I got into the University of Northern Colorado's journalism and mass communications program well after I had already been writing for newspapers.
I started working at the student newspaper The Mirror in spring 2006 as a way to make some quick money (ha!) and possibly get paid to see movies as a friend had recommended the job to me as a way to do both. I quickly found out that I was a born journalist and took every Arts & Entertainment story that came my way. That summer, I also wrote film reviews for my hometown paper, the Craig Daily Press. I kept at it at The Mirror through spring 2008, when I officially became a journalism major. The following summer, I interned at the Press, doing virtually every type of work (with a few movie reviews snuck in, of course). Then that fall, I started taking the major JMC classes and started to fill in the gaps of what I had learned under fire in the field. Additionally, I became the A&E section editor at The Mirror.
I feel like I stumbled across a treaure chest in how my college career has gone. I still love my first major of theater studies, but journalism is where I belong and that serendipitious referral by my friend Drew Smartt has turned into something special. Not only have I managed to get nearly 200 stories on The Mirror's Web site (count 'em!), but I have really found direction thanks to the journalism program here. Before my time spent in JMC classes, I had no aim in where I wanted my life to go. This is still something I'm battling, but nonetheless, I feel more than prepared to face the professional world because of my schooling.
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Day in the Life, Just a Little Behind...
Continuing on, I was full of confidence about the next assignment, a day in the life of a person or persons of our choosing. My "A" on the profile affirmed that I was headed in the right direction for writing, but even so, this one was a bit of a doozy.
I picked the cast and crew of UNC's production of "Chess" to interview. If you've ever tried to talk to people running a musical when they are in rehearsal mode, you know it's like feeding time at the zoo and you're the entree. Don't get me wrong, I was used to this. Working for The Mirror, I've dealt with most of these people in prior shows, so I knew how to handle everything amicably. But talking to the cast about director Vance Fulkerson, head of UNC's musical theater program, wasn't a fun experience. The technical problems of "Chess," primarily the sound and lighting, had everyone on edge and I didn't get a lot of complimentary commentary written down in my little reporter's notebook.
But I handled it the best I could, which worked out pretty well. I knew most of the quotes I had gotten were not really helpful to the story, rather just the vented frustration of people who needed to let off steam. Typing up the piece, all I could think was that it was a good thing I wasn't doing a genuine article. Or worse yet, if these people had talked this way to a writer who completely misconstrued the story and made the rehearsal process sound like a civil war. This would have been the case, but I know how things can get behind the scenes and portraying actors, directors and stage technicians alike as venomous monsters isn't the whole story. I had to keep objective.
This story was a little more difficult to keep a focus on with one major idea in mind. Thankfully, I pulled it off while still giving everyone a modicum of their say. A word of advice to journalists covering such endeavors: get as many opinions as you can while still gauging the atmosphere to ensure you don't take things out of context.
I picked the cast and crew of UNC's production of "Chess" to interview. If you've ever tried to talk to people running a musical when they are in rehearsal mode, you know it's like feeding time at the zoo and you're the entree. Don't get me wrong, I was used to this. Working for The Mirror, I've dealt with most of these people in prior shows, so I knew how to handle everything amicably. But talking to the cast about director Vance Fulkerson, head of UNC's musical theater program, wasn't a fun experience. The technical problems of "Chess," primarily the sound and lighting, had everyone on edge and I didn't get a lot of complimentary commentary written down in my little reporter's notebook.
But I handled it the best I could, which worked out pretty well. I knew most of the quotes I had gotten were not really helpful to the story, rather just the vented frustration of people who needed to let off steam. Typing up the piece, all I could think was that it was a good thing I wasn't doing a genuine article. Or worse yet, if these people had talked this way to a writer who completely misconstrued the story and made the rehearsal process sound like a civil war. This would have been the case, but I know how things can get behind the scenes and portraying actors, directors and stage technicians alike as venomous monsters isn't the whole story. I had to keep objective.
This story was a little more difficult to keep a focus on with one major idea in mind. Thankfully, I pulled it off while still giving everyone a modicum of their say. A word of advice to journalists covering such endeavors: get as many opinions as you can while still gauging the atmosphere to ensure you don't take things out of context.
Catching Up
Well, as usual, I have fallen behind when it comes to classwork, but thanks to the merciful tutoring session of my professor, I think I can handle this blog now. Well, if you've read any of the other blogs from the JMC410 (Advanced Feature Writing) course at the University of Northern Colorado, you'll know that I'm supposed to have recounted my work in the class.
The first story was a profile on UNC instructor Gillian McNally, an assistant professor of theater. Though I started at UNC as a theater studies major before I even became interested in journalism, I had not yet met my subject. As she is relatively new to the theater program, I had not had the pleasure of having her as a teacher. Her prowess in the classroom led to an appointment to a subcommittee in the state's education program, reviewing and revising teaching standards. This was the reason why I chose to profile her.
I had little trouble in the following through on the interview process and in my research. McNally provided plenty of helpful information and was thoroughly open to all my queries about her experiences at UNC and how she has parlayed them into such a career that has attracted state-wide attention. Writing the article was the easy part. I have had enough experience to know what questions to ask and how to interpret the sequence of events. My one worry was in the length as my Achilles heel has always been not knowing when to stop writing. The more info I get, the more I feel I need to elaborate, and so it goes...
Fortunately, I happen to be in a class with an instructor who provides constructive criticism excellently. With a little bit of prompting in her feedback in the assignment, I was able to ascertain the best way to condense my information for the next time around.
The first story was a profile on UNC instructor Gillian McNally, an assistant professor of theater. Though I started at UNC as a theater studies major before I even became interested in journalism, I had not yet met my subject. As she is relatively new to the theater program, I had not had the pleasure of having her as a teacher. Her prowess in the classroom led to an appointment to a subcommittee in the state's education program, reviewing and revising teaching standards. This was the reason why I chose to profile her.
I had little trouble in the following through on the interview process and in my research. McNally provided plenty of helpful information and was thoroughly open to all my queries about her experiences at UNC and how she has parlayed them into such a career that has attracted state-wide attention. Writing the article was the easy part. I have had enough experience to know what questions to ask and how to interpret the sequence of events. My one worry was in the length as my Achilles heel has always been not knowing when to stop writing. The more info I get, the more I feel I need to elaborate, and so it goes...
Fortunately, I happen to be in a class with an instructor who provides constructive criticism excellently. With a little bit of prompting in her feedback in the assignment, I was able to ascertain the best way to condense my information for the next time around.
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