When Journalism Gets Tricky

After our discussion today in class about where  to draw the line between respecting an individual’s right to be left alone and approaching a person going through something painful, I found the multimedia story “Hillside Display of Crosses: A War of Emotions” to be appropriate. The story chronicled the range of emotions and opinions over an anti-war memorial display in California. The war in Iraq is one of the most divisive topics among Americans today, and the journalist Pauline Lubens captured the strong emotions on both sides. 

The most compelling moment in the piece comes when the father of a solider killed in combat orders the artist of the memorial display to remove his son’s name from the crosses. This portion of the story elevated it from an observational view of the issue to placing the audience in the center of the argument. Visually, the story was interesting in its own right. The photos of the stark white crosses, blended with photos of deceased soldiers and grieving family members  conveyed the main issue of the story without words. This story exemplified the way multimedia can be an excellent forum for journalists to capture stories through audio, photography and video.

-Abbie Schmid

Photography

David Snider's pictures are exquisite. They really capture a moment in time. The fact that they are in black and white gives them a scrapbook feel that made me feel almost nostalgic looking at them. Even though the people in the photos were no one I knew, the pictures told me how they were feeling at the moment in time. The pictures were relatable. 

David LaBelle's pictures were also awesome. All the of the criteria that LaBelle gave for being a photographer seemed to be very general. He took a concept that maybe he had seen in his life and tried to apply it to all photojournalists.  

Rachel Perron - photography

It was pretty discouraging looking through David Snider's pictures after taking my own. It was definitely impressive, and it is pretty hard to believe that something so artful is essentially just capturing real life. When Snider mentioned he was recording the river of live that flowed around him, I asked myself if that is what I saw. I think one of the challenges I had to (and perhaps didn't) overcome in my three photos assignment was letting myself fade into the background, to gain the perspective that would have allowed me to see life as it happened, without myself included.  Snider did capture things that the unassuming person would miss, but he didn't go digging for them, which is a unique talent that definitely shows in his work.

Street Photography

I think that David Snider did a great thing. He took what he liked and went after it. Despite the negative remarks of him taking someones photo without them knowing it or wanting it, he captured a piece of history each time. Many times as journalists we must be persistence in order to get the best piece of work. David Snider for sure has one thing that a photographer must be born with and that is curiosity. Without it he wouldn't be bale to take the amazing photos he has taken. He also engages in blending. Often times when a person knows their photo is being taken they act unnatural; all of Snider’s photos look natural, so he must have blended.

About Photography

David LaBelle provides a really good guide for being a photojournalist. He talks about many details we need to pay attention in photojournalism. Among all the points LaBelle talks, the one I like best is that curiosity is photographer’s best friend. I think curiosity is important for photographers. Without curiosity about life, the photographers’ works are lifeless. Instead of capturing the special moments in life, taking photos will be more like finishing tasks for the photographers who don’t have curiosity. For incurious photojournalists, the photos they take cannot play a useful role in communicating with readers, and these photos cannot provide helpful information for the main stories.

I think David Snider is a good example of curious photographers. All of his photos show his great curiosity about people and people’s life. If Snider were not a curious photographer, the smiling children, the waiter, the old man walking on the street, and other individuals couldn’t be the subjects of his photos, he must miss these most common and special moments in our life. As LaBelle said in his article, I think Snider is a good photojournalist who is “in love with people and with life.”

Photography

Lauren Matteson

Photography is something I truly enjoy. I have always loved taking photographs and looking at them. Words don't always offer me the same fascination as a picture does. I am often consumed by amazing photographs, especially ones produced by consistently great photographers like LaBelle. He makes photography seem like the simplest task that can offer the most rewards. 

The power of holding a camera allows others to see a scene the exact way you see it. I think that is a gift. David Snider is a great example of this. He captures moments that may have otherwise gone unnoticed. His work is amazing, as is his story. Calling himself a "watcher of humanity" is very clever. All journalists are "watchers of humanity." Photography is different from video feed and interviews in that it is just a split second of time. It's special because nothing else can tell so much in so little time. It makes all the words a journalist can say or read real. It is an area of convergence I strive to improve in and hope to include in my future work as much as possible.

LaBelle makes it look so easy

Safe to say most Konvergence Kids did not drop in from Photo J--we all tend to fall a little short in that category. From the outside I always kind of assumed it was one of those things that someone either gets or they don’t get. The way LaBelle breaks it down, it actually feels…almost…possible to be good at this stuff.

 

To be honest, anything that requires a certain brand of Zen-esque approach tends to piss me off. I like words. I can move words around until they fit right, use them to describe just about anything. Writing takes a certain kind of ambition and activity that most of us thrive on. Photography feels like, well, hunting. LaBelle really nailed it on the head there. His break down of it in a breezy 44 pages hits it all. With a little practice, maybe, just maybe we can hush the cries of convergence haters everywere. They say to let us cover the mundane, the mediocre, the we-need-to-cover-this-because-there’s-not-enough-big-news, and let the pro photographer and other one dimensionals cover the breaking news where they NEED the shot.  

 

Thank you, David LaBelle, for making it look so easy. I hope you’re right. 

Street Photography

I was the unsuspecting subject of street photography about three weeks ago. I was on my way to class one afternoon when I found a bag taped to my moped's handlebar. Inside was a black and white photo of my friend and I getting on that moped a few weeks prior. We both had on our helmets, big sunglasses and even larger grins on our faces. A note was attached explaining that the photographer, a local man, was driving past when he saw the two of us. He pulled out his camera quickly to capture the moment. After developing the photo, he wanted us to have a copy. At first, my friend and I were upset. We felt violated and totally creeped out. However, after walking past the picture sitting on our counter for the next few days, we began to appreciate the photo. The photographer, a total stranger, managed to capture all of our emotions perfectly. Daily, we squeeze on my one person moped to zip to class or run errands. We know that we are a spectacle and have gotten used to laughter and fingers being pointed at our expense. At the same time, we cannot help smiling and laughing from pure excitement and joy. The picture is now framed and hanging in our apartment.

I'm sharing this story because the readings about street photography have a deeper meaning for me after my experience. As David Snider commented, "I had to confront my fear an unpleasant response to my "taking" someone's photo without their permission." Initially, I was upset that my photo was taken without my consent. However, I am grateful to the photographer and still amazed that I did not see him. I appear to be looking straight into the camera, but as per David LaBelle's suggestion, the photographer "silently stalked" us, his prey. I hope to explore street photography myself someday, borrowing tips from these readings and my own experience. It's incredibly unique and rewarding to have the opportunity to communicate one's own perspective on the world around him/her at moment's notice, through the lens of a camera.

To be able take photographs at level of David Snider for me would be very difficult to achieve specially in the field of convergence. However i do find that LaBelle advise can be used for not just photgraphy but for creating a convergence project. A single web site can contain most of the key features he talked, such as emotion, moments and simplicity. A web site can present these virtues in new way, emotions can be captured in a video, the moment can be captured through a story and overall of presentation of the story online can show a combination of simplicity and creativity. The only problems i see is that there will not be that many 'trophy' photos in such a web site.

Photography in Action

Photography and photojournalism is a field I’m not very familiar with. Beyond my trusty point and shoot digital camera, cell phone and occasional disposable camera I’m fairly unaware of the complexities of photography and the how images can convey ideas and emotions to a broad audience. While reading “The Great Picture Hunt,” a quote about good photojournalists stuck out to me. “Good photojournalists are not in love with photography, they are in love with people and with life.” As I gain more experience taking pictures, I hope to see firsthand how the desire to capture people and life in action can translate through images. The two articles about photography were interesting in their description of the different methods and art forms photography can become. 

“Street Pictures” comes with a photo gallery that shows an angle of photography that is not thought out or rehearsed, but captured in fleeting moments. I’m a fan a candid street photography and its ability to freeze mundane moments in time that can take on an unexpected significance. A street fashion photography blog I’m a fan of is The Sartorialist. (http://www.thesartorialist.blogspot.com/) The author of the blog takes pictures of people wearing clothing in interesting ways on the streets of New York and around the world. Photography can take many forms and methods, however the intention to capture unique and compelling snapshots of life remains the same.

-Abbie Schmid 

Tweedley-Deet Tweet

I'm truly torn about Twitter. While most people seem to be all "atwitter" about this recent phenomenon, I myself have yet to decide whether I like it or not. Perhaps it's more accurate to say that I have a love-hate relationship with Twitter. Though it's nice to chirp the occasional random thought or idea, and I enjoy reading what kind of mood my friends might be in based on their latest tweet, I feel like the potential for overkill is undeniable. Twitter has been a great way for me to keep up to date on my favorite TV shows and film franchises--for example, I follow the Twitter pages devoted to the Showtime series, "Weeds"--as well as keeping up with the more interesting thoughts and "brain-farts" of my closest friends. But the potential for over-use and abuse cannot be ignored. I for one don't wish to be notified at every turn what my friend might be doing at every moment of the day--in other words, I don't need to know that Jimmy is busy right this minute brushing his teeth. And I have nothing but contempt for people who pose as celebrities on Twitter, claiming to be the latest tweets from rock gods or movie stars. We hear stories all the time about "fake" celebs tweeting about their latest auditions or the shopping they did--and this not only creates a situation where the public doesn't know who to rely on, but it can be harmful to the "real" celebrities themselves. So people who follow various tweets need to be cautious about just who exactly they're following. Twitter is a great deal of fun, just Tweet at your own risk.

Jane Stevens’ article on the benefits of “backpack journalism” is revealing, but I wonder if a major point is being overlooked. While it’s a good idea for any journalist to have skills in multimedia platforms and equipment, Stevens seems to be missing one major point: writing ability remains the key. In today’s YouTube and video-blog filled world, it seems like any idiot with a cellphone camera or hand-held device is becoming a photojournalist or amateur photographer. Indeed I agree that some of the most compelling news footage in recent years was first gathered by amateurs who happened to be witnesses to amazing events… Yet the importance of knowing how to write well, and how to properly frame a story and tell it in detail are still paramount, I believe. No amount of skill with a camera or multimedia applications will make up for a journalist’s strong writing ability, and the ability to properly analyze and synthesize a news story. In any case, I would much prefer the thoughtful and well organized thoroughness of a professional journalist’s carefully planned and in-depth story to the haberdashery of multimedia footage gathered quickly and “in the moment” by a “backpack” journalist. While they will always have their uses, backpack journalists should always be given second chair to more traditional journalists for everything except the most urgent and immediate of breaking news.

About Twitter

Before I start this writing, I heard of twitter for several times, but I have never used it. In my opinion, twitter is a useful tool for people to communicate. Everyone can express short opinions about anything on twitters. Also, they can get good or bad feedbacks on everything. Although some people may think twitter has the information that doesn’t make any sense, I think this is one of the most effective and fastest ways for people to communicate with the world.

Backpack Journalism

When I read some entertainment news online this morning, I suddenly realized that convergence or backpack journalism has been in my daily life for several years.
The story I read is about a famous Chinese singer who was suspect of drug-taking. The journalist provided a short video clip, some photos of this singer, and a detailed report about the whole incident. After reading this story, I realized that backpack journalism has given me most of the information I need in my life. Because of the daily experiences with backpack journalism, I couldn’t agree with Jane Stevens more-- “in a few years, backpack journalists will not only be the rule, they'll rule.”
After emergence of the Internet in people’s life, newspaper and television are not the only sources of information any more. More and more people like to read news online. To serve these online readers better, backpack journalism, no doubt, is the best choice for all of the journalists. As Stevens said in this article, multimedia storytelling presents stories in nonlinear format, and readers can easily comment on stories. I think these are the aspects that traditional media cannot reach. Therefore, the media convergence must be an irreversible trend, and I believe more people will like to obtain information with the combination of traditional and new media. As journalism students, it is important to be ready for the age of backpack journalism.

Have an opportunity to make mistakes

Hui

Media is in a transitional period, and for sure, multimedia’s very promising.
Some traditional media organizations are training their journalists to be multi-skilled. But during this period, how to ensure their multi-media pieces have a high quality, would be a concern. After all, traditional journalists can’t master new skills in one day, and they may make mistakes while learning and practicing new things.

But I found that some media do offer a good platform for their staff members to try. For example, a network encourages their journalists to do one-man band and to finish a video piece on their own, including shooting, writing, editing and voicing. Most of the good pieces will be put on the network’s website. So those traditional journalists have opportunities to fail, to keep trying and to prepare for their future. At the same time, the network can make sure their on-air pieces are as good as before.

My take on the Twitterverse

In retrospect, my comment about the “correct” use of Twitter in class on Tuesday really should have been concerning the most productive and efficient use of Twitter. I reluctantly got a Twitter account a few months ago (lhasler). I must admit I still do not use it to its full potential. I am going to pull a quote from Frank Kelly, the Irish filmmaker creating a feature-length documentary inspired by Twitter. (http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2009/05/the-social-media-phenomenon-that.html). “When I first get into something like that, my first thought is how I can use it as a tool. How can I use this to benefit my life rather than act as a distraction in my life?” As journalists, I believe this is a very important point to keep in mind. Twitter’s question, “What are you doing?” can be answered in millions of ways. The most accurate would most likely be, “Updating my Twitter.” However, I think the answer should delve beyond one’s current status into what one is thinking about and what can be shared to make his/her followers more informed. I enjoy when my time on Twitter is cut short because of all of the links to news, music, or other items of interest. On the other hand, I do not enjoy being bombarded upon my log in by endless ramblings of the mundane aspects of the lives of those whom I follow. Truth be told, I don’t care that one of my friends is eating cereal, Lucky Charms to be exact, and another is dreading going to work. I believe Twitter is used most efficiently when users post a few times per day, not per hour, using comedy, posting links, posing questions… As journalists, there is huge benefit in receiving tips about breaking news and getting feedback on stories. In my mind, rather than being overwhelmed by the amount of information available on the Internet, I am comforted by the fact that the 68 people I follow are helping me to divide that up into smaller pieces and alerting me to articles and stories I may have otherwise missed. There is no doubt that Twitter is useful. And it is in no way a passing fad. After all, popularity continues to grow, it is still receiving a lot of media attention, and, as I mentioned earlier, there’s now a movie being made about it. However, I still stand by my belief that online social networking is making our generation more narcissistic than any other. Sorry if I’m hurting your feelings, but most of the time I just don’t care what you’re doing (I promise, I’m not nearly as mean as that makes me sound). My advice to new Twitter users is to use “micro-blogging” as a way to share information, not to brag. I found an article which said that while Skype has replaced landlines and Facebook has replaced other forms of correspondence with old friends, Twitter is the new bathroom stall writing. I appreciate the connectivity Twitter delivers, but when it simply distracts users and confirms how boring their lives truly are (after all, most tweets just prove that Americans drink too much coffee and get too little sleep) it does much more harm than good. To quote Robin Wauters from TechCrunch, “It’s where news gets broken and what more and more celebrities openly turn to start getting social with the community. It’s an almost perfect crowdsourced Q&A tool. It’s a place where companies can do business while people can choose to engage only with their peers instead. Basically, it’s as social as social networking services can get. And it’s still growing like a weed, too.”

And just for kicks, please watch this video: http://www.wiseaff.com/2009/03/funny-twitter-video-beware-the-fail-whale.html

Backpack Journalism

I am a convergence major because I am confident that it is the future of journalism. Our current economic situation, paired with the growing need to instantly have the latest news, proves that there is going to be a strong presence of backpack journalism in that future. Multimedia and cross-platform reporting provides the most comprehensive coverage, and I believe this is most easily possible with backpack journalists. I agree with Martha Stone that not everyone is cut out to work independently under the pressure of single-handedly getting the perfect photo, video, interviews, and audio. However, journalism is a very competitive field, and those who are capable of putting together a complete package with minimal assistance, are going to be the ones to succeed. It is important that specialists are present in newsrooms to cover breaking news and larger stories, as well as to ensure accuracy in the work of the backpack journalists. Yet, monetary concerns will limit the amount of coverage by the media if large teams of reporters are required. It costs exponentially less to send one reporter on an assignment, which means that more diverse coverage is possible on a limited budget. This does not mean that it will be mediocre news stories as Stone suggests, because I have complete confidence that almost every journalism student at MU, not to mention more experienced reporters, would be capable of independently putting together an excellent multimedia, cross-platform story.

Backpack Journalism

It’s true that the backpack journalism trend may mean that for the next 10 or so years, the news we consume will look less than perfect. The video packages may not be edited with the same precision and the photos may not possess the same artistic quality, but in terms of content, backpack journalism will provide the public with 10 times what they were getting from traditional news stories  To suggest, that backpack journalists yield mediocre work or that this shift is in injustice to news consumers, well that's absurd.  Regardless of its attention to insignificant details, news in the future will be more comprehensive, more complete and ultimately more effective.   

The good and the bad for Twitter and journalism

(by Allan Vestal)

From the streets of Mumbai during a terrorist attack to communities across America facing uncertainty about Swine Flu, the utility of Twitter in aiding communication as situations unfold has been well established. The tool allows those impacted directly by breaking news to communicate with friends and loved ones outside – and with others on the front lines.

Twitter also has proven itself to be capable for more general social interaction, with capabilities (such as @ replies) designed to spark discussions; the brief, 140-character or less nature of tweets spurs very conversational, very granular interaction.

But can Twitter be a useful tool to news media? I would argue that the nature of journalism is quite compatible with the ideals and goals of newsrooms the world over.

Kovach and Rosenstiel tell us that “Journalism is a discipline of verification.” The profession is, in a nutshell, about getting the facts – the verified facts, that is – to audiences, as quickly as possible. The instantaneous nature of tweeting, in addition to the frequency with which many "tweeple" (Twitter users) check their friends’ feeds, is very conducive to this form of covering breaking news – namely, getting the basic facts out as soon as possible. More comprehensive coverage, which would likely not fit within the 140 character limit (or into a textual medium altogether), could follow in the form of a link to finalized news content such as articles or videos.

Such has been the practice of many news outlets, even here in mid-Missouri. Yesterday, a pipeline in Howard County, Mo. exploded, igniting a massive fire. Less than an hour after initial reports of the fire, KOMU tweeted about the incident and provided a map of the area affected. Incremental updates from the station and from the Columbia Daily Tribune poured in over the rest of the night, including links to more finalized content.

KOMU also attempted an interesting technique in its coverage: the station asked in subsequent tweets for viewer-submitted photos of the blaze. This highlights another possible use of Twitter for newsrooms: as a tool to gather (and distribute) news virally. The concept of news outlets tapping into social networking is intriguing, and could prove handy in helping journalists discover new angles to stories. On the other end, the burgeoning occurrence of re-tweeting (echoing the contents of others’ tweets) can help interesting messages from news organizations to go viral.

For all its uses, however, there are some definite drawbacks to Twitter. Namely, many news organizations are still discovering the difference between what is and what isn’t appropriate to tweet. Many thought it inappropriate when the Columbia Missourian tweeted that people were applauding at a recent talk by David Sedaris on the MU campus, for example, as this detail was probably not relevant (at least in an immediate sense) to a large segment of the Missourian’s Twitter followers. The network should, therefore, only be used to post relevant details in stories that feature a strong element of timeliness.

Another somewhat widely-used application for Twitter is as a pseudo-feed of the latest news. Organizations like The Maneater (at which I serve as Online Development Editor, in full disclosure) have mostly used the service to post links to the top story of each issue. This does work in the sense that regular – but not overly frequent – updates provide a form of informal advertisement as followers read about a featured story (and, if they so desire, click on a link to read or view more). However, using Twitter only in this respect defeats its purposes of both sparking conversation and providing instant updates.

The answer for integrating Twitter into newsrooms, then, lies somewhere in the middle of many of these approaches. News organizations must harness the varied utilities of Twitter, and use these to generate varying types of coverage based around the service.

Backpack journalism

150 word limit is a cruel punishment for commenting on a topic you are passionate about.

I absolutely disagree with Martha Stone. Backpack journalism is a "jack of all trades, and master of none" is a poor description for such a medium. It is animal of it owns, fueled by a unique culture that has been created by the internet. To think that it should conform to same standards as mainstream media is foolish.

One of her comments was that backpack journalist would not be able to notice a smudge on the camera that a professional photographers can notice and fix. Majority of the online community does not care about that much quality otherwise youtube.com would not be as popular as it is right now. A perfect example is craigslist.com; compared to the newspaper classified it is an absolutely inferior quality product. Craigslist.com is poorly designed, ridiculous fonts choice, looks absolutely horrendous and yet it is a thousand times more popular than any classifieds in any newspaper, anywhere. Why? Because, by the end of the day, it turns a complex workings of posting classified in the newspaper into much more efficient and simplified process. Signing up for the site is easy, ads get out faster, reach more people, and provide everyone with an enormous selection from across the globe. Yet the site looks like something a 12-year-old made on a sugar-high. The internet rewards functionality far more than quality.

Another issue I have with her post is that she quotes Gary Kebbel saying that backpack journalist products on breaking news would not be finished until a month after the news event. A full in-depth story about a breaking news takes weeks before it develops into a so-called masterpiece. Till then newspapers are putting out brief with repeat information and bunch of officials saying 'no comments' or ' i dunno what happened, it will take a while before figure out the situation.' A backpack journalist can put out such brief in a more concise manner where they do not have to repeat information from past stories to keep audience up to date. They simply update the site as they acquire information over time until it finally a complete product. An example, though not journalistic, are video games sites. When a game is first announced the Web site dedicated to it is barren with one or two articles and a video or two. But over time they evolve into this one massive one-stop-for-everything package, capturing events as they develop.

As for backpack journalist being "...masters of none." My younger brother learned to create elaborate Adobe Flash movies and web site contents at the age of 13 using nothing but the help tab. There is technology out there that helps make editing, shooting and recreating multimedia projects easier and there are tips out there how to improve such projects, to make them more professional without the requirement of a team or expensive training (never underestimate the power of Google.com). People cannot believe that the complexity of TV and print news can be simplified into a process that a single individual can carry out on his own. It can be done. Not only can it be done but i believe that a backpack journalist can easily match the quality of specialized individuals but not providing not the same product but a more efficient and complete product. All they need is dedication and faith in their field.

Backpack Journalism - A Critique

(by Allan Vestal)

In a discussion with a recent J-school graduate this past week, the topic of convergence journalism came up. The graduate opined that studying in this sequence seemed like “getting all appetizers, but no main courses” at a restaurant.

This criticism is nothing new to me: many in the J-school seem to share this sentiment, as (apparently) does journalist Martha Stone, evidenced by her article “The Backpack Journalist Is a ‘Mush of Mediocrity.’”

I feel that this observation is largely accurate, as print and broadcast reporters, videographers and graphics specialists each have highly developed career skills; asking aspiring convergence journalists to learn and expertly practice the techniques of each profession is certainly a tall order.

A more workable solution than this might to have students specialize in one area of reporting (and to teach them enough about reporting in other mediums that they can produce a report for alternate media in a pinch).

In the working world, then, news organizations would assign teams of journalists with concentrations in varying media to most multimedia stories, using one-man-band “backpack journalists” sparingly, usually in cases that are best reported by individual reporters (breaking news items of minor significance, situations in which budgetary concerns are prevalent or cases where only one reporter is allowed). This would allow for most multimedia projects to feature the work of multiple reporters in their areas of expertise, while still allowing nimble, multiply-talented journalists to produce individual works where they fit with the overall nature of issues (or of the outlets producing the coverage).

There is indeed a niche for singular backpack journalism – and for multidisciplinary training in the J-school – but this is by no means a ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution for the coverage of tomorrow’s news.

Rachel Perron - Twitter, May 21

I’m unsure about Twitter. I actually started an account, I even tried to have it hooked up to my phone, but as is typical of me when it comes to new online activities, I get a bit confused and give up.

 

Even though I’m not taking part in it, I have enjoyed watching the effects of Twitter, particularly in the political realm. Listening to the thoughts of congressmen and congresswomen, and especially those instances where interns foiled a party’s ambitions by twittering the cat out of the bag.

 

I suppose I’ll jump on the Twitter band wagon eventually, although probably not until it manifests itself into some lesser form I can tackle first—such as the Facebook status. The only problem is I didn’t much enjoy updating my status on Facebook (I figure if you waste time having writers block over telling people what you’re doing, you should probably be doing something else). 

Rachel Perron - Backpack Journalism, May 21

Backpack journalism: friend or foe? For me, it’s neither. It teeters somewhere in the middle, and reading both Jane Stevens’s and Martha Stone’s articles makes it easy to understand why.

 

With the economy on the decline and Internet news increasing as steadily as expected, the trend towards backpack journalism seems rather logical. But while the skills posed by such trailblazers as Preston Mendelhall have produced quality converged stories, it is important to remember that the method should not replace the finished product in importance. In other words, reporters and editors should acknowledge the obstacles and limitations of backpack journalism, not accept them.

 

I could see how increasing technology and more informed teachers in journalism schools could make converged, backpack journalism more possible that Stone, and even Stevens could’ve imagined. But the thing newsrooms should watch out for, I feel, is treating it like a “trend”, as in thinking that good journalism is backpack journalism, and regardless of what new methods catch on with consumers, hold all news to the same standard. 

The Backpack Journalist: Captain of all Trades

The clichéd, age old (haha) disparagement of journalism and journalists rings out from the armchairs of bitter men and women everywhere: “well even I could do that.” Backpack journalism and its “jack of all trades, master of none” reputation threatens to propagate this. Blogs and similar examples of citizen journalism apparently prove said disparagement. How do we combat this? It's not a question of skill specialization versus skill saturation.

Look at the journalism-public relationship like a carrier-passenger dynamic. Legitimate print journalism is an old helicopter… been flying around watchdogging and informing for years. Broadcast is a newer, prettier helicopter equipped with a few more goodies to cater to more people. The journalist is the pilot. If all the collective information worldwide is the atmosphere, the Internet is sucking up all of it, and now that old helicopter sputters in the thin air.  To make matters more threatening for the profession, citizens are driving faster and faster cars that get them to more and more places—meaning they can get a lot more news on their own—and so the ailing whirly bird above can become a nuisance

Backpack journalists learn how to drive submarines, fly jets, and maybe even drive environmentally-friendly buses, on top of being expert helicopter pilots. But they cannot survive or even subsist on the pure merit of dabbling in multiple crafts, they must take it to levels cars cannot go. A profession often lives and dies by its most glaring weaknesses…mediocre news by multi-tasking journalists are just helicopter pilots who keep trashing airplanes. Just learning the skill sets will not suffice. The BPJs need to excel, to use their education and resources to the utmost in order to discover, decipher, and something else that starts with D that means “to inform,” [in pursuit of the truth] in ways that everyone else cannot or will not. Air planes and helicopters are faster and more convenient, buses are safe and dependable, and submarines go to depths an automobile cannot ever hope to drive. A backpack journalist can manage them all, but for him(her) to try and take the Public with him, he must be excellent—he must be a captain. Mediocrity is not an option.

Let’s try this… Backpack journalists… “captain of all trades, master of one.” 

Perfect.

 

Thoughts on Backpack Journalism

After reading both arguments, I feel both have strong points.  First, I feel that Stone made an excellent and accurate point when she said "Much of multimedia journalism is bubbling up from the grassroots of news organizations on an experimental basis, not as a planned, long-term investment in the future. Few multimedia journalists are being trained on video cameras, audio recorders and cross-platform writing styles. A commitment to multimedia journalism from the top levels of management needs to take place."  I feel in order for journalists to become successful at producing quality multimedia, support from the top is absolutely essential.  The concept of multimedia savvy journalists who can jump between media with ease can only benefit newsrooms.  I feel that settings in which all journalists are well-versed and experienced with multiple types of media and storytelling are more conducive to team work.  Further, while teams of 4 or 5 specialized journalists can be expensive to send out on assignments, a team of one, or ideally two, multimedia journalists who can use the divide and conquer technique to effectively cover multiple aspects of a story simultaneously is not only cheaper, but I feel would produce stories of equal quality. 

— Amanda Bromwich

Backpack Journalism: Mediocre or Fresh for the Future?

Present day society is all about making things  most convenient, most efficient,  most inexpensive, and most profitable. Present day journalism is all about trying to figure out different ways to adhere to the societal norms while upholding the core values. Backpack journalism is going to be part of the future. Its more convenient, more efficient, more inexpensive, and therefore more profitable, and there is nothing about it that goes against telling the truth or promoting democracy. 

Unfortunately, I believe that this means that there will be more news available to people, but less  quality journalism. I agree with Martha Stone's article about how backpack journalists are "Jack's of all trades and masters of none." Is it possible that there will be a few genius reporters in the future who are able to master video,online, photography, print writing, news writings, etc.? I'm sure there will be a few, but I think they will be the exception. It is hard to become the best writer, when the writers of our history honed their skills just in one area, concentrating on the style, grammar, and structure of their writing with all of their professional time. It is just unlikely that when forced to learn several different mediums, that the quality of a reporter's craft will take some sort of hit.  

I feel like that to some degree, the public will not notice that the quality of journalism will go down, because what is produced by backpack journalism will simply fit better into the lifestyle of the average american.

Backpack Journalism

Lauren Matteson

Backpack Journalism is going to be dominant in the future, but like any novel idea, it will take a while to be fully accepted. I think people are always going to be skeptical of anything that threatens the way they have known things for a long time. Other journalists may dislike/disapprove of convergence journalists for many different reasons. But I think the purpose of journalism should be kept as the top priority. Relaying, informing, and reporting the information to the people is every journalists job. There are a number of ways to accomplish this task, and each journalist must find the way that best suits him/her. Audiences will retrieve the news from whichever journalist/news organization relays the information in the way with which they are most comfortable receiving it.

People will continue to criticize, but I am confident in the rising of multimedia journalism and am sure I will be proud of the training and studying I completed for this profession.

Twitter

Lauren Matteson

I openly admit I do not know that much about twitter, so I feel slightly incapable of commenting on it but maybe a naive opinion will help! I am not for or against it, I feel that it is a want, not a necessity, and am a little skeptical of the future unknown repercussions.

People can choose the extent to which they participate in twitter...and to me it seems the two polar ends are the most common. So far, I've chosen to not be a part of it at all. I couldn't even tell you what the page looks like! For news purposes, I think it can be beneficial for immediate updates. As far as for recreational use, for me, I find it unnecessary. Many people in our generation are far too dependent on technology and would not be able to walk through campus for five minutes without using an ipod, cell phone, mp3, or another distracting device. It's a little sad that we have isolated ourselves from every other older generation by our need to constantly be connected to the Internet.

Right now it is hard to see the effects twitter will have on our generation as we grow older. Apart from the safety issues that a lot of other sites (Myspace, Facebook, etc) have like stalking, and too much information available to anyone who wants to find it, I think it may be a threat to jobs, relationships, and other priorities in life. If people remain as obsessed with twitter as they are right now, and become addicted to checking it multiple times a day, it could put a strain on employment or families' ability to communicate uninterrupted.

For now it is so new and a lot a is unknown, but I will be very interested to see what happens in 10-15 years with twitter and those who rely on it.

Should I be a tweeter?

Twitter seems to have become very popular over the past few moths. The growing fad with keeping up with your friends as well as celebrities seems to entice many. I believe it is a good avenue for communicating what is going on in people’s everyday lives. I also believe that twitter is a great tool for journalists. Journalists could now report on top breaking news by posting a brief “tweet” that can lead the reader to a website with the actual article.
Many argue that people shouldn’t tweet about what they are doing in the present moment. For example “taking a nap,” but I don’t necessarily think that this is a bad thing. If I check twitter and notice my friend is taking a nap I won’t bother calling them. It seems to be an indirect medium of communication among colleagues and acquaintances.


Yaryna Klimchak

Is Backpack Journalism a mess or a success?

I believe that backpack journalism is the way to the future. With the growing internet age, it is becoming harder and harder to adapt. Employers want journalists who will be able to do more than just write or just edit. Being able to do more than one thing is a definite advantage, although many argue that it may be “a mush of mediocrity.” I can see how having one journalist do everything at once is unrealistic, but that is why convergence news is more of a team effort. Being able to work well with others is a major key aspect in this business, and those who sign up for it need to be able to keep up with the evolving age.

Yaryna Klimchak

The Trouble with Twitter

My preliminary attitude to Twitter was similar to my first reaction to the vampire series “Twilight.” I was cynical and scathing against a phenomenon that seemed to take my friends and pop culture by storm. 

In the J-School, the popular consensus about Twitter seems to be that there is a “right” and “wrong” way to “tweet.” The right way to use Twitter is to update news as it happens or to post links. The wrong method of using Twitter is to constantly narrate the mundane aspects of one’s day, such as walking to class or grabbing a latte. There is apparently a fine line between good and evil in the eyes of Twitter elitists. 

An interesting aspect of the Twitter phenomenon is its use by celebrities and media commentators. Self-promoting personalities like Shaq and Lindsay Lohan and MSNBC's Rachel Maddow now have a more immediate portal to post their thoughts and opinions to the world. Overall, I feel Twitter can be a useful tool for journalists for updating news as it happens and “micro-blogging” in order to condense information to the audience. My attitude now towards it mirrors what happened with “Twilight.” I read the series and I try to update my Twitter daily. (@ABBsolution)

-Abbie Schmid

Do I need Twitter?

It's nealy 4pm and I've just gone to Twitter for the first time today. I have 90 new posts from the people I'm following — how many of them will be at all important? How many will be at all interesting? I think my answers will be, "few" and "even fewer." Which makes we wonder: do I need Twitter in my life? Let's go to the tweets:
• a link to a photographer's coverage of American racism. I'll look at that site.
• a link to the White Rabbits "Percussion Gun" because it has good percussion. (I listened. It does.)
• a friend bid us "goodnight, world" at 23:45 last night.
• news story links from Columbia Missourian and KOMU t.v.
• I actually re-tweeted a link about television news terminology

My assessment: there was more non-junk there that I figured. I could have spent more time reading the tweets if I had more time.

My verdict: I think I'll keep using it, but I should have it "on" all day instead of popping in once or twice a day. Trying to catch up on 90 tweets is hard. For me it's more of a social outlet, not professional one — it's fun to see what my journalism friends are up to. And I think that's a key comment: right now, the only people I know who use Twitter are other journalists.

Will the rest of the world catch up?
-Karen, aka uberscholar

Bias Against the Backpack Journalist

As a student at the J-School, I feel there is a slight prejudice against convergence students. It’s nothing organized or overt, but I feel many students working toward specializing in newspaper, photojournalism, magazine, broadcast and strategic communication don’t recognize convergence as a career path legitimately integral to journalism. 

Reading the article “Backpack Journalism is a Mush of Mediocrity” affirmed why many professionals in the industry hesitate to laud convergence and multimedia journalism as the hallmarks of the digital journalism era. While I agree that simply resorting to complicated technologies cannot mask poor journalistic work, I feel that there is a seismic shift happening in newsrooms across the nation and throughout the world. The changes in how people want the news are directly correlated to the rise of the backpack journalist. 

Convergence and multimedia journalism are intended to cater to a new audience that wants a dialogue with journalism, not a monologue. 

-Abbie Schmid

Lis White -Twitter

The problem with going to one of the best journalism schools in the country, is that there are a lot of people who gain sort of an elitist attitude about information forums. What is important, who is allowed to use these forums, etc. etc. The thing is Twitter was not made by journalists for journalists, and therefore it is open to whoever wants to use it. I'm not exactly an experienced twitter user, but I do have one and it appears to me that people have control over who they "follow." If you don't want to have to read something about someone who just updates their daily happenings, then don't follow them. If there are people whose hearts would be broken because you are not following their twitter, I have tried it and it takes about 5 seconds to scroll through the updated tweets, especially since they are only 140 characters or less. 

As journalists I think that it is important not to judge people on how they use whatever outlet they choose to use, but to embrace it. Twitter is changing how information is given to people in a way that fits the faster pace lifestyle more so then any other forum. Lets be honest, most people do not sit down for the 9 o'clock news and most people certainly don't set aside time to read the newspaper. I would guess that most people don't even make time to get their news online as so many claim to do. But twitter offers an interactive source, that does not take hours out of the day. It is wasted energy to get mad at what people write, instead use the opportunity to put things that you consider important out there. If it were only a site for journalists and for news the demographic would be small and it would not do any good. I feel like the goal, instead of trying to convert people to news snobbery, should be to get people to "follow" us and inform them to the best of our abilities. People need to realize that some of these people do not get any other news and that finally they might because they are simply making their daily routine public.

I also found this article about Twitter and advertising that is really interesting. Basically they are not even considering advertising as a source of income, which is uncommon for a site that wants to continue to be free for consumers. They are releasing tools and services as add ons for businesses and professionals that could be a source of income. Just thought it was interesting. Here's the link to the article. http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/twitter-sees-tools-not-ads-as-revenue-1687429.html

The Twitter Debate

Since nobody has decided to started working on this yet, i thought i might start it out.

I believe that even though twitter is used, at times, to post some rather inane or 'why on earth would you ever post something like that' comments, i believe all such comments are an important part of the twitter culture. The reason being that it gets a person into the habit of using such a technology and therefore when an individual does comes across something rather important or newsworthy, putting that information on twitter becomes instinctive. I rarely use facebook, simply because i never got into the habit of updating my status or using other insignificant programs and games that people keep forwarding me everyday. Hence when i come across some form of important information my first instinct is to call everyone rather than announce it on twitter or facebook. A good example would the gunmans who attack the hotels in India.

The first reports of the instance were reported on twitter by people with no relationship to the mainstream media. These were the same people who tweeted something like, "i just got done picking my nose." Their first thought was that a devastating event just took place and they should get the word out through twitter.

The other advantage that twitter has is that it is the only Web site that can be updated using a phone that cost less than $300.

Welcome to your summer blog spot! This is where you will post your required blog entries for J4802/7802.
-Karen