Archive for February, 2012

College Media Memes: First-Person Features, Hipster Columnists & Newsroom Pizza (#acpsea)

Posted in College Media, Journalism, New Media, Student Newspaper on February 29, 2012 | 1 Comment »

In the midst of academia’s continued overwhelming meme madness, I have been putting together a growing list of memes focused specifically on collegemediatopia– its student staffers, faculty advisers, digital tools (and distractions), and style rules.  Below is a glimpse at what will hopefully soon be a gargantuan list featured on College Media Memes.

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To check them out in real time– and get all other CMM posts in your Facebook stream– click here and press Like.

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College Media Memes

Like College Media Memes!

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Say Hi in Seattle! Attend My Sex, Story Ideas & Digital Journalism Sessions at ACP 2012 (#acpsea)

Posted in Uncategorized on February 29, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

Beginning Thursday, the epicenter of the college media universe is Seattle, site of the 28th annual ACP National College Journalism Convention.  I’ll be there along with a bevy of other j-profs, advisers, professionals, and j-students extraordinaire.

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If you’re an attendee, please stop by most or all of my sessions, including back-to-back Friday afternoon chats on story ideas and ‘sexy journalism’ in the Renaissance Seattle Courtyard Ballroom.  Also, in all seriousness, bring a jacket and umbrella. :)

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Friday

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Also featuring Gabrielle Saulsbery, a student sex writer at Pace University

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Saturday

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Also featuring Mustang Daily editors Katelyn Sweigart & JJ Jenkins at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

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Iowa State Daily Drops Regular Print Feature After Racist Slang for Asians Published (#acpsea #ISU)

Posted in College Media, Journalism, Journalism Ethics, Story Ideas, Student Newspaper on February 28, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

Roughly a week after accidentally printing a racist slang for individuals of Asian descent, The Iowa State Daily is apologizing and dropping the regular print feature in which it was included.

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On the “games page” of each ISD issue, staff regularly run “Just Sayin,’” comprised of “reader submitted quotes, quips and anything that may have been overheard on or off campus.”  Last Tuesday, the paper printed nine reader submissions, including two that made reference to “squinteys.”  The first: “Just had a staring contest with a squintey.  They are fearless.”  The second:”I just saw a squintey inside the building. . . . They have started the invasion.”

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A screenshot of the Just Sayin' feature including the racist slang.

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In a column of apology by ISD editor-in-chief Jake Lovett, he wrote that editors first thought the term was a description for local squirrels.  In his words, “The individual who selected those for publication mistook the word for a central-Iowa colloquialism for ground squirrels– more popularly referred to as ‘squinny.’ . . . Since that day, we’ve heard from countless students, faculty and staff that we so obviously offended with the word that can be read as a racial slur.”

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As one letter to the editor, sent by “a collection of 53 students, faculty and staff” stated, “As members of the ISU community, it is hard for us to accept the racial slurs that were published in the Daily. Asians and Asian Americans are more than stereotypes. You may think this issue is not a big deal, but to the person who wrote the comments, to the editors who let this appear in the Daily, to you and me, our ignorance shows how little respect we have for each other. . . . In a world where there is a supposed to be emphasis on diversity, this is proof racism is alive and thriving. Sadly, this has been ‘our adventure at Iowa State University.’”

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The paper’s staff has since met with administrators and aggrieved students and discontinued the “Just Sayin’” feature.  As Lovett noted, “There will be good to come of this.  Because of this error in judgment, an otherwise-ignored but very important issue– racism and discrimination– has come to the forefront of the conversation on campus.  We hope change comes because of it.”

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A screenshot of the "games page" on which "Just Sayin'" was regularly published.

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Update: A separate ISD piece confirms the paper’s advertising department oversaw the “Just Sayin’” feature, not the editorial staff.

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Princeton Student’s Column Criticizing Annual Giving Prompts Online Comments War (#acpsea @Princetonian)

Posted in College Media, Journalism, New Media, Story Ideas, Student Newspaper, Uncategorized on February 28, 2012 | 2 Comments »

A Princeton University senior’s column in yesterday’s Daily Princetonian calling “the whole premise of annual giving . . . problematic” has spurred a wowzer of a debate in the online comments section.

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A majority of the commenters, proclaiming themselves Princeton students and alums, are nastily ripping into the student columnist as ungrateful for the education and Ivy League experiences she has received.  At least one commenter has even brought her family into the mix, prompting the student’s mother to comment back (hat tip IvyGate).

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In the column, Princetonian guest contributor Emily Rutherford’s main point is that simply passing along some money to one’s university is a narrow way of conceptualizing ‘giving back’.  As she writes, “We’re Princeton students. We can be a little more ambitious, dream a little bigger and morally challenge ourselves a bit more intensively.”

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She also takes issue with the idea that she is forever bonded to the university financially because it offered her enrollment and financial aid.  In her words, “I’d like to think I’ve shown my gratitude for my scholarship throughout the past four years: trying my hardest at my schoolwork, remaining very involved in institutional committee work and other kinds of campus activism and serving as a mentor to younger students. . . . And now my commitment is done. I didn’t sell Princeton my soul for a financial aid grant; I don’t owe the university for the rest of my life.”

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Many commenters disagree with her sentiments, calling them shameful, frustrating, selfish, and naive.  Her name has even been twisted from Emily Rutherford to Eminently Righteousford by some.  A sample comment: “I would’ve had more respect for this column if it was just a blown up picture of the [middle] finger.”

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A second: “This is a piece of sh*t. Donating isn’t about doing something ‘morally good,’ it’s about helping a university that has given you so much, and will not be able to do so for future generations if students stop giving. It is unlikely that at another university you would have been able to study abroad at Oxford, been openly and safely gay, or won a Marshall.”

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The oddest, and frankly most out-of-bounds, comment drags Rutherford’s mother into the fight: “Emily is a legacy, and her mom shares Emily’s disdain of Princeton (or perhaps, it was her mother who inculcated said disdain).”

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A portion of her mother’s reasoned response: “If I actually ‘disdained’ the university, I would not have encouraged my daughter to attend it, nor would I have supported her in all she’s done to try to make it an even better place.  (And her efforts, whether you value them or not, indicate that Emily herself does not “disdain” Princeton; a personal decision regarding Annual Giving is hardly the only– or best– measure of an individual’s commitment to a community.)”

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Western Kentucky’s Social Media Monitoring Becomes National Story; Interview with Herald EIC Cole Claybourn

Posted in College Media, Free Press Fights, Journalism, New Media, Student Newspaper on February 27, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

As I posted previously, The College Heights Herald, Western Kentucky University’s student newspaper, has alleged in recent coverage that WKU administrators have been aggressively monitoring and disciplining students for social media messages “deemed inappropriate.”

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According to the Herald, WKU has specifically been tracking some student tweets, even attempting to “shut down several Twitter parody accounts and is sending students to Judicial Affairs for tweets they consider negative against WKU.”  The story, which the Herald broke, has now gone national, popping up in a new Associated Press report.

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In the podcast chat below, College Heights Herald editor-in-chief Cole Claybourn discusses the paper’s coverage of the controversy and the issues some students and legal experts have with the school’s social media policy and routines.

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Interview: Cole Claybourn, Editor-in-Chief, The College Heights Herald

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Cole Claybourn, the editor-in-chief of The College Heights Herald at WKU, previously served as the paper's sports editor.

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Funny Journalism Video: Sh*t J-Schoolers Say (#Mizzou @JSchoolBuzz)

Posted in Uncategorized on February 27, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

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10 More Funny College Memes: Book Buybacks, One-Night Stands, the Health Center & Frat House Bathrooms

Posted in College Media, New Media on February 26, 2012 | 1 Comment »

As I’ve posted previously, the story of the month: college memes.  Campus-specific memes have been suddenly invading the Facebook streams of students at schools throughout the U.S., Canada, and parts of Europe.

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A rash of student media reports and social media chatter confirm that undergraduates’ online experiences are now hovering between “meme madness” and full-blown“meme mania.”  I recently shared a sampling of memes posted on college meme Facebook pages.  Building on that post’s popularity, I wanted to offer another glimpse at college memes being produced by students at schools nationwide.

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To see more, check out my post offering a growing list of all college and university Facebook meme pages.

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Related

College and University Meme Pages: A Starter Guide

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Monmouth College Student Newspaper Theft Linked to Article on Student Nativity Theft

Posted in College Media, Free Press Fights, Journalism, Student Newspaper on February 25, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

Roughly two-thirds of the 600 copies of The Courier distributed last week at Monmouth College were allegedly stolen and temporarily trashed, possibly in response to a Courier story about a separate alleged theft.

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The Courier recently ran a piece confirming charges had been dropped against five Monmouth students arrested and implicated in a mid-December scheme that involved the theft of a nativity scene and its subsequent placement outside the home of Monmouth’s president.  In exchange for the drop, the students– who were named by the Courier– agreed to participate in a community service diversion program.

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Some students are apparently upset about the paper’s continued coverage of the saga, prompting Courier EIC Andrew Drea to suspect the most recent related article triggered the thefts.  As one online commenter asks beneath the piece, “How many more times are you planning on bringing up this story? Are you trying to see if you can force these kids into a state of total humiliation and depression? . . . Is it a personal issue you have with them? In the eyes of the law this is over. In your eyes it isn’t over until you push one or all to their own destruction. Seriously, what is your problem?”

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Fortunately, this time around, the censorship tale does have a somewhat happy ending.  As a Student Press Law Center report confirms, within a few hours of learning about the theft, Monmouth administrators identified, contacted, and convinced the student suspects to return the papers to the racks (!).

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Student Press Headline of the Day: ‘Protect Your Balls’ (@IowaStateDaily #ISU)

Posted in College Media, Journalism, Student Newspaper on February 25, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

The headline for the online photo slideshow in The Iowa State Daily mirrors the name of the event being featured: “Protect Your Balls,” a charity dodgeball tournament aimed at raising money and awareness for prostate and testicular cancer screenings and treatment.

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Western Kentucky University Monitoring, Attempting to Silence Some Student Social Media Chatter (#WKU)

Posted in College Media, Free Press Fights, Journalism, New Media, Student Newspaper, Teachable Moment on February 24, 2012 | 1 Comment »

A rash of recent news coverage and editorial comment in The College Heights Herald, Western Kentucky University’s student newspaper, alleges a somewhat creepy campaign of administrative social media oversight and intimidation.

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WKU has apparently been monitoring student tweets and Facebook status updates, even attempting to “shut down several Twitter parody accounts and is sending students to Judicial Affairs for tweets they consider negative against WKU.”  Specifically, “Corie Martin, director of WKU’s Creative Web Services, told the Herald she checks the WKU hashtag daily and sends information she deems inappropriate to Judicial Affairs.”

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Additionally, WKU forced a temporary shutdown and a slight makeover to a Twitter account parodying the school’s president Gary Ransdell.  As Ransdell later posted on a WKU Facebook account: “We, at WKU, have become particularly conscious lately of some who are misusing social media and using some poor judgment. So my message here is ‘Be smart.’ Use social media thoughtfully; always remember what you send is permanent and can be viewed years from now. Employers do their homework. They can and will track ways in which prospective employees have used social media. We, at WKU, track such things as well.”

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Along with this stated educational objective to social media oversight, officials mention a responsibility to protect members of the WKU community from online racism and cyber-bullying.  But such noble aims have been drowned out by an overly broad monitoring and enforcement effort, including a social media policy in the student handbook that Student Press Law Center attorney advocate Adam Goldstein chides as “not in the vicinity of constitutional.”

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In an editorial response, headlined “Students Deserve First Amendment Rights,” the Herald notes, “It’s unreasonable to think that every day is perfect for 21,000 students at WKU. Students complain about busy-work assignments. They can’t find a parking space near where they needed to be five minutes ago. They aren’t happy that WKU’s men’s and women’s basketball teams are in the shadow of 20-loss seasons.  Life happens, and students are likely to share some unpleasant or frustrating experiences.  They should not be threatened with repercussions.”

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Oregon Daily Emerald-Oregonian Joint Reporting Project: A Podcast Chat with the Emerald’s Deborah Bloom

Posted in Uncategorized on February 24, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

Earlier this week, an investigative report involving a profitable student housing development and a popular former athletic director at the University of Oregon ran simultaneously in The Oregon Daily Emerald and The Oregonian.

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The synchronous publication was the last component of an in-depth “joint reporting project” that from start to finish involved a collaboration between the highly-regarded student and professional papers.  Specifically, Emerald freelance staff writer Deborah Bloom and Oregonian business reporter and investigations team member Jeff Manning worked in lockstep on the planning, reporting, and writing of the 1,800-word feature.

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A brief note above the story in the ODE confirms, “This is the start of an ongoing effort by the Emerald to partner with professional newsrooms to produce public-interest journalism that matters to Oregonians.”

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From my perspective, this is also another prime example of an evermore-frequent alliance between professional and student news media that will occur as the journalism landscape continues its topsy-turvy 21st-century ride.  Kudos to ODE editor-in-chief Tyree Harris and publisher Ryan Frank.

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In a brief podcast chat, the Emerald‘s Bloom discusses how she became involved in the project and the benefits and challenges of the cross-paper and student-professional collaboration.

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Interview: Deborah Bloom, Oregon Daily Emerald

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Campus Restroom Graffiti Deserves a Fresh Report (@TheSeahawk #graffiti)

Posted in College Media, Free Press Fights, Journalism, Story Ideas, Student Newspaper on February 23, 2012 | 2 Comments »

Only GOD can judge me!  I eat yogurt.  Where words fail, music speaks.  Sidewalks are just suggestions.  You never realize how shallow your life was until you become a mother.  Please let us express ourselves.

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In the photo, the bathroom stall is littered with these random statements, and many more.  Altogether, they equal a funny, quirky, and one-of-a-kind glimpse into the minds and moods of students and staff at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

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As James Edmonds, a staff writer for The Seahawk student newspaper, argues in a recent op-ed, “The bathroom stalls contain some of the more honest writings of the students on this campus. We do a ton of writing to get through our courses, but all of it is written for someone else with the knowledge that it will be judged. There is no fear of judgment when writing on a bathroom stall because no one will know you wrote it.”

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On the door of the single stall featured in the photo accompanying Edmonds’s write-up, there are comments on various aspects of religion, politics, the economy, and original thought.  For example, addressing the gay marriage debate, there is a drawing of three stick-figure couples holding hands– a man and a woman, two men, and two women.  Above it, a three-word summation has been scrawled: “Love is love.”  Of course, nearby, there is simply the word poop.  It’s a mixed bag.

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Bottom line: It’s time for a stall stakeout or a more general graffiti report.

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Questions for a Related Report

What is written as graffiti on various parts of campus?  Are there any trends, common sayings, styles of writing or general themes that emerge?  What are the most offbeat words, sayings, acronyms, and drawings?  What are the funniest or most interesting running conversations?  What are the most popular campus spots to sport graffiti?  What is the school’s response to the mark-ups?  Any opinions or memories of funny graffiti from those tasked with cleaning them up?  What are students’ responses to the scrawls?  In respect to Edmonds’s opinion, do students feel any particular statements speak for the student body or address current concerns?  Are any students known for their campus graffiti work?  Do art or design classes incorporate graffiti styles or perspectives in any way into their lessons or exercises?  Through a check of your student paper archives, have there been any especially famous or controversial graffiti incidents on campus (a defaced iconic statue perhaps or a protest mark-up of a presidential portrait)?

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Multimedia Options

1) Put together a photo slideshow of the standout or most repeated graffiti on campus.  2) Produce an interactive standalone site that features graffiti notes touching on major campus issues, with rollover or pop-up captions objectively explaining the issues being addressed, with links to related coverage for those wanting to learn more.  3) Create a humorous set of memes featuring images of popular campus spots.  Overlay each meme image with bits of “digital graffiti,” culling words and phrases from lighthearted student suggestions.  The conceit: What should be scrawled on certain buildings and statues?

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Offbeat Option

With school officials’ approval, create a temporary free speech wall, enabling students to write whatever they want.  Grab video or photos of students scrawling on it or strolling by it.  Assess the themes or debates that emerge.  Gauge student reactions to the wall’s messages and general existence.

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10 ‘College Freshman’ Memes: A Glimpse at How a New Hampshire Senior’s Pic is Being Used (#Memes)

Posted in College Media, Journalism, New Media, Student Newspaper, tagged , , , , on February 23, 2012 | 2 Comments »

As I wrote in my previous post, University of New Hampshire senior Griffin Kiritsy is currently a major part of the college memes phenomenon– without his control or consent.  He is featured in a photo being used as the so-called “College Freshman” meme.

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The New Hampshire student newspaper confirms it is a four-year-old picture of him originally published in a Reader’s Digest story.  Over the summer it popped up on quickmeme.com and has recently gone mega-viral.  Below are 10 sample memes employing Kiritsy’s pic.

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College Media Memes

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The Shocking True Story of How a New Hampshire Student Became a Meme (@TheNewHampshire #Memes)

Posted in College Media, Journalism, New Media, Student Newspaper on February 23, 2012 | 2 Comments »

A fascinating new feature in The New Hampshire reveals that one of the more popular college meme images is a four-year-old photo of an actual University of New Hampshire student.  (Hat tip to New Hampshire editorial page and online editor Thomas Gounley.)

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As the paper reports, while a UNH freshman, Griffin Kiritsy “was interviewed and photographed for an article in Reader’s Digest about technology affecting people’s everyday lives. It was featured in both the print and online version of the magazine.”  Sporting jeans and his sister’s UNH hoodie, he posed wearing a backpack and holding a mobile phone, seemingly embodying the clean-cut classic collegian 2.0.

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It has become the photo that defines him.  Over the summer it popped up on quickmeme.com and has recently gone mega-viral as part of the exploding college memes phenomenon.  It is known as the “College Freshman” meme.

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Kiritsy, now a senior, told New Hampshire staff writer Joel Kost (kudos on a great piece): “It’s a weird experience.  At first it wasn’t a big deal, but now people are coming up to me and are like, ‘hey, you’re that guy.’ . . . I think it’s hilarious.  There are a million images of college freshmen online, and they picked me.”

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10 ‘College Freshman’ Memes: A Glimpse at How a New Hampshire Senior’s Pic is Being Used

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Ball Bearings Magazine Story: ‘A Kiss Isn’t Just a Kiss’; An Interview with Ball State J-Student Lindsey Gelwicks

Posted in College Media, Journalism, Magazine Journalism, Story Ideas, tagged , , , on February 22, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

In the photo, the two college students from Indiana are leaning toward each other, eyes locked amorously, lips puckered in anticipation– and hands blocking their mouths.  The odd last detail is a playful symbol of the couple’s vow to save their first kiss until after marriage.

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The image ran alongside a recent report in Ball Bearings Magazine at Ball State University focused on the small segment of students who have pledged to refrain from kissing until their wedding day, even as hook-ups and half-night stands take place in bars and dorm rooms all around them.

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During her reporting, Lindsey Gelwicks, a Ball State junior and Ball State Daily News section editor, found that for students saying no to lip service “a kiss isn’t just a kiss.”  There are religious considerations, family expectations, peer pressures, emotional intimacy issues, and the media-created fairy tale of what the experience is supposed to be.

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As Ball State psychological science professor George Gaither told her, “We get these ideas of just how magical kissing is. Think about all the different Disney movies and how much that one kiss, how just important that is for everything, for solving all the problems that the couple has and overcoming all kinds of obstacles.  It all boils down to that first kiss.”

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Lindsey Gelwicks, a Ball State University junior, is an assistant features editor at The Ball State Daily News.

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In the Q&A below, Gelwicks talks about how she first stumbled onto the “Waiting to Kiss” story and what the featured students told her about their just-say-no decision and the benefits they believe it has brought into their lives.

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Q: What initially piqued your interest about this niche group of students playing the kiss waiting game?

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A: I had actually started thinking about the idea around a year ago.  I was getting lunch with a couple of my friends, and we began talking about a Christian group on campus that one of them used to be involved in.  She mentioned that some of the girls in her Bible study group wanted to save their first kiss for marriage.  When I got home, I wrote the idea down on a sticky note and stuck it to my bulletin board where it stayed until I finally had the opportunity to develop it.  I never thought I would be able to make it into a full feature-length story.

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To read the rest of the piece, check out my USA TODAY College “Campus Beat” column.  Click here or on the screenshot below.

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