Ethics of the VT coverage

Whenever such a huge national tragedy happens, I think it’s always good to look at how the media covers it. Have the media been ethic and responsible or are they using the tragedy as a way to help ratings? There’s never a clear cut answer, but here’s a snapshot of what I’ve found.

I came across many voices who think that the shootings were handled well. Washington Post writer Howard Kurtz was positive about the coverage, as of Tuesday morning. He praised the network anchors who hurried down to the scene as soon as possible. While I’ve heard some people say this was just the big wigs bigfooting the story, I have to agree with Kurtz. I like seeing anchors get their feet dirty in the field. Sure, any of the correspondents could have covered it on-scene, but I think it’s more respectful to have the anchors there. Otherwise, they’re just sitting in their comfy news stations pretending they understand what’s going on.

And of course there are the many voices who are seriously criticizing the coverage. Jack Shafer of Slate.com calls the way some reporters are acting as “Cold. Very cold.” I agree with some of his points. I'm sure the classic question from the insensitive journalist (How do you feel?) is making its rounds. The frenzied media circus on the Virginia Tech campus must be a striking contrast to the way students and faculty are slowly and silently trying to get through the days. The last thing they need is to be pressed for interviews and exploited.

In my opinion, it’s just too easy to completely trash the media coverage. Of course there are journalists who get caught up in the opportunity to make it big and end up covering it insensitively. But the world must know what’s going on. They must see the pain on these people’s faces to know the depth of what happened. It’s all in how it’s handled.

One thing I don’t like is NBC’s release of the "manifesto" they got from the shooter. What good can come of this? The public does not need to see the rantings of this lunatic. Pictures and videos of him are now posted everywhere, online and on tv. There is no need for that. I also don’t like the incessant 24/7 coverage. We need a break and so do those involved. It’s easy to get caught up in a hyper-reality with all of this coverage of a single event. There are other stories we should stay informed about, too.

All in all, I think the media started out covering the shootings well, but as time goes on, it’s moving towards exploitation and sensationalism. Maybe media outlets need to take a step back for a moment and calm it down a bit before it continues to get worse.

Your Invitation's in the Mail

Somehow it’s already time to think about capstone presentation invites. For class, we’re blogging about the top three people on campus who we would want to come to our presentations.

This one's obvious, but Dr. Barner deserves his own section. I am definitely inviting him. He has been such a support to me since my very first semester here at Westminster. I will never forget his Audio Productions class and how encouraging and positive he was to me. He continued to support me with all the difficult situations and decisions I had to make last semester and I know he’ll support me in the future. He believes in me and that means so much.

One person I’d love to invite, but can’t since she’s not longer a professor here, is Dr. Andrea Grove. She moved to California to teach, but I will never forget her or her classes. She taught political science classes that not only shaped some of my political opinions, but shaped who I am as a person. I wish she could be here for my presentation, but, after visiting California last week, I completely understand why she made the move!

My third invite goes to a group of people I like to call the Powers That Be: President Williamson, Dean Jesse Mann, Dean John Lechner, Dean Neal Edman, Dean Camille Hawthorne, and the fabulous Beth Brooks. I have worked with all of these people on various stories for Titan Radio and The County Line and I’m not sure if they realize how appreciated their participation is. Westminster’s broadcasting program is so valuable because the students get real-life experience with news. If these leaders weren’t willing to be patient with us when we were just beginning, tolerate us as we learn, and confide in us as we gain their trust, then our education wouldn’t be nearly as stellar. I also think the broadcast department can always use some good PR because we’re often over-looked and underappreciated. We all work tremendously hard for our campus publications and the Powers That Be should know about that.

Citizen Journalism and San Francisco

This past weekend, Mike Wolenski and I traveled across the country to San Francisco for the National Conference for Undergraduate Research where we presented our research. My presentation was on citizen journalism. This topic is so interesting to me because it’s very current. News outlets all over the world are trying to blindly navigate their way through this different option of doing the news. I say “blindly” because there are no rules or guidelines for this yet. It’s definitely exciting to follow.

Just today I saw an example of citizen journalism on NBC Nightly News. They used video from the Virginia Tech campus that someone shot on their cell phone. It was such a small, simple addition to the newscast, but it was a piece of information that the audience otherwise wouldn’t have seen since the professional journalists weren’t there. This is not at all meant to belittle the work of the producers and correspondents covering the shooting, but it shows that there is a place for audience participation in news.

Tips from the some of the best

On Friday I got to spend time with some of Westminster’s finest alumni: Melissa Batulis and Pat Sandora. They actually made me feel a lot better about graduating. They've taken the broadcast communications major and used it for different things. Pat works in NYC for a production company, and Melissa is a reporter for WFMZ. They both seemed so happy about where their lives had taken them and are so competent and talented. I hope that in 2-4 years, I can be as successful and happy as them.

For capstone this week, we’re taking a look at free online job postings. I am constantly checking online job postings! I have a huge list of links in my “Favorite’s” folder on my browse. Pat also told me about a few other sites I’m adding to my list.

The site I like the most right now is Indeed. It’s clear and reliable and I like the way you can search different job titles. One of the producers of the Today Show suggested this one to me and I’ve liked it ever since.

Website vs. E-Portfolio

What’s at the top of my e-portfolio? What do I want prospective employers to know about me? That’s a good question.

Even though I’m still not positive what direction I’m going into, I know what I enjoy doing and hope to carry on with: TV storytelling. This means that my packages are what I need to put at the top of my portfolio.

But I’ve actually decided not to make an e-portfolio. Instead, I’ve put together a website. I still have some things to add to it, but once it's complete I can use it in place of an e-portfolio. I think the e-portfolio is too restrictive because all employers aren't going to want to sit there and shuffle through the different sections. It seems like more of a road block to getting them to see my stuff. It's also more difficult to get out there to employers, at least compared to a website that they can access at their leisure. Hopefully the website idea will also cater to employers looking for someone internet-savvy and ready for the future. That's me!