Breaker, breaker...Can you hear me now?

We need to get our system of communication in order.  So, this week we'll be talking about our Editor's Communication Hierarchy.  This should help keep everyone informed and responsive to the demands of publication. 

We will also be assigning new stories today while also wrapping up those left over from last cycle.  Remember, everyone should complete a Pre-write TONIGHT. 

You'll need to start thinking about your favorite beat you've covered so far.  After Winter Break we'll be assigning beats to be covered for an extended time period.  

Our new media server is in!  Once we've got it all set up we'll need to start thinking about our multimedia projects and how we can make the best use of the resources we have.  Time to start thinking outside the box people!

Speaking of resources and multimedia, we need to spend more time looking at other sites and talking about how we want to develop what we have.

Take a Break Week

Okay, so we've been go, go, going for weeks now.  With the holiday week coming up, I think it's time we slowed it down a bit and looked more closely at our craft and tied up some loose ends from our last publication.  Let's all get back on the same page.

• Monday: 
• Status Report - Where is everybody on their latest piece?  Pre-publication? Post-publication?
• Damage Control - Appropriate commentary on other schools' sites
• Tuesday:
• Lead, Nutgraph, Intro Exercises
• Wednesday:
• Photo Day - Is your picture worth 1,000 words?
• Thursday:
• Lead, Nutgraph, Intro Exercises continued
• Friday:
• Team building day - prepare one of three things to bring to class with you: a favorite family holiday recipe, memory or activity
• Story assignments - Pre-writing will be due by Monday at 8pm on the day we return from break

Working the System - Week 2

Monday

• Any pre-writing that hasn't been done for whatever reason needs to be submitted today
• Should be shared to me and Section Editors

Tuesday

• Rough Drafts due by 8pm - shared to Miss Edwards

Wednesday

• Photo due by 8pm - shared to Photo Editors

Thursday

• Final Draft due by 8pm - shared to Copy Editor and Editor-in-Chief
• Upload to site - see directions as necessary
• Submit any story requests by 8pm

Friday

• Publish pieces
• Assign new stories

This Week We Follow the Plan

We've been through one sort-of cycle and now we'll be going from the top all the way through.
Monday - Pre-writing will be due by 8pm. Remember to fill it out completely including your path of choice plan.  Get your interviews lined up TODAY!
Tuesday - Rough Draft is due by 8pm. Even if you don't have quotes, you should have a basic outline of what you will be writing about.  Remember that you can consider sources outside of interviews.  Get online and see what you can find and use to flesh out your article.
Wednesday - Photo for your piece is due by 8pm.  Even if it's not the photo.  It's a photo so your piece won't be held up for not having a photo.  Remember to consider what makes a great photo: background, lighting, engage with your subject!  Be creative.  Think outside the box when necessary.
Thursday - Final Draft is due by 8pm which means uploaded to the site.  You can still make changes once it's uploaded so don't freak out.  Ideally though, it would be your best work so it wouldn't need much.
Friday - Publication day!

Remember, if you don't follow this schedule this week, you'd follow it next week.  If you publish by the end of this week, you have more time between pieces, which might be nice.  :)  Refer to the Publication Cycle form available on the blog under Class Tools for more info on who to share to when.  Keep up the great work!
Mrs. Sine

Okay, scratch that...

So this was a learning week for us, but I think we've got a workable Publication Cycle in place.  It may ultimately require some tweaking, but I think it's a great start.  See the link under Class Tools for future reference.  Some important things to note, there will be consequences for not meeting deadlines.  We are deadline driven so it only makes sense.  Keep on task.  Keep on writing.  We're making great strides.  I'm proud of you.  :)
Mrs. Sine

So the Work Begins...

Okay, so the week begins with prewriting and getting our thoughts about the next piece in order.  If we're going stick to our two week time frame for publishing, we'll be publishing again this week.  Stories that need more time will publish early next week.  As of now, we don't have any guest speakers, but that may change.  I'll keep you posted.  Here's the week in it's simplest form:  

Monday - Sub, Mr. Donelly
Tuesday - Pre-writing and lots of business
Wednesday - Photos and editing
Thursday - Editing and photos
Friday - Uploading

Remember to title your pieces lastname+section+title and get them in on time.

Ahh...Post Publication Bliss...or not!

Okay, so we met our first deadline.  Now what?  Well, now the work begins.  We've got to get a system in place for regular updates on the site. If it stays stagnant for too long, our readers will jump ship.  So here's this week's plan.

• Monday - Reflection: What did we learn from Round 1 that we can apply to Round 2?
• Story ideas & new assignment system ideas.
• Loose ends
• Tuesday - For Round 2 we'll be doing things a little differently. 
• New requirements
• Walk through edits
• Wednesday - Guest Speaker: Joe Young - SDABJ, The Daily Aztec, NBC 7/39, SWC Sun, Liberating Style magazine 
• Thursday - Next story assignments.
• Walk through new requirements
• Friday - Guest Speaker: Sam Hodgson - Photo Editor VSD

We've got lots to do!  Let's keep the ball rolling!

Under Pressure!

Here we are, at the precipice of a new beginning.  This time on Friday, we will be going LIVE as an online news publication - PointerNews.com!  This week will be a busy one.  We need to remember our CORE VALUES of Dedication * Communication * Respect * Teamwork * Patience this week especially.  Everybody needs to step it up a notch  so we can come in on time!  This is the week that will show everybody what you've got to offer, what you're made of and that they can count on you!  Don't let Pointer News down!  Let's do this!

• Monday - share second draft with section editors in class then share to Jack by 3pm
• Tuesday - finish final edits in class then share to Carley by 3pm & get photos for pieces
• Wednesday - final pieces for 1st edition to be shared to Mr. Becker & photos to be shot for pieces by 3pm & Guest Speaker, Janell Lewis, producer at NBC 7/39
• Thursday - upload approved pieces and photos
• Friday - finishing touches and launch!

Your asSINEment for this week is to GET YOUR PIECE READY TO PUBLISH!

Taglines, Mottos, Etc. Hmmm...

Okay folks, we need to have a tagline for our publication.  What's it gonna be?
Some suggestions:

• Pointing the way to the news
• News: To the point
• News by students, for students and about students

Vote on your favorite or suggest a new one by adding a comment!

Week 4 - Launch in 3...2...

So we're almost there.  This week we'll be working on our pieces for our first online edition! You'll need to be working on two things simultaneously:

• writing, editing, revising your piece

                           AND

• learning how to use Wordpress

Your asSINEment for the week is your first article.  Be prepared to share it with your Section Editor by Thursday, September 30th. See the Beat List link on the class blog for an info needed on your assigned piece.

Happy writing!

SDABJ Pro for a Day!

San Diego Association of Black Journalists is offering a full day workshop, with breakfast and lunch included, all for FREE!  Register NOW!  Spaces will be filled first come-first served!

You ask, you get!

Here are some samples of News Staff Bios.  Some take a more streamlined, serious approach, others are completely off the wall.  There is also one professional site for reference.  Let's think about the tone we want to set.

• Mansfield HS News Staff Bios
• Legacy HS News Staff Bios
• LHS News Staff Bios
• Benilde-St. Margaret's HS News Staff Bios
• John Carroll HS News Staff Bios
• Professional News Team Staff Bios

Remember your purpose, decide on a tone and go with it.

Week 3 - Getting somwhere...I think

This week we will be delving into discussion about what Journalism is and how to write journalistically.
To that end, we'll be reading several articles (see below) and sharing out our learning in class.

• Article 1
• Article 2
• Article 3

On Tuesday, we'll have a guest speaker, Scott Lewis, of the Voice of San Diego.  Mr. Lewis will be talking about interviewing techniques, tips and style. 

On Wednesday, be prepared to discuss what you read and learned from the articles above.

On Thursday, we will be looking at your asSINEments in class so be prepared!

The asSINEment for the the week is to interview a classmate and write up a News Staff Bio for them.

Wanted: Leaders

Are you cut out to lead?  Do have the knowledge and the skills to make things happen? Review the job descriptions as needed and then fill out an application for the position you think is right for you!  Remember everyone is a Writer/Reporter, Photographer and Multimedia Journalist, so you don't need to complete an application for those. Good luck!

Job Descriptions

Job Application

Whaddaya think?

What did you think about the four designs for our site?  Which did you like best?  Why?  What add-ons do you think we need?

Week 2 - Decisions, Decisions, Decisions...

This week we'll be taking a look at our options for:

• the overall look of our publication
• publishing timeline or rhythm
• positions, beats and assignments
• go live date

We'll also be continuing on with our use and learning of Google Apps, namely:

• Google Docs
• Blogger

Finally, introducing Status Report and Debriefing Day

Your next asSINEment