Washington Post editor: Press exists to hold government accountable

‘Important time for journalism in this country’

By Bradley Wilson
CMR Managing Editor

When Washington Post Executive Editor Marty Baron spoke to a crowd of hundreds of college journalists at the National College Media Convention, sponsored by the College Media Association and Associated Collegiate Press, he was rather unassuming. For a man who has worked for the Miami Herald, the Los Angeles Times and The New York Times and who has been portrayed in the movie Spotlight for leadership at the Boston Globe and coverage of the Boston Catholic sexual abuse scandal that earned the Globe a Pulitzer Prize in 2003, he seemed rather quiet.

But that’s just on the surface.

When it comes to standing up to the president of the United States or for the First Amendment, Baron is far from unassuming.

Baron acknowledged from the outset to a crowd of hundreds of college journalists, “This is a really important time for journalism in this country. Obviously our profession has come under assault primarily from this White House down the road, and so we have to be thinking a lot about what our profession is all about and what our role is in a democracy. We find ourselves having to defend ourselves in a way that we haven’t had to do in quite some time.”

Still, he saved his punchline for the end — truth and facts do not depend on someone’s opinion, who holds the most power or what’s the most popular. Continue reading “Washington Post editor: Press exists to hold government accountable”

Shoot-out brings out best in photojournalists

FIRST PLACE A woman holding a “Women for Trump” sign gets in an brawl with the people in the audience and ends up getting arrested and removed from the march for throwing punches at the crowd. Photo by Siddharth Gaulee, University of Louisiana — Monroe (Christopher Mapp, adviser)

Through the lens at CMA Convention

At the College Media Association national convention in New York City, 22 students participated in the on-site photography class competition — the ever-popular Shoot-out.

THE WINNERS

  • First place — Siddharth Gaulee, University of Louisiana—Monroe, Christopher Mapp, adviser
  • Second place — Pooja Pasupula, University of North Carolina—Charlotte, Wayne Maikranz, adviser
  • Third place — Hunter Crenian, University of Miami, Tsitsi Wakhisi, adviser
  • Honorable mention and class favorite — Hunter Crenian, University of Miami, Tsitsi Wakhisi, adviser
  • Honorable mention — Charlene Pan, Rice University, Kelly Callaway, adviser

As part of the contest, participants had to document “one moment in time.” The students had about two days to submit one or two images with captions. Continue reading “Shoot-out brings out best in photojournalists”

CMA convention to be interactive, immersive and hands-on

THIRD PLACE AND CLASS FAVORITE: Irma Gutierrez Sanchez; Miami Dade College (Manolo Barco, adviser) — One of The Halal Guys of NYC prepares a lamb gyro at the corner of West 53rd Street and 7th Avenue on the chilly night of March 13, 2014.

CONVENTION LINK

A QUESTION AND ANSWER
WITH CONVENTION DIRECTOR HILLARY WARREN

Why should someone attend the College Media Association in New York City this spring?

This year’s convention is more interactive, more immersive, more hands-on than ever. Students will cover the Big East tournament at Madison Square Garden as part of the New York Sports Workshop. The always-popular Shoot-Out is back. And more than 100 students will compete to see who is the Iron Reporter in our first convention-based reporting competition.

If you had to pick one session that you’d really like to attend, what would it be?

I’m looking forward to Holly Johnson’s double-session reporting challenge. I plan to steal every last one of her ideas.

If you had to pick one speaker that you’d really like to hear, who would it be?

That will get me in trouble. Joanne Lipman and Lynn Walsh were terrific last year and are so on topic with #metoo that we had to have them back. I’ve been following Lauren Duca since the 2016 campaign and am thrilled that she will join us Saturday. But, I think I’m most looking forward to Stephen Totilo because I don’t know anything about video games, but I admire what he has built. Continue reading “CMA convention to be interactive, immersive and hands-on”

42 participate in Dallas photo Shoot-out

FIRST PLACE Jubenal Aguilar, Brookhaven College (Daniel Rodrigue, adviser) | Leonardo Garcia, a window washer with April Building Services, Inc., washes the skywalk outside the Sheraton while Christian Ortiz spots and holds the ladder. Garcia said he has been working in the window sashing business for over seven years. “I used to use to be afraid of going outside the tall buildings,” Garcia said. ”But it’s now more just fun than anything.”

Six student photographers earn shout-out during Shoot-out

At the Photo Shoot-Out during the College Media Association and Associated Collegiate Press convention in Dallas Oct. 25-29, 42 students participated in the on-site photography competition.

In the week since, 22 judges including professional photojournalists, college media advisers and others went through the entires still available for viewing.

The judges chose to recognize six photographers.

  • FIRST PLACE Jubenal Aguilar, Brookhaven College (Daniel Rodrigue, adviser)
  • SECOND PLACE Megan Burke, Missouri State University (Jack Dimond, adviser)
  • THIRD PLACE Don M. Green, Southern University (Heather Freeman, adviser)
  • HONORABLE MENTION AND CLASS FAVORITE Ryan Weier, Central Washington University (Jennifer Green, adviser)
  • HONORABLE MENTION Ryan Welch, Missouri State University (Jack Dimond, adviser)
  • HONORABLE MENTION Alexander Fu, Central Washington University (Cynthia Mitchell, adviser)

Dallas Morning News photographers Louis DeLuca, Tom Fox and Nathan Hunsinger as well as Seattle Times photographer Ellen Banner and New York Daily News photographer Todd Maisel.

The other judges included college media advisers, other professional photojournalists, freelance photojournalists, other photography instructors.

Aaron Babcock, Amber Billings, Becky Tate, Bretton Zinger, Carole Babineaux, Cary Conover, Clint Smith, Deanne Brown, Diane Bolinger, Edmund Low, Eric Thomas, Greg Cooper, Griff Singer, Ian McVea, Jane Blystone, Janis Hefley, Jed Palmer, Jim McNay, John Beale, John Skees, Kevin Kleine, Kingsley Burns, Kyle Phillips, Laurie Hansen, Lillie Schenk, Logan Aimone, Margaret Sorrows, Mark Murray, Matt Garnett, Matt Stamey, Mitchell Franz, Pat Gathright, Sherri Taylor, Stern Hatcher, Steve Dearinger, Tom Hallaq and Toni Mitchell.

After the photographers had more than two days to complete the assignment, “The Big D,” Kevin Kleine of Berry College, Sam Oldenburg of Western Kentucky and Bradley Wilson of Midwestern State provided a critique of all the images.

Dallas F2017

Shoot-Out provides photographers on-location learning opportunity

From the contest coordinator’s notebook: change, evolution the constant in student photojournalism

By Bradley Wilson
CMR Managing Editor

Twice a year, photojournalists come to the College Media Association’s national conventions to share ideas, to meet other college photojournalists and to visit another part of the country. And twice a year about 60 of them choose to learn by doing, participating in the CMA Shoot-Out, an on-site photo competition and critique, an event that has helped students as they begin their work as visual communicators.

BradleyWilson3
CMR Managing Editor Bradley Wilson is entering his second decade of work with CMA’s on-site “Shoot-Out” for student photojournalists.

Mark Watkins, a participant when he was a student at Georgia College and State University said, “Winning ‘Class Favorite’ at the Shoot-out in Chicago in 2012 was the moment I decided to pursue photography as a career. It was a challenge, and I remember thinking not just how a photograph communicates something, but for the first time how I can communicate something through a photograph. It seems a small distinction, but I think it makes all the difference.”

When I first started helping out with the Shoot-Out, in 2004, students still used film. The contest was limited by how many rolls we could afford to develop, 30. So it didn’t take long to move to a digital paradigm. In 2005, to be precise. Kansas City. The theme for the contest was “Kansas City Portrait.” Then as now, we challenged students to “to get outside that box.”

FIRST PLACE 2005: Nathan Lang, Johnson County Community College (Anne Christiansen-Bullers, adviser) — Kansas City’s 106th homicide of 2005
FIRST PLACE 2005: Nathan Lang, Johnson County Community College (Anne Christiansen-Bullers, adviser) — Kansas City’s 106th homicide of 2005

Continue reading “Shoot-Out provides photographers on-location learning opportunity”

Joining the Click: College Media Review now digital only

Welcome to the launch of the web-only version of College Media Review, the flagship publication of the newly-dubbed College Media Association, Inc., itself the new moniker for the organization formerly known as College Media Advisers since 1983 and founded as the National Council of College Publications Advisers way back in 1955.  Judging by that pattern, we brace for another name change around 2039.  But by any name, we’re the largest organization of college media advisers in the country, and role of College Media Review remains the same. Continue reading “Joining the Click: College Media Review now digital only”

Research spotlight: Top student news websites share multimedia, interactive features

As college budgets become tighter and news consumer habits change, all eyes are on how student media is adapting to changes. This study of student news websites that sit in the Pacemaker Winners’ Circle describes the features that push them to the front of the pack in multimedia, interactivity and content management.

Continue reading “Research spotlight: Top student news websites share multimedia, interactive features”

Research spotlight: Peer-to-peer mentoring works in the college newsroom

Student journalists crave feedback on their work, but it doesn’t always have to come from their advisers. This study shows peer-to-peer mentoring positively impacts the students who participate and brings time-strapped advisers some relief as duties change.

Continue reading “Research spotlight: Peer-to-peer mentoring works in the college newsroom”

Social media use forces the question: Where do you draw the ethics line in the cloud?

By PAT WINTERS LAURO

The Journalists Code of Ethics has long been a bible for reporters, but following its rules in the world of social media is complicated. In a breaking story, do you re-Tweet important information without confirmation? What about the sticky matter of personal online identities?  These are the kinds of questions leading college media outlets to address ethics guidelines specifically for social media.
Continue reading “Social media use forces the question: Where do you draw the ethics line in the cloud?”