Final Thoughts
Throughout the course of my practicum with The Daily Times, I have learned more about what it is to be an active multimedia journalist than any class could have ever taught me. Each project posed its own challenges, from sound quality to poor lighting, all of which had to be dealt with in order to produce a quality product that was suitable for publication. For example, my filming of the Knoxville Opera’s preview of the Pagliacci opera at the Blount County Library was, more or less, a comedy of errors. From the start, I had difficulty finding a good place to set up my camera, as the area where the mini-concert was to take place in the agora was heavily backlit and cast harsh shadows on both the pianist and his accompanying soprano. In an effort to counteract the interesting acoustics that came with being surrounded by glass in a rather hollow part of the library, I thought it was a good idea to hook up the miniature shotgun microphone to the camera. Unfortunately, I forgot to double-check the connection and, after uploading the video to the computer to begin editing, found that the footage was not only impossible to see because of the lighting but also completely void of any sound other than an ear-piercing noise that was the result of an incomplete connection. Needless to say, that particular project was a complete flop.
Later that week, I went to film an interview with the owner of Razberries Boutique, a locally owned shop featuring a variety of unique, upscale clothing and jewelry. I had difficulty getting the shop owner to give her attention to me, as she was only available for interview during shop hours, and much of her interview consisted of information that seemed as if she were preparing to shoot a commercial advertisement for her boutique. From my encounter with her, I learned that I should be prepared to ask leading questions that are meant to direct the interview in the way I would like it to go, rather than asking open-ended questions that allow the interview subject to go off in an entirely unrelated direction with his or her answer. Even a very short interview can be valuable if you are getting the right kinds of answers and a large part of that comes with knowing how to ask the right questions.
Despite a few mishaps here and there, I think I have also done some of my best work in this half of my practicum. In large part, I was given the opportunity to decide what sorts of stories I would like to cover for my projects later in the semester. A number of those focused on Maryville College related subjects ranging from student responses to Dr. Gerald Gibson’s retirement announcement to Mr. Dave Powell’s final lecture on May 7th, 2009. These have received a great deal of attention from the Maryville College community which, in turn, has increased student awareness of The Daily Times. For a large part of my practicum experience, most students had no idea that Maryville had its own newspaper housed not five minutes away from campus. Now, I am receiving e-mails and messages from Maryville College students and faculty about my work with The Daily Times and I am extremely happy to point them to the newspaper’s website and Twitter feed for more information on items of interest.
Overall, I am satisfied with the body of work that I have put forth this semester, ranging from printed articles with corresponding video interviews, video features, to a cameo appearance on Backstage Pass, The Daily Time’s companion podcast to The Weekender (formerly known as The Weekend Mixtape). The experience has allowed me to put to test many of the skills I learned in my journalism class, ranging from interviewing skills to the practical application of the Associated Press style of writing and the combination of multimedia with more traditional news resources. I think that having hands-on experience with a variety of different technologies has given me an advantage over my peers, especially in a time when lots of newspapers and magazines are really increasing the amount of supplementary information that is available online. I do not yet know what the future has in store for me in terms of a career in journalism, but I can confidently say that I feel better prepared for a job in that field as a result of my work with The Daily Times this semester.