Posts Tagged ‘Maria Hechanova’

More than just a business card and a ‘what’s-up?’

Saturday, August 15th, 2009

Maria Hechanova looks over a story with her "Voices" editor Tina Pamintuan. | Credit: Voices staff

Maria Hechanova looks over a story with her "Voices" editor Tina Pamintuan. | Credit: Voices staff

By Maria Hechanova
Voices

When I arrived at the Seaport Hotel on Monday, I met one of the AAJA Voices students, April Choi. We decided to scout the Boston World Trade Center to see where the newsroom was located before our first meeting.  After a couple of escalator rides and a good 10-minute talk with security, we were able to find what would be called the AAJA Convention Project newsroom.

After walking through endless hallways, April and I found Waterfront Room 3. The adventure ended as we entered the room, shocked and confused.  We weren’t sure if we were in the right place. The room was empty except for a couple of tables, one computer and a printer.

After getting a bite to eat, we ran into more Convention News Project students. We introduced ourselves and hung out in the hallway before our meeting.

Before we knew it, six o’clock rolled around. The mentors and editors arrived and we all sat down. I felt intimidated. I didn’t know what to expect.

That night, a group of us huddled in my hotel room and worked on the stories assigned to us.  We had one thing in common — we were all nervous about what the editors expected from us.

The next few days looked like this: Hunched over our computers, we were surrounded by white table cloths, faint chatter, fattening food and snacks, and easel papers tapped to the room divider, blaring our deadlines. We rarely had a chance to go outside of the newsroom.

One thing happened though: we stopped working to see a sunset. It was a nice break from the intense atmosphere. We giggled, took a couple of pictures and had a chance to smile and enjoy the moment. I was no longer intimidated.

As this Convention News Project comes to a close, I’m so thankful I got the opportunity to learn from professionals. I got to know the other students really well, too.  We were learning, networking and really making connections. This was more than just exchanging business cards and saying what’s-up.

If it weren’t for AAJA and being selected for the Convention News Project, I wouldn’t be here. I wouldn’t have been able to afford to come to Boston. I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to pursue my dream.  Thanks AAJA!  You rock! :)

Boston Duck Tours

Saturday, August 15th, 2009

By Maria Hechanova
Voices
There are 25 amphibious vehicles in the Boston Duck Tours fleet. Some of them are restored originals from WWII. Highlights of the tour include seeing the Boston Public Garden and cruising the Charles River.

Reporters who tweet

Saturday, August 15th, 2009

Maria Hechanova
Voices

Journalists share their thoughts on the social networking phenomenon.

Twitter is being used by major news organizations like CNN, National Public Radio, and The New York Times. Sreenath Sreenivasan, a new media professor at Columbia University, says that it’s like radio in 1912 and television in the 1950s.  “News organizations are deciding what they’re going to do with it and the smart ones are using it to reach a wider audience.”

The Orange County Register is a newspaper that encourages its staff to use Twitter and other social networking Web sites.  “Management keeps track of what stories generate the most clicks, and that’s a method by which our success is judged,” arts and entertainment writer Richard Chang said.

Twitter is like the Wild West in a way, Chang said. “We don’t know where it’s going, but it’s important so we’re all on board.”

Four other journalists share their thoughts on the social networking phenomenon, Twitter.

Ann Curry

Ann Curry

Ann Curry
News Anchor, Today; Co-Anchor, Dateline

Ann Curry started using Twitter this spring and says, “it rocks!”  Curry explains why she likes using it and what to look for when verifying information.  She says it offers an outlet to include information that didn’t make it into the traditional broadcast.  Follow Ann Curry on Twitter.

[podcast]http://blogs.aaja.org/conventionnews/wp-content/podcast/Curry_FINAL.mp3[/podcast]

Elizabeth Chuck, aka datelinenbc.

Elizabeth Chuck, aka datelinenbc.

Elizabeth Chuck
Web Producer for NBC News and msnbc.com

Elizabeth Chuck recalls how Twitter played a factor in reporting the emergency landing of Flight 1549 in the Hudson River in January.  She says her news organization is still experimenting with how they use it.  Follow Elizabeth Chuck’s tweets on Twitter.

[podcast]http://blogs.aaja.org/conventionnews/wp-content/podcast/Chuck_FINAL.mp3[/podcast]

John Schiumo, aka Schiumo.

John Schiumo, aka Schiumo.

John Schiumo
Host – NY1 The Call

John Schiumo is the host of NY1’s television show, “The Call,” which airs in New York.  Each day, the TV news program asks its viewers to decide the top news stories by having people vote online.  Schiumo talks about Twitter’s popularity and why journalists should be careful when using it to make contacts.  Follow John Schiumo on Twitter.

[podcast]http://blogs.aaja.org/conventionnews/wp-content/podcast/Schiumo_FINAL.mp3[/podcast]

Sandeep Junnarkar

Sandeep Junnarkar

Sandeep Junnarkar
Associate Professor @ CUNY Graduate School of Journalism

Sandeep Junnarkar teaches online journalism and believes that new media is the future of the industry. In this phone interview, he discusses why Twitter can be a useful tool for journalists. Follow Sandeep Junnarkar on Twitter.

[podcast]http://blogs.aaja.org/conventionnews/wp-content/podcast/Junnarkar_FINAL.mp3[/podcast]

The 4-1-1 on Twitter

Tuesday, August 11th, 2009

By Maria Hechanova
Voicestwitter_logo

Chirp, chirp. Tweet, tweet. It’s a bird, it’s a plane. No, it’s Twitter!

In 1999, Jack Dorsey was a New York University dropout working as a programmer for a taxi-dispatch service. Within a year, the twenty-something St. Louis native had moved to San Francisco and was working on a new idea for digital social networking.

Dorsey’s idea was based on a desire to keep in touch with friends without being tied to his computer. His inspiration came from his former job, where taxi-cab drivers constantly updated their dispatchers on their location and readiness to take passengers.

In San Francisco, Dorsey worked as a software engineer for the podcasting company Odeo. He pitched his idea to co-workers Biz Stone and Evan Williams. In May 2007, Twitter, Inc. was born.

The application is a real-time social networking Web site that gives users the opportunity to keep in touch or “follow” people. It asks the question, “What are you doing?” Users give their updates in 140 characters or fewer.

The character limit is borrowed from the standard 160 characters allowed by mobile texting or short-messaging services. In a Twitter message, 20 characters are saved for the user name, leaving 140 for the message.

During the early stages of Twitter, two of the brainstormed names were “Status” and “Stat.us.”  According to an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Dorsey wanted to create a “buzz,” like the vibration from a cell phone, and came up with the word “twitch.” After looking through words in the dictionary, he came up with “twitter.”

From June 2008 to June 2009, Twitter’s audience size grew from 593,000 users to 20 million, according to statistics gathered by Comscore.com, a Web site tracking company.

The key to being an expert tweeter is to keep your message short. For example, a user might tweet, “User Name//is reading a story about Twitter.” Privacy settings allow users to control who follows their updates. Tweeters can also send direct messages instead of posting it for everyone to see.

Celebrities such as Britney Spears, “American Idol” host Ryan Seacrest, Oprah Winfrey and “Today” anchor Ann Curry have Twitter accounts. You can check out the list of famous tweeters at wefollow.com.

Journalists are also finding it useful. Sean McLaughlin, chief meteorologist and co-anchor for KPHO-TV CBS 5 News in Phoenix, believes Twitter is a great resource.

“Twitter has granted journalists instant access to thousands of sources, story ideas and real topics of discussions going on live,” McLaughlin said.

The Asian American Journalists Association will be sending Twitter messages throughout the AAJA Convention. To receive these updates, sign up at twitter.com/aajaboston09.

We’d like to follow you too. Once you’ve signed up, let us know (in 140 characters or fewer) what you’re up to.