“Generation Y” Logs On, Tunes Out

The latest DIY tips, celebrity gossip and newest apps are available literally at the fingertips of smart phone users. This is a generation where social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook have become the source of news for current events both domestic and international. In technology-infused environments from the classroom to the workplace where accessing information is easier than ever, many Americans still are tuning out important information in the media.

Americans now pay less attention to international affairs and consume less foreign news. Domestic news continues to dominate new American media. According to the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, 59 percent of Americans say they regularly watch the local news in their area. This has decreased significantly from the more than three-quarters of American who regularly watched local news in the early 1990s, but is largely unchanged from 2000.

“Our generation is so used to getting things instantly, everything is available in one click, and I think that makes us less interested in taking time to read and digest a traditional news story when we can get the gist in a 140-character tweet instead,” said Karah Finan, an OU junior studying journalism and political science.

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. 

To tweet or not to tweet?

Casey Compernolle, Reporter

To tweet, or not to tweet?  That is the question for many journalists who are often faced with the difficult decision between tweeting what they want as opposed to what they feel they should.

Journalists have joined the Twitter world to share news and events, but what about their opinions?  Is there an unwritten rule that prevents journalists from being too opinionated on social media?

These are questions that student journalists may find themselves pondering as well.

Elizabath Krizner, a Scripps sophomore majoring in Public Relations, said  “You sacrifice certain things when you decide to become a journalist, and unfortunately you give up certain rights in order to stay professional at all times. I think if you are representing a major corporation like CNN, it is your responsibility to draw the line of appropriateness.”

With The New York Times generating a staggering 3,743,424 followers, CNN close behind with 2,627,953, Fox News with 1,002,185 and CNBC coming in with 513,835 followers, there is proof that people are embracing the fast, accurate updates Twitter has to offer.

“Twitter audiences are not given enough credit.”  Hans Meyer, a professor at the E.W Scripps School of Journalism, said.

With regard to the grey areas of tweeting journalists’, Meyer said,  “I bristle anytime someone tries to stifle another on twitter, because if you’re a major journalist generating thousands of followers you were clearly hired for a reason: because you have a personality, and that’s a virtue.”

Recently, major corporations have allowed anchormen, correspondents, and hosts to create their own Twitter with more depth, updates, and thoughts.

Megyn Kelly (@megynkelly), a host for Fox News, has over 74,000 followers on her twitter account.  Kelly uses it as a promotional tool for her network, but also gives pregnancy updates, pictures of concerts, events, and much more.

“Authenticity is one of the core reasons people are drawn to Twitter, and if lost it could take away from the likability of users,” Meyer said.

Aside from major news outlets, there are still journalists that agree with professor Meyer’s idea of free range to voice any and all opinions—and they do just that.

Jay Rosen, a journalism professor at New York University, uses his twitter account (@jayrosen_nyu), to speak to his 67k plus followers about his take on current events.  He received backlash for tweeting that “Media bias isn’t the problem. It’s a solution.” Rosen’s tweet was in response to an article written by Jack Shafer in relation to the pros and cons of media bias.  Whether tweets such as this are controversial or not, Rosen still continues to voice his opinion on current issues through Twitter.

Some believe that if we allow journalists more free range on social media, the public will be rewarded with more depth and creativity.  Others believe appropriateness is key, and professionalism could be at risk. No one knows for certain what the future holds for Twitter, and most certainly not for the journalists that use it, but one thing remains the same: every tweet is a tweet of faith.

 

 

How To: Build Your Resume Over the Summer

Nicole Spears, Reporter

For many of us, the past months have been filled with daydreams of a breezy summer break. It can be a time for yourself, taking a much-needed break from racing around. But, although you may think that a full school year of climbing Jeff Hill was good enough, summer break doesn’t have to mean a stop in your progression.

A little rest and relaxation can do everyone wonders, but taking the summer too easily may guarantee that September will hit you like a freight train. This summer, try to find your own balance of work and play.

Don’t have an internship, or simply looking for more ways to beef up your resume over this break? Getting creative can give you the experience that you don’t even realize you will need someday. You can use this time off to cultivate skills on your own time, while finding new ways to network, and discover your own brand.

With the way our industry is constantly changing, there are endless platforms and programs to familiarize yourself with. Apart from internships, we often overlook the simpler methods of becoming more career-ready. While the list of possibilities is endless, here are a few suggestions that everyone could employ.

1. Build Your Personal Online Presence
This is a word of advice that always seems to be much easier said than done. However, starting up is the hardest part. You’ll find the most success if you can come up with a creative idea that you’re passionate about, and also the right platform to display it. A personal website not only sells your character, but also shows prospective employers that you are comfortable working on the Internet. The more platforms and media that you can incorporate in to a professional matter, the better.

2. Revise Your LinkedIn
Unlike Facebook and Twitter, most of us aren’t keeping up with our LinkedIn accounts daily. Think back through the school year and connect with classmates or professionals that you’ve met. Make sure you have the latest edition of your resume uploaded. Tweak your account so that it better reflects your current experience, as well as your future ambitions.

3. Catch Up With Old Connections
When we think of networking, we often think of opportunities that will allow us to get out there and meet new people. One of the most important things you can do is keep in touch with people that you’ve already become acquainted with throughout your education and job search. Pass on a recent sample of your writing or other work to someone you’ve previously been in contact with. This way, when you need to call on them, they’ll remember your name.

4. Get Ahead on Credit Hours
After walking out of that last final, the feeling of freedom can be overwhelming. No more nagging assignments waiting for your attention–for the next few months at least. For this reason, it can be hard to give summer courses a second thought. The truth is, summer courses are a great way to get non-major classes and prerequisites out of the way. Whether you choose to do online or on-campus classes, they are usually a more manageable, alternative than packing them into your fall quarter schedule.

5.  Follow Your Favorite Writers
Whether it’s your local paper, The New York Times, or a favorite blog, following a preferred writer is a great way to keep your style in tune over the break. We tend to idolize or even relate to our favorite journalists, so following them can spark great ideas for your own work. Though this is a habit that can be applied throughout the school year as well, summer’s extra down time will give the chance to keep up daily or even find new writers to follow.

The Amazing Life (And Social Dominance) of Twitter

Mat Roberts, Reporters

From its humble beginnings in July 2006, Twitter Inc. has grown to be one of the most popular social networking sites in the world. Created by Jack Dorsey, the Twitter product was created to be the SMS (Short Message Service) of the Internet. It allows people to compile a short snippets of information in 140 characters or less through business or casual community communication. Twitter sets its home grounds in San Francisco, but is used by nearly every country in the world and is accessible in six languages including English, Spanish, French, German, Italian and Japanese. According to The Huffington Post, users are, in total, “tweeting” an average of 55 million tweets per day. With over 105 million registered users, Twitter has also made a statement of outstanding growth from 25 to 175 employees.

At the beginning of winter quarter at Ohio University, I decided that it was my turn to join the rest of the tweeting world.  Initially, I thought that this Twitter phase was nothing too special, but sitting here today I will tell you that it is one of the best tools in the world for college students.

Twitter has allowed me to meet and market with many different firms and businesses that will hopefully guide me in the direction of  internships in my career choice of study: Advertising. Interestingly enough, Twitter is the ideal site for advertising myself to these respective firms and has granted me the opportunity to connect with many different people that are advocates of my career path.

The Huffington Post reports that about 75% of Twitter traffic comes from outside Twitter.com (i.e. via third party applications.), which opens up plenty of doors to connect to the outside world. I am proud to say that every little bit of the available 140 characters per tweet has been put to good use in my college days. Luckily, I joined the Twitter community at the perfect time of its transformation. With their website redesign, Twitter has added more value to its short-spaced tweets by enabling users to “tell your story within your Tweet, think of a Tweet as a worldwide headline, and use the details pane to tell the rest with photos, videos and other media content.

With this idea, people can now create a new window of opportunity by storytelling information and connecting to more outlets such as Storify; which is a newly developed “Twitter teammate” that allows users to make stories using social media.

With the birth of the new generation, the world has completely gone mobile, which has easily become the ultimate stepping stone to the success of Twitter. At Chirp, the official Twitter developer conference, the Huffington Post was able to gather that of Twitter’s active users, 37 percent use their phone to tweet and Twitter’s search engine receives around 600 million search queries per day. Users can use the Twitter short code with their phones and tweet to their personal profile by texting to the number 40404 or download the Twitter application to their smartphone, a creation that I have come to use very often. With all these connections to many outlets, Twitter has become an “underground must” for the typical Ohio University communications major and the average humanitarian.

I recently came across hope140.org, which is Twitter’s path to give back to the world and help support important social movements and events. As of now, the site is working on using their communication platform to send support to Japan and Haiti’s earthquake disaster, the struggles of the Malaria outbreak, and International Literacy Day, which in turn will donate much needed hope from a single tweet.

Originally, the idea of this story was to show the humorous dominance Twitter has gained on the World Wide Web, but I found myself in a new stance and decided to highlight the importance Twitter has become for the next generations to gain an edge in the workforce. Because Twitter is one of the fastest growing sites in the world with 180 million unique visitors every month, I have gained a growing love for Twitter. I know that with patience and proper responsibility I can use Twitter as an important tool to the growth of my career, even though my ultimate dream is to live on the small island of Jamaica harvesting sugar cane. Regardless, the colossal amounts of value and connections that Twitter can offer is far greater than any available social networking sites in this world. It will forever continue to grow importance to my life and the new networking phase of social dominance.

Journalism wins top spot as most useless degree

Raquel Harrah, Reporter

The  alarm goes off. There is no CNN blaring from the television, no newspaper to accompany the usual morning cup of coffee, no Twitter, no Facebook; the only certainty in this world is uncertainty. Confusion, panic, and ignorance take the place of reliability and accuracy.

This is a day without journalism.  In a recent ranking by The Daily Beast of most useless college majors, journalism placed number one, beating out competitors like horticulture and music for the top spot.

This study leaves readers with one question: “If a journalism major is useless, what if it were to disappear from college programs? What if journalism were left to untrained citizens and ceased to exist in the professional sense?”

“I don’t think it’s possible for a world without journalism to exist. It is very fundamental,” said Elizabeth Sullivan, Opinion Editor for The Plain Dealer.

Could the world truly not function without journalism? After all, journalism has shaped and built this country as far back as the 17th century. When destruction plagues every other entity in this world, journalism remains, and even thrives, from the turmoil.

It is almost difficult to envision journalism being stripped from this world, because citizens are so dependent on it. I tried my best to picture a world without journalism, just for a day; and like a bad dream, this is what I imagined.

1. There would be no newspaper to inform me of the previous day’s events. I turn the television on, and no cheerful man explains the rain cloud coming in from the South, so I walk out in the rain fully unprepared. Tornados could be headed my way, but I would not know.

2. Twitter and Facebook no longer exist. My computer remains idle as I walk aimlessly around with no other procrastination tool at hand. I don’t know what my friends did last night, I don’t know who is dating whom; and on a larger spectrum, I don’t know if China dropped an atomic bomb and wiped out half the country. It could happen.

3. I turn on the television to once again find something to do. There is no Saturday Night Live, no Colbert Report, and no Daily Show for my daily fix of humor. Satire no longer exists since there is no news-providing raw material. Not only do I have no clue what is going on in the world, but I can’t even laugh about the ridiculous circumstances of everyday life.

4. I head outside as I watch a chemical company dump their chemicals into a nearby water source. There are no reporters to report the corruption, no newspapers to turn to, and hundreds of thousands of people could be sick in an instant, with no explanation and no incentive to fix it.

5. Utter chaos ensues. The government embezzles money, people go on murder sprees; but who brings light to these situations? This leads to the next problem.

6. Everyone becomes a journalist. Without training or knowledge of the journalism field, everyone becomes their own journalist. Like a game of telephone, facts are distorted, rumors spread. No one really knows the difference between fact and fiction. This leads us, once again, to utter chaos. And then everyone dies.

Alright, this might be an exaggeration, but it is not impossible. Because of average pay or job availability, a website might label a journalism degree as useless, but this in no way means that professional journalism is not essential. Journalism is the stability of any society. It is a translator between the public and the government. It brings light to injustices and corruption to solve society’s problems. If people are ignorant to the problems, how can they go about solving them?

It is also a falsehood that anyone can be a journalist. Between blogs and modern media conventions, the line between journalism, citizen journalism, and idle gossip is often blurred.

Journalism in the true sense, however, demands accuracy and reliability, and its existence shapes society.

Journalists add new asset to their media toolbox

Story // April Jaynes, Reporter

Last Monday, April 25, Storify opened to public users, providing audiences with more story variety and a chance to tell their own.

“Storify”, a verb meaning, “to form or tell stories of; to narrate or describe in a story,” is an online platform that allows users to combine various types of social media, along with personal text, in a story.

The platform is simple to operate and offers a convenient approach to gathering information from social media sites.

www.storify.com

Users can input links and search Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Google, Flickr and RSS feeds to aid in their storytelling by simply dragging and dropping the items into the story.

Co-founder and former AP reporter Burt Herman said in a New York Times article by Claire Cain Miller, “We’re really trying to put together computer science plus storytelling and journalism to think creatively about how you can blend the two worlds.”

The Storify blog said it was opening its beta to the public “so many more people have the chance to tell stories in this new form and join the future of storytelling online.”

Professor Hans Meyer said he received his private beta invitation the day before the site went public.

While Meyer says he’s not sure how many readers are aware of Storify; he said he thinks one of the reasons the platform exists is “because it recognizes the fact that a lot of people are getting their news from social media and they’re getting it in an unfiltered way.”

Prior to going public, experienced journalists have taken advantage of Storify’s user-friendly platform by providing audiences with reliable social media to aid in creating major news stories.

Andy Carvin, Senior Strategist and Social Media Desk for NPR, uses Storify to report on what’s happening in the Middle East and the crisis in North Africa.

The Storify blog also says that the day of Storify’s most views, consisting of more than half a million, came in March when the tragic earthquake and tsunami struck Japan.

Meyer said that Storify “encourages reporters to do the reporting” and allows journalists to organize information in a way that the average citizen doesn’t.

“We have to stop thinking that we’re the only ones who provide the content,” he said. “There’s lots of people tweeting. There’s lots of information out there, but journalists are the best at, and well trained for, analyzing that information, adapting it to the audience and checking it for accuracy.”

Meyer also said he hopes small news organizations that may not be experienced with social media sites will use Storify to help them integrate social media into their news coverage.

“When you’re using social media, it forces reporters to go beyond their traditional sources and to really look at members of their audience, see what they’re saying and see what value they add to the news story,” Meyer said.

Meyer encourages students to investigate Storify.

“Use it. Collect some tweets, comment on them and pull them together,” he said. “Let’s see what happens.”

Journalistic trends mark significant alterations to the industry

Story // Mat Roberts, Reporter

Henry Anatole Grunwald, most commonly known as the editor-in-chief of Time, Inc., once said, “Journalism can never be silent: that is its greatest virtue and its greatest fault. It must speak, and speak immediately, while the echoes of wonder, the claims of triumph and the signs of horror are still in the air.”

In essence, journalism has evolved into the world’s single most dominant source of information and a gateway to communication with people around the globe. Though the job is never ending, the tenacious force that is journalism is a rapidly transforming system. The birth of the age of the internet, email, and the powers of telecommunication  have sparked a new generation of journalism, and in my book, there are three precise ways in which the industry has morphed.

Civilian journalism has struck the media world in an effective fashion. CNN has created iReport, which has developed into a site for anyone online to upload videos, pictures, and personal story ideas. Currently, the most popular streaming news within the site is the Japan earthquake disaster, in which many people have traveled to share their unique input. Now, news outlets around the world are asking citizens to deliver their stories and media, with some offering a paycheck at the end of the deal. The Yahoo Contributor Network allows writers, photographers, and videographers the opportunity to publish local content and get paid at about 10 dollars per story.

For journalism students, it has opened a new door of experience- “Being a part of the Yahoo Contributor Network helps me in all terms of writing a successful story. It gives me a real life consensus on meeting deadlines within the system and a realistic sense of one day being in the journalism workforce,” said Molly Wheatley, a freshman journalism student at Ohio University.

Fronteras Columbus, a bilingual weekly newspaper for Latinos living in central Ohio has posed the “freelance” idea for publishing. Anahi Vinazza-Moore, Fronteras’ editorial coordinator said, “My primary job is to properly align stories that come in from out hired freelancers. Most of our work comes from out hired freelancers that report within the central Ohio Latino areas.” Although mostly all published content that is revealed to the public is from full-time reporters and staff, the civilian journalism idea has grown to increase both production and the availability of different perspectives onworldwide information.

The next recent change in the journalism business Twitter, or even more broadly all social networking sites. Twitter has slowly evolved into a machine-like news outlet of its own, allowing people to post quick quotes. ESPN uses Twitter to pull quotes from major athletes; their “tweets” have become valuable sources of information on sports related topics. The idea has proved to be very effective so far; professional athletes can leak information on injuries, trade updates, or personal problems. Or they can talk trash to their following fans. Other major networking sites such as Facebook are  used by businesses to gain support and “likeability” within a closely connected network. Social networking will continue to open the door for businesses to grow and share information at a pace that was never achievable in the past.

For people that want to share experiences and report on an everyday basis, blogging has become the latest trend and a memorable catalyst for a changing journalism industry.

“I plan to start my own blog soon, so I use my social networks, primarily Twitter, to gain credibility and stay on top of Cleveland sports,” said Jerod Scheetz, a freshman journalism student at Ohio University.

 Blogging is not only an idea of itself, but it easily connects to both civilian reporting and social networks. Similar to Scheetz’s story, reports and social networking can be a way to gain experience, which in turn can  grow into an opportunity to begin a successful blog. The blog creation is slowly up and coming and will eventually open up jobs in the online journalism market, but for now it is last on my list.

For some, journalism is a dying piece of history on the move that will never stop growing. It will never be as important as it was in the past because of this new age of change. Perhaps those that say so are right, but in the eyes of Burton Roscoe, “A news sense is really a sense of what is important, what is vital, what has color and life – what people are interested in. That’s journalism.”

ImPRessions team hosts first Social Media Summit

Story // Nicole Spears, Reporter

A lot of hard work goes into each and every Scripps publication. Between delving into fresh and entertaining stories, chasing down that perfect photo, and working on a deadline, not much time or energy is reserved for extra work.

But why put in all this time and effort, only to supply your craft to a limited readership? Along with the evolving technologies of the day has come social media—the solution to this problem. Social media, when in the right hands, allows us to connect and interact in ways previously unimaginable. As a publication’s social media increases, so does its readership and success.

The Social Media Summit, hosted by the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism ImPRessions team aided OU publications with their social media expertise. Their mission was to improve interactivity among Scripps publications in order to attract a larger readership from OU students, as well as prospective students.

“Working primarily with Facebook and Twitter, we wanted to try to get all publications working together, on a cohesive page,” Sam Bartlett, ImPRessions account executive, said.

The ImPRessions J-School account, prior to hosting the Social Media Summit, was already utilizing their newly released Scripps Facebook page to spark up conversation between publications. Bartlett and her team wanted to further engage social media activity among Scripps students. They set out to do this by inviting several campus publications to the event, where they offered an in-depth educational session on the uses of social media.

The Social Media Summit attracted members and writers from The Post, PRSSA, The New Political, the Alumni Association, and Students for Global Media and Diversity, among others. Bartlett, along with other ImPRessions account associates involved in the event, viewed it as a success.

“We got really good feedback, they had a lot of questions that we had good answers for,” Bartlett said. Publications came seeking advice on how to get more interaction from students, along with getting them more members. The team taught attendees to start a conversation with retweets, or by posing a question.

Better use of social media platforms can help promote each organization, while also bringing them together.

“Although we may be competitors, we’re working towards the same goals,” Sarah Maloy, ImPRessions account associate, said. “The heart of Scripps is the organizations, and we wanted to promote that.”

The ImPRessions PR students wanted to spread the word that the benefits of these social media sites reach beyond improving communication within the Scripps community. A bigger Facebook and Twitter presence will help to draw in prospective students, which is a primary focus for the ImPRessions J-School team. In addition, more interactivity will display the diversity of opportunities incoming students will find amongst Scripp’s growing range of publications.

While updating social media outlets may appear as just another thing to get around to, trends around the industry show that being versed in their intricacies can give you a surprising advantage. As titles like “Social Media Specialist” pop-up in well-known corporations, these tools are becoming increasingly important to job seekers.

As for using social media to your current publication’s advantage, look out for the next Social Media Summit, which could be happening as soon as the end of Spring Quarter.

SGMD works to enhance understanding of international media

Story // Sandhya Kambhampati, Contributing Writer

From Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, global media is constantly changing.  Students for Global Media and Diversity (SGMD) focuses on these changes and analyzes the different aspects of media around the globe.

“Knowledge about global media is continually growing in importance, especially with the prominent role that the Internet plays in the distribution of news,” said Andreya Carlson, secretary of SGMD.  Carlson said the news is no longer in the hands of traditional news outlets, so anyone who wants to have their voice heard could contribute to this information transfer.

Director of the Pulitzer Prize Center on Crisis Reporting, Jon Sawyer, chats with IIJ/SGMD.

Nadia Sheng, president of SGMD, said that understanding different viewpoints and why they do what they do is also important. Because of this, Students for Global Media and Diversity focuses on all media groups and calls for the understanding of the history that makes one country’s media different from another.

SGMD has a new focus every meeting, which ties hand-in-hand with the fastpace of global media. In the past, the group has had students present their study abroad experiences, looked at media strategies in different countries, and hosted guests and speakers from various backgrounds. Sheng said the group aims to give an opportunity for members to meet new people and share their experiences in an open and respectful environment.

“SGMD implores its members to ask questions and be active in their pursuit for information and in broadening their world view,” said Sheng.

This, Sheng said, is done through guest speakers, including journalists and other experts in the field from across the country and the world. Speakers also include students and faculty members, such as Scripps Professor Kevin Grieves, who shared stories of his time working at CNN.

SGMD has also co-hosted several major events in collaboration with the International Institute for Journalism (IIJ). Last year, Jon Sawyer, the executive director of the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting came and spoke to students about the issues faced all around the globe. This year, Rebecca Hamilton, Washington Post special correspondent and author of the book, “Fighting for Darfur: Public Action and the Struggle to Stop Genocide” spoke about the current situation in Darfur and the US involvement over the years.

SGMD has also utilized social media tools such as Skype to connect with people. The first Skype chat was with GOOD Community Organizer Hillary Newman who spoke to students about the website and her role. Since then, students have also gotten the chance to chat with UPIU mentors Harumi Gondo and Krista Kapralos.

As for now, the group encourages students to actively participate in discussions.

“Anyone who is at all interested in other cultures, the media, or communication strategies should stop by one of our meetings,” Carlson said.

SGMD meets on Thursdays from 6-7 PM in Baker room 236. On April 7^th, Ros Atkins, from the BBC’s program “World Have Your Say” will Skype chat with members and answer questions on what goes on behind the scenes of the show and what goes into moderating shows.