Get ready for Journalism 101: Ask Me Anything

By Madison Feller

Photo by Madison Feller

We're almost a month into school, and it seems like everyone's finally starting to get back into the swing of things. But whether you're a reporter, an advertiser, a photographer (or you're still trying to figure out what the heck you are), the Missouri School of Journalism can be a difficult place to navigate.

But have no fear—ONA Mizzou is here to help.

How to #JICONF If You Missed #JICONF

By Madison Feller

photo by Shelby Mann

Last weekend, the Missouri School of Journalism and RJI hosted #JICONF, or Journalism Interactive, the conference on journalism education and digital media. Throughout the weekend, professionals and students participated in panels and workshops about newsroom analytics, viral content, innovations and more. But if you weren't able to attend any of the weekend's events, you can still catch up. Here's the ONA Mizzou guide to learning from #JICONF—even if you didn't actually go to #JICONF:

5 tips for young journalists from J-School grads

By Ryan Levi

Wikimedia Commons image from user Mojourcomm

As part of my extensive summer reading list (highlights so far include Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. and The Ultimate Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams), I took a look through our Letters Home series, a collection of letters from J-School graduates to students currently studying at the finest journalism school in the world. Below are five big-picture takeaways from their letters.

Letters Home: Ben Bradley

Ben Bradley graduated from
the Missouri School
of Journalism in 1997 with
a degree in broadcast
journalism

The following letter was submitted May 10, 2012

Dear Old J-School Self,

Oh, how I miss you. Let me count the ways:

1. The innocence with which I believed almost everything told to me by those in positions of power such as “activists,” mayors, and governors (I’m from Illinois after all).
   
   
2. The freedom afforded by free time to stop and dream of the journalist I want to be.
   
   
3. The camaraderie of KOMU: Post show drinks at Flat Branch where we celebrated victories and laughed about our screw ups. 

Here’s what I don’t miss, because these are qualities that still reflect the journalist I am today:

Letters Home: Matt Pearce

Matt Pearce is a freelance writer for
the Los Angeles Times, the Pitch and
The New Inquiry. He received a master's
degree from the Missouri School of
Journalism in 2011.

The following letter was submitted April 10, 2012

Dear students:

The most important thing you should know at this point in your career is that it’s OK if you don’t grow up to be a journalist.

I realize that your student loans are probably about to drown you and you’re thinking I already put in, like, all this work. I’m actually not trying to dissuade you! Being a journalist is a very fine and fun thing to be. I’m having the time of my life, and I’d be the first in line to encourage you and tell you that you’re gonna have a great career and so many stories to tell at the bar.

But because your teachers probably won’t say it to you, I’ll say it to you: If it ever stops being fun, if you ever start dreading going to work, if you start going hungry because they won’t pay you enough to do something you stopped loving to do anyway, then for the love of god just quit. If I wake up one morning and they tell me that journalism is sitting behind a desk for 10 hours a day and trying not to accidentally plagiarize something from the million blogs I’m supposed to aggregate, then I’m leaving journalism and moving to New Orleans to open a coffee shop. May the bridges I burn light the way.

Letters Home: Chris Spurlock

The following letter was submitted March 26, 2012

Dear students,

Chris Spurlock is an infographic design
editor for The Huffington Post. He graduated
from the Missouri School of Journalism
in 2011 with a degree in convergence
journalism.

I want to talk to you about the big test you have coming up. It’s one you’ve agonized over for longer than necessary, and one you’ve probably procrastinated preparing for, too. I’m sure this sounds like every test you’ve ever had, but this one is different. This one is comprised of an infinite number of questions and will last much longer than 50 minutes. To be more specific:

The test will measure whether you are an informed, engaged, and productive citizen of the world, and it will take place in schools and bars and hospitals and dorm rooms and in places of worship. You will be tested on first dates, in job interviews, while watching football, and while scrolling through your Twitter feed. The test will judge your ability to think about things other than celebrity marriages, whether you’ll be easily persuaded by empty political rhetoric, and whether you’ll be able to place your life and your community in a broader context. The test will last your entire life, and it will be comprised of the millions of decisions that, when taken together, will make your life yours. And everything, everything, will be on it.