Surviving J-Bootcamp

Former CBS News correspondent Gives Insider Perspective

clarijime — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 17:05:55 +0000

It’s the job that many television journalist aspire to and Thalia Assuras got to call it her own. Assuras ended her career as a network television news correspondent this past month. She first joined CBS News in 1997.

If you’ve never seen Assuras report, here’s a video clip of one of her stories.

To me, Assuras represents what a TV journalist should be about. She told American University graduate journalism students that “at heart, I’m a reporter, I’m a writer, I’m a journalist.” That’s so refreshing to hear when it’s become clear that working in TV news has now become a way for many to just be on camera.

Despite the intense competition from the Internet and cable news, Assuras told students that “network TV news won’t disappear.”

Hear why Assuras believes the future of network TV news is still promising.

I.F. Stone: the first blogger?

clarijime — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 17:29:52 +0000

When legendary investigative journalist I.F. Stone was laid off from a newspaper, he did what many journalists are doing these days; he struck out on his own. Stone’s son, Jeremy, says his father started “I.F. Stone’s Weekly” in 1953.

Jeremy Stone visited American University’s bootcamp for graduate journalism students to talk about his father’s legacy in the journalism profession.

“I.F. Stone’s Weekly” was a newsletter that only had 70,000 subscribers. But it had a lot of influence. It circulated until 1971. But Jeremy Stone takes issue with his father being called the first blogger. Jeremy said that blogs “make no reference to history, provide no facts or do research.” He said bloggers “don’t work as hard as my father did.”

AU graduate journalism student, Andy Medici, talks to Jeremy Stone. He is the son of legendary journalist I.F. Stone.

Newsroom Doctor: J-Lab Helps Newspapers Become Interactive, Entrepreneurial

clarijime — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 16:53:18 +0000

You can call Jan Schaffer a newsroom doctor. Part of Schaffer’s work at the J-Lab: The Institute for Interactive Journalism is to help newspapers that are struggling to make the transition into digital storytelling.

The J-Lab is based at American University’s School of Communication.

Schaffer told AU graduate journalism students that “in the new media environment it’s been difficult for newspapers to transition to entrepreneurial journalism.” She added “many news organizations are afraid to fail, be made fun of or afraid the public will be mad.”

The J-Lab’s new project, “Networked Community News,” could be the answer to helping some newspapers ease their way into this new territory.

Five mainstream newspapers will be partnered with five hyperlocal websites in each of their own communities.

Watch the video below to find out why Schaffer believes the pilot project will benefit both “citizen journalists” and mainstream newspapers.

Final Thoughts On Bootcamp

clarijime — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 00:11:33 +0000

With one more day to go, American University graduate journalism students share their thoughts on the intense three-week experience.

Listen to what some of the students had to say.

What are your final thoughts as bootcamp comes to a close?

Journtrepreuner-journalist turned entrepreuner

clarijime — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 23:22:45 +0000

When Jim Brady decided to make the switch from print to online journalism his peers at The Washington Post told him he was “committing career suicide.” This was back in 1995. One year later, Brady launched WashingtonPost.com. Even as late as 2004, Brady says some of his peers at the Post newsroom still felt like the “web was going to go away” and that it was nothing more than a “fad.” Five years later, Brady is working to launch his own online news venture. Brady spoke with American University graduate journalism students about his decision to become an entrepreneurial journalist.

Listen below.

Broadcast News: A first-person account

clarijime — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 22:29:48 +0000

If there’s one thing you can tell from hearing Susan Zirinsky talk about her work at CBS is that she absolutely loves what she does. Zirinsky Skyped from New York City with American University graduate journalism students in Washington, D.C. She described her first taste of television news as “better than sex.” This was back in 1972 when she was hired to work part-time at the CBS News bureau in Washington, D.C. while completing her undergraduate degree at AU’s School of Communication.

More than 30 years later Zirinsky wears many hats at CBS. She is the executive producer of “48 Hours.” That’s in addition to also working as the executive producer of special project for CBS News and the Entertainment division. Zirinsky told students “to find that thing that gets you to the office even though it scares” you.

"48 Hours" executive producer and AU SOC Alum, Susan Zirinsky, shares colorful anecdotes from her more than 30 years of work at CBS News. Zirinsky Skyped from New York City with AU graduate journalism students in Washington, D.C.

Zirinsky is considered the inspiration for the character of “Holly Hunter” in the 1987 film “Broadcast News. Zirinsky served as technical advisor/associate producer for the film’s writer/director, James L. Brooks. Check out a scene from the movie.

Learning By Doing: Editing Video with Final Cut Pro

clarijime — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 21:40:19 +0000

Hand outs and guidance from an instructor are helpful when it comes to learning how to edit video. But the bottomline is that there’s nothing like taking matters into your own hands to acquire the skill. American University instructors Rob Roberts and Carolyn Brown teamed up to teach graduate journalism students the basics of editing video using Final Cut Pro. After listening to some pointers, students got behind their computers to begin capturing video from their cameras to the hard drive.

Former television news producer and American University professor, Carolyn Brown, provides graduate journalism student, Erissa Scalera, with one-on-one help on using Final Cut pro.

As a side note, It took more than two hours before I, along with my partner Will Cummings, could edit any video that we shot for our story. Waiting for the video to capture from the camera to the external drive was worst than watching paint dry. Will started to read a book at some point and I made a quick trip to get some cash. I am not kidding! There are some lessons to learn here. Don’t overshoot your story and don’t capture your video clips before deciding what you absolutely want to use . Although Will and I were satisfied with the quality of the b-roll and sound we gathered, it was a time consuming to wait for all that video to be captured. Time is precious when you are on deadline. By the way, we had 112 video clips in total which averages to about an hour of video. Keep in mind our story only needs to be about 1 minute and 30 seconds.

Listen to other student experiences on editing video with Final Cut Pro.

Becoming YouTube Overnight Sensation Unlikely

clarijime — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 20:51:48 +0000

Admit it. You’ve probably fantasized about becoming a YouTube overnight sensation . You know, like the Minnesota wedding party who danced their way down the church aisle to Chris Brown’s “Forever” song. The clip was posted on YouTube and got over a million hits in a few days! At last check, it had over 19 million views.

Well, it’s very unlikely your web video will ever make it big on YouTube. Rob Roberts, a senior video editor with USA Today, told graduate journalism students at American University they will probably measure their video success in terms of hundreds, not thousands, of web hits.

Roberts used his background in documentaries and experience with online journalism to help students get ready to shoot their first video story.

USA TODAY senior video editor, Rob Roberts, teaches students how to properly use a digital video camera.

Beginners to shooting web video should feel at ease after learning of Roberts’ number one rule for getting it done right. Roberts told students that his number one rule when it comes to shooting video is “video isn’t that hard.” Roberts said that “at its heart video is telling a story.”

Roberts’ four other rules for shooting web video are as follow: video is time consuming, the same skills that go into video go into journalism, know your audience and know your media, and it’s all about the story.

For many bootcamp students, especially those with a print background, shooting video is a first. But Roberts assured them that “…video is as hard as you want to make it.” He said that video is all about good itnerview, good b-roll and good visuals.

The Heat Is On! Video Story Assignment

clarijime — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 20:43:20 +0000

While many folks in Washington, D.C. were avoiding going outside on Monday, graduate journalism students at American University left the classroom to spend the afternoon in the intense heat.

Students split up in pairs to shoot video stories on how the city was dealing with Monday’s sweltering temperatures.

Some students headed to a dog park to find out how pets were surviving the heat. Other students took a taxi cab ride to ask cabbies how the high temperatures were affecting business. And me and my partner, Will Cummings, headed to a couple of ice cream shops to hear why some people think there’s no better way to cool off.

For the record, I was strong and didn’t give in to buying any ice cream. Now, that’s a serious journalist!

Take a look at the final product below.

A 20-something multimedia producer makes it happen

clarijime — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 18:56:29 +0000

“Expect to fail.” That’s one of the best pieces of advice Keosha Johnson says she’s received and decided to pass on to graduate journalism students at American University’s summer bootcamp. Johnson was once in our shoes. She recently received her master of arts in broadcast journalism from AU’s School of Communication. She was later chosen out of about 1,000 applicants for the prestigious NBC News Associate Program. The program provides one year of training to up-and-coming news producers. Johnson only had 15 minutes to talk to the class. But in that short time, she provided some valuable insights.

WAMU 88.5 News' Online News Editor, Keosha Johnson, talks to graduate journalism students at American University about building a career in a multimedia newsroom. Johnson is an alum of AU's School of Communication.

She told students that her goal as a graduate journalism student was to learn instead of having the best GPA. Johnson says some of her fellow students who only focused on grades still haven’t found jobs. To make a point about the tough job market that awaits us, she told the class that she applied to 20 jobs in Boston and Washington, D.C. and only got two calls. One of those calls came from WAMU 88.5 News, a public radio station based out of AU. Johnson beat out other applicants for the job of Online News Editor.