Connecting Music to Media

ACRN is Ohio University’s All Campus Radio Network, but they are much more than just Internet radio. ACRN does everything from previewing local shows to reviewing albums.

ACRN focuses primarily on college rock. Their website, ACRN.com, is home not only to their online radio stream, but also their editorials. In the past ACRN has been able to gain access to many big name bands, such as Blink 182, Manchester Orchestra and Heartless Bastards. As far as feature their writing is concerned, ACRN tends to focus on the local music scene.

“We are in Athens so we need to focus on what is going on in Athens,” said Hannah Cook, managing editor of ACRN.

However, ACRN members strive to be more than just a music organization on campus.

“ACRN is about finding your voice,” said Cook. “We give students more chances to write creatively. That is why we focus on feature stories.”

Scripps Alumna Shares Tips for Time Management

When it comes to being successful, time management is a key component.  Jill Del Greco, an OU Scripps alumna, is an expert at time management and meeting pressure deadlines everyday at her job.

She has been working at the WHIO news station in Dayton as the crime and courts reporter for the past five years.  The members of the Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA) skyped with Del Greco this past Wednesday evening to get an idea of what deadline reporting is all about.

As Del Greco began to describe an average 10-hour shift at the newsroom, many RTDNA students were in awe of all she manages to get done.  She even jokes that when she wakes up in the morning she “gets ready in front of my computer.”  She is constantly checking on the news beats and following up on old stories as well.

Scripps Student Spotlight

OU broadcast student Ryan Boyd talks about his JSchool experience

It’s been written that everyone has a story. In each Inc issue, a reporter will interview and profile a J-school student, asking him or her about extracurricular involvement, past experience, and future plans.

Name: Ryan Boyd

Year: Sophomore

Sequence: News and Info Gathering (Broadcast Journalism)

Q: What programs or organizations are you involved in here at Ohio University?

A: I am an anchor for “Ohio Sports Zone” with AVW Productions. Another AVW production show I’m on is “life and adams.” I am the color commentator and writer for Ohio Hockey. Something I have that doesn’t necessarily count for Athens but for my career is I write for an NHL website called ice insiders.

Q: In your opinion, how does being involved benefit not only you as a student, but for you future career as well.

A: “Being involved is important because it gives you opportunities that classes can’t give you. I know classes are important but there are so many general requirements and classes like that, that truthfully don’t do a lot for your major. So I have the opportunity to work with other people who are interested in the same things and I get to learn first-hand how to be on TV, be on the radio those types of things; not only does it better my experience here for classes I’m going to be taking in the future but it also benefits me for the future because it’s what I plan on to be doing for the rest of my life.”

SPJ Students Learn to Utilize Journalism Apps

SPJ VP shows students how to use apps while working in the field

The Society of Professional Journalists started off their winter quarter meetings with a look into the ever-growing list of applications for smart phones and tablets that can be applied to journalism.

With technology constantly evolving and improving, it is becoming more important for journalists to see the benefits of using apps that can help them in the field.  The smart phone is starting to become the eyes and ears for those working on a breaking story.

While being stuck behind a desk is not the ideal situation for journalists trying to cover a story, smartphones like the iPhone, Android, and Blackberry have apps that now make a journalist’s daily work much easier.

App Expert and Vice President of SPJ, Emma Morehart, led this meeting by explaining some of her favorite and most useful apps. 

The Face of the JSchool

Scripps ambassadors ‘give back’ to their school

E.W. Scripps 2010-2011 ambassadors pose outside Scripps Hall last fall.

Have you ever wondered what to study or how to prepare yourself in college? Some say that asking college professors or family members can give you the right tools, but sometimes speaking to an E.W. Scripps School of Journalism student ambassador will do the trick. The ambassadors give a student’s perspective of what college life is like and are more than willing to offer advice.

This year, there are 22 JSchool ambassadors. Their majors range from magazine journalism to broadcast and news media, and some even chose a Carr Van Anda degree. No matter your journalism interest, there is an ambassador for you.

Column: Networking with a Washington, D.C. Flavor

Inc. co-editor Emma Morehart deserts “networking,” makes friends instead

Networking. Say it aloud. Taste it, really savor it. I’ll wait.

I know, you’re probably as sick of that word as I was. I used to think it tasted kind of bitter like the pink nail polish I stubbornly bit off my nails during my self-proclaimed tomboy childhood.

Networking. We journalists love it because it pads our resumes and, let’s be honest, we’re generally good at it. But we also hate networking because it feels fake and overrated. Our clips should speak for themselves, right? We’re the watchdogs. We’re the good guys! No brown-nosers need apply.

While waiting to cross the busy street in Georgetown, Morehart poses for a photo taken by her best friend and Inc. co-editor, Graylyn Roose.

Networking, networking, networking – let’s just get comfortable with it now – networking. All of the professors, alumni and guest speakers who told you to network were right (like how my mom was right about the gross nail biting habit).

A few weeks ago, I returned from an internship in Washington, D.C. I worked for the Office of Public Affairs, the communications arm of the Administrative office of the U.S. Courts. Months before, with law school in my future, I sought out internships that combined journalism and law. I had a chat with Tom Hodson, a Scripps alum and professor, who insisted I contact Richard Carelli, the Senior Public Affairs Specialist who later became my boss. After working for the Associated Press, getting his law degree, and taking a job with the courts, Carelli became one of E.W Scripps School of Journalism’s Distinguished Alumni.

For three months, I lived in D.C. with Kevin Zieber, a Scripps journalism grad, and Ryan Ford, another Scripps college alum. By the end of the internship, I had made more new Bobcat friends in D.C., many of them former Scripps kids, than I would have if I had stayed on campus for fall quarter. And I emphasize the word “friends.”

Column: Scripps Students Face the World Head On

Senior year is a busy time for every Scripps student. After almost four years of newswriting classes, unpaid internships, and lectures from our parents about the real world, it’s time for us to try it out for ourselves. The long holiday break is over and final tuition payments are coming due. It finally feels like the beginning of the end of college. It’s enough to make us want to sign up for another year … or three.

Last quarter I was lucky enough to get a taste of the real world a little bit early. Like many Scripps students, I took a quarter off for an internship. The change to intern with NBC’s Today Show in New York City was truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I was gone all fall quarter, getting accustomed to both the brand new task of living in America’s biggest city and working for a national morning news program.

For college students in general, the thought of working in the so-called “real world” is intimidating. It feels like a big change. Even though we work hard in our classes and strive to learn more in our extracurriculars, nobody really knows what to expect. The 6 a.m.’s seem daunting, a stark contrast to the 11 a.m. or noon starting times we’ve been able to schedule as upperclassmen.

But if the experience I had last quarter is any indication, there’s good news for Scripps students: we’re far more ready than we think we are. Working with shining stars in the field (like former OU student) Matt Lauer and Ann Curry, it was hard not to feel a little intimidated at first. I had experience internships beforehand, but never on a national scale.

I was smart to brace myself; they kept our schedules packed. No busy work for us. The other interns and I accompanied reporters and producers on local shoots, answered wacky calls from viewers at the front desk, and logged hours of tape. We came early and stayed late, learning firsthand about the time demands required in the news business. We were all lucky enough to spend at least two early mornings a week in the control room, running errands and watching the senior producers coordinate a four-hour show. I can’t say I got much sleep during my time in Manhattan, but I’m not sorry about it. It was the best way to learn.

Tackling the Transition

Scripps faculty members discuss the benefits and challenges of the transition

Ohio University will transition from quarters to semesters in 2012. For some, that sounds like a broken record, but for others it is scary, unfamiliar, territory.  Whatever your take on the switch, have no fear, Inc. is here!  This week, Inc. spoke with E.W. Scripps School of Journalism Director Bob Stewart  and Professor Hans Meyer to set your questions to rest.

What is the purpose of creating a plan with my advisor?  Does this plan lock me in until I graduate?  And when will I be notified to create one?

Scripps School of Journalism faculty gather to discuss the logistics of the transition.

“Scripps is being required by the university to show a pathway to graduate under semesters, in essence, if the student follows the plan then they are guaranteed to graduate at that time,” Stewart said. However, it is important to keep in mind that it is difficult to plan these things because it relies on numerous factors.”

By “numerous factors,” Stewart essentially means that “life happens.”  Things come up, classes become full, and sometimes students are just not able to take on the course load they anticipated.  However, the plan is simply to show people that they can graduate on time, Stewart said.

It’s one of those nights again. The female voice over the loudspeaker at Alden has already demanded that we relocate our weary study group to the second floor. I’m not sure exactly how long we’ve been here, but we’re on coffee number three and bathroom break number five.

As my fellow study buddies continue their schoolwork and try not to fall victim to Facebook’s temptations, I continue to stare at my blank Microsoft Word document. The blinking line is mocking me. I have only a couple hours remaining to write an article, and I’m having a hard time searching for the right words because they can’t just be any words. They have to be the words. The words that entice our audiences. The words that inform our public. The words that bring people the truth.

Sounds like plenty of pressure to put on just rearranging 26 letters repeatedly, right? Why do you think we like coffee so much? As journalists, we strive to deliver cutting-edge stories and to always be on top of our game and deadlines. However, that’s becoming increasingly more difficult to accomplish as the journalism world grows more and more competitive. Because Scripps is one of top journalism schools in the country, it can be overwhelming and intimidating when surrounded by some of the brightest students to step foot into the field. So how do we journalism students relieve the pressure and set ourselves apart from the competition?

That’s exactly what I’ve been asking myself for several weeks. I’m currently in the “I have no idea where I’m going” phase, and I need to do x, y and z to get a career. I stress about landing internships, building connections, joining the correct organizations and achieving the best grades. Although graduation is still years away, these thoughts cross my mind– as well as everyone else’s, I’m sure — constantly. It’s hard to imagine getting real jobs and difficult to think about the time when we have more expenses to cover than just cell phone bills and bar tabs.

It doesn’t help that we’re being constantly reminded that our current economy is in a worse condition that it has been in years. It feels like I’m being bombarded with unemployment statistics everywhere I turn. With the unemployment rate so high, it’s even more crucial that I stand out and beat the next guy.

So with all these demands placed on our young adult lives, how do we students survive our college years and those after?  The best advice I was ever given was simply one word: breathe.

I’m hereby promising myself that although it seems like preparing the journalism world is too intense, there’s absolutely nothing we can’t handle.

Why? Because we’re Scripps warriors and we were bred for success. It’s time to turn a new leaf and leave the stress behind. I have three simple strategies to this game plan.

Firstly, it’s important to remain positive, focused and open-minded. I’m going to embrace more new challenges than Danny Tanner embraces people in an entire season of Full House.

For instance, if anyone has ever taken Professor Tatge’s Information Gathering class, then you know it’s challenging. After receiving grades for our first assignment, I think the entire classroom’s jaw collectively dropped. However, this is one of the most interesting classes as well as professor that I have yet to take. As Holly Colleta, a sophomore in the magazine sequence, said, “If you survive, you’ll come out a better person.” That’s the goal, isn’t it? So welcome, challenge!

Secondly, I pledge to be a knowledge-absorbing, experience-sucking sponge. I have so many brilliant professors and peers surrounding me that it’s impossible not to learn from them. I admire my fellow Scripps warriors mostly for their burning curiosity and desire to learn.

Finally, and most importantly, I’ll remember to breathe not only for my physical well-being (obviously), but for my sanity. After all, I take certain measures to prepare for the future, but nothing is ever certain. As the cheesy, elementary school statement reminds us, all we can do is try our best. We’re Scripps warriors and will do anything to achieve our dreams, even if that means chuckling at sleep and gazing at blank, white documents for a while.

Varied experience key to choosing JSchool track

Column • Alex Felser

Decisions, decisions, decisions.

Do I want to follow the JSchool sequence of News Writing & Editing, Online Journalism or possibly Magazine Journalism? What about Broadcast Journalism?

How am I supposed to decide?

Thankfully, being a freshman, I will not have the challenge of selecting a specific type of news sequence to follow.  With The JSchool switching from seven sequences to two tracks, I will now be able to pick between a Strategic Communication Track and a News and Information Track.

However, I will still be presented with the tough decisions of what classes to take within a broad major, which is why I’ve become involved within the school to try to explore a bit.

Yes, I like news. So I ask myself these questions: What kind of news? Do I have the face for radio or the face for TV?  Do I perform well in front of a camera or should I stick to writing news straight from Microsoft Word?  Are my writing skills better than my speaking skills?

Luckily, Scripps has so much to offer I can try it all, even as a freshman.

It is not a lie that college is a time for changes, and it’s true that one can completely change his or her persona when trying to decide what to study.

Being more of a “slacker” in high school, I had no idea that nine weeks into my freshman year, I would already be involved in five different organizations.  From writing for The Post to trying out my radio voice on WOUB, I’m slowly learning all aspects of media.

It honestly never hit me how involved I was in the school until I was asked by a fellow student to do a video interview after she heard from friends that I was a highly active freshman. (You can find the interview on YouTube if you’re really that bored).

I had to ask myself, ‘Am I really so involved that someone wants to interview me about it?’

Then I looked at my phone calendar to see that I have meetings every week on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, all for different organizations.

I’m still in my first quarter of college, but with everything I’ve done, I feel like I’ve been here for years.  The most rewarding aspect of college organizations is that you aren’t treated as a freshman when you start out.  Everyone gives you the same level of respect and opportunities as everyone else, while mentoring you along the way.

I took the advice of upperclassmen and signed up for plenty of organizations, and it’s hard to describe how much more confident I feel in the J-School.

Although I am still undecided regarding the type of journalism I want to study, I am, as many alumni like to say, “getting my feet wet” in many areas.

As a freshman, I don’t feel like I have to limit myself by scheduling classes only on a certain path but can take classes ranging from video broadcasting to news writing, giving me experience for anything I may need when I begin looking for internships and jobs.

Yes, my schedule may be hectic, but I still go to these meetings and plan on doing so until I can ultimately decide what I want to do — and, who knows, maybe next quarter I’ll try out a completely new organization.

So, my advice if you’re still undecided in Scripps: Do what I’m doing.  We all get those e-mails constantly from Debra DePeel telling us about a meeting here and there. Be adventurous one day, pick one that sounds interesting and go.  What is one hour out of your night?  You’re going to be here for four years anyway.