This is the end, my only friend, the end...

For several months now I have been immersed in online journalism. Its broad range of topics, as well as all the new skills I had to learn, made my transition into an online journalist very difficult. In the end, however, the practicality and overall usefulness of all our assignments made the struggle worth it. I know that I will now be able to work in almost any aspect of online reporting. The real question now is whether or not I will be able to keep my skills sharp enough to make a smooth transition into the work force next year.

I have always wanted to write feature stories, which would allow for me to write in a style I am more comfortable with. But after taking this class, I feel that a career as a online reporter may be easier to find, since that seems to be the direction that journalism is going.

The biggest lesson I took from this class was how to work with people. At times it was a struggle to balance my work load with all the group meetings and schedule conflicts I had to deal with. In the end, however, I have produced work that I am proud to show employers. It is work that will helpfully assist me in landing a job, and I need to thank my group partners as well as my teacher. So thanks, and until next time...

First time for the last time...

So, this is my first video blog and it couldn't come at a more appropriate time. Last night was my last class of the semester, and although I probably learned more this semester than my other five combined, I am so relieved it is finally over. Well, until next time...

The end of the road...

I never thought that I could use my ability to play the guitar as a tool to become a better journalist. Shows how much I know!

Recently, I have been finding it difficult to get good, applicable, and most importantly free music to use in my multimedia packages. In order to solve this problem, I have been recording my own music and using that as a way to get around the many copyright laws that I fear as both a journalist and a student. Not only has it been better for me to use, but I no longer have the problem of listening to hundreds of samples only to find that none of them fit. I can now control the pace, tempo, and sound of my music.

Besides the journalistic eases, this has also given me a channel to broadcast my own work. It helps me in both creative and musical aspects and has helped me grow as a musician and writer (both music and words).

I plan on talking more about this as I undertake my next endeavor, a video blog. I have never done a video blog and I hope that this will improve my editing skills as well as be a pleasant change of pace to for readers.

Finally, on a sadder note, my online journalism class will be coming to a close on Thursday night. The reporting and especially multimedia skills I have developed in this class will go a long way in helping me land a job. Until next time...

The times, they are a-changing...

I never truly understood how quickly Google was taking over the Internet...until today. Not only are they taking over the Internet (and soon the world), but they are also making things so much easier. I recently changed my e-mail address from Comcast to Gmail. I don't want to sound like an advertisement for them, but if you haven't done so already, you may want to check out what they have to offer.

The best feature, iGoogle, is a personal homepage each user can design with their mail, RSS feeds, weather alerts, and thousands of other "gadgets" that make your homepage a mobile base for all your information needs. Browsing ESPN.com for breaking sports stories is no longer necessary. Google updates me constantly on my home page. It truly is great.

My main reason for changing accounts was that my old screen name of swooshmm no longer fitting for a 21-year-old who is about to enter the job market (m.mullin3 works a lot better). I was planning on this being a difficult transition because so much of my contact information is linked to that address. I receive all my mail sent to my University of Miami address through that name, and also access that name through my phone.

The transition was flawless. I was able to have Google forward all e-mail sent to my Comcast address (including all sent to my school address) by changing the settings to include my swooshmm account in just a few seconds. Done. Fixed. Problem solved. I no longer have to delete old messages. I can just simply archive them and search through them whenever I need. And did I mention that my old emails were taking up 75% of my allotted space on Comcast, but are only using .1% of the incredible 6630 MB of space in my GMail account?

Come together, right now....

On Thursday, my classmate and editor of the Hurricane, Greg Linch, brought up a proposal to launch a new social network for members of the School of Communication called "CommTogether." Although it is open to all members (student, faculty, and staff) this networks main purpose is to create a forum for students to share their ideas and talents. In my opinion, this is the ultimate step towards convergence. Students will now be able to contact other students with questions or to ask for help with a project or package. For example, a print journalism student may want to put together a multimedia package for the Hurricane's new website, but may not have any experience editing video or audio. He/she will be able make contact with a broadcast journalism and a visual communications major through CommTogether and troubleshoot their project collaboratively.

CommTogether allows students to host their own blogs (both internally and externally), share video and photo, discuss projects and share ideas. Perhaps the most intrigue function of CommTogether is its ability to host groups, just like Facebook. Teachers will be able to host groups for each of their classes, sending out notes and updates to their entire class and being able to get immediate feedback (both private and public).

This new network has the ability to create a lasting forum for journalism students and reinvent the way communications students interact and work together. If you are a journalism student please click the link above or go to http://commtogether.ning.com. Some of the appearance aspects are still being tweaked but it is fully functional and ready to be used.

Everyday's a new day...

Well the one thing I wasn't ready for was the time change. I was barely able to sleep on the plane ride home, and of course there were problems getting in and getting my luggage. By the time I arrived at my house, it was 7 am and I was barely awake. I am still recovering, but work must go on and my deadline is Thursday. When it is published, I will put the link in my blog.

For the rest of my trip, I walked around Golden Gate Park which was amazing. San Francisco is a great city, a little cold, but a great city.

I spent most of today uploading the rest of my pictures and catching up on sleep (apart from the time I spent at the Health Center). I also transcribed the interview I did with a park ranger at Point Reyes. I guess this part of my experience is learning that the work doesn't stop when you come home, but rather it is just beginning. I don't mind, though, because like I said last time, each new story is a new experience, and that keeps things fresh. I think the fact that journalism isn't a nine to five job is what draws me to it.

Bringin' it all back home...

So, here I am in San Francisco. Yesterday, I went out to Point Reyes National Seashore where I was able to catch my first glimpse of the Pacific. It was beautiful. As you can see from these pictures, I visited the lighthouse at Point Reyes and on my way home, stopped at the Golden Gate Bridge for a photo-op. I just wish these pictures could really show the beauty of both Point Reyes and Golden Gate.

Like I said last time, I finally feel like a real journalist. I'm currently sitting in my hotel room, working on my story, and eating pizza. I guess this is what I can expect if I plan on making a career as a writer. To be honest, I can get used to this...being in a new city, with every move I make being a new experience...this is really exciting.

The one thing that has been different for me, and I guess it's like this for all business trips, is getting receipts everywhere I go. I've never been a big fan of them anyway. They usually just remind of unnecessary purchases I've made with money I didn't have. Now, however, the incentive of being reimbursed for meals and travel has made receipts my friends.

Next time, I'll give you some final thoughts on the rest of my trip, and how it was bringing all the pictures and information I gathered back home.

California dreamin'...

So I'm leaving for San Francisco tomorrow and it is finally time to see my trip through the wonderful world of online journalism come full circle. I have never been to California and I am very excited to go. While there, I will be writing two stories and doing my own photography for those stories. The stories are centered around national parks in the bay area and will be published on UM's website. I'm really looking forward to seeing my work in other classes relate to one another.

As a student in the online journalism class, I feel that I have somewhat of an edge over the other reporters going on the trip. I am ready to write for the web, as well as gather video, audio, and photos. Therefore, I think that this trip is a good example for me to put what I've learned into real world context.

For once, I feel like a real journalist. I'm packing my bags right now, and I am going over my list of equipment. I have my camera, both still and video, my audio recorder, head phones, microphones, and of course my laptop. I am excited at the opportunity to go out and test my skills, and I will keep you updated as my next post will come from San Francisco.

I get by with a little help from my friends...

I recently received this important memorandum, compliments of Heather Colvin, who runs "Heather's Blog" and thought I would comment on my experiences with "cooperative journalism":

MEMORANDUM
ATTN: All Journalists and Human Beings
SUBJECT: Working with other people actually pays off, especially in regards to journalism and even more especially in regards to Online Journalism.

Thank you and Best Regards,
Heather C.

I'm not sure what it is about this time of year, but everyone seems so stressed out (myself included). It seems like teachers forget that students are in four or five other classes beside their own. The semester is hitting its crucial point, and it has become time to rely on the help of others.

I'm not one to admit when I need help, but I've been learning through my online journalism class that convergence media means more than just converging forms of media, it also means converging minds. In working with my design team on my new website, I have found that two heads (and in this case three) are better than one.

Not only is this a good chance to learn about the positive effects of convergence, but also the negatives. With three people working on one project, there are three times as many chances for success. However, there are also three times as many chances for error. Conflicting ideas and competing egos also contribute to the struggle of group work.

Gaining knowledge on the dynamics of the relationship between journalist and designer is something that will most definitely help when it comes time to apply for a job. The better the journalist understands the designer, and vice-versa, the quicker, and smoother the creation of a final web product will be. I don't mean to ramble on about this, but like Heather said, working with others actually pays off. Thanks Heather, that is definitely a memo worth reading.

So in that spirit, I am off to a meeting with my designers....

Lay your burden down...

On Thursday night, Sam Terilli, spoke with our Online Journalism class on defamation and copyright law. As a lawyer and professor, Terilli was able to offer personal insight as well as professional advice. He highlighted the Fair Use Doctrine and the Digital Millennium Rights Act of 2002.

My favorite topic in the first half of his discussion, which was on copyright law, was when he talked about Google Books. Google went to the libraries at major universities, copied some of their famous books, and uploaded them to the web. Rather than asking the rights holder for permission, they issued a general statement, telling them that they were going to do it, and the rights holder had to opt out if he/she didn't want to give Google the rights. By placing the burden on the rights holder, Google saved themselves a lot of time. But this brings up the question of if they legally had the right to go about obtaining books in that way.

In the second half of his talk, Terilli moved from copyright law to defamation. When I asked him who was responsible for the content printed on MiamiHerald.com's blogs, since it is printed under the Herald's banner, but is not necessarily seen by editors, we moved into an entire conversation about open forums and their rights. Terilli spoke of how Section 230 protected forums from being responsible for content written on their site. That is how AOL Bulletins and chat rooms have never gotten AOL into trouble. They individuals who post comments are responsible for their own content, and not the forum itself.

So where do we go from here?

Recently, the Project on Excellence in Journalism released the "State of the News Media 2008" report. They confirmed what anything with a pulse already knew, media is changing. Unlike most people though, they believe that this change is not necessarily for the best. One of the most significant findings in the report is that news is no longer a final information product.

"There is no single or finished news product anymore," the report says. "As news consumption becomes continual, more new effort is put into producing incremental updates, as brief as 40-character e-mails sent from reporters directly to consumers without editing."

The new report also hinted at some of the flaws of citizen journalism. The report focuses on citizen journalists as "gatekeepers," a title that was once held by mainstream media. "Rather than rejecting the 'gatekeeper' role of traditional journalism, for now citizen journalists and bloggers appear to be recreating it in other places," the report says.

On the contrary, the report mentioned how news organizations are narrowing their focus rather than expanding it. The report suggested that cites like Google News reward those organizations that report the same thing as everyone else.

"Cable news, talk radio (and also blogs) tend to seize on top stories (often polarizing ones) and amplify them," the report says. "The Internet offers the promise of aggregating ever more sources, but its value still depends on what those originating sources are providing. Even as the media world has fragmented into more outlets and options, reporting resources have shrunk."

Woke up this mornin'...

Recently, while watching an NBA basketball game, I began to think about how some players made it to the professional level. Not all these athletes could have been born with such ability. Most of them worked exceptionally hard, focusing on basketball, and working hard to perfect it. I then thought about my future as a journalist and realized that new media is forcing journalists to become multifaceted, and be professionals is several aspects, like a Deion Sanders or Bo Jackson. Will this eventually lead to a decline in the quality of writing? If print journalists are forced to spend more of their time learning other skills, and less time perfecting the writing/reporting aspect of their job, won't something have to suffer?

On a related note, the announcement that Brett Favre plans on retiring made me again think about new media, as I was awoken this morning by a text message from ESPN telling me of his intentions. This is just another example of how the media is trying to go out and find readers by making news even more accessible. The fact that I didn't have to any more than roll over in bed and pick up my phone to find out what today's top sport's story was, just shows how connected Americans are to the new media right now. So with Americans being this in touch with the news, shouldn't journalists be groomed to do the best reporting they can, rather than be a jack of all trades? The readers may think so, but news editors seem to disagree.

New Blog!

This is just to let all of you know that I have just started a new blog, The Sports Authority. As the title indicates, it is about sports, both college and professional. I enjoy writing about sports so I have decided to keep this as a way of doing that in a more relaxed environment. I have included a link to it on the right. I hope you enjoy it and subscribe to it. Matt

Video killed the radio star....

On Thursday, Ricardo Lopez of The Miami Herald spoke to my Online Journalism class. He spoke mostly on video, and how we as journalists can add more to our story not only through good content but through proper execution of technical skills. Most journalists today only think in terms of final result, able to recreate interviews and get quotes over the phone. A video journalist, on the other hand, only gets once chance to get the content he/she needs, and must know what that is beforehand. Ricardo couldn't stress enough how important preparation was for a videographer. "Someone told me once," he said, referring to some of his favorite advice, "still photography you shoot with your heart; video you shoot with your mind."

After explaining the importance of video, Ricardo gave us advice on the importance of audio, the most important aspect of video, according to him. "Seventy percent of video is audio," he pointed out.

This crash course in video is a great way for us to prepare for our next endeavor as a class. Producing multimedia media packages is going to be new territory for most of us. However, the skills we are learning from speakers like Ricardo are only going to help us do better work, both in the classroom and after graduation.

That's just like your opinion, man....

In a recent article on Pajamas Media titled "The Power of New Media on the Presidency," blogger Steve Boriss tackled the issue of New Media and the effect it is having on this year’s election. Beside the obvious examples on how the vast amount of opinions being published are shaping American ideologies, Boriss makes a shocking, but very appropriate comparison to another point in history, when opinions from all angles were also being published.

"Once, America was served by an abundance of news outlets providing different opinions to different groups of the like-minded. That’s what French historian Alexis de Tocqueville saw in the early 1800’s when he marveled at how our 'Newspapers make associations, and associations make newspapers.' Before that, we lived in Thomas Jefferson’s America, noted for its unlimited and uninhibited free expression, lively debates in which ideas were attacked and defended, and a free people who thought for themselves rather than having 'the truth' as seen by elites imposed upon them."

-Steve Boriss, "The Power of Media on the Presidency"

I think that this is a great comparison and can be used to show Americans not to be scared of the vast amount of opinions available. If anything, they should be embraced, not as truth, but as a way of investigating and discovering more information on candidates.

For most of the 90's there was a stigma that the media had a liberal bias, but now with news shows, such as Hannity and Colmes, being accepted as opinion, there has been less talk of a bias media and young Americans are beginning to see a shift away from how their parents got news. They are starting to see media move towards this 19th century philosophy of opinion generated news.

Break on through....

On Thursday night, Dr. Michelle Seelig, who teaches web production at the University of Miami, taught our class how to make a simple website. I didn't think it was so simple as I sat at my computer and fumbled to start my own web bio. After just a few minutes, however, I began to breakthrough all the tech jargon and discovered that it wasn't as difficult as I was making it out to be. Also, the benefits of having your own web site greatly outweigh the few hours it takes to lay out the page.

When applying for a job, especially in journalism, it is very impressive to be able to tell an employer that you have a website, and even more so if you can claim to have created the site on your own. With links to my resume and all my published articles, a slide show that gives a look into my professional ambitions, and a video bio that allows employers to see a more personal look at who I am, a web page will definitely give me a leg up on the competition.

The final reason a web page is so important is because in the world of new media, it is important to employers that applicants be able to publish on the Internet, as well as gather video, audio, and photographic elements for stories. Being able to prove this before I even go into an interview could prove to be the ultimate difference between getting a job or not.

Headin' in the right direction...

Convergence journalism is on the rise. There is no doubt about that. So when we look to the top schools in the nation (Northwestern, Syracuse, and Columbia, among others), it is no surprise to see that they are on the cutting edge. Lorraine Branham, a finalist for the position of dean at Syracuse University's Newhouse School of Public Communications (the other was UM's Sam Grogg), understands where journalism is heading and has done so in her work at the University of Texas at Austin.

"I put a special emphasis on making sure my students are getting the broad, multimedia training that everyone needs to be successful," Branham said about her work at Texas. She also spoke on the lack of initiative to move into new media at some of her former schools, including Temple University, the University of California at Berkley and the University of Texas.

"I saw the changes that were taking place in the industry, and I was concerned that they really were not considering what was taking place," Branham said.

After attending the Communications Week event on new media and reading this article from the Daily Orange, Syracuse's student paper, it is obvious that the University of Miami is on the right track with teaching convergence journalism and giving its students the chance to learn from professionals.

I'm a hustler, baby...

On Friday I attend a workshop and panel discussion on convergence media for part of University of Miami’s Communication Week. During the first half of the discussion we were given the chance to work with professionals and receive some very important advice. My group met with Will Payne, who works for CurrentTV, a new station that prides itself in airing user generated content and proving that young journalists deserve to have their voice heard.

I am really excited about where Current is taking new media. Allowing younger generations to produce their own packages and have them aired on television is something that truly takes vision. Will is a firm believer in there being many roads to success. He recognized how important internships are but also challenged students to go out and get their work published. There will also be many opportunities for young journalists to work in this new media, he affirmed.

Finally, since this new technology has only been available for a few years, younger generations are exhibiting great skill in producing their own news. Therefore, if we can capture the four components of content (character, information, movement, and conflict) according to Will, then we are ready.

“You need to be hustlers,” Will said. “You need to know how to get content to the people who want content.”

Print journalism heads 'Back to the Future'

"Increasingly, people know what happened the day before the day before."

Yesterday, L. Gordon Crovitz, former Wall Street Journal publisher and Dow Jones vice-president spoke at his alma mater, the University of Chicago, on the future of journalism. The bulk of his speech focused on how traditional newspapers utilize the full capacity of the Internet if they hope to maintain readers and increase profits. Crovitz continued by pointing out how few students actually read print versions of newspaper. Students prefer online news because of their comfort with the new technology and especially because of its timeliness. By the time they read something in a newspaper it is already old news because they saw it on the internet first.

The most interesting point he made was on the newspaper industry's need to use print media as a complement to the online edition. Crovitz pointed out that the Internet is generally best at providing up to date information while print editions are best for in-depth reporting. Newspapers must accept that they no longer serve the same role they did 10 years ago and stop trying to gain readership by giving readers the same coverage of events they’ve seen online.

Turn up the volume....

Little can be said to argue the importance of audio as a news medium. Radio was the first way news was allowed to reach its listeners instantaneously. With the invention of television, radio lost its place in the news industry, but now, with advancements in technology, audio is again becoming an increasingly important component of news telling. Last night, Allison Diaz, Miami Herald freelance photographer, spoke to our class on how to better capture audio and video and use one to compliment the other. This will prove helpful as audio is becoming a more convincing and useful medium.

Yesterday, Sree Sreenivasan, a journalism professor at Columbia, launched a blog talk radio show in which students could ask questions and Sreenivasan would respond through the audio blog. The first topic discussed was Facebook for Journalists. Sreenivasan talked on how students and journalists could use Facebook as a tool for reporting, networking, and publishing.

Using audio blogs like this allow for more people to have their voices heard and allow them to interact with others in a more immediate and personal setting than just message boards.

Read it and weep....

For most sports fans from the New England area, this was a sad weekend. It was the imperfect end to a perfect season. Online journalism's most influential impact was clearly visible this weekend. As soon as the game was over, there were thousands of reports all over the internet. From blogs to true news stories and even in the scrolling scores on different sports websites, there was no way to avoid hearing the results of the game.

One of the signs of the print news apocalypse appeared out of no where this weekend. When the game was over, in fact immediately after it was over, I received a text message from ESPN.com informing me of the outcome of the game and telling me to visit their website for more information. Having to go online and look up news is now too much effort for most Americans, and news is now sent out to masses, reversing the roles of the two. This is a great step for the journalism industry. Being able to send text message updates on scores and now even major world news allows sites to break stories and make sure their readers know where it came from.

I believe that in the future, with the continuing development of this type of technology and the ability for readers to only receive the news they want to hear, mobile news will eventually surpass, or perhaps work in conjunction with online outlets. This is definitely a step in the right direction, at least from the readers point of view.

We know what you viewed last summer...

Yesterday, Suzanne Levinson of The Miami Herald and themiamiherald.com had an infinite amount of advice for our class. The most intriguing thing she spoke on was about how well the newspapers know their online readers. New technology is allowing newspapers sites to follow the three most important aspects of site navigation: papage views, visits, and visitors. Newspapers are able to track what stories people are reading and how they navigate from page to page.

By usung this technology, newspapers are able to simplify the news reading process. They are also able to keep visitors on their site for a longer period of time. This is just another example of how the interactivity of he internet is allowing for the simplification of news reading.

Blogs: Now you can be a journalist too...

In this, the ever changing age of technology, news no longer waits until the next morning or even 5pm to get reported. News reports are instantaneous, appearing on television or online as soon as a story breaks. The newest trend in online journalism, blogs, allow everyone with Internet access to give an opinion that won't necessarily go unheard. I personally have never blogged before and believe that in the wrong hands blogs can be extremely dangerous. Unfortunately, there are some blogs that don't offer any intelligent opinions, just incoherent and often misinformed rants.

However, blogs do offer a huge advantage to the average American. If one can sift through the uninformed blogs he will no doubt find vast amounts of information and insight, arguments favoring both sides, and sometimes even spectacular writing.