Final

            Throughout Practicum this semester, I have tried new things and learned a lot. I started writing for the Southern News Network where I learned a little bit about how to write a broadcast script. I also combined my interest of fitness with Wellness TV to start the “Fitness with Sarah” segment.  During my Into to Broadcast class I discovered that I like the role of producer, but my Practicum experiences have made me even more determined to work as a reporter or news anchor. Perhaps during my career I can combine the two, or over time I will definitely decide on one or the other. For now, I’m going to focus on being a news anchor.

            I aspire to be a journalist for a news show.  I have since high school when I anchored the morning news show.  Since then, I’ve kept those inspirations and will continue to work hard to meet that goal.  So I decided to research the career of Diane Sawyer.

            Diane was born and raised in Kentucky. She received a B.A. from Wellesley

College, a women’s liberal arts school in Massachusetts. Afterwards she completed a year of law school before she decided to turn her career towards broadcasting. In 1967, she began her broadcasting career working as a reporter for WLKY-TV in Louisville, Kentucky until 1970. During the mid 1970’s she was part of the team that wrote President Nixon’s memoirs. In the 1980’s, she spent nine years working for CBS news. There she covered three elections, co-anchored the CBS Morning News, and became the first female correspondent of “60 minutes”.

            In 1989 Diane moved to ABC and became the co-anchor of “Primetime News”. Ten years later she became co-anchor of “Good Morning America” until 2009 when she took over ABC “World News”. Currently, Diane Sawyer is the lead anchor of ABC’s “World News”.  Through traveling the world and reporting on numerous topics including many political debates and elections, she has become a well-respected journalist. She has even made various well-received documentaries that have been shown during prime time.

            After researching the career of a successful journalist and news anchor I learned how much time is invested in becoming a news anchor. She began her career over 40 years. Over those years she accomplished a lot and built an impressive resume, but that is still a lot of time to get to the level she is at now. However, I know that I am a dedicated person, I have perseverance and I have the drive to become a news anchor. 

36 Hours

Wednesday December 7- Today Shannah and I reshot the fitness with Sarah segment for Wellness TV. We originally shot it yesterday, but there wasn't any audio. Even today the audio was a struggle and made the shoot a lot longer. It was spotty and would only pick up certain things. Everything appeared to be plugged in properly so we couldn't figure out what the problem was. Eventually we did get it shot. 1 hour

Total Practicum Hours - 36 Hours

35 Hours

Tuesday December 6 - Today I met with Shannah for the Fitness with Sarah shoot. I helped her set up and then went through the moves that I went over with Mike from the Wellness Center yesterday. 1 hour

Total Practicum Hours - 35 Hours

34 hours

Monday December 5 - Today I met with Michael at the Wellness Center. We discussed the upcoming Wellness TV show for this week and also talked about ones next semester. We discussed exercises, sets and reps. Then we went over the proper form of the exercises and how to target them to beginner or more advanced exercisers.  1 hour

Total Practicum Hours - 34 Hours

33 Hours

Wednesday November 30 - Today I thoroughly researched and studied my exercises for the Fitness with Sarah segment. I chose to do a "couch workout" since people could be spending some extra time on their couch during the holiday season so it would be an easy workout place. I wrote the script I will be using, sent it to Michael at the Wellness Center for approval and set up a time to shoot with Shannah. 1 hour

Total Practicum Hours - 33 Hours

32 Hours

This week I submitted an article to The Southern. Its a story for my News Reporting class based off of news found on a social media website.

Florida Southern has announced via Twitter that most of the buildings and areas on campus are now available for check-ins for Foursquare, a Blackberry and iPhone app, and is now encouraging students to use it.

            Foursquare is a cell phone app, with more than 10 million users worldwide, that syncs to users’ Facebook and Twitter accounts.

            According to the Foursquare website, “Foursquare helps you explore the world around you. With Foursquare you can unlock your world and find happiness just around the corner. Meet up with friends, discover new places, and save money using your phone.”

            Foursquare advertises that it’s so simple to use that all users need is a cell phone, Foursquare and a passion for exploration. To use Foursquare, users should download the app, and then sync it to their Facebook or Twitter so they can see where their friends are checking in. Next, start checking into locations your phone will recognize based off of a GPS location. Users can even comment on locations to let their friends know where to go and what to avoid.

            The FSC check-in locations are not only for students, but for visitors too. “A visitor who wanted to explore the FSC campus could check in at different locations and learn new things about a specific area on campus,” Assistant Director of Admissions Arden Mitchell said.

            Some Florida Southern check-in locations include Polk Science Building, Buckner Building, Student Solutions Center, Ordway, Annie Pfeiffer Chapel, Danforth Chapel, Tutu’s, the waterdome, campus safety, the intermural field and resident halls.

            The more you use Foursquare, the more you get out of it. For checking into a location a number of times, you can earn badges. If you check in more than anyone else you can become mayor. According to Foursquare, “You don’t get a key to the city, but you might get rewards from certain businesses just for being a loyal customer.”

            “What if there was an FSC badge that someone could earn by checking in at every FSC location?” Mitchell said. “That would be pretty cool. I believe that is something in the works.”

         Some FSC students are really enjoying it. “You have to think of it as a game,” sophomore Erin Sullivan said. “You earn badges and points, and can become mayor. Yes people can tell where you are, but that’s the fun of it. It’s just a way to hang out with friends.”

            Currently, there are 357 Foursquare users at Florida Southern and have been almost 3,000 check-ins.

32 Hours

Tuesday November 29 - Today I wrote 6 stories for Southern News Network. 6 hours.

Get into the Christmas Spirit and come out to the Annual Lakeland Christmas Parade. It starts this Thursday December 1 at 7pm in downtown Lakeland.

This Saturday December 3 is the Florida Southern Christmas Gala. There are two showings at 2:30 and 7:30 in Branscomb Auditorium, but students are encouraged at attend the 2:30 show.

Come out to the annual campus Christmas tree lighting this Sunday December 4 at 7pm in Lynn’s Garden. If you can’t make that event, the McKay Tree Lighting will be held next Wednesday December 7 following the annual Christmas Lessons and Carols at 7pm in the Annie Pfeiffer Chapel.

Looking for volunteer opportunities? The Life & Cultural Center is hosting a Holiday Canned-Food Drive for Lighthouse Ministries. To help out, bring non-perishable food items in the red cardboard box outside the Moc Mart.

Do you like wrapping gifts and helping others? Hope Hospice would like group or individual volunteers to help wrap gifts at Lakeside Village from December 1-24. Anyone interested should contact Amy Arnold at amy.arnold@hopehospice.org or Rachel Smith at rsmith@flsouthern.edu.

The Florida Southern Provost Dr. Kyle Fedler has announced that students will now be allowed to wear unlimited academic cords or medallions and one additional non-academic cord. Along with the help of SGA President M.G. Matarazzo, the Faculty Senate decided to change their previous decision, however they reserve the right to prohibit any decorations that they deem too elaborate or innapporopraite.

 Total Practicum Hours - 32 Hours

26 Hours

Thursday November 17 - Today I shot Fitness with Sarah with Kati and Nadine. We ran into a few problems on this shoot, it didn't go as smoothly as it normally does. First it took a while to track down a camera because of a miscommunication. Then we had some issues getting the audio correct. Nadine have to leave for class after a while, so then it was just me and Kati working. Eventually we did get everything together and finish the shoot. This segment was how to stay fit and healthy throughout the holiday season. The whole shoot lasted 2 hours.

Total Practicum Hours - 26 hours

24 hours

Wednesday November 16 - Today I went to Shannah to interview nurse Betty for the dip segment of Wellness TV. I helped with the camera set up and then interviewed her. Afterwards I got some b-roll for the segment. 1 hour 30 mintues

Total Practicum Hours - 24 hours

22 hours 30 minutes

Tuesday November 15 - Today I wrote the script for my Fitness with Sarah segment for Wellness TV. For this show I'm going to be concentrating on how to not gain weight and how to stay fit around the holidays since Thanksgiving and Christmas are coming up soon. I also worked with Kati and Nadine to come up with a time for the shoot. 1 hour

Total Practicum Hours - 22 hours 30 minutes

21 hours 30 minutes

Monday November 14 - Today I wrote 5 stories for the news show. 5 hours

Starting Saturday, November 19, students will be able to use their Moc Bucks on their swipe cards at the concession stand located at the Jenkins Field House. This will allow students to get snacks throughout the basketball season.

Looking for a way to volunteer and help others? The Community Service office will be collecting Christmas shoeboxes until December 15 for the New Missions Haiti Outreach Program. Anyone interested should contact Rachel Smith at rmsith@flsouthern.edu.

Are you looking for a way to improve your swim skills or just get in shape? Florida Southern will now be offering discounted swim lessons. FSC students, faculty and staff will be able to receive 4 private 1-hour lessons with a certified water safety instructor for only $40, instead of the usual $60. Anyone interested can sign up at the Wellness Center front desk.

Just a reminder, November 19 will be the last day to students to register without a late fee for spring classes. After the 19^th, students will be charged $100.

Southern’s Got Talent will be held this Friday November 18. The show, presented by ACE, will be held in Branscomb at 7pm.

This weekend, the Department of Theatre presents Moliere’s comedy “Tartuffe”. This comedy tells the outrageous story of a penniless scoundrel and a religious pretender. There will be three chances to see this show at the Buckner Theatre: Friday November 18 and Saturday November 19 at 7:30pm or Sunday November 20 at 2:30pm.

 Total Practicum Hours - 21 hours 30 minutes

16 hours 30 minutes

Thursday November 3 - Today I reshot parts of Fitness with Sarah with Kirsten. We had the full shoot the day before, but some of the shots that we thought were there didn't record. This wasn't something we realizes until capturing, so we had to go back and reshot parts of it. 30 minutes
Total Practicum Hours - 16 hours 30 minutes

16 hours

Wednesday November 2 - Today I met with Sami and Shannah and we went to safety to interview Bill Carew for this week's Wellness TV package. My job was to ask him the questions and interview him.
Total Practicum Hours - 16 hours

15 hours

Wednesday November 2- Today I worked with Kirsten and shot fitness with Sarah for Wellness TV. I spoke about how to prevent injuries when working out and gave simple tips on how to avoid injuries. 1 hour
Total Practicum Hours - 15 hours

14 hours

Tuesday November 1 - Today I wrote the script for my Fitness with Sarah segment and wrote out the exercises I will be showing. I also spoke to Cynthia about the segment, and set up a time to shoot with Kirsten. 1 hour
Total Practicum Hours - 14 hours

13 hours

Wednesday October 19 - Today I planned for the Fitness with Sarah shoot for the 4th episode of Wellness TV this semester. I wrote out what exercises and tips I will be using and a script to use. Now I have to set up a date and time to shoot the segment. This took 30 minutes

Total Practicum Hours - 13 Hours

12 hours 30 minutes

Tuesday October 18- Today I worked with Taylor and Kati for Wellness TV. We shot the fitness with Sarah segment. I showed the girls how to work the tripod and the camera and how to shoot from different angles. Then I did 3 exercises that the girls then shot. The whole shot was 1 hour.

Total Practicum Hours - 12 hours 30 minutes

11 hours 30 minutes

Tuesday October 4 - Today I shot the Fitness with Sarah segment for Wellness TV with Maggie in the Wellness Center. I helped with the camera set up and then she shot me doing 3 different exercise and giving one tip. 1 hour

Total Practicum Hours - 11 hours 30 minutes

10 hours 30 minutes

Monday October 3 - Today I discussed the Fitness with Sarah segment for Wellness TV with Cynthia and Maggie, who will be shooting this week. With came up with a schedule for shooting. I then wrote the script I will be using and wrote out the fitness tips and exercises I will be showing for the segment. 1 hour

Total Practicum Hours - 10 hours 30 minutes

9 hours 30 minutes

Wednesday September 28 - Today I met with Michelle and we shot the Fitness with Sarah segment for Wellness TV. I did four different exercises that she shot from multiple angles.
1 hour

Total Practicum Hours - 9 hours 30 minutes

8 hours 30 minutes

Sunday September 25- Today I spoke with Cynthia about the Fitness with Sarah segment for Wellness TV. We came up with a shooting schedule and I wrote a rough script of what exercises I would be showing and tips I would be giving. 1 hour

7 hours 30 minutes

Thursday September 8 - On this day I  went to the Sports Meeting. We discussed upcoming comings and sporting events to go shoot. This lasted for 30 minutes

Saturday September 10 - On this day I went with Lauren Lundell to help her shoot the Hall Wars event for her News Reporting class. We shot all the different events and then afterwards interviewed both students and event coordinators. During the interviews I helped with audio. We were there from 11-1 2 hours.

Total Practicum Hours - 7 hours 30 minutes

5 hours

Tuesday September 7- I wrote a story for the Southern News Network. I wrote a blurb on Lighthouse Ministries  needing volunteers. 1 hour

I attending the Southern News Network Meeting. We went over the shooting schedule and ran through lines. Anna talked about what each person would be doing on the days we actually shot. This took 30 minutes.

I did a shoot for Wellness TV with Cynthia. We shot a segment on fitness tips. This took 1 hour.

2.5 hours.
Total Practicum Hours - 5 hours

Hours - 2 hours 30 minutes

Tuesday August 30 - Sports Show Meeting - The staff of the sports show met in the studio in the afternoon. John spoke about upcoming shows, shoots, and schedules as well as went over some basics. 1 hour

Wednesday August 31- Southern News Meeting - This was my first Southern News meeting. This is something I plan to get more involved in. The staff spoke about a schedule and the show for the following week. I am writing a story on Lighthouse Ministries needing more volunteers. 30 mins

Thursday September 1- Interlachen Meeting - The staff of the Interlachen met Thursday nights. New members of the staff were introduced. We came up with a new meeting time. Shoot schedules were passed around and I signed up to shoot Convo. 1 hour

Total Practicum Hours - 2 hours 30 minutes 

Final

            After almost completing my second semester of college, I feel that I learned more and more each week. For me, this semester has been about learning how to work new equipment and programs, meeting deadlines and finding a balance for everything in my schedule.

            Over the past semester I have become much more comfortable with a lot of the equipment. I have gone to different shoots and learned more about filming, getting b roll and working the mics. I saw how to shoot from different angles and perspectives. I learned the difference between a close up shot focusing on just one person and shooting the whole scene. In addition to the camera, I am now more familiar with the recorder for interviews. After doing a few different interviews, I saw how to form questions and have the interview develop.

            Throughout the semester I also learned a lot about different programs on the computer. I learned the basics of editing in Final Cut Pro. Originally, I didn’t realize how involved editing is, but it is very challenging. I learned the “basic formula” for putting together a good package. It should include natural sound, interview, different shots that all work together to form the story.

            The second thing I dealt with a lot this semester was meeting deadlines. Deadlines are something that I have always had to deal with in the past. However, this semester really put the pressure on to meet deadlines and make sure all of my work is completed by a specific time. The biggest example of this was working on the Interlachen. We had to work on layout, take pictures, shoot and write about different clubs, departments, and events. Besides just the Interlachen, there were more frequent deadlines working on Wellness TV. As opposed to one deadline at the end of the year, there is a deadline every other week to have the packages completed. This taught me that when I commit to something, it is crucial that I follow through.

            The next thing that I learned so far this semester was how to find a balance between all of my commitments. It’s a challenge to work, maintain my grades, study and do practicum hours. Part of this is setting goals for myself. If I know that deadlines are approaching I am able to set a number of practicum hours I need to complete each week and have a homework schedule set up. I was inspired by the organized calendars from both the Interlachen and Wellness TV, so I made one for myself. That really helped me in finding a balance.

            Overall, this semester, particularly the second half, has been full of learning experiences. I’ve learned more about working in groups, about working different equipment, and about working on things by myself. I feel that I am now more experienced, and ready to continue getting better in my major. 

Shoots and Interviews - 5 hours

Saturday April 9 - Today I went with Lauren to help her with her project. We went to a Flying Tigers game sponsored by Big Brothers Big Sisters. We interviewed different bigs and littles. I learned how to work a . This was 2 hours.

Tuesday April 12 - Today I went to another Big Brothers Big Sisters interview. This time, a woman from the organization came to give a presentation on it. We saw her presentation and interviewed her afterwards. During this time, I became more familiar with the . This was 1 hours

Saturday April 16- Today I went to film the triathaon in Lakeland. We were there for two hours and shot the athletes crossing the finish line and ending the race. We got shots from both infront and behind the finish line.

Total Practicum Hours - 30 hours

Advanced TV Shoot - 2 hours

Thursday April 7 - Today I worked with Lauren Lundell and Lauren Hernandez to shoot the Acting for the Camera Class for their Advanced TV class. We shot 2 different scenes but shot them many times and frmo different angles. A lot of the shoot today focused on closeup shots of each person. The shoot lasted 2 hours.

Total Practicum Hours - 25 hours

Baseball game shoot, Interlachen Meetings, Interlachen work - 6 hours

Tuesday March 15- Today we had an Interlcahen staff meeting. At this point, the yearbook was almost finished. We discussed the things that still needed to be finished and the quickly approaching deadline.

Monday March 21- Today I worked on some of the final things on the yearbook. We worked on going through the different portraits and naming students to make sure everyone was accounted for.

Saturday March 26 - Today I went to the baseball games with other members of Moc Sports. I worked with John and Justin. We shot the game from different angles and I learned how to shoot a baseball game.

Hours since spring break - 10 hours
Total Practicum Hours - 23 hours

Interlachen and Moc Sports - 4 hours

Tuesday March 8 - Today the Interlachen staff had our weekly meeting. From this meeting, the deadline was 10 days away. We also took the staff photo for the yearbook. 1 hour

Wednesday March 9 - I worked with John Luti on the Detroit Tigers baseball game package. He showed me all of the basics of final cut pro and showed me how to put a package together beginning to end with both video and sound. 3 hours

Hour this half of the semester - 4 hours
Total Practicum Hours - 17 hours

Southern Sports Network Studio Work - 3 hours

Wednesday February 23 - Today I met John Luti in the studio and he taught me lots of new things. He showed me how to put together different packages, like the "formula" of nat sound, and then an interview, and not to just show an interview too long but its better to put b roll over it. I learned how the work the mics, the sound, and the cameras. He showed me how an interview would work sitting at the desk, or how to actually anchor a show. For example, how to switch back and forth between the two cameras. He basically showed me the basics of how studio runs. We are now planning to work on the Mocs-Tigers game package after spring break so he can show me how to really put a package together.

Total Practicum Hours - 13 hours

Practicum Midterm

Now that I have almost a semester and a half finished of college, I know that broadcast is definitely the right field for me. I have learned the basic things like how to work the camera, how to interview, and how to write. I have improved my communication skills by learning how to work with large groups of people, meet deadlines, and prioritize my goals. Overall I think the most important thing that I have learned is the direction that I want to head in this field. My ultimate goal is to be a news anchor.

Being a news anchor has been my dream for a while now. During my junior and senior years of high school I anchored for the morning news program. I loved getting ready each morning in the studio. It was so fun being on camera, delivering my lines and getting to be the face of the morning show. Besides, just enjoying being on camera I like the journalism and reporting side of broadcasting. I got a taste of this in high school, as well. I reported for the school newspaper in addition to a weekly column that ran in two Philadelphia papers. These experiences combined lead me into the broadcasting and reporting field.

I entered Florida Southern with these intentions and months later still have the same goal. I did some research to find out what the job of a news anchor consists of and what the duties of a news anchor are. As I already knew, being an anchor involves more than just reading lines given to you on a teleprompter. It’s a lot of hard work, long hours, knowledge, and research. From what I have found, the basic duties of a news anchor are to investigate, interview, write, anchor and edit packages. It is our duty to keep the public informed of current events, the news that is going on in the local cities and even across the world.

In order to be a good anchor, you have to be an excellent reporter. This is done by finding reliable leads, interviewing credible witnesses or sources, doing some investigation and eventually developing the research into stories. Once you have the information, you have to use communication skills to write about it in an informative, yet interesting way. Once it is written, the news then has to be delivered on air in a confident, presentable manner. Other duties of a news anchor could include organizing and writing material, using social platforms for updates, and evaluating and analyzing news stories to make sure there is not a slant or bias to them. All of this has to be done all while meeting crucial deadlines.

In my research I found distinctions between what different anchors report on. Some may specialize in sports, politics, economics, pop culture, health, the community or just the general news in a specific town or area. I am not sure of exactly what I would like to report on. Right now, reporting the news just for a specific city seems like something I would be interested in. I grew up watching the Philadelphia news, and that’s something I aspire to do. It doesn’t specifically have to be that area, but I like the general morning or evening news programs that cover every type of news from current events, to politics to sports to celebrity news. There’s something that would be entertaining and informative for every different kind of viewer.

Overall being a news anchor seems like a fast paced, interesting job that would utilize all of the skills I have. After researching the different positions I am confident with my goal and hope to one day achieve it.

Interlachen Story - 1 hour

During this past week I finished up interviewing and wrote the story about the theatre arts department for the yearbook. I wrote about the department itself, the students, and different events they have throughout the year.


Total Practicum Hours - 10 hours

Interlachen Meeting and Engaged Learning Interview - 2 hours

Tuesday February 22- Today we had another Interlachen staff meeting. We discussed the upcoming deadlines and the final things that need to be done. Bob said that he wants a printed out copy of the book soon so we can all look at it. We figured out what still needs to be done. The deadline for everything is going to be March 18, so we have to get everything finished before then.

On the same day I worked with Cynthia on an engaged learning project she is working on. I helped her with the camera and then she interviewed me about my experiences with engaged learning.


Total Practicum Hours - 9 hours

Wellness TV shoot - 1 hour

Thursday February 17 - Today I met Consuelo for a Wellness TV shoot. I'm helping her with the segment for spring break and what to bring and how to prepare your car before leaving. I set up an interview with my friend who is going to Panama City. We met at the pool and Consuelo showed me how to set up the camera. Then I learned how to work the wireless mics. Once she had the mic on, I learned different techniques for making the shoot look good. She showed me how to make the person in shot look good in relation to the background. Then we interviewed her about where she was going and how she is preparing.

Total Practicum Hours - 7 hours

Interlachen Meeting and Interview 1.5 hours

Tuesday February 15 - Today there was another Interlachen staff meeting. We discussed the upcoming events and the quickly approaching deadline. This last about an hour
After the meeting I sent out more emails to the theatre department, because thats how the teachers preferred their interviews. Now I have to write the blurbs about the department for the yearbook.

Total Practicum hours - 6 hours

Interlachen Meeting, Interlachen Interview, and Business Department Interview Meeting - 2.5 hours

Wednesday February 2 - Today I was working in the business department and met with Dr. Mike Tracy. We discussed the plan for the business interviews this semester. What we plan to do is finish up all the faculty interviews, start editing and then put it on his own youtube channel. He is also trying to work on playing it on one of tv's in the hallways of the business department.

Today I also sent out emails trying to set up interviews in the theater department. For the most part, the faculty preferred email interviews so I sent out my questions and when I hear back from them I will write this theater arts section for the yearbook. This took a half hour.

Tuesday February 8 - Today we had another Interlachen meeting. We discussed upcoming events and availability of shots. After the meeting we had a "brainstorming session" with Austen about things that we can film. He told us that we need just student things, not necessary sports or specific events. So then we discussed upcoming events, like Greek life, that can be filmed. This took about an hour.

Total Practicum Hours - 6 hours

Interlachen Meeting and Shoot - 1.5 hours

Tuesday February 1 - Today I went to a shoot with Lauren, Meghan and Janine. They were shooting a JC Penny's ad for a class. I obsereved how to work the camera, and the different shooting techniques they used. The shoot took about 30 minutes.

Today was also another Interlachen staff meeting. Now the pressures really on and we discussed upcoming deadlines. Bob told us that he would like everything finished by Spring Break, which is only a few weeks away. We talked about ways to fit everything in and upcoming shoots for the week. This meeting lasted about an hour.

I also contacted Anna about the Southern News Network. I work during the meeting and shooting times, but that is something I would really like to be involed in.

Total Practicum Hours - 3 hours 30 minutes

Interlachen Meeting - 1 hour

Tuesday Januray 25 - Today I met with the Interlachen editors at 4pm for about an hour. The officers went over their office hours and we discussed upcoming deadlines. We discuessed upcominge vents and opportunities to photograph and take video. I spoke to Mandy and I am now going to interview someone from the theater department and write a story on them for the yearbook.

Total Practicum Hours: 2 hours

Interlachen Meeting 1 hour

Tuesday January 18- Today I met with the Interlachen editors and some of the staff in the Forsyth lab to discuss this upcoming semester. We talked about approaching deadlines, upcoming events and the layout. I took pictures for Interlachen this past semester, but I've decided this semester I want to step up and become more involved and familiar with filming. We picked a new meeting time and will continue to disucss ideas.\

Total Practicum Hours: 1