Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Placing trust in today's media

A panel discussion drew over a hundred students in Chesapeake 3, UU on Tuesday, April 28, to discuss journalism ethics and media credibility.

The panel included Andy Schotz, SPJ Ethics Committee Chairman, Paul Milton, Executive Editor of Patuxent Publishing, and Michelle Butt, News Director for WBAL-TV.  Each gave their input on the state of today’s media and how ethics and credibility are being questioned by the general audience.

Why is there a need for the media to restore its credibility?  “There are a variety of sources and types of media that audiences are getting their information from,” Schotz said. This includes blogs, podcasts, Wikipedia, late night entertainment, etc. By looking to these forms of media instead of sources like The New York Times or The Baltimore Sun, WBAL-TV or WJZ, we are allowing the credibility of journalism to become a blur. 

Some bloggers or commentators like Bill O’Reilly talk like journalists, but are often just there for entertainment, not to give the general audience reliable facts on current news.  Paul Milton said sometimes this can also be blamed on the media because there is competition to appeal to more audiences by telling them what they want to hear and sensationalizing news.

Are journalists to blame for the decline in media credibility? Currently, not as much time is dedicated to developing beats.  Many reporters must branch out to photography, editing, fact-checking, etc. to fill in the gaps during this economic crisis.  In a haste to put the information for their beat online, many reporters don’t even stop to question the credibility of their sources for their news.  This may be another reason for the decline in media credibility because journalists are not being curious enough to see holes or biases in their own story. 

Is network coverage credible if the audience only watches one or two networks? It is the audience’s job to be able to distinguish between national and international news.  We shouldn’t blur them together when they appeal to different audiences and approach news differently.  We need to be open to a variety of news networks in order to get a balanced look at the news and avoid biased network coverage.

“The ethical standards we place locally are so important, so different than what national news does…’cause we’re your neighbors, we’re your co-workers, we’re your friends, we’re in your carpool lines, and we’re behind the Girl Scout cookies. And our standard has to be different and our standard, frankly, has to be a little more human,” Butt said.

Towson University’s Society of Professional Journalists hosted this event led by Lori Aritani, a Poynter Ethics Fellow and reporter for the Washington Post. 

Monday, April 20, 2009

Nonlinear story

For my last assignment, I plan to incorporate all of the projects I have been working on that flow with my beat topic.

My trunk will include a brief summary of what I have discovered about spirituality on campus.

Branches will include my audio story, my blog post (with more elaboration), my soundslide, my feature profile story, and maybe more. I'd like to have some photos as well if I can manage to find time to do that.

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Slideshow focus on Tae Jitsu instructor

My friend Angela Liberto is the biggest sweetheart I've ever met.  I was shocked when she first told me she was a student instructor for Tristar Martial Arts Tae Jitsu classes.  

For my next assignment, I have decided to focus my story on her because she will be competing on April 17 to earn her black belt.  I think it will be an exciting event to attend, I'll get great photos and nat sound and I can really use this to go along with my beat.  

Angie went to a bible study with me last semester so I'm sure she has a lot to say about how God gives her the strength and motivation she needs.  

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Superheroes of Hollywood


I just finished watching Confessions of a Superhero a documentary by Matt Ogens.  It has such great video editing and amazing stills as well!  I recommend watching it on Hulu. I thought it was entertaining, funny, and heartfelt.  

It reminded me of the days that I once said "I'm gonna just move to California and be an actress!"  Yes, I did say this, it was my dream at the time.  Oh how those dreams do change.  Who knows, maybe I'll get an news anchor job over there some day and can do a little acting on the side...just for fun:)

Watch it here or go to the official website to check it out!

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Moondance moves to Wyoming

This CBS video from The Early Show was an interesting story to analyze in terms of editing video.  

The clips moved smoothly with natural sounds of people talking in the Moondance Diner, sounds in the kitchen, and the diner's journey on the road.

Wide shots included the inside of the diner, the landscape of New York, or the landscape of it's new location in Wyoming.  Medium shots of the owners talking or working on moving it to Wyoming and tight shots of items in the diner, the moon logo, or chocolate shakes were also effective.

I also like the incorporation of the clip from Spiderman where the diner had a feature.  It shows it's importance and why these new owners thought it was worth saving.

Watch the clip N.Y. Icon Saved, Moves West reported by Cynthia Bowers. 

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Towson's CRU was truly an inspiration


What an awesome group of people! I had so much fun doing my audio story on Campus Crusade for Christ's worship team.  

Each of them shared what inspires them and how it feels to express their faith and beliefs through music.  
Listen and enjoy. -M

Soldier boy

Check out my feature story on Chistopher Paul, a student at Towson University. 

He talks about spiritual expression on campus and how he is not only a soldier for this country, but a soldier for Christ as well.