.
Useful websites for news junkies and other weirdos
• Growth of Social Media—See this YouTube video on the growth of new media. Sobering.
• Hard News Café—The JCOM Department at USU invented its online “newspaper” in 1996 to give students an outlet for their news stories. Since then, HNC (fondly known as “KCOW”) has been named the best independent student online newssite in the InterMountain West by the Society of Professional Journalists. Read what other students are writing—or submit your own stories and photos to KCOW!
• News U—A wonderful and useful feature of the Poynter Center for Media Studies that offers online short courses, many of them free, on a variety of critical news skills and subjects.
• Slate—The online news magazine compiles and emails to subscribers (free!) daily summaries of top news stories from major newspapers.
• Uncle Jay Explains the News—I have no idea who “Uncle Jay” is, but he does funny riffs on the week’s news.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Sunday, August 30, 2009
NewsHounds F09—In Their Own Words
.
Editor’s Note: Below are the self-interviews submitted during Week1 by your fellow NewsHounds. Only four of you managed to get this done. I’ll add the rest of you when you catch up. —TP
Michelle Spencer: Goddess, Online Editor, Biologist....
Woman finds humor in her eight-year quest to obtain degree
“Laughter! Nothing more would suffice. If I am not laughing, then my only other alternative would be tears. I live in the tradition of No Fear t-shirt slogans: ‘Failure is not an option!’” stated Michelle Spencer, a self proclaimed sufferer of ADHD.
“I can truly say that I am not sure what I will be when I grow up. Oh wait…I am grown up! What do you think that says about me?”
Spencer, a 30-something domestic goddess, editor and publisher, has been feverishly working on and off on her four-year bachelor’s degree for nearly nine years now. While she has always been a lover of the world of academia, she moved from her family home when she was only 17. At that tender age she used her knowledge of knowing more than her parents and joined the masses that make up blue-collar America.
Not long after her foray into the working world, she became intrigued by a hairy legged little boy whom she decided to call her own and they were quickly married.
At year six of Spencer’s marriage, she made the life-altering decision to go back to school and get her college education. School was a world she had always loved because she felt she was able to immerse herself in subjects thus far unknown to her.
“I have always excelled at school without much effort and when my second child came along, I felt my brain turning into the overripe, gooey, glop that I was feeding my newborn,” she said. “I was worried, I needed something more stimulating than a stupid purple dinosaur.”
Thus began Spencer’s journey of self-discovery. While originally her major was Biology with a pre-med emphasis, it wasn’t long before she found her ADHD taking over and her thoughts and desires wandering in not just one different direction but several.
Finding stability in a working environment was also difficult for her because she was so unsure of what she really had a desire to do which caused her to stumble through several different jobs. Finally about two years ago, she discovered a love of writing.
“I have always been an avid reader,” she said. “In fact, it is not uncommon for me to read anywhere from 20-40 books per year, and that doesn’t include the ones I listen to on CD. So when this magazine idea came up, I ran like the mad woman I am with it. Now I just call myself crazy busy to anyone who asks because it seems like I am constantly on the go.”
Finally entering into her senior year in college, Spencer has attended four different universities, passed a myriad of classes and feels like she is no closer to finishing up her degree then she was the day she started. She feels that she will just keep on pushing forward in the hopes that one day she will figure out what she wants to do when she grows up.
Spencer currently enjoys publishing and editing a regional magazine that she started, as well being the self-proclaimed domestic goddess, that is until she changes her mind as to what she wants to do tomorrow.
Editor’s Note: Michelle is too modest. Click here to check out her online magazine, The Edge, which she produces out of the Uintah Basin.
Katie Hancock (maiden name Moore), a senior at Utah State University, just got married three months ago and says she enjoys married life. “I don’t know how I lived without my husband,” she said.
She met Brett Hancock a year ago last May while working at her summer job at Iboats.com, a boating website, as a Customer Service Representative. Brett sat at the desk directly behind her. “It was love at first sight,” Moore (now Hancock) says.
A couple of weeks of flirting and her playing hard-to -get (he asked her out every night for two weeks and she came up with excuse after excuse), she finally agreed to hang out with him. They made out for three hours that night and since then have been inseperable (SP*!).
Brett proposed a week after Valentine’s Day at the Logan Temple. They were married May 19, a year to the day after they met, and then spent every penny they had on a 10-day Florida honeymoon.
They now live in a very cheap apartment in Logan and love it. They bought a baby bunny, named it Thumper and he loves being a part of the family.
Life is good for this family of three. Just working, going to school, and loving life.
Wife’s Ultimatum: Stop goofing off! Back to school, Jesse!
Jesse Dredge, a public relations student at Utah State University, re-enters the throngs of aspiring young men and women in their quest for self betterment. He sits sullenly looking towards Logan Canyon from a campus benc,h imagining what lies there undiscovered.
Being pressured by his wife to once again traverse the precipice of academia, he finds himself forcibly optimistic in order to save his beloved past-times (SP*!!).
“Well, after the ultimatum of school or my caving and canyoneering ropes, I had no choice but to register for another year,” he said.
Dredge is returning to school after a one-year absence, having spent much of the last year in training for the U.S. Army. A Spanish linguist and intelligence collector for the Utah Army National Guard, he has enjoyed travels to Guatemala and Honduras, acting as both a Latter-day Saint missionary and as an Army linguist.
Happily married, Dredge shares with his wife, Debra, hobbies of caving, marathon training and backpacking. But his wife has come to the conclusion that the active pursuit of such hobbies should not distract from goals of higher education.
“These activities are fun, but they do not provide the resources necessary for progress in today’s world,” Debra said in a statement issued in response to a one of Jesse’s attempts to schedule several backpacking trips during days that would conflict with the Fall semester.
Debra accepted her victory as Jesse registered for classes. However, Jesse vows that his past-times have not been forgotten and promises to find time for them also.
~ ~ ~
Lemme Outta Here! Student wishes he were somewhere else
A student at Utah State University expressed his anxiety as he begins yet another school year. He has been going to USU for about two years now and still hasn’t developed a desire to continue his education.
“I thought that after a couple of years I would begin to enjoy going to school, but it’s year two now and I still have anxiety as soon as I see the town of Logan filling up with students," said Tyson Ballard, a Smithfield native.
Like many students across the nation, Ballard’s anxiety comes from not knowing the future.
“During these economic times I don’t know if it is even worth wasting my time in school,” he said. “Who knows if the economy will ever recover from this. I might have a four-year degree, but that doesn’t mean I won’t be a bum on the streets.”
Ballard said he will continue his education, and hopes that he can get through yet another school year at USU. He also hopes that one day he will find a job that will prevent him from being a bum.
Editor: So what’s wrong with bums???
.
Editor’s Note: Below are the self-interviews submitted during Week1 by your fellow NewsHounds. Only four of you managed to get this done. I’ll add the rest of you when you catch up. —TP
Michelle Spencer: Goddess, Online Editor, Biologist....
Woman finds humor in her eight-year quest to obtain degree
“Laughter! Nothing more would suffice. If I am not laughing, then my only other alternative would be tears. I live in the tradition of No Fear t-shirt slogans: ‘Failure is not an option!’” stated Michelle Spencer, a self proclaimed sufferer of ADHD.
“I can truly say that I am not sure what I will be when I grow up. Oh wait…I am grown up! What do you think that says about me?”
Spencer, a 30-something domestic goddess, editor and publisher, has been feverishly working on and off on her four-year bachelor’s degree for nearly nine years now. While she has always been a lover of the world of academia, she moved from her family home when she was only 17. At that tender age she used her knowledge of knowing more than her parents and joined the masses that make up blue-collar America.
Not long after her foray into the working world, she became intrigued by a hairy legged little boy whom she decided to call her own and they were quickly married.
At year six of Spencer’s marriage, she made the life-altering decision to go back to school and get her college education. School was a world she had always loved because she felt she was able to immerse herself in subjects thus far unknown to her.
“I have always excelled at school without much effort and when my second child came along, I felt my brain turning into the overripe, gooey, glop that I was feeding my newborn,” she said. “I was worried, I needed something more stimulating than a stupid purple dinosaur.”
Thus began Spencer’s journey of self-discovery. While originally her major was Biology with a pre-med emphasis, it wasn’t long before she found her ADHD taking over and her thoughts and desires wandering in not just one different direction but several.
Finding stability in a working environment was also difficult for her because she was so unsure of what she really had a desire to do which caused her to stumble through several different jobs. Finally about two years ago, she discovered a love of writing.
“I have always been an avid reader,” she said. “In fact, it is not uncommon for me to read anywhere from 20-40 books per year, and that doesn’t include the ones I listen to on CD. So when this magazine idea came up, I ran like the mad woman I am with it. Now I just call myself crazy busy to anyone who asks because it seems like I am constantly on the go.”
Finally entering into her senior year in college, Spencer has attended four different universities, passed a myriad of classes and feels like she is no closer to finishing up her degree then she was the day she started. She feels that she will just keep on pushing forward in the hopes that one day she will figure out what she wants to do when she grows up.
Spencer currently enjoys publishing and editing a regional magazine that she started, as well being the self-proclaimed domestic goddess, that is until she changes her mind as to what she wants to do tomorrow.
Editor’s Note: Michelle is too modest. Click here to check out her online magazine, The Edge, which she produces out of the Uintah Basin.
~ ~ ~
Katie Moore: And Bunny Makes 3 . . . Katie Hancock (maiden name Moore), a senior at Utah State University, just got married three months ago and says she enjoys married life. “I don’t know how I lived without my husband,” she said.
She met Brett Hancock a year ago last May while working at her summer job at Iboats.com, a boating website, as a Customer Service Representative. Brett sat at the desk directly behind her. “It was love at first sight,” Moore (now Hancock) says.
A couple of weeks of flirting and her playing hard-to -get (he asked her out every night for two weeks and she came up with excuse after excuse), she finally agreed to hang out with him. They made out for three hours that night and since then have been inseperable (SP*!).
Brett proposed a week after Valentine’s Day at the Logan Temple. They were married May 19, a year to the day after they met, and then spent every penny they had on a 10-day Florida honeymoon.
They now live in a very cheap apartment in Logan and love it. They bought a baby bunny, named it Thumper and he loves being a part of the family.
Life is good for this family of three. Just working, going to school, and loving life.
~ ~ ~
Wife’s Ultimatum: Stop goofing off! Back to school, Jesse!
Jesse Dredge, a public relations student at Utah State University, re-enters the throngs of aspiring young men and women in their quest for self betterment. He sits sullenly looking towards Logan Canyon from a campus benc,h imagining what lies there undiscovered.
Being pressured by his wife to once again traverse the precipice of academia, he finds himself forcibly optimistic in order to save his beloved past-times (SP*!!).
“Well, after the ultimatum of school or my caving and canyoneering ropes, I had no choice but to register for another year,” he said.
Dredge is returning to school after a one-year absence, having spent much of the last year in training for the U.S. Army. A Spanish linguist and intelligence collector for the Utah Army National Guard, he has enjoyed travels to Guatemala and Honduras, acting as both a Latter-day Saint missionary and as an Army linguist.
Happily married, Dredge shares with his wife, Debra, hobbies of caving, marathon training and backpacking. But his wife has come to the conclusion that the active pursuit of such hobbies should not distract from goals of higher education.
“These activities are fun, but they do not provide the resources necessary for progress in today’s world,” Debra said in a statement issued in response to a one of Jesse’s attempts to schedule several backpacking trips during days that would conflict with the Fall semester.
Debra accepted her victory as Jesse registered for classes. However, Jesse vows that his past-times have not been forgotten and promises to find time for them also.
~ ~ ~
Lemme Outta Here! Student wishes he were somewhere else
A student at Utah State University expressed his anxiety as he begins yet another school year. He has been going to USU for about two years now and still hasn’t developed a desire to continue his education.
“I thought that after a couple of years I would begin to enjoy going to school, but it’s year two now and I still have anxiety as soon as I see the town of Logan filling up with students," said Tyson Ballard, a Smithfield native.
Like many students across the nation, Ballard’s anxiety comes from not knowing the future.
“During these economic times I don’t know if it is even worth wasting my time in school,” he said. “Who knows if the economy will ever recover from this. I might have a four-year degree, but that doesn’t mean I won’t be a bum on the streets.”
Ballard said he will continue his education, and hopes that he can get through yet another school year at USU. He also hopes that one day he will find a job that will prevent him from being a bum.
Editor: So what’s wrong with bums???
.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
First Thing—Read this!
.
Dear NewsHounds:
Welcome to the online edition of JCOM 1130—Beginning Newswriting. As discussed in the syllabus, this is the same as the standard face-to-face newswriting class, but with some important differences.
Before we get into all that, however, you all need to read these files carefully.
Most of your work will be done using materials posted on your own dedicated blog, NewsHoundsOnline. Start on tour JCOM 1130 Blackboard site, which links to all requirements and assignments. The first requirement will be to read several files on NewsHounds in order to get up to speed using the resources available through Blackboard and your blog for this course.
If you click on the Index, you will be teleported to the complete listing of NewsHound assignments and materials.
Read the first seven items and get acclimated to the Blackboard system and to the course. The first two links—Blackboard Tech and Blackboard Tools—give you information on using Blackboard. Please explore the various Blackboard tabs; we will especially use Blackboard mail (file all assignments there) and Discussion (for weekly NewsTalk about news and journalism issues).
The third link provides general information about the launch of USU’s JCOM courses online.
The fourth link gives you some background information about the instructor—me.
Then comes a list of important dates in USU’s Fall semester.
Then the syllabus—read this thoroughly.
And finally, an explanation of your weekly news quizzes.
Please familiarize yourself with all this material during Week 1. Once you’ve reviewed these files, please click on Week 1 for other assignments.
Questions, email me through Blackboard.
Dear NewsHounds:
Welcome to the online edition of JCOM 1130—Beginning Newswriting. As discussed in the syllabus, this is the same as the standard face-to-face newswriting class, but with some important differences.
Before we get into all that, however, you all need to read these files carefully.
Most of your work will be done using materials posted on your own dedicated blog, NewsHoundsOnline. Start on tour JCOM 1130 Blackboard site, which links to all requirements and assignments. The first requirement will be to read several files on NewsHounds in order to get up to speed using the resources available through Blackboard and your blog for this course.
If you click on the Index, you will be teleported to the complete listing of NewsHound assignments and materials.
Read the first seven items and get acclimated to the Blackboard system and to the course. The first two links—Blackboard Tech and Blackboard Tools—give you information on using Blackboard. Please explore the various Blackboard tabs; we will especially use Blackboard mail (file all assignments there) and Discussion (for weekly NewsTalk about news and journalism issues).
The third link provides general information about the launch of USU’s JCOM courses online.
The fourth link gives you some background information about the instructor—me.
Then comes a list of important dates in USU’s Fall semester.
Then the syllabus—read this thoroughly.
And finally, an explanation of your weekly news quizzes.
Please familiarize yourself with all this material during Week 1. Once you’ve reviewed these files, please click on Week 1 for other assignments.
Questions, email me through Blackboard.
Week 1
..
One—This Week in NewsHounds Online
One—This Week in NewsHounds Online(Aug. 24-29, 2009)
• Get acquainted with our Blackboard site and the NewsHoundsOnline blog.
• Read “Begin Here” orientation posts and syllabus closely.
• Quiz on syllabus will be emailed on Wednesday.
• Get acquainted with our Blackboard site and the NewsHoundsOnline blog.
• Read “Begin Here” orientation posts and syllabus closely.
• Quiz on syllabus will be emailed on Wednesday.
Read . . . . . . . . . . . .
• Today’s WORD on Journalism (you’ll get it by email every day); comments welcome.
• For inspiration, see Uncle Jay Explains the News or The Daily Show or The Colbert Report
• For inspiration, see Uncle Jay Explains the News or The Daily Show or The Colbert Report
• Harrower: pp. 2, 4; Ch. 1—“The Story of Journalism”
• What Is News?
• Newspapers/TV/Online news (every day)
• What Is News?
• Newspapers/TV/Online news (every day)
File . . . . . . . . . . .
• Interview yourself and do a news story. See directions at Week 1 Assignment—Report on YOU! Post it to the NewsTalk discussion page in Blackboard. Feel free to comment on each other’s stories (I will!). EXAMPLE: Go here for my own attempt at doing a story about myself. The goal is to provide both the essential information as well as details that hint at your subject’s (your) character/flavor/fascinating characteristics.
• News Quiz (click here for instructions)
• Basic stuff in any news story:
1. Name
2. Age
3. Status @ USU (major, role, basics)
4. Something interesting: hopes and dreams
5. Quotes. Quotes need to be interesting and pithy. (Ex: “I come from Tooele.” NO! That’s not a good quote. “I once fell out of a plane and landed on a pizza!” YES)
6. Follow-up. If your subject says she fell out of plane, you’d better follow up and ask for and explain the details!
7. Motivations. For this story, about a new(ish) student at USU, you should probably think about motivations—what your subject wants to do when s/he grows up, what excites/scares him/her about being at USU. Why s/he came here....
8. Anything else? What essential things about you haven’t I asked? (In this case, since you’re “interviewing” yourself, you probably have a better idea of these things than you would if you were interviewing a stranger...)
• Interview yourself and do a news story. See directions at Week 1 Assignment—Report on YOU! Post it to the NewsTalk discussion page in Blackboard. Feel free to comment on each other’s stories (I will!). EXAMPLE: Go here for my own attempt at doing a story about myself. The goal is to provide both the essential information as well as details that hint at your subject’s (your) character/flavor/fascinating characteristics.
• News Quiz (click here for instructions)
• Basic stuff in any news story:
1. Name
2. Age
3. Status @ USU (major, role, basics)
4. Something interesting: hopes and dreams
5. Quotes. Quotes need to be interesting and pithy. (Ex: “I come from Tooele.” NO! That’s not a good quote. “I once fell out of a plane and landed on a pizza!” YES)
6. Follow-up. If your subject says she fell out of plane, you’d better follow up and ask for and explain the details!
7. Motivations. For this story, about a new(ish) student at USU, you should probably think about motivations—what your subject wants to do when s/he grows up, what excites/scares him/her about being at USU. Why s/he came here....
8. Anything else? What essential things about you haven’t I asked? (In this case, since you’re “interviewing” yourself, you probably have a better idea of these things than you would if you were interviewing a stranger...)
Week 2
.
Week 2 (Aug. 30-Sept. 5, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 2 (Aug. 30-Sept. 5, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 3
.
Week 3 (Sept. 6-12)
(Sept. 7—Labor Day)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 3 (Sept. 6-12)
(Sept. 7—Labor Day)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 4
Week 5 (Sept. 13-19, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 5
.
Week 5 (Sept. 20-26, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 5 (Sept. 20-26, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 6
.
Week 6 (Sept. 27-Oct. 3, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 6 (Sept. 27-Oct. 3, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 7
.
Week 7 (Oct. 4-10, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 7 (Oct. 4-10, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 8
.
Week 8 (Oct. 11-17, 2009)
(Oct. 16—“Fall Break”)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 8 (Oct. 11-17, 2009)
(Oct. 16—“Fall Break”)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 9
.
Week 9 (Oct. 18-24, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 9 (Oct. 18-24, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 10
Week 10 (Oct. 25-31, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 11
Week 11 (Nov. 1-7, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 12
Week 12 (Nov. 8-14, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 13
Week 13 (Nov. 15-21, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 14
Week 14 (Nov. 22-28, 2009) TURKEY WEEK
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: none
• No Chat on NewsTalk
• No News Quiz
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: none
• No Chat on NewsTalk
• No News Quiz
Week 15
Week 15 (Nov. 29-Dec. 5, 2009)
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
READINGS: To be announced.
STORY ASSIGNMENT: To be announced.
• Chat on NewsTalk
• News Quiz
Week 1 Assignment—Report on YOU!
.
Assignment:
Interview Yourself and Write a FASCINATING Story!
Here’s the deal: Since this is an online class, I can’t ask you to turn to the person next to you and interview her/him, and then write a story. So you’re stuck with yourself.
Write a NEWS story about yourself from the perspective of someone who doesn’t know you. The huge advantage here is that you can say anything you want, and edit out the bad stuff. The point, though, is to
a) Show me how you can write. And ...
b) Tell me and your fellow classpersons something interesting about yourself.
These don’t have to be long—maybe five or six paragraphs—but should include the stuff in the instructions that brought you here.
Write your thing is a Word document on your desktop, save it as YOURNAMEBio.doc and then copy and paste it in the discussion (NewsTalk—Week1) section of Blackboard. (You’ll find mine as TedPeaseBio.)
To do this, go into Blackboard for JCOM 1130, and click on the Discussion tab (at left). You’ll find NewsTalk—Week1. You can file you story there. Kudos for those who figure this out on the first try....
Here’s my self-interview, as an example of the find of stuff I'm looking for, but you do it however you want. Once your stuff is “published” on NewsTalk, read everyone else’s story to learn a little bit about the other students in the class. Yes, there will be a quiz....
Professor Would Rather Be Fishing
A Utah State journalism professor has returned to campus for his 16th year, but he’d rather be fishing for salmon on the Northern California coast.
Ted Pease, 54, head of the Department of Journalism and Communication, has taught at Utah State University since 1994, but he says his heart and soul live in the redwoods of California.
“I love USU,” he said. “I’ve been here most of my professional life. But it’s salmon season in the Northwest. I’d rather be fishing.”
Pease owns a fishing boat, “Toad,” in Trinidad, Calif., where the salmon season is limited to 10 days, starting Aug. 29—right at the start of classes back at USU.
Although he’s originally from New England, he says he’s now “a Northern California boy.”
Pease is a former newspaper reporter and editor.
Get the idea? There’s more to say, and write longer if you want, but that’s enough to get started. Find something about yourself to focus on, and direct your story there.
-30- means “the end.” I’ll explain later.
I will now give you the opportunity to ask questions about the FASCINATING things you have just learned about me. The rest of us will do the same after we read your stories.....
Assignment:
Interview Yourself and Write a FASCINATING Story!
Here’s the deal: Since this is an online class, I can’t ask you to turn to the person next to you and interview her/him, and then write a story. So you’re stuck with yourself.
Write a NEWS story about yourself from the perspective of someone who doesn’t know you. The huge advantage here is that you can say anything you want, and edit out the bad stuff. The point, though, is to
a) Show me how you can write. And ...
b) Tell me and your fellow classpersons something interesting about yourself.
These don’t have to be long—maybe five or six paragraphs—but should include the stuff in the instructions that brought you here.
Write your thing is a Word document on your desktop, save it as YOURNAMEBio.doc and then copy and paste it in the discussion (NewsTalk—Week1) section of Blackboard. (You’ll find mine as TedPeaseBio.)
To do this, go into Blackboard for JCOM 1130, and click on the Discussion tab (at left). You’ll find NewsTalk—Week1. You can file you story there. Kudos for those who figure this out on the first try....
Here’s my self-interview, as an example of the find of stuff I'm looking for, but you do it however you want. Once your stuff is “published” on NewsTalk, read everyone else’s story to learn a little bit about the other students in the class. Yes, there will be a quiz....
Professor Would Rather Be Fishing
A Utah State journalism professor has returned to campus for his 16th year, but he’d rather be fishing for salmon on the Northern California coast.
Ted Pease, 54, head of the Department of Journalism and Communication, has taught at Utah State University since 1994, but he says his heart and soul live in the redwoods of California.
“I love USU,” he said. “I’ve been here most of my professional life. But it’s salmon season in the Northwest. I’d rather be fishing.”
Pease owns a fishing boat, “Toad,” in Trinidad, Calif., where the salmon season is limited to 10 days, starting Aug. 29—right at the start of classes back at USU.
Although he’s originally from New England, he says he’s now “a Northern California boy.”
Pease is a former newspaper reporter and editor.
-30-
-30- means “the end.” I’ll explain later.
I will now give you the opportunity to ask questions about the FASCINATING things you have just learned about me. The rest of us will do the same after we read your stories.....
Fall 2009—Important Dates
.
Fall Semester 2009
Utah State University
• Aug. 24: First day of Classes
• Aug. 28: Last day to add w/o instructor signature; last day to pay tuition and fees
• Aug. 29: Registration Purge (unpaid students)
• Aug. 29-Sept. 8: Only 2009 salmon fishing season on NCalif coast
• Sept. 7: Labor Day (no classes)
• Sept. 14: Last day to add/drop classes w/o notation on transcript
• Oct. 15: Attend Friday classes
• Oct. 16: “Fall Break” (no classes)
• Oct. 23: Last day to change to Pass/Fail (note: JCOM majors may not take JCOM classes P/F)
• Oct. 24-Nov. 9: Drops require late-drop form (W/F on transcript); no drops after Nov. 10
• Nov. 25-27: Thanksgiving (no classes)
• Nov. 30-Dec. 4: Last week of classes; no-test week
• Dec. 7-11: Finals week
.
Fall Semester 2009
Utah State University
• Aug. 24: First day of Classes
• Aug. 28: Last day to add w/o instructor signature; last day to pay tuition and fees
• Aug. 29: Registration Purge (unpaid students)
• Aug. 29-Sept. 8: Only 2009 salmon fishing season on NCalif coast
• Sept. 7: Labor Day (no classes)
• Sept. 14: Last day to add/drop classes w/o notation on transcript
• Oct. 15: Attend Friday classes
• Oct. 16: “Fall Break” (no classes)
• Oct. 23: Last day to change to Pass/Fail (note: JCOM majors may not take JCOM classes P/F)
• Oct. 24-Nov. 9: Drops require late-drop form (W/F on transcript); no drops after Nov. 10
• Nov. 25-27: Thanksgiving (no classes)
• Nov. 30-Dec. 4: Last week of classes; no-test week
• Dec. 7-11: Finals week
.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
