The University of Blog

We had our first show this Monday. Needless to say, there are many holes that we still need to fill in. Our discussion was valuable. Reuben worked well with the teleprompter and the questions that we provided. He kept the discussion flowing well. A few bugaboos: One of our guests was late and we had to integrate her. Our major issue was with the broadcast. We had some turnover with our staff leaving our New Media Producer position unfilled. Lindsey and I filled in, but unfortunately the video didn’t go through. This meant that the people in the chatroom couldn’t participate. The broadcast over KBIA 2 worked well. Also, the video we captured was also nice. Thus, Lindsey and I learned how to do the New Media Producer’s job including setting up the connection in the server room. This will help as we fill in until we get another producer to do the job.

Next week we will talk about jobs in Mid-Missouri. Also, I’ve started making connections for a show on Human Trafficking. We are pretty good on show topics. Later in November we will do shows on cameras downtown as well as perhaps eating local during the winter. So far so good though. We had a good first show and we will continue to have good shows, but the biggest challenge will be audience participation. How are we going to get people to participate when we are starting essentially at ground zero? No calls and no people entered the chat. This will be the biggest challenge, which I will do my part by emailing people connected to each show.

We’re so close. Finally! This week we had a couple of tech rehearsals to make sure everything will work properly. I answered some calls and transferred them. We worked on our in-studio communication including what information Reuben would need to know about the callers. Currently, we don’t have the call screening software so we’re doing it via google chat. Reuben worked on his teleprompter skills, and we saw what the set would look like… hopefully we’re getting new chairs.

It’s amazing the amount of people it takes to get it all right. There was a sound expert as well as a broadcast expert so everyone would be getting what they needed for both radio and television. Since it’s going to be broadcast on television as well as over the radio, it’s essential to have the best product possible. I have yet to see what the online community discussion chat is like, but that should be interesting as well.

I have all of the biking show booked. Our show on the 19th fell though so we regrouped yesterday to plan a new show – this time it will be on job growth in mid – Missouri. It’s an engaging topic, so I’m pleased with the results… even if it seems a bit broad right now, we do have some good panelists.  We’ll see how Monday goes!

We have some shows booked. It helps working as a team because we can all fill in the gaps and divide and conquer. My task was to get a show on biking. I have gotten the guests narrowed down and confirmed and have preinterviewed two of them. The show will be on October 26th. Now my attention needs to be on crafting that show (how to phrase questions, in what order, what to give Reuben the host, show packet), and coming up with a new show. I’ve started to make contacts for a show on Human Trafficking. However, our concern is to really make a good conversation about that. This means to not just raise awareness on the topic, but to describe how this affects the community members of mid-missouri.

We are a week away from our first show. Our first show will be to define who is the uninsured in Missouri. This should kick us off nicely because it’s a topic that should define what our shows are like from here on out. We met with the Missouri Association for Community Action, which is an anti poverty organziation. They gave us some great statistics on what poverty looks like in Missouri which will be good for future show topics. It’s also a good connection for us to have because they will be able to find us people who have been directly affected by policies, etc. It’s all about Intersection right now.

Intersection is going well. Topic ideas are starting to really shape up, but it’s becoming harder to keep everything and everyone straight.  This week we also worked on research for our presentation and found some pretty interesting facts and figures regarding public radio listeners. HD radio is still pretty new and only a small percentage of people have them. Since this will be the first place the show is heard live, collecting figures for that device will be useful. We’ll track those that tune in and participate to get figures for listeners.  Then we will need to devise a way to test the quality of the participants. It’s easy to say anything on a discussion board, but we need ways to quality check those.

So far for topic ideas, I’m working on Human Trafficking, Biking verses driving in Columbia, and narrowing a topic among rural farming issues. I’m also researching the achievement gap in education as well as the budget. I set up a meeting with a woman who can fill me in on poverty in Missouri. So.. I’m pretty busy right now with pre interviews, research for those topics, and researching different show topics. We are excited about October 12, our launch date, which is fast approaching. However, we don’t have that first show topic that excites us. On Monday, our team will decide some exact dates for October and then finalize our first show idea.

So many updates on different aspects of Intersection. The most valuable part of the research we have done so far was our meeting with Michael Skoler. He shared with us his knowledge about Public Insight Network. It seems like a very well-oiled machine. What makes it so successful? It’s how the site has engaged audiences. To each person that participates, someone responds to them. These same type of principles should apply to this show. We must not ignore those that chose to participate by texting, calling, posting or listening. We should be the listening post for the community. We should not think of the show as a once a week thing. That will alienate audiences. Instead it should be a continuous thing.

Brainstorming ideas has led us to a few show options. We know that we want to have a series of shows on healthcare. This includes quality/safety, access and primary care, etc. The issue is huge to tackle, but it is important to our audience. We would also like to do a show on the video cameras in the parking garages, the One Read Program as well as a show on Human Trafficking. I have had no luck contacting the Missouri Rural Crisis Center, but we would like to focus on a rural issue as well.  Thus, we are working  on finding issues like that would work for our audience. We are good so far, but I would really like to book one show. Our deadline of October 12 is fast approaching.

Intersection is going well. We sent our launch date to be October 12. That leaves some things to figure out. First is about our topics. It’s important to figure out topics that will interest a wide variety of people. A few topics that we are researching include localizing healthcare, cameras in the parking garages as well as rural issues in Missouri. It needs to be specific enough so the conversation can be limited to one hour, however it needs to be broad enough that people will tune in. Another issue we are figuring out is whether or not we’ll have our soft launch on October 12 and then a hard launch two weeks later or market the heck out of it before October 12. These are just issues that need to be sorted out.

However, I’m pretty excited about the entire process. While we aren’t in the thick of yet, it’s great to be able to think about ideas that will affect Columbia and Mid Missouri. I’m paying attention to what community members are commenting on stories and how they are feeling generally. When I was ushering, a lady mentioned that she was interested in tasers and local artists. It’s worth asking people and spreading the word about this show. I think that a ton of community members would be involved, if only they know how to be. This will be the challenge that Lindsey and I will need to face.

I think that this semester will teach me a lot, especially my involvement in Intersection, the community talk show on KBIA. My partner and I could not be more perfectly matched. We have been brainstorming ideas and thinking about guests and show topics. In addition, we have called other talk shows across the country and asked about their call-screening software. Since the talk show format is new for KBIA, we are in the market to purchase some call-in software. We are learning a lot about calling software, which is just one more tool in our journalism “box of knowledge.”

Another great part of working for Intersection is that there are so many devoted people behind the show. Not only is the News Director at KBIA invested, but also my professor and the powerhouse of the Reynolds Journalism Institute is behind the show. Everyone wants to see the show succeed. The question is what does success look like? After some discussion, we’ve decided that success will include increasing the number of listeners as well as the quantity and quality of engagement. It’s pretty great that the community can engage in the discussion in a variety of ways. They can call in or they can participate in a group discussion board. This is a relatively new concept so we are all starting from square one.

One week back in Columbia. Yep, it’s weird to be back. Not bad, nor good, it’s just going to require some adjustment. After being away for nine months, it’s hard to reconnect with people and fill them in on everything I’ve been doing in that time. I have had some great experiences both in Denver and London and I can’t just spout out all of the awesome things I’ve been doing without sounding really pretentious.

It’s still going well. I’ll need one more week or so to be fully adjusted. I’ve been really on top of my reading for classes. And sure enough, I’m learning a ton in not just the class lectures, but also the readings provide some interesting examples. My favorite assignment so far was for screenwriting. We had to write down a piece or random dialogue that we overheard. We will then make this into a scene. Currently we are reading a screenplay by a local writer and director. He will talk to our class on Thursday.

The job search is still going on. Employment in a college town is tough to come by. I remember when I was first trying to find a job in Lawrence, I applied to 12 places before I got the job at the movie theater. During my sophomore year in Columbia, I made the circuit and applied to about eight or so before landing on one finally. So, I had an interview earlier today and we’ll see if I get it. I’m not too worried. Something will turn up. I just need to find it. My new way to view the job search is that if I end up employed at a bad place, I at least can get a good story out of it. It’s all material for my screenplay.

Senior year has officially begun. For the first time, I feel like I’m really in college. It’s going to be a ton of reading and a ton of writing. But the benefit is a ton of learning. Normally, I would be freaking out at the workload, but I’ve done it before. Things will be handled. I will be okay. I always am.

We had a meeting for Intersection, KBIA’s new community talk show. I’m really excited about being an associate producer for it. For Monday, my partner and I need to come up with three new story ideas and potential guests for each show. What will also go into this capstone will be a lot of research. The structure of the talk show will be very user-comment and question generated. The audience will be able to participate live by texting, IMing or calling with their questions or comments. It is an exciting concept. I want to research whether or not people will use it. My partner is great and we will brainstorm ideas tomorrow.

My Politics of the South is really engaging, and it is all new information for me. My Sociology of Gender class will be the same way. The reading includes a lot of ethnographies, which I’ll learn quite a bit about how people approach and understand gender and gender issues. These are really college classes. To be honest, I got out of a lot of requirements when I first started school here due to my AP credits. Now I’m playing catch-up. This is what college is all about. Another class I’m excited about? Screenwriting. The class is capped at ten. We write three pages per day in a writer’s journal and then will be completing an entire screenplay. I have yet to come up with my idea, but I want to try my hand at more creative forms of writing.

Senior year is underway. I’m off to go do some reading and then a free Chuck Berry show at the Blue Note. This will be an insane semester, especially if I get a serving job, but it will for sure be a very rewarding one.

Enjoying my tiger stripe ice cream freshman year 
Campus is buzzing with life and activity. Freshmen wonder with maps in hand towing bags from the bookstore, trying to navigate the layout of the campus. Parents aren’t far behind comparing this campus to the other ones visited nodding that their child indeed made the right choice. After attending a free welcome back show earlier tonight (The Spill Canvas), I realized that this is the infamous “Senior year.” I have only one year left in college after spending the last three years navigating the system. It’s been a crazy road. First I’m a freshman coming in from Lawrence to attend the rival school. It’s the first year I’m living away from my parents, and I love it. College is for me.

Sophomore year I become more involved in campus life, but what is really exciting is to have our own apartment. I feel great organizing my own space and so independent as I cook for myself. I start to be really involved in the journalism school reporting for various news outlets.

Junior year we move again to a new apartment, but this is when I really find a home working for KBIA. It’s a life changing experience when I work at MSN in London and travel around Europe to be followed up by working and living in Denver.

This year :___________
This is ready to be filled in by new experiences and adventures.  School hasn’t started, but I’m ready to say yes to all experiences. I’m searching for a new job and excited to take Screenwriting, Convergence Capstone, Psychology of Gender and Politics of the South. I feel like these classes are what college is all about. This is the time to really experience everything that I’ve missed out in college so far. And I only have one year to do it.