A reminder, as you may have noticed in our syllabus, that our class the week after next is to be held on Tuesday, Nov. 22 instead of Thursday, Nov. 24. It’s a school-wide policy that Thursday classes be held in place of the usual Tuesday classes that day, due to the Thanksgiving Day holiday. Make any travel plans accordingly!
Please see the Class Syllabus for updates on assignments under Week Ten (survey results blog post/Google Gadget tutorial, and video pitch,) and Week 13 (video assignment). Also see updates to “Assignment Calendar” for weeks 10-15.
The class syllabus has been updated with details under Week Eight regarding the audio slideshow pitch and under Week Nine regarding the audio slideshow assignment. Remember, audio slideshow pitches are due Wednesday, Nov. 3, at 10 p.m.
Here are further details on the pitch:
The pitch document spells out the following:
A few of you asked me during our one-on-ones about the idea of “voice” that I mention in my grading rubric. Here’s a nice chat on the writer’s voice – inspired by music – from Roy Peter Clark of the Poynter Institute, a great writing coach I trained with years go: How to incorporate tone, rhythm & voice in your writing. Roy also has a piece on the blogger’s voice: From Pepys to Your Peeps, Finding Your Voice as a Blogger. Let me know what you think of these pieces – good or bad.
There’s also available, free through the Research Center, Poynter NewsU webinars like this one: Write with Voice and Tone: Poynter Writing Series. If anyone’s interested in watching the webinar in a small group, so that we can discuss it together afterwards, I’d be more than happy to arrange and join in.
ProPublica’s post for social media editor a few hours ago (full text below) includes this useful notable perspective:
“Extensive social media experience is required, but candidates will foremost be excellent journalists.” [emphasis added]
It also mentions:
“You will be expected to implement projects using HTML and CSS, and be familiar with web analytics, basic project management, and Photoshop.”
Plus, ProPublica’s new social media editor, interviewed on 10,000 Words blog
EZ: How does one land a gig as a social media editor? What are the must-have skills that someone aspiring to be a social media editor needs?
DV: Most importantly, you should think of yourself as a journalist first, and a social media nerd a very distant second.
Per your suggestion, and at the request of the Career Services Office, I’m adjusting our class schedule on Thursday to allow you to make the most of the school’s Career Fair that day.
Here’s the plan: We’ll have an abbreviated session from 1-2ish, just enough to cover the essentials for your upcoming audio slideshow assignment. The remainder of the session, from 2:30 p.m.-5 p.m., will be used for the mid-semester one-on-one meetings that I’d promised for each of you.I’ll also set up an earlier block of time, from 11 a.m.-1 p.m to make sure I can accommodate everyone that day.
To request a time, please check my Google calender to make sure your preferred slot(s) is available, and then email a request for your 1st, 2rd and 3rd choice in either morning or afternoon block. Please use the subject line: MEETING REQUEST, so I’m sure to see it.
At those one-on-one meetings, which will each last 15-20 minutes, we’ll review all graded assignments, thoughts about your upcoming audio slideshow pitch, and any thoughts or suggestions you have for the class going forward.
Questions? Comments?
For those of you who’ve been shooting this story, or plan to, a great collection of images from photojournalists can be found here at “Facing Change: Documenting America.” Thanks Bob Sacha. Enjoy!
A couple of folks have asked how to differentiate the photo essay’s lead-in blog post of 200-300 words from the 25-50 word text captions accompanying your 8-10 images.
I’d think of your lead-in post as a stage-setter, helping your audience understand the point of the photo essay to come, and providing them with background and context sufficient to entice them to view the photos that follow. The captions can then help illustrate that story, providing additional context with each image.
It’s okay if the post text and the captions echo each other, sort of like a good overture. Just don’t make them match too closely, or readers will have the uncomfortable feeling of “Haven’t I read this somewhere before?”
Exemplary Student Work
Another student asked for examples of exemplary student work, rather than the stuff the big-shots do. Here are a few:
Just to clarify on the photo essay assignment, the captions accompanying each of the 8-10 photos should be 25-50 words long, and should include both specific information about the subject of the photo (assuming that’s not clear from the photo itself), as well as the broader context of the image’s story. Questions? Comments?
Here’s a PDF of the abridged G12 manual we walked through in class – canon_G12_quick_start_manual.
And here’s a link to the camera product page, where you can find the full, unabridged manual and other resources.