Week 1 Assignment—Report on YOU!

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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-

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.....