On the hunt

While editing my video package on Emerson’s alumni weekend, things were going along swimmingly. the last thing on the to-do list was create on-screen graphics. I needed the names of two interview subjects, so I could create titles for them.

Only one problem: An alumn gave me his thoughts on the weekend, and I goofed, and forgot to ask his name! Thus began my hunt to track down information about the mystery alumn. I captured a still video frame of him, and sent it to alumni relations. I showed it to professors. No luck.

Then, I got an idea. I looked at my footage, frame-by-frame, and found a place where the camera was zoomed out enough to see his nametag. It was blurry, but I was able to make out “Joshua ____, ‘87.” Good enough!

Using the time-tested journalist’s tool — Google — I searched for “joshua ‘87 emerson.” I found a copy of Expression, Emerson’s alumni magazine. He was highlighted in a “Catching Up With” feature. I learned that Mr. Knauer is a radio personality in Barre, Vt., and was recently married. Just my luck that there was a wedding picture accompanying the blurb about him! I quickly ran this by the very helpful Steph, at alumni relations, who confirmed that there was only one “Josh” registered for alumni weekend.

Sweet, sweet success.

So wherever you are, Josh, congratulations on your marriage. You’ll never know how your happy nuptuals helped this journalist do his job. And of course, the moral here? Don’t leave without covering all the basics!

Surprise

Last weekend, when I was out to cover the Gay Pride Weekend at Faneuil Hall, I came across Filipinos celebrating their 109th Independece. The event looked colorful and interesting. So I decided to do a story about it.

I have learnt that as a reporter, you need to be ready all the time as you never know what will happen. There are times that many hours are spent brainstorming for story ideas. Then, out of blue, a good story can be found without agonizing or searching for it.

One of the interesting aspects of covering the story is that, the event did not get much attention from Bostonians. Most of them just walked by without stopping. It I were them, I would be very interested to learn about it. Millions of people spend so much money each year traveling overseas to experience other cultures. However, when culture is brought right to their door’s steps, they just ignore it. Interesting.

sp

Newsroom note….

When reporter Somsavath Phanthady last week was working on the Boston Common re-planting story, he discovered that Common project Director Robert Mulcahy of the Boston Parks and Recreation Dept. would not talk to him until he had a clearance from Emerson’s VP for government and community relations Peggy Ings. Apparently BPRD gets a lot of requests from Emerson students (journalism, film, etc.) and this is a measure aimed at guaranteeing the legitimacy of the request. This was a first in the 12-year-old life of JSONS, but we went along. We called Ings, Ings called Mulcahy, Mulcahy called Phanthady and the interview was done, albeit several days late…..

-mp

Cape Cod Story?

I’m going to Cape Cod this weekend for pleasure and I’m thinking maybe I can get some reporting in while I’m there. Any suggestions are much appreciated.

Is it normal to want to try and turn a pleasant weekend trip into a news story? I’m planning my honeymoon right now and reading tons of travel writing. Maybe I can start a regular post on weekend trips from Boston? I like this idea because it gives me plenty of excuses to go have fun on the weekends. Also, my sister-in-law just lent me this awesomely outdated book on planning a “budget honeymoon,” which includes tips for how to honeymoon in Boston. Of course, it indicates that T fare is $0.85, proving that the best way to really honeymoon on a budget is to plan your trip in the 80’s. I may still use it for inspiration though.

-kg

Quality reporting gives me a belly ache

Keep an eye out for the video coverage Matt and I are putting together on the Jimmy Fund’s Scooper Bowl — you guessed it, all-you-can-eat ice cream for charity. So many flavors… and it hurts so good.

I learned a lot from watching Matt who has more experience than I do at this sort of thing. First order of business, learn how to interview people on camera without asking them yes or no questions. This is harder than it looks. Second order of business, continue working with people who know more than I do. This is easier than it looks.

-kg

Breaking it in…

So it appears I’m the first reporter to post on the new JSONS blog. A hearty welcome to everyone!

If you check out the video package I did on Boston’s (poor) driving habits, you won’t sweat at all.

Unfortunately, I did — most of that footage was shot that day two weeks ago when the weather suddenly turned equatorial, reaching a high of 92 in downtown Boston.

Suffice to say, I picked a great day to lug around a tripod and a camera! Just another example of the lengths your faithful reporters go to get the news for you.

–Matt

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