Chris Cillizza, political blogger from “The Fix” for the Washington Post, joined students participating from the George Mason University Video Studio along with Steve Scully, the political editor for the C-SPAN networks, and students from the University of Denver and Pace University to talk about the 2010 midterm elections.

The race in Massachusetts between Democratic candidate Martha Coakly and Republican candidate Scott Brown proved to be one of the biggest upsets in our recent political history.  Cillizza considers the election “one for the ages, one that we will be going back sifting through for quite some time.”

Brown, as a Republican, won out with a majority vote in arguably one of the most Democratic states in the country.  “In a race like this it takes lots and lots of things to go right for a Republican and wrong for a Democrat, and pretty much everything went wrong for Martha Coakly and the Democrats,” explains Cillizza.

Steve Klein, Communications Professor of Journalism at Mason and professional blogger asked, “Is our government really working for the people, is it a government by the people for the people to the degree that it needs to be here in the 21^st century?” Cillizza commented by saying, “The Massachusetts senate race is a perfect example of democracy in action. This is a state that President Barrack Obama won 62% to 36% in 2008, there were 3 million votes cast in the state and he won by 800,00 votes, so the fact that  10 months later this state could elect a Republican is an example the Democracy IS working.

The distance learning course, which is produced by C-SPAN, is a unique opportunity for students to interview guests via video conference. The course airs on C-SPAN3 on Fridays at 5 p.m. and also streams online (http://www.c-span.org/Distance_Learning/).

Bob Schieffer, moderator of the Sunday public affairs show, Face The Nation, joined students participating from the George Mason University Video Studio along with Steve Scully, the political editor for the C-SPAN networks, and students from the University of Denver and Pace University to share some stories, laughs, and helpful tips for the aspiring journalists.

Being a journalist today means more than just being a good writer, it takes a grasp of the available technology and understanding how to use it to better your stories and get them out quicker.  “The Internet has changed the industry more than anything else to date, it’s changed everything about the way the rest of us do business,” said Schieffer. He commented on his early days as a reporter in the 60s by saying, “In those days, if you didn’t have a phone you didn’t have a story,” and now it seems to be the same except the Internet has become our primary means of communication.

A student from University of Denver asked, “The younger generations seem to be attracted more to shows like the Colbert Report and the Daily Show, do you think that these are good places for people to get their news?”  Schieffer, a friend and fan of both Stephen Colbert and John Stewart, compared the comedian’s shows by saying, “What editorial cartoons are to the newspaper, that’s what the Colbert Report and the Daily Show are to broadcast news.”  He himself enjoys the programs, but wouldn’t recommend to anyone that they treat them as their primary source of news.

The distance learning course, which is produced by C-SPAN, is a unique opportunity for students to interview guests via video conference. The course airs on C-SPAN3 on Fridays at 5 p.m. and also streams online (http://www.c-span.org/Distance_Learning/).

Marjorie Randon Hershey, professor of Political Science at Indiana University and author of “Party Politics in America (13^th Edition), joined students participating from the George Mason University Video Studio along with Steve Scully, the political editor for the C-SPAN networks, and students from the University of Denver and Pace University to discuss January’s 5-4 SCOTUS decision.

Students asked Hershey, “Because this decision will allow corporations to contribute unlimited amounts of money to candidates and/or causes that could influence federal elections, will this give independents a better shot come election time?” Hershey argues that even with this decision, independents are daft if they think that this will change the way voters vote, which is primarily Democrat or Republican. “Party identification makes a successful candidate,” explains Hershey. She then stated that, “only 20% of voters turn out for primaries, and those that turn out are the extremists. Extremists tend to be far left or far right. Only about 10% of voters are independents, and most will lean one way or the other if you persuade them.”

“Money is important in a campaign, but it isn’t everything,” argues Hershey. The $1.6 billion average raised by campaigns isn’t guaranteed to rise in the coming elections, it may take some time for the changes to take place.  “Corporations were hesitant to do this in the 70’s so it is likely that they may be again,” says Hershey.

The distance-learning course, which is produced by C-SPAN, is a unique opportunity for students to interview guests via video conference. The course airs on C-SPAN3 on Fridays at 5p.m. and also streams online (http://www.c-span.org/Distance_Learning/).

Chapter 11: Building a Digital Audience for News

Analyzing what you publish, making sure you know what you’re readers like and don’t like will help to build your audience, as well as using engaging tags and of course good writing. Make your content new, relevant, and easily accessible to new audiences.

Some fundamentals for building an online audience:

• Track your content
• Web analytics
• Search engine optimization
• Effective headline writing for the Web
• Distribution through social media

Writing effective web headlines that will catch the reader’s eye amongst all the junk on the internet will be a big help to building your audience as well as making sure that you are targeting specific channels (i.e. Faceobok, Twitter, Flickr, Youtube, etc.).

Chapter 10 Managing News as a Conversation

I think it’s pretty interesting how we’ve transitioned into this era where consumers no longer want their news to just be spoon-fed to them and then that’s it. People want to be a part of their news, they want to respond, provide rebuttals and criticism. Journalists now-a-days have to be ready to manage online communities and participate in various social networks.

What began as comments on news stories and blog posts has mushroomed into full social networking tools on news sites and full participation by journalists in dominant social networks like Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter. I like the idea that by making news into conversation, journalist can have a lot more sources. “Comments provide a forum for readers to complain about what they see as unfairness or inaccuracy in an article, to talk to each other, and to bloviate,” said Feaver.  This is all great feedback for a journalist to be able to shape his craft.

Some benefits to news as a conversation include:

• Provides transparency on the reporting process
• Enables an immediate feedback loop
• Spreads awareness of news coverage through word-of-mouth marketing

I think there are some journalists out there that would be surprised at how much they could learn from their audience through using the news as conversation.

Chapter 4: Microblogging: Write Small, Think Big

Microblogging is the newest and fastest way of getting information from one person to another and for breaking news. It’s incredibly efficient and is a great way to share links and tags to just about anything in real-time.

“If blogging started as an online journal, think of microblogging as an instant messaging journal.” Messages can also be consumed on numerous devices including a mobile device, via e-mail or by visiting a Web site such as Twitter.com.

It’s a great way to build community amongst journalists and as well to build your network.

Chapter 1: We Are Web Workers Now

I thought that the first section of the chapter that discussed RSS feeds was very interesting. I didn’t actually know that RSS stood for Really Simple Syndication, so that was interesting for me to learn.  The chapter holds a great deal of very useful information for those not already familiar with the online world and how it functions.  The section about FTP (File Transfer Protocol) would be very helpful for a journalist unfamiliar with how to upload and publish photos, videos, and recorded materials for a story.

The section on web-design basics states a good point in that having at least some basic code skills as a journalist can mean the difference between being the first to do something new or the second. If you want to do something new to your site, make some changes and try out some new ideas, you will regret not having some basic code skills when you have to wait for the “web person” to come around to do it.

Chapter 6: Visual Storytelling With Photographs

“Journalism without photographs is like writing without verbs.” I feel like that quote sums up quite well what chapter six is trying to get across, the idea that photography is now almost as much of a necessary skill to become a good journalist as writing is.  The two fields merge to create a writer who no longer uses words to paint pictures, but rather uses words to accompany pictures and take the reader a bit further in depth about what the picture represents.  “Blogs without art are lame.” I think the same can be said about professional news stories that you find in your Washington Post or New York Times.  The reader is grabbed by the photo and therefore reads the story to learn more.

The chapter explains that photography is all about the moment, about being in the right place at the right time.  That is why it is necessary as a photojournalist to be ready and able to snap a photo at any moment, because the perfect opportunity may come when you least expect. Having a well developed knowledge of programs like Adobe’s Photoshop and Soundslides gives you the options to touch up photos and add audio to photo clips.

Having an up-to-date digital camera is extremely beneficial. Having the option to store and save hundreds of photos on a single memory card can be very useful when you find yourself ready to review your shots after the moment has passed, and then delete them on the spot if you feel like they’re just a waste of space.  When viewing your shots you can zoom in or out to better frame the photos. You have the ability to decide what you want the viewer to see and what you don’t want them to see, cutting away the unimportant elements that distract the viewer from the message of the photograph.

Chapter 5: Going Mobile

Chapter five summarizes well the importance of being a mobile journalist, keeping up with and being ahead of the times technologically.  With the introduction of the smart phones, reporters have been boosted to a new level of speed, efficiency, and connectivity. With the ability to snap photos, shoot video, and use GPS and the Internet to send those valuable assets back to the office has made reporting ever more resourceful.

I really liked the point made by Steve Yelvington when he said, “It’s more important to consider the mobile consumer’s needs.” Yelvington stresses than making the progression from online newspaper to “on-phone newspaper,” that we rather simply try a more user friendly approach, including connecting readers with one another through mobile devices and allowing them to share information and photos.

I didn’t even consider the idea that having a smart phone that takes video places you as the reporter with a more likely opportunity for an interview to take place. Smart phones are much less bulky and intimidating than the typical news camera and sound equipment set up formerly required for interviews. Even better, once the interview is completed, the video can be immediately sent to an editor or to your office.  It plays out quite nicely for free lance journalists and bloggers who can’t afford a film crew.

With the creation of apps for both the iPhone products and the BlackBerry line, resources such as twitter, facebook, myspace, etc. are more easily accessible when you’re out in the streets and you want to upload a picture or video or newsworthy story you stumble across in your travels. You also have the option of real time text updates.

Not only does the new smart phone technology take the field of reporting to an entirely new level of efficiency, but it also allows for you to have a more interactive, and therefore more interested audience.  They have the option to use their smart phones to upload and send photos and videos of a breaking story that they think you as a journalist might find useful. Mobile crowdsourcing has become an essential part of a news corporations breaking news strategy.