Sunday, May 1, 2011

Closing up shop


What an interesting experience it was. I wasn’t always poised to become a journalism major. In fact, I didn’t declare it as my major until after my freshman year. I wouldn’t even work for a school paper until the beginning of my junior year.

As much as I was prepared by my professors and authors of my text books, the student newspaper gave me invaluable experience. Being able to practice what I was learning helped propel me to the next level.

With less than six months of newspaper experience — on two of which had been at The Mirror — I became the publication’s news editor. It was a struggle on a completely different level. It was one thing to mess up in class, but when that mistake was across campus 4,000 times, it taught me to be much more careful as a reporter and a writer.

The things I’ve learned about my profession are deeply rooted in becoming a fair and ethical messenger of the news. Although there are still fine details that escape my articles and I have never spent a day listening to the police scanner, I know I am prepared to work in this field.

On May 21, I will begin my first paid internship at the Rawlins Daily Times newspaper, and I also completed an internship at the Johnstown Breeze. I am far more prepared than the greater majority of journalism students entering the work force, and I couldn’t be more excited for it.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

My boss can be a real pain


Plans for the downtown area have not surfaced recently. But what is interesting is the division in which downtown is perceived by its stakeholders.

When speaking to local business owners, I was given a variety of answers to the question, “Is downtown Greeley a good place for business?” As I’ve heard many times before, many owners reply similar to, “Yes, the cheap rent helps.” Others claim they couldn’t have picked a better location. A list of businesses in the area can be found at the Greeley City Chamber of Commerce website.

Not long after speaking with Downtown Development Authority director Pam Bricker, I spoke with a local owner who said he didn’t think the efforts made thus far will ultimately help businesses in the area. However, The Greeley Tribune published an article in February about post-Christmas-shopping sales revenue of $10 million — $1 million of which “could be used for city maintenance projects,” according to the article.

The most frustrating thing is trying to write a story with a specific angle about what happens downtown and end up either empty-handed or conflicting viewpoints that contradict the angle. It isn’t that I’m not salivating at the prospect of a controversial scoop, but it is extremely difficult to mold a story to its syllabus when business owners and downtown authority don’t see eye-to-eye.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Now Hiring?


Getting into journalism was a bit of a bumpy ride, but when I finally started reporting on a beat consistently, my skills became noticeably better. Covering a beat is one of the best ways to improve reporting techniques. I have covered Student Senate at UNC for The Mirror, as well as the RE-5J Weld County School Board and the Johnstown Town Council meetings, when the council was considering a recall election of the mayor.
            Throughout my experience, I have cultivated relationships with school district superintendents, mayors, councilmen and women, and many other local business and organizations leaders to find the best stories possible. One of my favorite things when covering a targeted area is looking back and seeing how the area or subject has come along over the time I spend absorbing the information it has given. It is the sense of diving into a small subculture and telling its story to the rest of the world.
            The purpose of this blog is for my own benefit to better understand the parlance and trade of business, particularly in the downtown Greeley area. As a journalism major and a writing minor, I have been able to follow commerce but only at a distance. I hope this beat will give me more knowledge of this timely subject, as I near my final lessons before stepping out into the news workforce.