The Journalist and the Twitterer

By Wendy Gillis

 

Some celebrities sue when they get bad press. This week, M.I.A. opted for 140-character revenge.

 

Taking issue with her profile in the recent issue of the New York Times magazine, the rapper tweeted writer Lynn Hirschberg's telephone number to her over 110,000 followers (on her open profile, of course). According to Huffington Post, Hirschberg's phone was ringing off the hook.

The fuss was over the writer's willingness to question whether M.I.A.'s radical politics are anything more than ill-informed publicity stunts. The Sri-Lankan-born singer is famous for speaking her mind on and off the concert stage. She has supported the Tamil Tigers, the militant separatist organization known for its use of terror tactics. Her lyrics, such as those in her hit Paper Planes, are purposefully shocking and provocative, encouraging violence and theft. And her latest video for her song Born Free is a nine-minute exercise in gratuitous killing, so violent it has been banned on YouTube.

From the beginning, it's obvious Hirschberg's article is not going to involve unquestioning adulation. The journalist writes that M.I.A. is like a trained politician, staying on message: "It's hard to know if she believes anything she says or if she knows that a loud noise will always attract a crowd." She points out inconsistencies in M.I.A.'s story about whether her father worked for the Sri Lankan government, and calls her out on delivering her son in a hospital after claiming she was going to have him at home because she wanted to "embrace the pain, embrace the struggle."

But rather than coming off as an all-out attack on the singer, Hirschberg's article is well-researched, in-depth and evidently reflective of what she saw. It's clear that over the course of numerous interviews she repeatedly questioned the artist on the intentions of her various political statements. 

It's therefore fairly surprising that M.I.A. didn't see this article, aptly titled M.I.A.'s Agitprop Pop, coming. It's not like the celebrity is untrained in the ways of the media -- she's been the focus of untold articles since she rose to fame in 2004. 

But then again, this may be an example of how easily the journalist-source relationship can get confused in profiles such as this. When journalists spend so much time with their subjects, it's hard not to establish some type of camaraderie beyond the professional interaction. The article informs us that the journalist spent time with M.I.A. in both Los Angeles and in London, and it's possible that the two developed a rapport throughout that period.

Though M.I.A.'s supposed press betrayal pales in comparison, I couldn't help but be reminded of Janet Malcolm's The Journalist and The Murder, and how she describes the complicated relationship that arose between convicted murderer Jeffrey MacDonald and journalist Joe McGinness. Despite developing a strong friendship throughout the research process that involved McGinness telling MacDonald he believed he was innocent, McGinness published Fatal Vision, which detailed MacDonald's guilt. 

I don't imagine M.I.A. thought Hirschberg was her best friend. But perhaps the singer forgot that the journalist was ultimately there for a story, and that she herself was first and foremost a subject. This might offer a small understanding of why she childishly sought Twitter retaliation on Thursday.

Or maybe it simply demonstrates that M.I.A. is precisely as Hirschberg says: a reactionary provocateur.

Wendy Gillis is a student in Ryerson University's master of journalism program and will be an intern in the Toronto Star newsroom this summer. Follow her on Twitter at @wendygillis.

Photo credit: "M.I.A." By Louis Beche on Flickr. 

Learning to Listen

"A wise old owl sat in an oak. The longer he sat, the less he spoke. The less he spoke, the more he heard. Why can't we be like that wise old bird?" - anon. 

Radio's charm has changed. It used to be both intimate and fleeting--and while it's still the former, we can now skip forward, select segments, go back, replay, tune in when we like and, importantly, we can easily share. 

For a moment, I'd like to pretend we're in a cozy living room and I'm inviting you in to sit with me by the radio, in an old rocking chair, and enjoy some milk and cookies. 

There's something special about closing our eyes and taking in a beautiful story, or allowing our minds to focus on the language of an incisive and stimulating debate. 

For me, it started with audiobooks. I loved the way authors read their own stories. Over the years, as they've become increasingly accessible, I've fallen in love with a few really great podcasts. 

As a seasoned listener, this is my attempt to lay out my best sample for skeptics. Modesty be damned (especially because this has little to nothing to do with me) I have converted many of my friends into avid podcast listeners, and I think I can get you, too, to hear this out. 

If you're starting to explain why it's not worth it (you're too busy, you always listen to music, you think radio is boring)...shhhh. Turn your speakers to a comfortable level. 

Here are a few greats. 

This American Life

As Ira Glass famously explains, every week they choose a theme and then bring you all kinds of different stories on that theme.

Most recently, the radio team produced an episode called Island Time, which took on several very difficult questions about relief efforts in Haiti. Months after the earthquake--and months after stories about reviving fading interest have themselves faded--this story grabbed me by the ears and affected me profoundly. 

Among other things, they ask: why, after so many years and so much money, is this country getting poorer? What does it matter that so much Haitian artwork was destroyed? Why should anyone care if their mangos are bruised? How many would-be-heroes have left Haiti without finishing what they came to do? 

It's so well done, and so important to pass on. This is the kind of journalism that really matters, and that we really need to support. 

I know you'll want more after that one. The show producers have their own archive of favourites, but I'd like to add a few of my own:

• Mind Games: Who's playing. Who's being played? Does such a line exist in the first place?
• The Devil on my Shoulder: Sometimes something overtakes you... some mischievous or even sinister force that you simply cannot explain.
• Frenemies: A contemporary word that finally captures, in three syllables, that time old expression: "With friends like you, who needs enemies?"
• Rest Stop: Sometimes fascinating stories come from the most mundane places. Pull over and have a listen.

RadioLab

A podcasts that delves into the depth of human curiousity, dabbling in science, philosophy and the human experience.

• The New Normal: A peaceful society of baboons. A small-town mayor with breast implants. Floppy eared friendly foxes. You don't see that everyday. But maybe, just maybe, you'll start to.
• Parasites: The much maligned feeders that make ant's butts go red and turn cockroaches into zombies. They are disgustingly fascinating.
• Stochasticity: It's a cooler word for random, but it's also the difference between an ultimate design or a haphazard series of events. 
• Sperm: Imagine what the first person to ever see sperm under a magnifying glass must have thought. Save our sticky souls.

FEATURE LENGTH PIECES

Here are a few longer-form pieces that are both enlightening and entertaining! Seriously, I learned more from these shows than I did in some of my undergrad courses.

Copyright in Canada (wait! hear me out!)

By Flickr user Aaronth // BY-NC-ND

To paraphrase Duke law professor James Boyle, 25 to 40 years ago, ordinary people just didn't have to worry as much about violating copyright, and creators weren't so vulnerable to having their rights violated. "Back then" one could only infringe upon exclusive rights with things like printing presses and broadcast tower. Boyle explains:

“Fast forward 40 years and now it’s almost impossible for most of us to go through our day without creating copies...It’s as if we had a set of landmines that previously could only be set off by tanks and now suddenly they’ve been made more sensitive and individual footsteps can set them off.”

• Who Owns Ideas? on CBC radio's "Ideas" with Paul Kennedy
• James Boyle on Copyright and the Public Domain on CBC radio's "Spark" with Nora Young

Chasin' Ira Basen: Master of the radio series

I have to spotlight Ira Basen, a journalist who is capable of taking a really complex issue and breaking it down into a digestible series you that you just have to hear from start to finish. Here are  two of his pieces that I highly recommend.

Spin Cycles: Spin, the Spinners, and the Spun

• Part One: A century of spin
• Part Two: The spindustrial revolution
• Part Three: Calling Dr. Spin
• Part Four: The Spin Doctor is in
• Part Five: Spinning War
• Part Six: Spinning into the 21st century

News 2.o: The Future of News in an Age of Social Media

• Part One
• Part Two

Fabiola Carletti is a Toronto Star radio room reporter and graduate student at the UBC School of Journalism. She recently graduated summa cum laude from York University, having earned an honours double major in Professional Writing and Communication Studies. Her digital footprints are all over the internet, but you can learn more about her by reading her blog, or chasing her around on twitter. 

Photo credit: "African Owl" By Bill Hails on Flickr. 

Toronto Star honours top high school journalists

Photo of high school newspaper award winners by Star photographer Keith Beaty.

By Brendan Kennedy

Paniz Moayeri was grounded for writing about Iran’s tumultuous elections and a family member’s attempts to subvert government oppression.

The Toronto Star, however, gave her the highest award for a high school journalist.

“It feels incredible,” said Moayeri, 18, editor-in-chief of North Toronto Collegiate Institute’s Graffiti newspaper. “I’m happy that people realize how important it is to get your voice out."

Ontario’s top high school journalists were honoured Thursday at the Toronto Star’s 15th annual High School Newspaper Awards, held at the Vaughan Press Centre.

Moayeri, whose newspaper took home the most prizes, was individually acknowledged with the Brad Henderson Award, given to a student who shows “outstanding journalistic potential and strength of character.

A former Star photographer and editor, Henderson founded the high school newspaper awards in 1995. He died of cancer in 2008.

Star reporters, editors, photographers, designers and illustrators judged more than 750 entries, in 22 different categories, from dozens of high schools across Ontario.

Moayeri’s co-editor, Alex McRobert, 18, Graffiti’s staff set high goals this year, but they never imagined winning so many awards. “It’s a great team feeling.”

The day included speeches by Ottawa Bureau reporter Joanna Smith — one of the first journalists to travel to Haiti in the aftermath of January’s earthquake — and op-ed columnist and community relations director Bob Hepburn

Hepburn lauded the students for telling their schools’ stories from a critical perspective.

“Keep on doing that investigative work,” he said. “That’s the stuff that counts.”

Diana Vecchiarelli, editor-in-chief of The Mary Ward Planet — which took home the second most awards — said she was proud that “the Star acknowledged the contributions we made to our school.”

Vecchiarelli, 17, who worked for The Planet throughout high school and is getting ready to graduate, said her favourite part about working for the paper was holding a fresh issue after months of hard work.

“It’s great just to see the expression on students’ faces when they’re reading it and showing it to their friends."

Brendan Kennedy is a one-year reporting intern at the Star.

Turkey, Canada, and the Armenian Genocide

By Jasmeet Sidhu

The first thing I immediately noticed when I arrived in Turkey, was the price to get into the country. While British and American VISAs were only about $20, Canadians had to pay a whopping $60 for a VISA to enter the country. I never really thought about why, until we met with members of the Turkish foreign ministry in Ankara, Turkey.

Meeting at the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Ankara, Turkey.

Here in Turkey with my Peace and Conflict studies class to learn more about this dynamic and culturally rich country in the face of today's changing geopolitics, one topic that inevitably came up time and time again in our various meetings with Turkish officials was the Armenian genocide. And the discussions certainly took a more interesting turn when we revealed to people that we were Canadian.

Thus far, Canada's parliament is the only one in the world that has formally recognized the killing of Armenians in Turkey during the First World War as genocide.
At the time in 2004, the Turkish foreign ministry released a statement, declaring "Some narrow-minded Canadian politicians were not able to understand that such decisions based on ... prejudiced information, will awaken feelings of hatred among people of different [ethnic] roots and disturb social harmony."

So when we met with members of the Turkish foreign ministry in the capital, Ankara, we weren't sure what to expect. Though we hadn't told them that this was a topic that we specifically wanted to discuss, as if reading our minds, an Armenian historian who had once worked in Canada joined our meetings, and the discussion inevitably went towards the Armenian genocide for the majority of the meeting. It was a fairly amicable and pleasant meeting, however, with an obvious agenda on their side to get their story across to Canadian students who would inevitably be discussing their thoughts with other Canadians (like I am right now).

The narrative that the foreign ministry put forward was emphasizing a lack of intent, and relying on the legal definition of the genocide to put into question "the events of 1915" as they were referred to in the meeting. Indeed, "genocide" was not even a legal term back in 1915 and the convention on genocide did not exist until 1948, so how can one declare a genocide to have happened?

Also, genocide needs intent to eliminate an entire groups of people. This, one member of the Turkish foreign ministry declared, did not exist. As well, they argued, Turkey has always been open about this issue and has argued for a joint historical investigation with Armenia to discover what really happened in 1915, but Turkey claims that Armenia are not open to the process or willing to open its private records on the event. Probably the most fascinating part of the discussion was when the foreign ministry urged us to be "Canadian" and live up to "Canadian values" by having an open mind and listening to both sides of the story. They argued that they were being accused of the most heinous crime and urged a proper historical investigation before parliaments pass judgments on controversial aspects of history, for which they have no role.

I walked away from the meeting not necessarily sure what to believe, but feeling compelled to read and research more about this dark aspect of Turkish history. And I suppose that was the real purpose of this meeting, whether we had just heard propaganda or the "memory record of another people" as it was called -- to not depend on simply just one side of the story, and to be your own critic of events and issues by doing the research yourself and coming to the best possible conclusion you can.

Jasmeet Sidhu is a graduate of Peace and Conflict Studies at the University of Toronto. She worked for the Star in the radio room last summer, and writes a blog for the Star on climate change, where she covered the UN Climate Change conference in Copenhagen. In mid-June she will join the Star's summer intern program. Follow Jasmeet on Twitter.

No comment: the hidden face of feedback

By Fabiola Carletti

There are many names for people who read blog posts but don't comment on them: internet introverts, digital wallflowers, the silent majority...

The CBC's Jim Lebans lists all of these nicknames in his short essay "In defense of lurking." In it, he explains why he doesn't chime in at the end of articles, despite having reasoned opinions.

Of the few comments following his piece, this was the most telling:

But I'd venture to guess that, unlike Lebans, most don't decide not to comment--they probably just don't think to. Others just don't want to: they may have something to say but, all things considered, it's way easier to scroll down and roll out.

The rarest kind of reader, in my experience, is the one who writes something thoughtful, attaches their real name to their statement, fills in their actual email address and maybe even checks back to see if the conversation has moved forward.

But what about the online conversations that happen because of, but outside of, the original blog post?

In my case, most of my feedback comes through Facebook. Sometimes the links I post spark long and complex debates. Often, the people participating don't even know one another and yet manage to engage in very critical yet respectful conversation.

Meanwhile, the original blog post is surrounded by singing crickets.

By way of example, I recently posed a question on this blog: Should reporters be allowed to protect whistleblowers?

If you check the post, you'd think only one person had thoughts on the matter. Well, today I am bolstering the numbers by ousting a few of my Facebook friends.

Their responses ranged from the curious to the impassioned, but they all took the time to think through the issue and engage with others. I think it's a shame that the resulting discussion should remain locked behind the gates of my Facebook privacy settings. (At least, in theory.)

What follows is a comment thread you were never intended to see. Hopefully, its content inspire some more of you "eyeballs out there" to activate your fingers and get in on the conversation.

Here's an experiment for after the fact:  I (perhaps ironically) invite all you "lurkers" out there to respond to this post and let us know why you tend to pass through so quietly.

Feedback on "Should reporters be allowed to protect whistleblowers?"

Thanks to those named below for allowing me to re-post their comments along with their full names. Forgive the spelling errors. Facebook is the wild west of typos.  

Fabiola Carletti is a Toronto Star radio room reporter and graduate student at the UBC School of Journalism. She recently graduated summa cum laude from York University, having earned an honours double major in Professional Writing and Communication Studies. Her digital footprints are all over the internet, but you can learn more about her by reading her blog, or chasing her around on twitter.

What's new in the Star's radio room?

By Roger Gillespie

Every year around this time we say goodbye to journalists who have worked in the Toronto Star radio room, some work here for a school year, others stay for a couple of years.

Then one spring day they scatter to jobs in newsrooms across the country. When they leave we start all over with a new group of aspiring young journalists.

Our radio room reporters are post secondary students, some from J-schools, others from university programs that range from psychology to politics to English. They work here part time, a couple of eight hour shifts a week, covering crime and breaking news.

They come to work here because they love journalism and many of them want to make it their life's work.

On Tuesday, we will welcome Alex Hering and Lauren O'Neil, two new radio roomers.

They will join Gloria Er-Chua and Fabiola Carletti who started work at the Star three weeks ago.

They are impressive and they are evidence there's life left in the business of being an ink stained wretch.

Meet our new radio room reporters.

Fabiola Carletti

Fabiola Carletti is studying journalism at the University of British Columbia with a specialization in Environmental Studies.

She is a Salvadoran-born Toronto-raised twenty-something with a wide assortment of interests and concerns, including famous and fringe theatre, cartooning, solutions-focused journalism, literary non-fiction, and the quirks that define her generation. 

Fabiola is all about trying new things and pushing limits, especially when it comes to borderline bad ideas. To this end, she has shaved her head, thrown herself a birthday party with strangers, and worked on a organic farm during a harsh Quebec winter. 

She spends a lot of time laying out her interests and experiences on her eclectic blog The Fab Files as well as tweeting the silly and serious as  fiercefab.

Fabiola is fluent in Spanish and amusing in French. She's also interested in learning Italian, if only to properly pronounce her own last name.

If you’re interested in the formalities, you’ll find them in the “About Fabiola” and “Resume” sections of her blog, where she straightens her tie and demonstrates that she's serious about this thing called journalism.

Gloria Er-Chua

Gloria Er-Chua got her political studies degree and street smarts from Queen's University. When she couldn't choose between law and journalism, she decide to plunge into the "real world" instead. On a semi-calculated whim, she applied for an internship with the Star.

A Malaysian-Chinese, Gloria immigrated to Toronto when she was 5. She credits her life experiences for sparking her interest in local anti-racism work.

Although she has come to terms with the fact that she's no longer a radical student activist, she’s still negotiating the journalistic code of neutrality -- if she were that Iraqi journalist, she thinks she might have thrown the shoe too.

She keeps busy by exploring the city one TTC station at a time and creating drama in the community theatre world. An actor by nature, she's often suckered into stage managing.

Gloria has been getting into bhangra/hip-hop collabs recently. She may occasionally need them to keep her awake on quiet overnight shifts.

Alex Hering

Alex Hering has just graduated from Texas State University in San Marcos, with a degree in Electronic Media. She came to Canada with aspirations of working with the best, kicking butt, then, hopefully, finding her first job in journalism.
 
In high school Alex developed a passion for journalism and has since grabbed every opportunity to get experience. This has taken her everywhere from the chasing stories in the "crime jeep" in San Antonio, to covering President Obama's inauguration for the Scripps Howard Foundation in Washington, to figuring out the wig hierarchy in the British Courts while at the Press Association in London. Journalism isn't glamorous or well paid but Alex loves everything else about it and is looking forward to her newest assignment at the Toronto Star. It must be the Washington Post-style newsroom which she toured just days ago that struck her the most. It is a family -- much like a cool club -- that everyone wants to join.   
 
Although she's only been in Toronto for a short while, Alex already loves the differences between the United States and Canada. This wannabe tree hugger doesn't mind having three recycling bins in her kitchen, although she still prefers the Cowboys to the Maple Leafs. Alex can't handle more than two drinks (unlike most of her Texan peers), so paying $12 for a six pack is OK - she'll never get around to finishing the whole thing anyway. And she loves her food, so it's fantastic to find Caribbean, Thai and Kentucky Fried Chicken around the corner from her apartment. Culture Culture Culture.
 
Alex is a pint-size, two-stepping queen who can be found at her new apartment in Corso Italia with her British boyfriend and their new potted fern. She is a self proclaimed taco expert, so look for her Taco blog, where she will rate every taco she can get her hands on.
 
Alex was worked in a mix of newspapers, wire services and other community media in Texas and the United States.

Lauren O'Neil

Internet ninja, shameless nerd girl and ridiculous adventure seeker. Lauren O'Neil is one plucky little dame (or so she's been told.)

Before graduating from the University of Western Ontario's Master of Arts Journalism program in 2010, she earned a degree in Communication Studies/Computer Science from the University of Windsor while making ends meet as a web designer, freelance writer, campus TV news host and bartender. She makes a mean Mojito, but suggests you try the house red instead.

A true digital native, Lauren likes to spend her free time blogging, tweeting, tumbling, making silly youtube videos and moonlighting as a digital correspondent for MuchMusic.

She also enjoys rollerblading, running, reading, alliteration, internet culture, comedic television programs, annoying people with cute photos of her cats, pretending that she isn't a 'stupid hipster' so that she can make fun of 'stupid hipsters', meeting new people, lusting over gadgets, travelling this fine world and debunking the myth that "you don't make friends with salad."

In 2001, she met Roger Ebert at the Toronto International Film Festival and addressed him as "Mr. Siskel". She has since learned to thoroughly verify facts (and use her blackberry to Google the names and/or mortality of sources on the fly).

***********

This summer we are also lucky enough to have two returning radio roomers, Teri Pecoskie and Maddie White.

Teri Pecoskie

Teri Pecoski is back for her second stint in the radio room, where she began as an intern last September. Teri will graduate this spring from the Humber College post-grad journalism program, where she was editor-in-chief of Convergence magazine as well as the college's weekly newspaper, the Et Cetera.

She recently was embedded with the Canadian troops during a military exercise in the Mojave Desert, covering the Canadian Forces' preparations for the ongoing mission in Afghanistan.

Before journalism, Teri completed a master's degree in philosophy at the University of Waterloo, worked as a copy editor at Broadview Press and worked in the philosophy department at Trent University in her hometown of Peterborough.

Madeleine White

Madeleine White just celebrated her one year anniversary in the radio room.

In the fall, she will enter her second year in Ryerson's Master of Journalism program.

She'll be working on the Ryersonian during in the first term and completing her thesis - a multimedia project about women running in the Toronto municipal election -- by the end of the winter.

When she's not in the Box, Maddie is usually training for triathlons, teaching the Monday lunch-hour spin class at the Star's gym or hanging out with her Boston Terrier and her partner.

She is fluent in French.

***********

Roger Gillespie is the Star's senior editor, training and development. You can find him on Twitter or reach him at rgillespie@thestar.ca

Dispatches from Nepal: Homage to the God of rain

By Jayme Poisson

Attachments: View As Web Page

It's dusk in Kathmandu and the streets of Patan, an ancient city just outside the capital, have come alive with colour. Flickering candles line monuments and homes.

Women bustle to prepare feasts for family and friends. And children dance in the streets to the steady beat of drums. They sing and playfully splash each other with buckets of water.

It's Rato Machhendranath Jatra. And I have been lucky enough to have been swept up in the frenzy of this month-long festival.

In this festival, the wooden chariot of rain god Rato (Red) Macchendranath is pulled through the narrow lanes of Patan. The chariot is pulled by a huge crowd of enthusiastic devotees. It begins in Pulchowk and eventually reaches Jawalakhel about a month later for the final stages of celebration. At each of the stops, the locals perform puja of the Machhendranath.

There is surely nothing else like it. If it begs comparison, I would say the raucous procession is a bit like Mardi Gras. But with a unique Nepalese flair all its own.

"We're celebrating for there to be rain because it will bring the people of the valley happiness so that they can grow food that will follow them for one whole year," said Kiran Nepali, a local musician.

The annual festival is a hallmark of Newari culture here in Nepal. Hindus and Buddhists pay homage to the god, Rato Machhendranath, who is believed to control rainfall. The timing is apt with monsoon season approaching quickly.

Hundreds of men pull the chariot of Rato Machhendranath through the streets. As the five-storey high edifice snakes its way through the narrow winding roads, past temples, statues and shimmering golden water taps, the god himself is said to look down upon the people with pleasure. The wheels of the chariot are sprinkled with rice and vermilion powder, leaving a trail of red in its path.

Coincidentally (or perhaps not), since the festival began May 18, it has rained here every night.

"That's why it is raining!," said jewelry shop owner Shyam Shahi, a smile ear to ear. "Because of the festival."

Legend has it there was a severe drought in the Kathmandu Valley thousands of years ago. Rato Machhendranath traveled all the way from Assam, India to rid the valley of evil forces and bring rain to its crops.

While Kathmandu has gradually evolved from an agricultural mecca to a commercial hub, Rato Machhendranath Jatra isn't just about good harvests, but is also about preserving identity and family ties.

"The festival is to hold onto the culture," said Shahi. "As we have the festival there is the gathering of people. They organize a party and all the relatives get together. It's a reason to share the culture and the happiness with family."

For me, this festival is indicative of how I've felt about Nepal since the moment I arrived in this gem-of-a-destination. This country has taught me the value of understanding one's roots. The notion that looking back doesn't preclude moving forward. And that genuine faith can be a source of immeasurable strength.

"We still trust the gods. It's a faith in people that has been around for a long long time," said Nepali, astutely. "It's the culture. There's not much scientific about it but we do believe in the gods and that they bring good luck and that's just simple faith."

..........

Photo: A bird's eye view of the streets of Patan. Thousands of people await the arrival of Rato Machhendranath's chariot.

Jayme Poisson is a Master of Journalism student at Carleton University. She will be trekking through Nepal during May while making a documentary about delivering maternal health services to remote and conflict-affected areas. In mid-June she will join the Star's summer intern program. She will be blogging regularly from the field.

Confessions of an ex-editor: newspapers do make a difference

By Alexandra Posadzki

It wasn't until the latest sexual assault at York University last month, after I had handed my office keys over to the new editor-in-chief, that I realized what a huge impact Excalibur, our little university newspaper, could have on the community.

Some people say that being a good journalist is about anticipating the news, and that's exactly what we managed to do with our final issue's front page story.

The story was about the start of the sentencing hearing for Daniel Katsnelson, the man who raped two female York students in their dorm three years ago. While we were planning the front page our production manager mentioned the safety audit that York had been promised following the assaults, and how, after a lot of publicity and chatter, the much-anticipated audit had disappeared off the radar.

"What happened to the METRAC safety audit?" she wondered aloud. (METRAC is an independent organization called the Metropolitan Action Committee  on Violence Against Women and Children.)

Taking the cue, I asked the writer, Yuni Kim, to broaden her story to: "Three years after the violent sexual assaults at the Vanier dorms, what has York done to increase security on campus?" with a focus on the METRAC audit.

From left to right: Don Wilkinson (comics and graphics editor), Renata Valz (production manager), Alexandra Posadzki (outgoing editor-in-chief), Nicholas Maronese (incoming editor-in-chief) and Brent Rose (incoming managing editor) working on our final issue.

Just a few weeks later York was hit with another violent sexual assault, this time just off campus (in my building, nonetheless!), and representatives from the our student union, the York Federation of Students (YFS), as well as every major news outlet in the GTA, were talking about METRAC.

Coincidence? I don't think so, and neither did Renata Valz, our production manager, when I phoned her up to thank her for her idea.

Turns out the YFS put out a press statement following the assault that talked about the overdue safety audit, and chances are it was our front-page story that reminded them about it.

Now METRAC is back on the radar and it looks like York will finally get its safety audit soon, or else administration will face more heat from the media.

Not only that, but CP24's Cam Woolley held up a copy of Excalibur on air following the assault.

It certainly hasn't been an easy year for me. I worked, full time, around 50+ hours a week, as the editor-in-chief of Excalibur, part-time in the Toronto Star's radio room, took classes and wrote an undergraduate thesis in psychology on women in upper management positions (inspired, no doubt, by some of the challenges I faced over the last year).

I slept no more than three or four hours most nights. I faced a lot of criticism from colleagues about my poor management of stress (managing stress is no easy feat when you're chronically sleep deprived and overworked). I spent a lot of money on eating out as I -- often literally! -- ran from one job to the next, and our paper was sent to the presses past our 12-o'clock deadline almost every week (although that's not unusual for Excal).

But, I also managed to motivate and help lead our team to snatching fifth place (out of 50 college and university newspapers) for the best of show award at the Associated Collegiate Press newspaper convention in Phoenix, Arizona. I managed to score some really good clippings. I learned a lot about crime reporting, news judgment and managing people. And, as I recently learned, I made an impact on a diverse community of 50,000 students and faculty.

I think the past eight months have been well worth the sleep deprivation.

Alexandra Posadzki is just finishing up a hectic year as a radio room intern at the Toronto Star and the editor-in-chief of Excalibur Publications, York University’s community newspaper. Alex will be starting as the Ontario Bureau Chief for the Canadian University press in the fall.

What we learned at camp versatile journalist

By Liam Casey and Wendy Gillis

Producing slideshows and videos isn't exactly splicing DNA or understanding Lost. But we're not going to lie, it's labour intensive.

The take-home message from Camp Versatile Journalist 2010 is like the old Nike slogan: just do it. There's just no other way to learn how to edit video or put together a slideshow than by playing with the gadgets and software. So, we decided to follow the experts advice.

Camp VJ is all about learning the nuts and bolts of digital journalism, from shooting video to crunching numbers and posting them in a way the audience can easily digest.

Led by Robb Montgomery, the Chicago-based Johnny Appleseed of digital literacy, the three-day workshop at the Toronto Star was a huge success. More than 40 people came early and stayed late every day.

Below is our moving masterpiece, warts and all, about #CampVJ2010. For the record, we now know how to edit video, but we kept our bloopers in for educational purposes (we swear). Our biggest lesson: turn the microphone on, which is surprisingly easy to forget. Don't forget to press play when a video slides onto the screen.

Wendy Gillis and Liam Casey are Ryerson journalism students who will spend the summer reporting at the Toronto Star.

Learning to be a more versatile journalist: trial and error multimedia

By Wendy Gillis

Multimedia mastery doesn't come overnight. But as any VJ camper can tell you, it might happen in an afternoon. That's just one of the tricks learned at the three-day Camp Versatile Journalist at the Toronto Star this week.

Following a Tuesday morning spent feverishly typing notes about shooting video for online or getting quality audio recording (or maybe even tweeting about #campvj2010), aspiring web journalists were collectively thrust out the doors of One Yonge with cameras, microphones and a deadline assignment.

A man and his dog on the way to Camp VJ.

We had just over two hours to mine Queen's Quay for a story, then were instructed to use mapping, audio recording, and/or photo and video cameras to tell it. Reportorial standbys (known in the industry as pen and paper) took a back seat to Nikons and Maranz recorders as we set out to conquer any vestige of luddite left in our journalistic make-up. 

Along the way we figured out that, when it comes to learning the skills, it's undoubtedly worthwhile to hear from the experts, but nothing beats trial and error. Some teams pressed record on a video camera for the first time and rolled with it. Others took 100 photos from every possible angle, experimenting with light and perspective. Many learned VuVox—the free web editing/creating/jack-of-all-digital-trades site that can help journalists make videos and soundslides in a snap—for the first time. Check out what Liam did for our story about the changing habourfront following a brief how-to seminar and some experimentation:

Many teams incorporated Google maps into their storytelling. Maps give readers quick reference points, and—as we learned yesterday—embedding video and photos along the way enhances the reader experience. 

View Toronto Habourfront: Any change is good change? in a larger map

Naturally, there were bumps along the way. Our team spent a long time editing a video, only to have technical difficulties during the uploading process (which means you can't see it here, unfortunately). Nobody's presentation was pristine: a few slideshows moved awkwardly, while some videos had muffled sounds. But considering most were employing very newly acquired skills, the end product was nothing short of impressive.

So maybe it's not mastery. But in the span of a day, everyone learned how to think outside the text box.

Wendy Gillis is a graduate student in the Ryerson journalism program, and begins an internship in the Star newsroom next month. Follow her on Twitter at @wendygillis.