Since When Is This A Sport??

I was perusing the Internet the other day trying to kill some time over break and I stumbled across a website that had video of people covering a professional video game tournament. You can check out the website here. I just found it interesting because I enjoy video games and I can't believe that they are covering gaming tournament and considering them to be a sport now. They also have a 30 minute segment devoted to video game news with a "Sportscenter" kind of feel to it. I am a huge fan of sports center and my favorite part is the "Top Ten Plays" which is a showcase for the top ten plays in all of the sports. Well now they have a top ten section for just video games. Although I don't expect to see the two being mixed in the future, I think that its refreshing to see that people are taking gaming seriously. The ESPN videos can be found here.

Internships Part 2

Well I start my internship at WKBN this coming week or when I get back from spring break. I'm so excited to be doing this internship. I was talking with one of my friends today and he asked me if I was upset because I would be doing so much at my internship. Before I even had the chance to think about it, my body immediately said no. I said no because I really enjoy shooting and everything that I learned while I've been at college. I love being outside shooting or talking to people about what happened in an accident and making sure that the rest of the public gets to know about what happened. Thats one thing I love about school. I like what I do, and I know that I'll be happy doing that for the rest of my life. I like the fact that its competitive and that there's always ways to improve and make stories more interesting through good story telling and good video. I'm on the home stretch and things are finally falling into place. This is by far the best semester I have had at college and this internship is going to make it so much better.

Competition Should Breed Creativity

I feel that there is a high level of competition between television stations within the same coverage area. With this high level competition for ratings and advertising income, one would think that there would be a difference between stations. This is true in the most part but it always seems that there is always the same stories on each station. I was flipping between stations the other day and I went to one news station, and saw a story, yet as soon as i went to the next station, there was the same story. Although they didn't do the story the exact same way and didn't have the same video, it still upset me to see the same thing. I know that they should be covering the event, but i think that reporters and camerapeople should take a step back, look at the situation, and then think "What can I do to beat station XYZ?" I think there needs to be more creativity within news markets. My instructor always tells me to find a "nugget" and use that to relate to people and make a story interesting so people put down the remote. Without stories about people and the amazing things they do everyday, life will only be a meeting where some stuff, that no one remembers, happenens.

When I was reading...

I read a blog entry recently by Lenslinger and it really made me excited to get out and do my internship at WKBN in the next couple of weeks. The title of the entry is called Gladiators at Bay and it vividly describes the type of competition in the news markets today between stations. I think its going to be fun to compete with neighboring station. I already consider myself a competitive person since I have been an athlete for eight years. It sounds rough in the 1st paragraph of the article, but if it were easy, then everyone would be doing it! It only sounds rough because I will be helping the photographers make the top story for that day and give people an insight into whats happening in thier community and explain it in the most interesting way possible. I like how WKBN runs their internships though. They let the interns do whatever I want to whether it be shooting, editing, and even writing. I don't really want to be in front of the camera so I'm happy that I can do so many behind the scene jobs. It's also exciting to leave the little bubble of college and get my feet wet in some real news and real shooting.

Internships And The End Of College

Well my college years are quickly coming to an end and it's time for me to start looking for a job. Although it will be tough, I am taking the right steps to getting a job. I'm not exactly sure what I want to do when i get out of school but only time will tell that. I am taking on an internship when I finish swim season in a couple of days. I will be looking to get one with WKBN or WYTV and I'm pretty excited about it. I will be able to do anything that I want to whether it be shooting, writing, or editing. I will want to shoot most of the time so that I can get a lot of material to choose from for my senior presentation at the end of the year.

Alumni Contact

I recently talked to an alum at my school by the name of Jason Gonzales. He is a photographer at WPXI in Pittsburgh. I gained a lot of information about my resume tape which I will be completing soon and about how to get a job. I was told to look professional, act professional, and then I will be a professional. It all makes sense to me. Also it is good to be flexible and be able to move away. He said in this business I may not be able to find a job close to where my hometown is. I guess I will not find that out until i start applying for jobs, or start applying to grad schools, which I also see as an option.

Research Halfway Mark

There is a lot of research that I have to do to complete my senior project which is a resume' tape that i can send to potential employers. I have read a lot of magazines and also have talked to professional photographer Jason Gonzales who works for WPXI in Pittsburgh. I will be doing a presentation on him in two weeks and I feel that I am well prepared for it. I feel that I am on the right track with half of my research done now.