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IU / photo / running / Twitter / Wednesday — Comments Off on And now, some notes about my day
1
Mar 17

And now, some notes about my day

A know a guy who works on reaching new audiences. Basically, he gets hired to talk to people in new ways as efficiently as possible. I asked him one time, suppose I wanted to hire you to talk to high school juniors and seniors, what would you do?

He said he wouldn’t try talking to the juniors and seniors of 2017, but he’d be thinking about the juniors and seniors of 2022 and 2023. I think about that answer when I read things like this:A new study says young Americans have a broad definition of news

Younger Americans have a broad definition of news that expands beyond the output of traditional news organizations and includes information gleaned from social media and user-generated content, according to a report out Wednesday from the Data & Society Research Institute.

[…]

“I think you have to really just listen to everything, and then pick out what you believe and what you think is really truthful,” said a 22-year-old African-American female who participated in

[…]

“If I don’t see it on social media, I’m not going to hear it,” a 17-year-old African-American said.

However, many of the participants said they were reluctant to share news and their thoughts on the news on social platforms publicly. Instead, many said that they will send links or screenshots to friends in messaging apps or other more private channels.

[…]

The study says “the most striking point of consensus across the groups was their shared lack of trust in the news media.”

“Even if it’s factual, it may be sort of tainted,” a 23-year-old Hispanic and African-American female said.

This morning I ran seven miles, my last run before the weekend. And then I went to work and it was all about work for about 10 solid hours. Here’s a show the students shot tonight. They posed for this, somehow mustering up a flair for the dramatic they otherwise surely didn’t know they had:

Also, this show launched today. I watched them tape the first episode last Friday night, and it is pretty clever stuff:

I work in a place that lets students develop and create their own shows. You have an idea you want to try? Feel like experimenting? Want to realize your dream? You show up, put some skin in the game and you’re doing that here. And it is part of my job to oversee the television station that helps you do that. I get to help students do that. We’ve launched three new shows this year, in addition to moving into a multi-million dollar studio.

Also, there is movie night, like tonight:

We make original content and we are serious about journalism.

IU / journalism / photo / Thursday / Twitter — Comments Off on Talking about the cyber
23
Feb 17

Talking about the cyber

Among the other parts of my day, editing a big document, watching students produce a sports show, handling the various comings and goings of emailing and scheduling and so on, I had the opportunity to hang out at an important panel this evening. And I took notes.

Also, even if you aren’t interested in cybersecurity as a journalist or in your own professional role, this slideshow that gets mentioned people is accessible and worth your while. Check that out. Anyway, on to the tweets …

Indiana / memories / photo / Thursday / Twitter / video — Comments Off on The cuffs were stained, and it got stinky
16
Feb 17

The cuffs were stained, and it got stinky

From time to time a student asks to interview me about something or other as part of a class project. I try to be a difficult interview, thinking maybe the word will get out and people will stop asking.

I don’t actually act like a bad interview subject. I try to be helpful while they’re learning their craft, but the thought always occurs to me: I could derail this. I could send this off in an entirely different direction. But they’re going to get that experience soon enough.

Today I got interviewed as part of a magazine writing exercise about the importance of clothes. It seemed an unusual topic, what clothes are important to you. So I thought, for whatever reason, about outerwear. This jacket, that coat and so on. I guess because it has been cold, I was thinking of the things that help keep you warm. Somewhere in there I mentioned this old denim jacket I had as a kid. Denim, which has made a comeback once more, was a big status symbol back then. And of course the interviewer seized on this as her topic.

I didn’t have a denim jacket for the longest time, because they were expensive and we didn’t have that kind of money. But finally, for Christmas one year, I got one. It was, I told my interviewer, an off-brand and it was probably about 15 minutes after denim was the thing, but I loved it. Loved it. I wore that jacket constantly. Day, night, overnight. And I suppose I just eventually physically outgrew it. But I remember the joy of the gift and the smell of the jacket. And it wasn’t a good smell, because I wore it constantly and I was a little boy. My mom had to wait until I went to sleep and then took the jacket off of me to wash the thing.

The interviewer asked good questions, as I imagined she would. Made me really think of my answers. It became an almost psychological exercise.

Afterward, I sent my mom a text, telling her about this interview. I figured she’d have a funny anecdote for me that I could pass along to my interviewer and we’d all have a good laugh. She didn’t remember the jacket.

In her defense, it was a few decades ago.

Also, when I was little, The Count always scared me. (I was a sensitive child.) But Brielle doesn’t have this problem. Plus, she’s adorable, and knows her stuff:

In the studio this evening, the sports show took over. David and Griffin are going places:

We’ll get to say we knew them back when. They do such great work. But you could say that about a lot of people around here.

And this:

memories / Tuesday / Twitter — Comments Off on “We, the People, give it power.”
10
Jan 17

“We, the People, give it power.”

I was in a newsroom the night President Obama was elected. It was my first fall working with students. I had to gently suggest a way they could cover, and perhaps localize, such an historic moment as a presidential election. Journalism is an art and a craft and, sometimes, a learned thing. And, looking back, there was a lesson in that for me, too.

I was on our sofa when the president delivered his formal farewell. It was long, which is usual for him, longer than it had to be. But it was the president doing what he has become known for. It’ll be judged against others tonight and tomorrow and over time, and like all things presidential, that will tell the tale. But, tonight, it was an event, which is what they were after.

Instagram / IU / photo / running / Twitter / video / Wednesday — Comments Off on Back to the office, then
4
Jan 17

Back to the office, then

Back at the office, where things are slow, but productive. They’re moving around a few editing bays and I’m dealing with email and various administrative things like deadlines and deliveries and purchase orders and its all great fun.

My watch beeps and I have to walk around a bit. I discovered that someone brought their foosball table. Not sure who, or if there is an expectation that it will be played, but it is in a common area, and does make that particular room feel something like a startup:

Students will be back next week. I bet it sees some use.

I made this video as a quick experiment. I wanted to see which version looks better when it is embedded. There are three versions of the same below, but more words following that.

My mother-in-law always gives me a few office supplies at Christmas …

A video posted by Kenny Smith (@kennydsmith) on

I think the last one has the best quality and look. What do you think?

It was 11 degrees outside, so we went to the gym. I joined the gym. Now I have to see what all they have. They do have a nice track, though:

Eight laps equals a mile. The place is newer, cleaner, brighter and has people on it, which is an improvement from the track I was running on last year. That was 10 laps per mile and about 55 years old and I’ve only just realized how drab and lonely that track was.

But indoor running anywhere beats 11 degrees outside. And laps, when you find a rhythm, go fast. I got in six miles tonight. Six miles before a salmon dinner. Salmon is good, but it fills me like an empty lecture. I’ll be snacking again in an hour, I bet.

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