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“I’m not that interesting”

And if you go outside in the right time of the evening, you’ll see a scene like that. Life is good.

Did a lot of writing today, finishing a project that needed finishing. A lot of rewriting had gone into it, none of it especially inspiring, so it just dragged on and on. The next time that project comes up, though, it will be much better.

Alan Mutter has a read on an important new Pew report on a disconnect between younger and older consumers in perceived newspaper value.

When asked by researchers to identify their preferred source for crime news, 44% of those in the 40-plus category named newspapers, as compared with just 23% for the younger cohort.

[…]

In what may be a sign of the desperation of the population in this time of high unemployment, the only area where young and old alike turned with equal frequency to newspapers is hunting for information about jobs. Even there, only 17% of each age group considered newspapers the first place to look.

Pew also found this sobering statistic: Fully 69% of respondents said it would not “have a major impact” on their ability to keep up with news about their community if their local paper no longer existed.

That last one is more of a perception than anything and, I suspect, a misplaced one. Yes, more news now stems from personal networks, word of mouth and social media than every before, but there is still a significant amount of that information that originates in traditional newsrooms. That indirect impact, I believe, often goes undetected.

A federal judge upholds most of Alabama’s controversial immigration law:

Section 11 (a), which makes it unlawful for a person who is an unauthorized alien to knowingly apply for work, solicit work in a public or private place, or perform work as an employee or independent contractor in this state.

Section 13, which prohibits concealing, harboring, transporting, etc., of unlawfully-present aliens.

Section 16, which concerns the taking of a state tax deduction for wages paid to an unauthorized alien employee.

Section 17, which creates a state “discrimination” cause of action based on the retention or hiring of an unauthorized alien.

I posted a little something about both of these stories on the journalism tip blog I write. I invite you to read it if you find these sorts of things mildly interesting.

Still here? Good. I also changed the URL of that blog, and fixed the links on this site. Speaking of the site: I haven’t mentioned it, but I added a rotating piece of code to the top and bottom images on the blog. Hit reload a bunch. Fancy, huh?

Speaking of journalism, check out the Crimson’s site for the latest news from campus. Included is this cute little profile of the famous Ms. Dot.

I saw her at lunch today, just another face in her long line of a day.

I read about you in the paper!

“You did?”

Yes. It was very good! I think you should be in the paper every week!

“I don’t. I’m not that interesting.”

I think there should be a little According to Ms. Dot section in each issue of the paper. Just a little box with some wise saying.

Need a scarf? The original Toomer’s Corner tradition is now a fine accessory. It only costs $17.16 for the neckwear which is made of “scarf like” material. Not sure what that is. As for the price:

I guess they thought $28.27 was over the natural scarf price point.

Ahh, football season jokes.

history / photo / site / Tuesday — Comments Off
13
Sep 11

Busy week

Even my deadlines have deadlines. And those deadlines aren’t very patient. So things will be brief. Very brief.

Class today, based on the same lecture I taught to another section last week. The laughs weren’t there this time. And some of the jokes were even better! It happens. Small group dynamics are interesting things. Maybe they’ll find the next class more to their liking.

Saw this on the morning drive:

Some octagons get all the luck. Some just get to see all the sites. Good thing it picked up the truck. Those many flat sides to an octagon make rolling around a difficult proposition.

Geometry puns! Free of charge!

Updated a page I wrote in July. Last winter I did a piece on Dean Hallmark, Texas boy turned Auburn man turned World War II hero and prisoner of war. I’ve been corresponding with his fourth-cousin, the family historian. Last month he and I had the chance to meet in person. Today he sent me an email containing the update. Interesting echoes from the 1930s.

That’s enough for now. Back to newspapering.

iPhone / journalism / links / photo / Samford / site / Tuesday — Comments Off
30
Aug 11

First day of classes

Taught my first class of the semester today. It is a two-hour, one day a week experience. Today we met for about 90 minutes.

I gave them a quiz.

Oh, we did the getting-to-know you portion of the class and they received the syllabus. There were some slides and lots of words and pictures. We rushed headlong into Associated Press style.

And then I gave them homework.

Too much for the first day?

Here was there assignment. Feel free to play along, if you like. Ernest Hemingway is said to have written a six word story that was among his best work. (Even Snopes isn’t sure if this is true or apocryphal, but it works for an exercise in conciseness.)

The story:

For sale: Baby shoes. Never worn.

Beginning, middle and end. So I asked the class to bring back their six word stories next week. The only rules were that it had to be six words, and death could not be the theme.

Now I have to come up with one, too. Feel free to leave yours in the comments below.

And now a pretty picture of a tiny part of our lovely campus:

Samford is a beautiful place.

Speaking of photos, the August photo gallery is now online. Also, you’ll notice a new piece of art across the top of the page, that’s on Cannon Beach, in Oregon. I’d like to go back there soon. Care to donate to the cause?

Naturally when one banner comes off the blog it remains on the Former Blog Banners page. Not sure why I even maintain that page, other than it is neat to see the places I’ve gone all together. Some are more interesting than others, but all of them passed muster to make it here. There’s at least a half-baked story behind each of them.

The piece I wrote here on Saturday was re-published on The War Eagle Reader. It is getting some nice comments, too. Seems everyone is ready for football.

Finally, there’s this, the latest wonderful piece of medical science:

Medical advancements never cease to amaze.

journalism / links / Monday / photo / site / things to read / Twitter — Comments Off
29
Aug 11

Things to read

It was vital before the weekend, even as it is dated now, but here’s a bit of specialty reporting worth your attention. What do you do with prisoners during a hurricane? Nothing, apparently, if you’re New York City:

“We are not evacuating Rikers Island,” Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in a news conference this afternoon. Bloomberg annouced a host of extreme measures being taken by New York City in preparation for the arrival of Hurricane Irene, including a shutdown of the public transit system and the unprecedented mandatory evacuation of some 250,000 people from low-lying areas. But in response to a reporter’s question, the mayor stated in no uncertain terms (and with more than a hint of annoyance) that one group of New Yorkers on vulnerable ground will be staying put.

New York City is surrounded by small islands and barrier beaches, and a glance at the city’s evacuation map reveals all of them to be in Zone A (already under a mandatory evacuation order) or Zone B–all, that is, save one. Rikers Island, which lies in the waters between Queens and the Bronx, is not highlighted at all, meaning it is not to be evacuated under any circumstances.

Speaking of the storm, FEMA asked people to use Twitter and Facebook during the bad weather, for fear of otherwise overloading the cell phone system. How many stories are in that sentence, do you think? Meanwhile, the New York Times says Twitter was a playground.

Was Irene much ado about nothing? As of this writing there are 24 deaths and a great deal of flooding, but was the media too panicked? Did the system get too much hype? You could argue both sides. On one hand you never know about hurricanes until they make landfall, and by then it is too late for the media and government to caution and evacuate people. On the other hand, there’s Howard Kurtz:

Someone has to say it: cable news was utterly swept away by the notion that Irene would turn out to be Armageddon. National news organizations morphed into local eyewitness-news operations, going wall to wall for days with dire warnings about what would turn out to be a Category 1 hurricane, the lowest possible ranking. “Cable news is scaring the crap out of me, and I WORK in cable news,” Bloomberg correspondent Lizzie O’Leary tweeted.

[…]

But the tsunami of hype on this story was relentless, a Category 5 performance that was driven in large measure by ratings. Every producer knew that to abandon the coverage even briefly—say, to cover the continued fighting in Libya—was to risk driving viewers elsewhere. Websites, too, were running dramatic headlines even as it became apparent that the storm wasn’t as powerful as advertised.

Copy editing extends to television graphics. Look at what Irene did to some of our nation’s finest cities:

That’s from MSNBC, and probably a layer or software glitch. “That’s live television” some may say, but remember, in times of crisis it is information people need. Be sure you have it right.

Quick hits: We are all members of the media now. I’ve been saying it in classes and presentations for years now. Some of our peers disagree, but the New York Times sees it. How can Google+ be used in journalism education? Here’s a primer from Bryan Murley. Half of U.S. adults use social media, says a new Pew study. The publishing end run on Apple. Publishers want their control, but Apple’s closed model insists they have control; publishers were only going to give for so long.

There’s a saying in broadcasting that every mic is a hot mic, which means be careful what you say around every microphone, because you might be broadcasting without realizing it. ESPN is telling their employees to consider Twitter a hot mic. Agree or disagree? Internet use is on the rise for farmers. The 9/11 archives, raw footage from a wide variety of TV stations and networks during 9/11/01, and the days that followed, is now online.

Finally, typos are bad (says the guy who leaves a lot of them on his own site). Big typos on signs at school, signos, are embarrassing.

adventures / Auburn / football / iPhone / memories / photo / site / video / weekend — Comments Off
27
Aug 11

One week away from the 2011 season, we look back at 2010 …

To celebrate the kickoff of the 2011 football season, here’s a picture from every week of Auburn’s championship 2010 season.

Kodi Burns, quarterback turned receiver, scores the first touchdown of the season against Arkansas State, beating the visiting Indian-Red Wolves 52-26. The obscuring shaker just adds to the atmosphere:

Auburn was on the road for their second game, a 17-14 win over conference foe Mississippi State:

The legend of Cam Newton begins in the 27-24 overtime win over visiting Clemson. After only three games he’d amassed 315 yards rushing, 525 yards passing and nine touchdowns. Even still, Clemson had to miss a field goal to allow Auburn to escape from their biggest scare of the early season.

Auburn rallied past South Carolina. Linebacker Josh Bynes forced this fumble and secured an interception, each helping to turn the tide in a 35-27 victory. Cam Newton would be responsible for all five of Auburn’s scores, on the ground or through the air. Freshman tailback Michael Dyer gained 100 yards, proving to college football onlookers that the Tigers suddenly had too many weapons to defend.

Auburn, now in top 10, improved to 5-0 with a tuneup win over Louisiana Monroe 52-3.

Auburn traveled to Kentucky and escaped the Bluegrass State on a Wes Byrum field goal as time expired. The Tigers orchestrated a 19-play, 86-yard drive in the final 7:22 to set up the game-winner. The 37-34 victory has been somewhat forgotten. All of these big scores, though, were only foreshadowing.

The game the scoreboard broke. Arkansas and Auburn set an SEC record for points scored in a regulation game. When everyone recovered from heart palpitations they discovered the guys in blue had emerged with a 65-43 victory that was a lot closer than the score suggested. Arkansas lost their starting quarterback early. No matter, the backup tossed it around for 332 yards and four scores. But in the end the stir he created was the man who would begin to show his Heisman bona fides. Cam Newton rushed for 188 yards and three scores and threw for 140 more yards and another score.

And finally doubters would be satisfied. LSU brought one of the best defenses in the country into Jordan-Hare Stadium, and they were torched for 526 total yards, 440 of which Auburn gathered on the ground. Mike Dyer collected 100 yards rushing, but the man of the hour was the man wearing the number two.

That’s the end of this famous run:

A thing of beauty is a joy forever.

After gunning down Arkansas and running over LSU, the season definitely took on a special feel. Up next was Ole Miss, who were just a mascot-less speed bump in the way of a juggernaut. Ole Miss was looking for a Halloween surprise, dressing up as a football team (albeit in new, gray unis) but Auburn took the win in Oxford 51-31. Cam Newton caught a touchdown pass from Kodi Burns. The Tigers were showing themselves to be:

Up next was Homecoming. Auburn hosted Tennessee-Chattanooga 62-24, improving to 10-0 on the season, ranked third in the nation and put up statistical superlatives across the board. Cam Newton, in just 30 minutes of play, set a personal best for passing yards. The Tigers put up 484 of offense in the first half, and eclipsed 600 yards offense for the second time of the season. It was the fifth time they’d scored more than 50 points on the season. Terrell Zachery found a career high for receiving yards, including this 80-yard touchdown reception.

Auburn clinched their appearance in the SEC Championship game in a 49-31 victory over Georgia in a controversial reunion of the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry. And by controversial I mean that Auburn’s Nick Fairley had one late hit, was flagged for it, and Georgia whined and whimpered about it for the rest of the game. Then they tried to take him out late in the contest, which prompted a fight. Most of Georgia’s sideline stormed the field. Two of Auburn’s players were ejected in garbage time (and suspended for the first half of the upcoming Iron Bowl) and despite all of that, Auburn still won and Georgia looked like poor losers.

But on the day when Auburn earned the right to go to Atlanta, the Tigers’ offensive line deserved special recognition. Guys like Cameron Newton, well on his way to the Heisman Trophy, wouldn’t have accomplished all he did on the field without these guys:

Same story for Mike Dyer, who would in the Georgia game break Bo Jackson’s freshman rushing record:

And the same shot, as told by AUHD:

It was simultaneously the biggest choke ever by Alabama and the largest comeback by Auburn, as the Tigers finished their regular season a perfect 12-0 after the 28-27 victory.

In a year full of tremendous efforts, Antoine Carter may have saved the season on this play, shifting the momentum of the game inexorably into Auburn’s favor:

Some time after this a deranged individual would prove his poor decision making and self-worth by poisoning the trees at Toomer’s Corner.

But before we knew that, it felt like this:

Half of Auburn was in Atlanta for the SEC Championship game against South Carolina. More of us were in the new Auburn Arena to watch a simulcast. The Tigers played their most complete game of the season, proving themselves a force while winning their first SEC Championship since 2004. Auburn thumped Steve Spurrier’s Gamecocks 52-17. More than a few of us grew misty-eyed when the score became 49-14 and we realized these Tigers would have a shot at football glory.

That night I wrote “For 1983, 1993 and 2004. For 270,000 alumni. For every coach and player from Shug to Gene. For Auburn and for ol’ API.”

The state’s newspapers the next day:

A month later Auburn faced Oregon in Arizona and brought home the national championship after Mike Dyer’s run:

… which was exhausting, and Wes Byrum lined up behind senior backup quarterback Neil Caudle to cinch the win:

Kodi Burns, the quarterback who so famously and selflessly said he’d move to wide receiver, unifying the team behind eventual Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton, scored the first touchdown in the season and the first touchdown in this game. From September through January, this team was a joy to watch.

And then there was the final celebration of the year at Toomer’s Corner:

War Eagle, and let’s kick off 2011.