Mar 10th, 2011
Guest Speaker: Jim Iovino
Jim Iovino, editor from NBC Washington, came and spoke to our Comm. 361 class today. He spoke to us about online journalism and how to make it better than the next person.
Copyright: megancloherty.com
Iovino started his journalism working as a writer for a newspaper in Pittsburgh, then transferred over to TV, then was a senior news editor in Columbus, Ohio, then finally came to Washington, D.C. to pursue his career as an online journalist.
“I wanted to be ahead of the next curve,” Iovino said. “I knew that there was a transition from print journalism to online journalism and I was ready to get into it.”
He showed us a video that Pat Collins did during the DMV snowstorm of 2010. The video, which can be viewed here was just an interview of a woman who walked 6 milesin the snow for a free sandwich. Iovino explained that Pat is good at what he does because he’s not afraid to take chances and cover stories others don’t even think of.
Iovino said, “Find an interesting angle to a story that you think nobody else is going to have and OWN it.” Don’t be afraid to try something different and see how it does.
Iovino explained how there’s a lot of collaborating on the NBC Washington website. He showed us the blog The 20 which has various blog posts from other journalists in which people can comment on.
How do you set yourself apar from others?
Iovino explained how, “You want to be the first one out there with the story. You want to be able to say that YOU were the first one to break the story.”
He also showed us a really cool part of the website called “Adept or Inept” which is an original series produced by American University’s Spring 2011 Intro to Studio Television class. It’s a site compiled of student produced videos that has ordinary people learn how to do certain skills such as become a male cheerleader, dance hip-hop, or even bellydance. At the end of the video viewers can then vote whether they found the person to be adept or inept to the skill. Very cool!
In regards to video, Iovino explained that, “People love to see rough footage.”
Sometimes less really is more. Very helpful presentation.
