'll be talking again in the next 24 hours, so don't go far, more is coming!
It's the middle of Greek Week right now, so life is crazy as it is, but it just got even crazier!
The internship/job that I mentioned in my last post with the NewsHour? Yeah, I'm pretty much sure it's gonna happen! I just got off the phone with one of the senior producers and from what she said, it seems the question is more WHERE to put me, as opposed to whether or not to take me!
Nothing's final yet, but we'll be talking again in the next 24 hours, so don't go far, more is coming!
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Opportunity's knocking!
Well THIS is an interesting weekend for sure!
I have now THREE leads for my future. Two are for jobs, and one is for an internship which would be about five different kinds of awesome.
First, I may likely be applying for a job soon in Youngstown. It might be out of my reach, but who knows. Once I get my resume tape wrapped up, that'll be in the works.
Second, Weaver recently informed us of an opening for a reporter that he found in Virginia. It's definitely a smaller market, but it's also probably more the size I can expect to start in.
OK, now to the internship, and this is where it gets GOOD. I have a family member who works for the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer on PBS, one of the most balanced news discussion shows on TV. Now, granted, I've had two internships already, but this is a rare chance. She recently passed along an oppotunity for me to intern with the NewsHour during the upcoming Democratic National Convention. Now, it's by no means a sure thing, but I've already started to put the gears in motion on this one. Stay tuned for more on that!
In the meantime, now that Blogger is cooperating with me, here's one of the stories I'm most likely to put up on my resume tape, below. If any media people out there should see this, please feel free to leave a comment with feedback. I've been critiqued by a large-market news director, and a larger-market reporter about some of my work before, so do your worst; I can take it.
I have now THREE leads for my future. Two are for jobs, and one is for an internship which would be about five different kinds of awesome.
First, I may likely be applying for a job soon in Youngstown. It might be out of my reach, but who knows. Once I get my resume tape wrapped up, that'll be in the works.
Second, Weaver recently informed us of an opening for a reporter that he found in Virginia. It's definitely a smaller market, but it's also probably more the size I can expect to start in.
OK, now to the internship, and this is where it gets GOOD. I have a family member who works for the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer on PBS, one of the most balanced news discussion shows on TV. Now, granted, I've had two internships already, but this is a rare chance. She recently passed along an oppotunity for me to intern with the NewsHour during the upcoming Democratic National Convention. Now, it's by no means a sure thing, but I've already started to put the gears in motion on this one. Stay tuned for more on that!
In the meantime, now that Blogger is cooperating with me, here's one of the stories I'm most likely to put up on my resume tape, below. If any media people out there should see this, please feel free to leave a comment with feedback. I've been critiqued by a large-market news director, and a larger-market reporter about some of my work before, so do your worst; I can take it.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
It's starting to come together!
Well, this is fun! I'm finally nailing some packages and I THINK I have two or three worth it on my resume tape. This is good news, since I hope to be applying for a job shortly! It might be a bit out of my reach, but hey, it can't hurt to try. Especially since I have a contact from a past internship involved; that should be helpful!
Anyway, the BC life continues, but with an interesting twist. I seem to be picking up more and more political stories lately. Now, I'm fine with this, but it's kind of weird, seeing as I've only had ONE Poli. Sci. class... EVER. Then again, I am the guy who camped out in his room for every primary through the month of February watching results come in, so maybe that should explain something. I'm kind of wondering if maybe I should look into working with politics (in the news) more. I'm not about to add a minor to get that knowledge, but who knows.
Right now, I'm in the middle of an interesting three weeks news-wise. Last week, my package was on the kickoff/opening of Barack Obama's campaign office in New Castle. This week, I'll be hosting the interview segment and talking to Jim Rhoads, a Westminster professor who worked with the Mock Convention and who is very much in the know when it comes to all levels of politics. And finally, next week is the big primary here in PA, so I'll be out on Election Day doing my deadline assignment, shooting, writing, and editing a story in one day. And yes, I realize that this is what I'll have to do anyway, but it's still a change from the norm for the County Line. Tune in for more on all that LATER this week.
For now I leave you (FINALLY!) with a package of mine. This aired mid-March, so it's not my most current, but it is one of my best ones yet. Enjoy!
EDIT: Blogger likes me again! Package is now available above!
Anyway, the BC life continues, but with an interesting twist. I seem to be picking up more and more political stories lately. Now, I'm fine with this, but it's kind of weird, seeing as I've only had ONE Poli. Sci. class... EVER. Then again, I am the guy who camped out in his room for every primary through the month of February watching results come in, so maybe that should explain something. I'm kind of wondering if maybe I should look into working with politics (in the news) more. I'm not about to add a minor to get that knowledge, but who knows.
Right now, I'm in the middle of an interesting three weeks news-wise. Last week, my package was on the kickoff/opening of Barack Obama's campaign office in New Castle. This week, I'll be hosting the interview segment and talking to Jim Rhoads, a Westminster professor who worked with the Mock Convention and who is very much in the know when it comes to all levels of politics. And finally, next week is the big primary here in PA, so I'll be out on Election Day doing my deadline assignment, shooting, writing, and editing a story in one day. And yes, I realize that this is what I'll have to do anyway, but it's still a change from the norm for the County Line. Tune in for more on all that LATER this week.
For now I leave you (FINALLY!) with a package of mine. This aired mid-March, so it's not my most current, but it is one of my best ones yet. Enjoy!
EDIT: Blogger likes me again! Package is now available above!
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