Cox
Newspapers Seminars Online
The
four participants and the title of each one's seminar were:
Shannon Joyce - Grand Junction Daily Sentinel Technology Was it easy or difficult
to use the software and interface once they were set up? If the setup and
software were difficult to use, how might they have been made easier? Other comments: Instructor Who was your instructor
and what was your instructor's background or current position? Was the instructor
effective in facilitating the different facets of the online training? If so, what is an
example of what you liked about the way she worked? The way she did our assignments worked well for the format. She would write them like a scavenger hunt, giving us just enough details so we could find the target fairly easily, but also letting us explore the sites at the same time. I found it easier to remember the sites and to decide which ones would be the most useful to my coworkers and me. At the end, she told us how she would have found the answers, highlighting shortcuts and search tips. If not, what do you
wish the instructor had done differently or better? I didn't like the few group assignments we had to do. Several people in the class didn't take it seriously, making it difficult to complete the assignments on time. If Cox Newspapers
or some other organization were to set up their own online training program,
would you recommend this instructor? Yes! She was wonderful and had a great grasp of how to make an online course interesting. The information she provided was easy to understand and use, and extremely useful. Other comments: Other participants How many other participants
were in your seminar? There were eight in my group. What was the range
of newspapers represented by the other participants in terms of size and
geography? Most of the papers were about the size of Grand Junction, less than 50,000 in circulation, but there were two reporters from a large Canadian daily in Alberta. How would you describe the level of experience
of the other participants? Much higher than mine! Most had been in the newspaper business for at least 10 years, with some veterans of 20 years or more. But, many of the participants didn't have much experience with the Internet, which leveled the playing field a bit. Do you feel it was a good mix of participants? Yes. There were a few editors, some political writers, some feature writers, and even a sports writer. I think that made sure the course material remained well rounded and not centered on one aspect of reporting. It also presented different views on how to handle the Internet when writing a story. Was there anything about the mix of participants
that hindered the training? The wide span of time zones made group chats a bit difficult. It also would have been nice to have a reporter from a large American daily in the group. If you were putting together the group for
this online seminar, would you have done anything differently? I would have made the deadlines for assignments later in the day to account for Western time zones. Other comments: Content How would you assess the content of the
seminar in terms of the material you used, the exercises you completed,
and any other aspects of the seminar, such as chat groups, etc.? The content was almost
exactly what I expected and so far has been very useful. At first glance,
the topics Mary planned to cover looked a little too basic, but there
is so much on the Internet, it worked out well. She was able to cull the
best resources from the masses and show us how to get the most out of
each site. Do you feel the content was appropriate
to your level of experience? Yes. I thought I knew a lot about the Internet, and the class was very humbling. If you were putting together the online
seminar, would you have done anything differently with the content? I probably would have made it longer to include more information. Other comments: Time commitment How much time did you spend doing the work
associated with the online seminar? I spent about two hours a day, as API recommended, and it was enough for me to complete my assignments and finish all the required reading. Did you work at home or on the job? I worked at home, but the time was part of my regular workday. Were any special arrangements made to facilitate
your participation in the online seminar? Yes. I was allowed to do the seminar at home in the morning and come into work after I was finished. I did rearrange the time of the seminar a few times to accommodate story deadlines or interviews, though. What were the challenges of doing the online
seminar work? Having a shorter workday, in the sense of making calls and writing stories. Coming into work, I was already two hours behind where I wanted to be. But, even with that, I didn't feel as though I let stories slip because I didn't have the time to finish them. Knowing what you know now, would you suggest
structuring the work time differently? No. For me, taking the time in the morning was really the best thing to do. A few days I flipped the time to the afternoon, and it was really hard to get out of the office on time to have my assignments done by the deadline. Things tend to get crazy around deadline time at any paper, and that makes it harder to leave. Value of the training What was the overall value of the online
training for you? The value was incredible - I use the information from the class every day. The information from the class is so basic, but completely changed how I use the Internet. What was the best part of the experience? The best part was being able to go to work in the afternoon and use what I had learned that morning. What do you wish had been better? Nothing. What are some specific things you feel you
learned or benefited from as a result of this training? How to go onto the Internet and find what I want within 10 minutes. Before I took the class I dreaded finding things on the Internet. It took so long and I always got thousands of hits that had nothing to do with what I wanted to find. I can now use the Internet as a quick reference, rather than making a search a huge ordeal with 10,000 hits. Would you recommend this type of online
training to others? Yes!! Other comments:
Chad Watt - Greenville Daily Reflector Technology Was it easy or difficult to use the software
and interface once they were set up? The interface was fairly easy to use. We had four or five different "virtual classrooms," including a student lounge. At the outset, I had to learn what material was appropriate to post in which classrooms. By the second week, I understood the ebb and flow of assignments and which classrooms to visit first. If the setup and software were difficult
to use, how might they have been made easier? API did a thorough job of documenting how to set up and use the software. I had no troubles. Other comments: Instructor Who was your instructor and what was your
instructor's background or current position? Kenn Finkel, now a consultant and longtime copy editor at newspapers in South Florida, Dallas and elsewhere. He also works with The Poynter Institute. Was the instructor effective in facilitating
the different facets of the online training? Kenn knew what he was doing in the online environment. He'd done it before and was able to point out potential pitfalls of communicating in the format (very similar to e-mail) before we made them. If so, what is an example of what you liked
about the way he worked? Because of work and
family commitments, I missed deadline on a few assignments. He was accommodating
in a positive manner. He wanted to make sure I learned from the seminar. If not, what do you wish the instructor
had done differently or better? I think we all were a bit timid in our criticism of others' work. Kenn encouraged discussion, but perhaps he could have compelled us to have a more vigorous discussion. If Cox Newspapers or some other organization
were to set up their own online training program, would you recommend
this instructor? I would strongly recommend Kenn Finkel. Other comments: Other participants How many other participants were in your
seminar? 17 What was the range of newspapers represented
by the other participants in terms of size and geography? We had participants from Delaware, South Dakota, Washington state and Guam. Some of the larger papers represented included Knoxville and Milwaukee. On the smaller end, we had papers from North Platte, Neb., (circ. 14,258) and the Daily Reflector at about 20,000. How would you describe the level of experience
of the other participants? We had a real mix - including some with a decade or so as a copy editor, one or two a year removed from college and others with reporting experience new to editing. Do you feel it was a good mix of participants? For the most part, it was a good mix. There were times when some of the less experienced participants had to be brought up to speed. Was there anything about the mix of participants
that hindered the training? Bringing the less experienced ones up to speed may have rehashed fundamentals for the bulk of the group, but I don't think that is always a bad thing. Discussing fundamentals helped highlight some basic transgressions that we've grown to accept here. I find I'm more attuned to avoiding basic headline mistakes now. If you were putting together the group for
this online seminar, would you have done anything differently? For the work we did, five weeks is not a long time. As assignment deadlines approached, I felt a little overloaded to get through everyone's responses. Between assignments, discussions hit a lull. Content How would you assess the content of the
seminar in terms of the material you used, the exercises you completed,
and any other aspects of the seminar, such as chat groups, etc.? We only used chat groups to get to know our fellow participants. The bulletin board-style postings allowed us to do the work on our own time. Scheduled chats would have been difficult to pull off with the wide range of work schedules we had in the group. Do you feel the content was appropriate
to your level of experience? Yes. The assignments were very specific. Instead of simply writing a headline that fits and is accurate, Kenn targeted each assignment to a specific topic. One exercise focused on getting the headline's tone to match the story's tone. If you were putting together the online
seminar, would you have done anything differently with the content? The real learning in the course, as Kenn pointed out, comes from the give-and4ake with him and other participants. I would have allowed more time for that. Perhaps the instructor could have directly asked individuals to respond to certain issues. Other comments: Time commitment How
much time did you spend doing the work associated with the online seminar? 10-12 hours Did you work at home or on the job? Both places, I found it easier to work at home. Were any special arrangements made to facilitate
your participation in the online seminar? Kenn worked to understand and accommodate my other commitments. What were the challenges of doing the online
seminar work? Taking time out of an already full workweek is not easy. I tried to take care of it on my own. I should have asked for more help with my daily duties at the paper. Knowing what you know now, would you suggest
structuring the work time differently? The ebb and flow of the course ran a bit contrary to my work schedule. To make deadlines (they varied from noon to 6 p.m. to midnight for various assignments), I had to work ahead a bit. Other comments: Value of the training What was the overall value of the online
training for you? As I took the course I found our discussion on what we ought to shoot for in daily quality very invigorating. Looking back, I've got a notebook full of good ideas and techniques that I plan to boil down and share with my co-workers. What was the best part of the experience? Taking a step back and looking for better ways to do things we do every day has helped me "recharge" and raise my standards on the quality of our work. What do you wish had been better? I should have asked for more time to do the work. More than making a commitment to do it myself I should have worked with others here at the Daily Reflector to help lighten my daily load. What are some specific things you feel you
learned or benefited from as a result of this training? In the course, we synthesized better techniques for writing headlines and cutlines that match the story and make it better. Would you recommend this type of online
training to others? I would certainly recommend online training, especially over the alternative of one- or two-day conference seminars. I've been to some good ones (the session from the AJC projects editor on sharpening and shortening leads comes to mind), but many are easily forgotten. Other comments:
Autumn Gray - Waco Tribune-Herald Technology From a technological
standpoint (including such things as software, using the interface, etc.)
how difficult or easy was it to set up your computer so you could begin
the online training? Our tech person set it up, so it was real easy for me. Was it easy or difficult to use the software
and interface once they were set up? Several glitches occurred the first week by no fault of the system; it just took some getting used to. But through trial and error, navigating the system became fairly easy by the second week. Instructor Who was your instructor and what was your
instructor's background or current position? Mike Mahi, assistant metro editor at the Press-Enterprise in Riverside, Calif. Was the instructor effective in facilitating
the different facets of the online training? I think he was relatively effective... at least as effective as I think a person can be under the circumstances/limitations of an online seminar. If so, what is an example of what you liked
about the way he worked? Instructions on assignments were clear; feedback was given fairly routinely. If not, what do you wish the instructor
had done differently or better? I would have liked to have seen more one-on-one, live conversation. But again, with all the different schedules of participants and the responsibilities of our real jobs tugging at us throughout the day, I'm not sure that this is a realistic expectation. If Cox Newspapers or some other organization
were to set up their own online training program, would you recommend
this instructor? I'm not sure. Having no other instructor(s) with whom to compare him, I have no idea how Mike measures up. Other participants How many other participants were in your
seminar? About 12. What was the range of newspapers represented
by the other participants in terms of size and geography? They were from all over the nation, but I think I'm correct in saying their papers were all under 50,000 circulation. How would you describe the level of experience
of the other participants? It was all over the map, but few seemed to have experience at a variety of papers or at any fairly sizable papers. I would not describe the crew as one with a wealth of knowledge... but seemingly very capable and intelligent. Do you feel it was a good mix of participants? I would have liked to have seen some from larger papers and with more experience. Was there anything about the mix of participants
that hindered the training? Some who were participating from outside America had such a great time difference that communication became difficult. If you were putting together the group for
this online seminar, would you have done anything differently? Not necessarily, but I also don't know who my original pool consisted of. How would you assess the content of the
seminar in terms of the material you used, the exercises you completed,
and any other aspects of the seminar, such as chat groups, etc.? Many of the exercises
had little or no bearing on my current position as an assignments editor.
While I'm always glad to learn about other aspects of journalism, I had
hoped that five weeks of time would have had more of an impact on my daily
work. Do you feel the content was appropriate
to your level of experience? No. I thought it was pretty basic. If you were putting together the online
seminar, would you have done anything differently with the content? Yes, I would have directed it more to management, specifically management of reporters and how to develop stories as a team, beginning with the creation of a story idea to completion of the article. But the seminar would then probably have been called The Role of the City Editor or The Role of an Assignments Editor. Time commitment How much time did you spend doing the work
associated with the Online seminar? About 12-15 hours each week. Did you work at home or on the job? On the job. Were any special arrangements made to facilitate
your participation in the online seminar? It was made clear in the newsroom that I was participating in the seminar, and reporters and other editors were supposed to leave me alone in the morning hours. That was the time I had allotted to be online. What were the challenges of doing the online
seminar work? Newsroom distractions,
such as a ringing phone, a reporter asking me a question because he/she
forgot I was in the seminar, police scanner activity; combating the guilt
I sometimes felt for participating in the seminar when I knew there was
work to be done around me; trying to work with other seminar participants
when we all had such different schedules; the structure of the seminar,
in general, was also so loose that it was difficult to focus each day. Knowing what you know now, would you suggest
structuring the work time differently? I think the problems are somewhat inherent in this kind of a system. The only way I can think of to make it more efficient is to structure it more like a live seminar - one or two full days where all that participants do is the seminar. There's none of this back and forth between real work and seminar work or home life (if you were online at home) and seminar time. It would flow better and allow someone like me to "dig in" if it were THE focus of a day/week. Value of the training What was the overall value of the online
training for you? Not real valuable as far as journalism is concerned, but the process, the technological aspect, was probably valuable. I had never experienced something like this before. What was the best part of the experience? The live chats that were structured, or led, by our seminar director. They gave me a sense of unity and productiveness that I did not get from the seminar otherwise. What do you wish would have been better? I would have liked the content to have been more focused on duties of a city editor... but given that this was a copy editor seminar, I suppose that wasn't realistic. What are some specific things you feel you
learned or benefited from as a result of this training? I learned a little more about computer technology. As for the rest, I don't think I really learned anything new; much of the information that did apply to my job simply refreshed my memory and perhaps helped me to pay attention to some skills I may have become lax in implementing on a daily basis. Would you recommend this type of online
training to others? It depends on the person.
If the person were shy and liked computers, then yes. But for someone
such as myself who reacts more positively to personal contact and who
is not afraid to speak aloud in a group, probably not.
J. Ian Tennant - Waco Tribune-Herald Technology From a technological
standpoint (including such things as software, using the interface, etc.)
how difficult or easy was it to set up your computer so you could begin
the online training? One of our tech support people installed the software so that part was a breeze for me. Was it easy or difficult
to use the software and interface once they were set up? Other comments: Instructor Who was your instructor
and what was your instructor's background or current position? Dan Puckett, copy editor with the St. Petersburg Times. Was the instructor
effective in facilitating the different facets of the online training? Very helpful, patient and attentive. If so, what is an example of what you liked
about the way he worked? He was always prompt answering questions or making comments on our work. He is also witty which made the course more interesting, and he rapped knuckles when need be. If Cox Newspapers or some other organization
were to set up their own online training program, would you recommend
this instructor? Definitely. He cares passionately about the copy editor's craft and he sounds like he'd be fun to work with or for. Other participants How many other participants were in your
seminar? 11 What was the range of newspapers represented
by the other participants in terms of size and geography? Generally middle- to small-sized daily papers. How would you describe the level of experience
of the other participants? A wide level, from veteran sports copy editors to relative newcomers to the news side, and from a varied geographic area - from Washington state to Florida and points in between. Do you feel it was a good mix of participants? It seemed so. A number of them were excited about the course and kept up a steady stream of comments flying back and forth, sharing ideas and criticisms. Was there anything about the mix of participants
that hindered the training? Only that for whatever reason a couple of people dropped out, which left our study group down to two people, and that meant more work for us as we rotated leadership every week. There is no control over that, but it was unfortunate. If you were putting together the group for
this online seminar, would you have done anything differently? Not really. It was a good mix of people, keen to learn and share experiences. Content How would you assess the content of the
seminar in terms of the material you used, the exercises you completed,
and any other aspects of the seminar, such as chat groups, etc.? The content improved
as the course progressed and the exercises became more difficult and involved.
I was impressed with the cutline section because we used actual news photos
and cutline information, which made that section livelier than merely
talking about cutlines. Do you feel the content was appropriate
to your level of experience? Yes, as the course progressed. The first 10 days seemed too rudimentary (getting used to the software by posting resumes and chatting about our work environment) but then we got into the nuts-and-bolts stuff a lot more later on. If you were putting together the online
seminar, would you have done anything differently with the content? Perhaps just try to fit in more headline exercises and cut out frivolous chit-chat. Time commitment How much time did you spend doing the work
associated with the online seminar? At least 12-15 hours a week. Did you work at home or on the job? At the job. Were any special arrangements made to facilitate
your participation in the online seminar? Yes, I was instructed to come in an hour early each day and work another hour into my normal workday. So I was paid five hours overtime and worked into the job for another five hours. What were the challenges of doing the
online seminar work? Keeping up with the work, the readings, the exchanges with other participants. If you fell behind it was difficult to catch up, especially if, as in my case, you had work to do right afterwards. There were some long days. Knowing what you know now, would you suggest
structuring the work time differently? I'd have collapsed the
course down to four weeks, which may have made it more intensive, but
by the fifth week it seemed to be dragging and the interest was waning. Value of the training What was the overall value of the online
training for you? It provided a loose framework from which to better understand the craft of headline and cutline writing. I learned by doing and now I have a much better idea how to approach a story more professionally. What was the best part of the experience? Dan Puckett, the readings, most of the exercises, and my study group member Kery Petersen of the Gainesville Sun (she was easily the sharpest one of us all and contributed great heads and comments). If I had to narrow it, Puckett's comments, which were entertaining and informative. What do you wish would have been better? A shorter time period - five weeks seemed too long. What are some specific things you feel you
learned or benefited from as a result of this training? Some of the tips on how to approach headline writing were invaluable. If I get stuck I can refer back to material from the course to kick me out of a rut. Would you recommend this type of online
training to others? Yes, although on some days I might have preferred an all-day seminar to limit distractions and pointless chatter. But on the whole, you get out of it what you put into it. If you made an effort you learned more. Some students couldn't be bothered to write a headline to specs and so in my mind they weren’t learning much. Other comments: |