by: Claudia Amezcua

Los Angeles is known for its many seasons: fire season, storm season and of course the most coveted award season. Although all the other seasons might sound charming, (and believe me, nothing is more exciting than “storm watch -insert year here-”), when it comes down to it, it’s all about award season.

Iʼve mentioned before that living in the shadow of the iconic sign, I wasnʼt too shocked when I was asked to work during this yearʼs award season.

What is award season? In a nut shell its all the award shows (Grammyʼs, SAG, Emmyʼs, Golden Globes and the mother of them all: The Oscars) that usually happens early in the year. Now, Iʼm sure most of you are probably thinking: “Oh, so you were on the red carpet doing interviews?” The answer is: No, not exactly. My primary role as a freelance production assistant lies behind the scenes, a few blocks away at the bureau. And this being my first exposure to award season, I wasnʼt sure what exactly I was in for.

My day began (or in this case afternoon) with a quick rundown of everyoneʼs assignments ranging from logging fashion cameras, different correspondentʼs interview cameras and of course the actual show. This takes place to better assist producers and correspondents in locating specific sound bites, fashion trends (good or bad) and the overall theme which will contribute to the next dayʼs hot topics.

After the show is aired and the rental trucks arrive to break down the set, the real work begins. I begin to proofread my logs and take note of anything interesting SOTs, look through Twitter for celeb reactions and file them in an email addressed to the whole unit.

This is done as I wait for producers, reporters and photographers to return with footage needing to be fed to anyone who requests it and then archived into the library. The process can continue into the early morning, depending on how long it all takes to arrive.

Personally, I think this is much more fun than being out on the red carpet since you get an opportunity to see the big picture of the event from both sides. From coaxing a celeb for an interview to watching a parade of a stylists hard work, it’s amazing how much work and energy is involved to cover these types of events. The day is long, but what do you expect? Its Hollywood, babe!

Claudia Amezcua is a freelance multi-plaform reporter and production assistant based inf Los Angeles, CA. She is a graduate of California State University, Fullerton with a Bachelors in Communications, and is currently pursuing an Associates Degree in On-Air Radio Broadcasting from Mt. San Antonio College. Ms. Amezcua’s work experience includes anchor, reporter, and DJ at 90.1 KSAK in Walnut, CA, and as a freelance production and library assistant for CNN. You can follow Claudia on twitter by @ClaudiaAmezcua, or visit claudiaamezcua.com.

by: Jacqueline Ingles

The advent of the internet and blogs has ushered in a plethora of people sharing their opinions, views and whatever mumbo-jumbo is in their head.

As you navigate through the blog haven, you will most likely come across writing that should never have been put on paper or the web and others using blogs as their own personal soapbox in cyberspace. I call this unnecessary cyberspace clutter.

Anyone can write a blog but not everyone should. So, what makes a blog good?

1) Blogs Should Serve a Purpose
Anything you write should be of value to your reader and to you. Whether you are writing about the latest wedding trends or health, you have an opportunity to educate and foster conversation. Often times, bloggers turn posts into their personal diaries. Trust me, the world has enough soap operas, we don’t need yours.

2) Use pictures & Videos
Pictures liven up a blog and can lure readers to keep on scrolling and coming back. Every blog should have a picture or even videos. Video blogs are also great.

3) Be Genuine
It is tiring to see how many individuals use big words and hide behind them to pose as intelligent. Readers want to relate to you, not feel inferior. Don’t get me wrong, having a strong vocabulary is a good thing, there is just no reason to sound like you are reciting a chemistry encyclopedia. And, be honest. People can tell when someone is posing as something they are not.

4) Say ‘No’ to the Soapbox
Many blogs have hidden agendas. It is easy to read between the lines on most of them. Blogs should not say what is right and wrong and how you should live your life. Your life is your choice. Ultimately, blogs are opinions and thoughts and every person thinks different.

5) Update
Don’t leave your readers and followers hanging for weeks to hear from you. If you are serious about blogging, update daily or at least every other day. Some bloggers post multiple things a day. Constantly feed your audience.

MY FAVORITE BLOG
A blog that I read constantly and that I find ideal for me is Live, Laugh, Run, Today. The writing is fun, easy and enjoyable. Also, I can relate to the content. Yes, the disclaimer is that I am friends with Abby Gustus, the author. And, I openly admit that. You can read her or dismiss this as promotion…but, if you read her blog, you will see what makes it good and why she was invited to a Skype interview on the Today Show and why Katie Couric and fitness guru Joy Bauer follow her. Trust me when I tell you, those big guns tweet her.

You will see that on every blog entry, there are photos. No one wants to see black and white print on a page. Abby offers a window into her daily life and she becomes real. Her blog is almost a photo album.

She also has a purpose: being a young, working woman and trying to stay fit. There are a lot of women out there that have chaotic schedules and she addresses how to manage being healthy in our fast-paced society. If she slips up on working out or munches on a bad snack–well, she will tell you. Go look, she admits that one day she ate Greek yogurt and had a Diet Coke for breakfast. (Something I see women at my work do almost daily and I am also guilty as charged)

What is most remarkable about this blog is that Abby is in marketing. She decided to do this as something educational and fun–almost a side hobby. It goes to show that there are talented writers out there that can contribute something great to the Web.

Jacqueline Ingles is a multi-platform reporter for KXAN-TV in Austin, Texas. She writes, shoots, edits, fronts her story and then provides a more in-depth story version on her station’s web site daily. She founded the blog “In Ingles Please” in early 2010. A native of Chicago, Jacqueline received a master’s in broadcast journalism from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. She also graduated Summa Cum Laude from Loyola University-Chicago.

By: Claudia Amezcua

With more than 500,000 apps available for iPhone/Droid what are the best apps out there to help a journalists cover stories out in the field, everyone has their favorites.

Personally, while on the field I have found the following apps useful when I need to get something out to the world promptly.

1. Twitter
Okay, I know we all have this app at our disposal, but I honestly think its so much better than the other incarnations out there that offer the same ability to tweet on the go.

2. Facebook
When I need to update my friends and fans with news and also find story tips.

3. Hootsuite
Best app when I want to update all my social media platforms with one single entry. The best part of this app is that I can also schedule tweets for later postings.
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By: Tara Puckey

I’m still not sure what I want to be when I grow up. And I’m beginning to think that’s okay.

Like most college students, time in school was spent with an end goal. Regardless of whether it’s your freshman year or the last steps across the stage for that diploma, you can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Your primary task, at least at that moment, is to graduate. Sure, you think about jobs and careers and resumes, but those are long-term thoughts.

For me, this whole thing was fantastic. I’m a “list-cross-er-off-er.” I put something on my list and, no matter how long it takes to complete (college, for example), I find relief, satisfaction, excitement even, in the fact that I finished it entirely. So there it was at the top of my list–graduate. Although frustratingly complicated (math) and sometimes completely unrelated to my focus (history of Van Halen), I pressed on until I enjoyed the sound of the pencil scratching through that one simple word.

But then, almost as quickly as the celebration headache had worn off, I realized that I didn’t have an immediate goal anymore. I needed a job, but there’s no guarantee that I’ll find something I love, which doesn’t really warrant being crossed off. Grad school? My own business? A completely new career path?

After changing my mind every single day for a month, I realized I don’t have to always have it all planned out. I don’t have to always know what the next step is. Nothing in a book of rules outlines the plan I have to follow.
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By: Claudia Amezcua

Dear (DOT) com.

I think that my name is unique enough, so why should I get a “.com?”

Yes, this question actually was asked by an experienced reporter a few months ago while discussing career tips with me when I first began freelancing.  Seriously though, what is the big deal with having my own website?

Actually, it is a big deal (unless you are a “big deal”), and when it comes down to it, it is simply called a domain name.  A domain name is the url (universal resource locator) to a personalized website, blog, etc., that can be purchased through a domain registrar. The reason why this is important is because it is the single most important url associated you that a potential employer can remember to better remember you.

How to purchase a “Domain”

Go to domain registrar such as GoDaddy.com, Domains.com, Google.com or Yahoo.com, etc. to purchase your domain.  Typically this can run as little as $10.00 to $20.00 dollars a year.  Keep in mind that if you are planning to map your new domain name to your website hosted on another site (i.e. your blog on wordpress), it is possible to accrue an additional fee. Other alternate sites such as WordPress, Blogger and Tumblr allow you to purchase the domain through their site, which is usually less expensive than a registrar website.

What happens when my name is already taken?

So unfortunately, your name is potentially already being used by someone else.  Before you begin to think your life as a journalist is over, get creative and think of another variation.  Try something like “TheRealClaudiaAmezcua.com” or “TheClaudiaAmezcua.com,” (yes, I know its not as creative, however it still is professional).

Remember, whatever you choose as your domain name; make sure that it is something that is easy to remember and above all, who you are.

Claudia Amezcua is a freelance multi-plaform reporter and production assistant based inf Los Angeles, CA. She is a graduate of California State University, Fullerton with a Bachelors in Communications, and is currently pursuing an Associates Degree in On-Air Radio Broadcasting from Mt. San Antonio College. Ms. Amezcua’s work experience includes anchor, reporter, and DJ at 90.1 KSAK in Walnut, CA, and as a freelance production and library assistant for CNN.  You can follow Claudia on twitter by @ClaudiaAmezcua, or visit claudiaamezcua.com.

By: Claudia Amezcua

A few months ago I was in sitting at my desk looking at my Twitter feed and began to notice the amount a retweets a certain person keep getting.  Personally, since I do not have an enormous amount of followers (yet), I was curious to know how exactly one gets themselves noticed in the Twitter world.   I did some research and found an amazing article called “How to Double your Retweets in Two Days” written by Jonathan Wondrusch from ByBloggers on Social Mouths.com that offered a bird’s eye view of standing out from the crowd.

1. It’s all relevant. Content, Content, Content…does that make sense?

2. What’s the story? Just like in print, it’s all about the headline.  Readers are drawn to compelling headlines that scream: read me.

3. Twitter has a short attention span. That’s right; the reason why everyone loves Twitter is because it’s short and to the point, whereas other social media tends to have a person digging for a long period of time.  Depending on how many people a person follows dictates how fast their feed updates.

4. When should I tweet? Ideally, Wondrusch suggests tweeting between the hours of 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. EST. This is usually when the amount of people online peaks.  However, he strongly suggests testing different times and seeing what works best for your following.  A good way to do this is by using different twitter platforms such as TweetDeck and Hootsuite that allows tweets to be scheduled.  The great thing about these tools is that they keep track of how many times your post was visited, and it’s FREE!

5. Don’t be selfish! Remember, Twitter is and always will be a way to socially connect with the world via the internet.  So, share the wealth and retweet!

Claudia Amezcua is a freelance multi-plaform reporter and production assistant based out of Los Angeles, CA. She is a graduate from California State University, Fullerton with a Bachelors in Communications and is currently pursuing an Associates Degree in On Air Radio Broadcasting from Mt. San Antonio College. Ms. Amezcua work experience includes anchor, reporter and DJ at 90.1 KSAK Walnut and as a freelance production and library assistant for CNN.  You can follow Claudia @ClaudiaAmezcua_ or visit claudiaamezcua.com.

By: Mike Brannen

You’re a cub reporter, months away from graduating with a journalism degree, and are ready to work in the “real world” (ironic the “real world” gets quotations as if it’s a fictional thing!). You’ve got your top cities and news outlets picked out. It’s time to convince them to hire you. At this stage, your resume lacks years of experience. Sure you’ve padded it with internships, but that’s not going to impress me, or the people who are actually going to hire you. Chances are, you have to compete against someone who has more experience than you. But you have an opportunity to outshine them, by delivering a knock-them-out-of-their-seat cover letter.

A resume tells me what you’ve done. A cover letter tells me who you are. A resume shows me what you’ve accomplished before; your cover letter shows me what you are going to do next. If I’m the person hiring you, I need to get an idea that your personality, and what you believe in, will benefit my newsroom.
I believe that I got my first job, in Seattle, and right out of school, because I had a strong cover letter. My current Executive Producer seemed to like it enough to call me with a job opening after I sent it to him.

There are two ways to frame your cover letter: tell a story, or tell your creed.

Your Story
A true journalist naturally embellishes a bit. We do it out of necessity to grab the attention of viewers and readers. It’s time to put those skills to work in your cover letter.

Take some time to think about a day where you kicked butt on the job, or nailed a big story. Describe what you did and why each step was important.

You must weave into your story a way to “brag” about your skills. By “brag,” describe a challenging experience, but not blatantly mention how difficult it was. Let the accomplishment speak for itself.
Sell your reader on why you have a cool job and why it beats anything else.

I would avoid the cliché “I remember the day I knew I wanted to be a reporter” story. Everybody writes that one. As an employer, I don’t care what got you into the business; I want to know what’s keeping you in it.

Your Creed
I wrote mine in this fashion. I detailed what I think are the three main elements of delivering TV news (Live, Local, Now). This formula reveals your values, your news judgment, and your decision-making process.

Your creed is your take on what’s wrong or right with journalism; things you want to see improved, or eliminated. You don’t need an explanation for the things you believe in, at least not in the letter. You probably will once you get to the interview part.

I think the creed is more of what employers want to read about. They can distinguish if the applicant is worthwhile, or meant for the garbage pile.

The creed letter is a bit riskier because what you believe in might not fit the newsroom personality. But, if you’ve done your research, and your letter is tailored to the station’s mission, then you are in a good position for a future interview.

Overall, the type of letter you write should be dictated by the job you want. A story tells me about you. A creed tells me your beliefs.
For either one, make the first line the strongest one in the entire letter. Write it so you know the reader wants to know what comes next. It should be a sentence that no one in history has ever written before, or will ever write again.

Be bold. Be creative. Be original.

Mike Brannen is a morning newscast producer for KIRO7, the CBS affiliate in Seattle. He recently received a Master’s Degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia and completed his thesis, Motivational Use of Twitter. He previously worked multiple positions at KOMU-TV in Columbia, Missouri during for four years. You can follow him on Twitter: @MikeBrannen

By: Jacqueline Ingles

Three years into broadcast and I have already had the pleasure and sometimes pain of working with close to a dozen interns. Internships are important and students should get them to take advantage of them.

Unfortunately, there are those that only come to a newsroom to sit around, do nothing and fluff up their resume. I chose to write about this topic because this past year I had an intern superstar. Not only was this girl motivated, but she was a self-starter. I would actually come into work and look forward to working with her. Not only did she go above and beyond, but she got herself recognized, liked and walked out with great references.

Here are a few things I noticed:

1) No Job was Too Small

Even if this intern was getting me a a diet coke, no job was to small. I get that everyone wants to help write, edit, shoot, and get standups for their real, etc. But, I often forget to eat in my jam packed day. And, I was thankful and noted every time she took on a task of little to no meaning. She did it and did it eagerly. Soon, we were spending lunches together and I was showing her editing tricks and sipping on Cokes together. We talked business and she got great insight. She realized how the littlest thing can impact someone’s day in the newsroom and how help, even if small, goes a long way. So, the lesson to all interns: even if you are getting coffee or stapling papers, running scripts to anchors, these little things mean a lot to reporters. Our days are long, detailed and while you may not realize, those little jobs and tasks are very helpful. Do it with a smile and be eager, and you will get noticed.

2) Ms. Self-Starter

If I were in the field taking photos for the web, guess who was right next to me snapping away on her iPhone? My intern! I did not ask her to do this or tell her. She did it on her own and it paid off. Her photos showed up on our web site with her own by-line. Also, as a one-woman-band, if I was shooting, she would ask to see shots, ask me how to position the camera, etc. She got so good at what she was doing, when I needed a hand shooting standups, guess who worked the camera? My intern. To thank her, I would then work the camera for her and she got standups for her reel.

3) Going the Distance…Literally

I have the opportunity to also work 50 miles away from my station in my own bureau a few times a week. Many people hear bureau and RUN. They only want to be at the main station, around the big anchors and in the nice studio. This intern didn’t. In fact, she made it a point to drive to the bureau and spend the day with me. Was it glamorous? No. Was it long, hard and grueling? Yes. But, she did it. She wanted to get her hands into as many pies as possible so to speak. And, it had me admiring her. It showed me that to her, TV was not about being on TV.

Now, I have had some interns who are best described as duds. One girl decided to leave earlier for a nail appointment. Apparently, her pedicure was more important than staying until deadline. Needless to say, she didn’t walk out with a demo reel or anyone’s respect. Bottom line, come in motivated and take everything seriously, big or small. Our industry is small. It is likely the people you intern for now will be in positions to recommend you for hire later.

Jacqueline Ingles is a multi-platform reporter for KXAN-TV in Austin, Texas. She writes, shoots, edits, fronts her story and then provides a more in-depth story version on her station’s web site daily. She founded the blog “In Ingles Please” in early 2010. A native of Chicago, Jacqueline received a master’s in broadcast journalism from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. She also graduated Summa Cum Laude from Loyola University-Chicago.

Hello, Gen J-er’s! Kris Wellesley here, and I’m the latest addition to the Gen J committee. Before I dive right in, I thought I’d introduce myself and share how I became involved with SPJ.

Last February, Aiesha Little and the Greater Cincinnati SPJ chapter hosted a Speed Pitch event (not to be confused with speed dating, mind you) for Gen J-er’s who were either about to graduate or were looking for freelance opportunities. Afterall, no one is hiring, right? The idea was each person had  five minutes to talk individually with editors from local media outlets, including newspaper, magazine and radio. You could use those five minutes however you wanted, whether it was to pitch stories or pitch yourself. The turnout for the both editors and young journalists was pretty good.

Not knowing what to expect, I went to the event and walked out having had interesting conversations with great contacts, one of which led to my current position at the Cincinnati Enquirer.

Breaking into journalism isn’t like it used to be, so I would encourage everyone in the local chapters to create events and opportunities like these. Even though it may not lead to your next gig, you’ll undoubtedly make great contacts.

Has anyone done something similar in their chapter and can share their ideas?

In early February, I became a freelance writer/blogger for the entertainment website Starpulse. No, it’s not The New York Times or Smithsonian magazine. Heck, it’s not even Entertainment Weekly. But I like it. And working full-time as an editorial assistant of a community newspaper where I proofread and copy edit press releases for publication as well as confirm letters to the editor, it’s nice to actually write an article once or twice a week. Plus it gives me an excuse to keep up with pop culture. As if I needed one before.

Unfortunately, I don’t get paid for writing for Starpulse. Yeah. Go ahead. Call me crazy. Yes, I admit that I hesitated to write for the website when I found out I wasn’t going to be compensated, given current economic conditions. But since I want to be a pop culture journalist when I grow up, this seemed like the ideal platform for me.

However, some younger journalists don’t see freelancing for websites like Starpulse as a means to further their career. My friend, colleague and Cincinnati-based music journalist Mildred Fallen briefly wrote for Examiner.com, a blog-like site that operates a network of hyperlocal news websites where writers and journalists can share information (and get paid for it, if they get enough web hits) on what’s going on in their city. Here’s what she said, in an email, about writing for Examiner:

(It) all depends on what you want from it, and where you already are in your career. In my experience, writing for Examiner was brief. I knew it wasn’t going to yield any returns money-wise that would make a difference to my pocket so I used it as a way to continue being productive while searching for full-time employment. Eventually, I started working full-time again, which whittled my free time down to almost none. Overall, it didn’t necessarily improve my writing career, but I think the visibility of the Internet helped me reach a wider readership and there’s also complete autonomy of what you publish. (Great point! OK, back to what she said.) And publishing something regularly helped me not be so depressed about not having a job in my field. Also, it was handy to learn social network marketing tools such as using SEO keywords to appear in more Google searches, and interesting to know exactly how many hits my pieces were getting each day. You also get immediate feedback if people comment. You definitely have to be hustling outside of writing for sites like these to be able to gauge if it’s worth it – like it’s best used as a supplement to broaden your portfolio. Now, I just use it as a link employers can access to see a few clips in a hurry without downloading a PDF or an attachment.

Writing for Starpulse is new to me. So while I can’t quite yet say that it’s helping my career, it definitely isn’t hurting. I get to write on a topic I love, plus I’m getting my name “out there”, which is good for any journalist, young or old.

And now for the shameless plug: Check out my articles on Starpulse.

What do you think? Do you feel that websites like Examiner.com and About.com (where you eventually get paid for writing) and even Starpulse.com help younger journalists in their careers? Is it worth it, or just a waste of time?