Journalism as a Conversation

Having spent almost a decade as a graduate student and professor, I was always struck by how resistant to change and questioning academic cabals could be. The growth of online education is yet another example. Many are embracing it, and many are resisting it because it represents change to a world that often moves at the pace of medieval guilds.

Economist Zachary Karabell, on the unstoppable growth of online learning

My sentiments exactly

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thugkitchen:

You can’t have a legit BBQ without a badass potato salad. But don’t be a dick and buy that nasty shit at the store. Make this instead; it is cheap as fuck and super easy. You can even leave it in the sun for a minute and it won’t get all gross like that potatomayo nonsense they try to pass off as a salad. People don’t deserve that basic, bland shit.

My new favorite blog.

You can’t have a legit BBQ without a badass potato salad. But don’t be a dick and buy that nasty shit at the store. Make this instead; it is cheap as fuck and super easy. You can even leave it in the sun for a minute and it won’t get all gross like that potatomayo nonsense they try to pass off as a salad. People don’t deserve that basic, bland shit.

My new favorite blog.

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I think there are certainly many different ways of using Twitter. But I think one thing that newsrooms do is only use Twitter for promotion, to say, “hey, look at my story.” Because ultimately, if you are only talking about your own stories, you’re missing part of the equation, to talk with other people, to see what other people are saying, and using that as feedback or possible story ideas. You aren’t going to see the same follower growth, you’re not going to see the same engagement, retweets and things like that if you’re only concentrating on what you bring to Twitter.

Mark Luckie, creative content manager for Twitter, in interview about whether Twitter is getting into the news business

(This guy gets conversational journalism)

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RIP Ron Marchionni: Aug. 16, 1936-April 25, 2013

Dad died on Thursday after suffering with congestive heart failure and diabetes for years. Totally classy guy who could do anything — sew a hem, change the oil in your car, shoot pheasants with pinpoint accuracy. Here’s his obit in our hometown paper, The (Vancouver) Columbian, if you’re interested. Miss him already.

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My new bff … self-explanatory.

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Love it — Chicago Tribune high-fives Boston Globe for its marathon bombings coverage by sending pizzas to the newsroom.

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It’s Sunday. Drink.

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(In)accuracy in Reporting: The Boston Marathon Bombings

I was literally working on a slide presentation about the qualities of great journalism when news broke of the Boston Marathon bombings. A key characteristic of journalism, as we all know, is accuracy. As the hours and days passed, I sat and waited for the mistakes to roll out, grabbing screenshots of errors to add to my slides about how not to do journalism

I knew I wouldn’t have to wait long for examples. The early reports of the bombers being “black” or “dark-skinned” (turns out they’re from the Caucasus Mountain region, meaning “Caucasian.”) The New York Post running a “suspects” photo on the front page — of the wrong men. The Wenatchee World reporting the capture of the youngest of the two suspects, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev — three days before it happened.

The problems weren’t just with print editions. Online, journalists and non-journalists were snookered by a fake twitter account for this same suspect. And well-meaning tweeps passed along a fundraising plea for a runner whose legs were blown off and who reportedly didn’t have medical insurance — turns out he did but just not enough to cover his exorbitant expenses. And on and on and on.

On big competitive stories, we journalists often blow it.

Sunday, April 21, 2013 — 23 notes () Read more …