Generation J Committee Blog

Prepare for your future at the 2008 Convention & National Journalism Conference

JoeSkeel — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 20:54:00 GMT

Learn from professional journalists, get hands-on training and further your career at the 2008 SPJ Conference & National Journalism Convention, Sept. 4-7 in Atlanta, Ga. Listed below is a mere sampling of the development sessions designed to fit your needs!

The First Five Years: You Can Do It

Description: For new journalists, the first five years can be brutal. The hours are long, the pay is low and the moves are frequent. It can be tempting to leave journalism for greener pastures. Hear from a panel of journalists going through the first five years and those who have survived. Get tips for making the most of your early career years while avoiding common mistakes. Leave energized and ready to move to the next phase of your career path.

Speakers: Andria Simmons, reporter, Atlanta Journal-Constitution; Leslie Froelich, reporter, Mundo Hispánico/Atlanta Journal-Constitution; Adrian Uribarri, reporter, Orlando Sentinel

It’s All About Storytelling: Criteria for Telling Effective TV Stories

Description: Learn how to prepare your tape and determine what sets you apart in your storytelling. Elements of storytelling to be discussed include: Writing, Video, Use of Sound, Delivery, Standup and Impact.

Speaker: Terry Likes, professor, Western Kentucky University

It’s Not YourTube or YourSpace

Description: The internet offers an inexhaustible supply of photos, film clips and other juicy tidbits, deceptively free for the taking. Using material gathered from the Internet raises tricky questions both of law (copyright, defamation) and ethics (verification, attribution). This phenomenon is only growing more complex as news organizations augment their coverage with user-generated content and the work of “citizen journalists.” From “don’t Taze me bro” to “Client 9,” a look at the legal and ethical issues presented when relying on third-party content gathered on-line. The internet offers an inexhaustible supply of photos, film clips and other juicy tidbits, deceptively free for the taking. Using material gathered from the internet raises tricky questions both of law (copyright, defamation) and of ethics (verification, attribution). This phenomenon is only growing more complex as news organizations augment their coverage with user-generated content and the work of “citizen journalists.” From “don’t Taze me bro” to “Client 9,” a look at the legal and ethical issues presented when relying on third-party content gathered on-line.

Speaker: Frank D. LoMonte, Esq., executive director, Student Press Law Center

For a full list of programs offered at this year’s Convention & National Journalism Conference, visit http://www.spj.org/c-programs.asp.

Mentoring, Advising, and Beyond

AieshaLittle — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 21:47:00 GMT

I just turned 31 a few months ago. No, this isn't a post about being "traumatized" by getting older. It's about recognizing when you're old enough to be another person's mentor. I simply don't feel like I'm old enough to guide other people in their pursuits of journalism careers. I did my first journalism internship in 1995 and I still have a lot to learn. But here I am, managing my magazine's editorial internship, letting high schoolers shadow me on the job, helping a former intern get his first freelance magazine assignment, organizing a half-day high school journalism retreat, and giving professional advice to a local collegiate chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists. So what makes a good mentor? Does it come with age? Experience? (Are those two things the same to you?) Or is it simply helping where you can and not thinking about it too much?

Asking For a Title Change

AieshaLittle — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 17:53:00 GMT

Anyone have any experience with asking your boss for a title change? Does title really matter all that much if it doesn't mean a change in job responsibilities? (Or pay.) Why are we always trying to label and re-label ourselves? *shakes head*

I've been an associate editor for almost four years now and I'm worried that I'm going to be stuck with this title for too long. It's not a bad title or anything...I'm just thinking about the future. If I apply for a senior editor position somewhere else in a few years and I'm still an associate editor, will they take me seriously?

Social networking as a journalist

SonyaSmith — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 12:06:00 GMT

Hey everyone. Now, I'm going to guess here, but I'm pretty sure everyone who reads this blog is on at least one social networking site.

I'm not exacty average, but I'm on plenty. Those include: Facebook, MySpace, Friendster, Twitter, ColourLovers, LastFm, Wired Journalists, Flickr, FriendFeed and LinkedIn.

My question to the community is this: how much information do you share on your social pages? Do you use your real name? Do you use the pages only for personal use (non-work) and make them private to everyone else. Do you use the pages for both personal and work.

In my situation, and as most recently the Orange County Register's tech reporter, I share quite a bit about myself online as a way of being up front about who I am. I use the pages for both personal and work connections. The thing I am sure about is to never post anything that would show my beliefs in anything work-related (such as politics).

I thought of this question when council members who I have covered in the past tried to add me as friends on Facebook. I denied those requests, because it just seemed strange, but then again I've added people I covered in the tech and Disney fields as friends.

Please share what you all do online.

Has Anyone Seen This?

AieshaLittle — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 19:48:00 GMT

Should we be completely disheartened by AngryJournalist.com? Someone responding to my Gen J column on burnout sent me the link to site and it has more than 5,000 POSTS, from people angry about co-workers stealing their food ("I'm pissed because money is tight and some *sshole in the building ate my yogurt") to complaints about layoffs.

Its founder Kiyoshi Martinez was a newspaper reporter before chucking it and going over to the "dark side" (a.k.a. public relations). Good for him, but does he have to get journalists together to say what everyone already knows? Don't get me wrong here—by no means am I one of those shiny, happy people that think nothing's wrong with the industry. I guess I'm bringing this all up because I'd like to know how others deal with negativity in the workplace. Talk amongst yourselves.

Resumes for the new journalism world

SonyaSmith — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 07:29:00 GMT

How to apply for journalism jobs is something we were all supposed to learn in journalism school.

I know I sure did: you write stories, keep copies of newspapers in which your articles appeared and you clip them out and mail those with a resume to places you'd like to work. Well, even though hardly a media organization has an opening now (rather the opposite, with lots of layoffs) it's always a good time to re-think how we apply for jobs.

I've prepared this quick tutorial for all the journalism students who've asked me how they should apply for jobs and collect clips. No, I'm not applying for another job -- I've just gotten my online resume act together so I can share it as an example of what could be done.

The main idea here is that when any of us apply for a job in journalism we will likely be asked how we are ready to get the organization rolling into the 21st century. And, that involves online. Print or broadcast, eaast or west coast, all media organizations have realized in the last few years that no, the Internet is not just a fad and that we should learn our place in it.

Here's my idea for the new place resumes and clips have in the journalism future:

Figure out what you want. Send messages to people you trust and respect online, via e-mail or by phone. Talk with them about what you want and be sure to listen to their advice on what you should look for, when you should look for it and what you should learn next. Be sure to ask them about your strengths and weaknesses. The main key is to listen.

Prepare your resume and clips. My best idea is that any 21st century candidate should have an online and paper resume/clip book. Here's a link to my site. The site can be anything from one page of quick information about you with links to your past articles, to a more layered approach like my site. Here's some ideas on how to make it happen:

Sign up for LinkedIn.com --- it's a social networking site that focuses on your resume, recommendations and people you know. Update your print resume, then have it double and triple-checked for style, spelling and grammar and then put your resume on LinkedIn. Add people you know and ask people you trust to write reccomendations about you. Be sure to add a photo (a good quality, color photo of you) or else you'll look kinda lame. A good idea is to have a friend who's into photography, or a fellow journalist, take the photo. Try to have the photo look as professional as possible.
Sign up for Wordpress.com, a free blogging site. Ask a friend, teach yourself or read tutorials online about how to use the site. Add links under the blogroll section to your social networking sites (editors know you have them, so you better just send them straight to your pages), add a link to your LinkedIn resume, add your resume information as a "page" and then add stories or videos or content you've produced as blog posts. Then, pick from one of the many themes and customize your site with photos you've taken. As an aside, I made my site with my Mac computer using iWeb. I'd suggest generally using Wordpress.com -- because it's free and works from any computer on which you have the Internet.
Have trusted family, friends and colleagues look at the site and offer feedback. Check, double check and triple check style and spelling.

Look for jobs online. A great site to get started is journalismjobs.com. Also, check the sites of any local media organizations for other links to jobs or job databases. Also, keep in contact with friends at other media organizations so that you can find out early on when jobs are open.

Research that job online. Read the organization's Web site, learn about its community, see what the current or past reporters did who had the now open position and see what experience applicants should have for that job.

Apply in the real and virtual worlds. Of course, be sure to follow any application instructions provided in the job listing. But, my idea is that you should send an e-mail to the hiring person or editor that contains a brief cover letter-like introduction about you and why you want the job. Include in that e-mail a link to your online resume and say that a paper-version of your resume and clips is in the mail.

There it is, my little guide to applying for jobs in the 21st century. Let me know if you have questions or suggestions in comments.

SPJ looking for young journalists for panel

SonyaSmith — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 07:03:00 GMT

Hey Gen Jers, here's a note from SPJ's Holly Fisher:

Hello! I am organizing a panel discussion for the SPJ National Convention in Atlanta called "The first five years: You can do it."

Here's the description: For new journalists, the first five years can be brutal. The hours are long, the pay is low and the moves are frequent. It can be tempting to leave journalism for greener pastures. Hear from a panel of journalists going through the first five years and those who have survived. Get tips for making the most of your early career years while avoiding common mistakes. Leave energized and ready to move to the next phase of your career path.

I'm looking for journalists (print, broadcast, online) who are early in their careers and who are more established. If you would like to participate in this panel or know someone who would make a great panel participant, please contact me at holly(at)fishers2000.com. Thanks!

-Holly Fisher

Fearless Leaders

AieshaLittle — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 19:48:00 GMT

I attended the 2008 Ted Scripps Leadership Institute last weekend and I must say that it was completely re-energizing! It's nice to know that there are other chapters out there, large and small, that have the same issues (recruiting members, retaining members, etc.) Some of the cool people I met?

Hilary Reeves, associate editor for the Business Examiner in Tacoma, Wash., who gave me some great programming ideas.

Ricardo Sandoval, assistant city editor for The Sacramento Bee, who shares my love of jazz music.

Elizabeth Hansen, a communications professor at Eastern Kentucky University. She's going to send some students my way next summer for my magazine's internship program.

Alice Walton, a reporter for City News Service in Southern California, with whom I shared a room and reminisced about living in Chicago.

Meeting all of these great people and the other Scripps participants reminds me of why I continue to be involved in SPJ. If you ever have the opportunity to attend this leadership retreat, don't pass it up!

Early election coverage

ElysseJames — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 08:15:00 GMT

My newspaper will be covering the June elections. We plan to update the amount of money each candidate has raised, the names of people who've filed their intent to run, and information about measures on the June ballot that will affect the city I cover.

This will be my first year reporting on elections. Does anyone have tips for me?

What kinds of things will you be covering for the June elections? What's the most frustrating thing about covering politics? The most fun?

If you don't normally cover politics, will you be integrating the elections into your regular beat?

I'll be updating as I learn, and as the November elections get closer! I hope you all are registered to vote!

Are citizen journalists serving a "watchblog" function?

GenePark — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 20:32:00 GMT

Surely many of you have heard of Mayhill Fowler's exploits, but if you haven't, check out Howard Kurtz's wrapup of the whole affair:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/09/AR2008060900373.html

Now that you're back, I was wondering what you thought of all this?

Being young journalists, we were mostly taught by baby boomers who worked during the old school days. I remember I was taught how to dummy pages on hard copy, even though I fully knew that Quark or InDesign would cover all that for me.

So I was wondering what your opinions are on "citizen journalism," a concept apparently being advocated by Arianna Huffington as well as Gannett Co. with their new online expansion into community sites. Did you think it was fair for Fowler to ask President Clinton about the "hatchet job" in Vanity Fair without even identifying herself or the media she represents?

Does it serve the public interest by ensuring that public officials and the like are held accountable for every word they say, even as an aside? Or does it contribute to the shrill volume of information being thrown out into the ether every day? Can it misinform? What are the dangers of untrained people doing what you and I have gone to school for and honed over several years?

I suppose the question can be looked at when framed in another occupation outside of our own.

Let's say your home is burning. The alarm has rung, and you know the firefighters are well on their way. The entire single-family dwelling is engulfed in flames, you're outsideand you're faced with a choice. Do you grab a garden hose or a bucket of water, and attempt to douse the flames yourself? Of course, you could lessen the damage but at the same time your lack of training could endanger yourself and others, as well as the already burning home.

Or do you wait around for the firefighters? By the time the trained professionals arrive at the scene to fight the fire, the damage could've already been done.

What should we do people? Do we trade in our press passes for garden hoses?

Just making democratic conversation...

GenePark — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 19:56:00 GMT

Like everyone who has been following the election season, I wanted to know where in the world Obama and Clinton were.

So I was watching CNN, and Candy Crowley was parked in front of Clinton's Washington home, assuming it was the meeting place. Of course, we all know that lead was bunk.

But either way, there wasn't much of actual "reporting" going on. It was Candy, standing outside Clinton's home. And the conversation that occurred between her and Anderson Cooper really struck me. Cooper asked whether Candy got a sense of whether there will be some kind of announcement from either candidate.

Now, clearly neither candidate would say anything, even if they were there at the home. Instead, Candy chewed the cud on her own expectations, based on her experience and what she sees.

What I realized was that this would be a conversation my editor and I would be having in a similar situation. My editor would ask me a question like, "So Gene, how long do you think you'll be there? Do you think they'll say anything" if I were to stake out a private meeting between politicians or policymakers. And I'd simply respond, "Y'know what, I really don't think so. They might send out a paper release or something but that's about it."

And here was a version of that same conversation, repackaged and presented as news product on national television.

I mean, I can't imagine some of my darker conversations with my editors being broadcasted for national consumption. I might have Sen. Joe Lieberman trying to censor me at my paper. :-p

Call me cynical or old fashioned, but do we really want this to be part of new journalism? Between that exchange of Candy and Anderson, we learned absolutely nothing factual, except for the fact that nothing is happening. In an age of the 24/7 news cycle, I'm becoming increasingly wary of what is passing off as news these days, and the presidential election has only highlighted my concern.

My competitor here in Hawaii feels it worthy to update their online news segments with, "No traffic incidents as of 8 a.m." or something similar. Now I'm all for online integration, but at what point do we say when something is just too much useless information? Maybe this blog itself is too much useless information? I don't know. You tell me.

Angry phone calls

ElysseJames — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 07:07:00 GMT

As journalists we have to stay accountable. And part of that is having our contact information printed on each online story, and in each publication.

This is necessary and helpful in getting sources and feedback from the community. However, not everyone who calls will be relevant or nice.

Just last week, I got about four phone calls from people who didn't live in my community but still were angry about a topic I had written about - barking dogs. I got phone calls from people all over the county (of which I cover just a small part) complaining about their neighbor's dog and the noise it creates.

When this kind of thing happens, there really isn't much I can do to help. They don't live in my coverage area and don't have a problem that I can solve. I don't work for animal control, nor do I wish to. But what I've learned is that the caller doesn't really want me to solve the problem. They know the number to animal control (and have probably exhausted the buttons making those calls). The call has nothing to do with me as a journalist.

What they do want is to be heard. They just want to vent and share their frustrations with someone who will nod and say, "That's terrible."

So, instead of trying to explain to them that I am an impartial observer who can't solve their problems, I keep my mouth shut and let them talk. While they are yelling or complaining I can type, add to my To Do list, and get other bits of work done.

It's a win-win for everyone. And maybe we'll gain a loyal reader or two!

How do you react to angry phone calls and messages?

Rolling Stone No More

AieshaLittle — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 03:21:00 GMT

A rolling stone gathers no moss - Publilius Syrus (~100 BC)

I'm buying a house this summer. I've spent the last 10 years gallivanting from state to state, taking whatever journalism-related jobs piqued my interest and now, I want roots. I have a job that I really enjoy and nothing shows more commitment to an employer than buying real estate. In essence, I’m saying that I like my magazine enough to commit to its success for at least the next five to seven years. It’s satisfying to feel that secure, but it’s also downright scary.

As the door to homeownership opens, I feel like another is officially closing. From now on, it’s going to take a lot more effort if I decide to change jobs. The days of giving two weeks’ notice and hitting the road for a new city are over. That's part of what it means to be young, right? Footloose and fancy free? Does that mean, at age 31, I'm officially *gulp* old? Having roots means that I’ll be one of those people who thinks more about property taxes than parties. I know my debt-to-income ratio. I’ve purchased wall sconces without worrying if hanging them will put my damage deposit in jeopardy. I’m browsing the Sunday sales circulars for the best prices on lawnmowers. There is no turning back.

I've got a bad habit

GenePark — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 18:49:00 GMT

And no, it isn't smoking. I just quit that Friday. ^_^

I've got a bad habit of not writing things down. Yes, I write notes when I report. But when it comes to getting "organizezed," I never write down anything. I never write down important dates or appointments for interviews. I never write down story ideas I have budgeted in my head.

And I never write down an outline of the stories I write. All I ever do for stories is write the entire thing out in my head as I head back to my desk, whether it be a long walk or a drive.

I find that it does make me operate much quicker on deadline. But it's dangerous that I never write down things, and I was only reminded of this after reading the previous posts on using Excel spreadsheets. I can't even write a note on a scrap of paper, how can I even think about using spreadsheets to organize myself?

I'm grateful that I'm reminded of my bad habits. Like my smoking, it was encouragement for me to quit whenever I saw people fanning away my second hand. Do you all have any bad journalistic habits you'd like to drop?

Revisiting Excel

ElysseJames — Wed, 28 May 2008 15:06:00 GMT

I went to the same training session as Sonya and was inspired by her recent post about Excel spreadsheets.

A few weeks ago, I moved all my sources into an Excel spreadsheet. It took a few hours to get everything in there, and yes, it takes longer to open Excel and add a new source than it does to jot it down on a post-it, but is totally worth it.

With the new system, I can easily find sources for any topic, by job title, where they work, interests etc. Much easier than scrolling through a Word document or rifling through papers on my desk.

I never thought I'd be this excited about a computer program, but it's really great. And whenever I get business cards or get phone calls from potential sources, I add them into the database. Though I may not see use for their expertise now, I can't predict the future. And with Excel I have all that information at my fingertips. I already have a pretty comprehensive list of sources for the city I cover, and it will only grow the longer I work there.

Another thing I've been using Excel to track is for stories that take a while, where I have trouble getting sources or with people I know aren't careful to call me back. With each phone call I make, I open Excel and add the numbers called, the message left, times and dates and names, so that I've got a long record of the effort I make on a particular story. And because Excel is great, I can put all the stories in one document, and quickly will be able to sort by story, by source, by date, etc.

Excel is a great tool, and I suggest every journalist start working with spreadsheets!