LIVE BLOG: Recapping the 2012 Online News Association Conference

5:03 p.m. Microsoft Application Development Lab attendant helps us connect with ONA Northwestern students via Skype. Technology struggles...

5:08 p.m. We can hear ONA Northwestern students loud and clear!

5:10 p.m. MU Futures Lab Director Mike McKean says the biggest takeaway of the conference is that ONA is the most diverse and active journalism organization out there. He says based on what he learned in conference sessions, MU journalism is preparing students for the real world.

5:15 p.m. McKean says MU alums Meredith Artley of CNN.com and Juana Summers of Politico are influential in ONA.

5:25 p.m. McKean says young professionals need to be proficient and current in social media skills, as well as have knowledge of coding and programming. Many organizations want to approach multimedia projects as a team. That means it could be good to specialize instead of being a "jack of all trades."

One session discussed "making apps like lasagna." That means they're made with uncluttered layers, so they are easy to navigate. News aggregation apps are also becoming more popular. This includes Columbia's own Newsy, as well as Newsala.

EVENT ALERT: Recapping the Online News Association Conference

WHEN: Thursday, Sept. 27, 5 p.m.

WHERE: 42 Walter Williams

The 2012 Online News Association Conference, one of the nation’s largest digital journalism gatherings, happened last week in San Francisco -- and ONA Mizzou is highlighting the event for those of us who couldn’t make it. Join ONA Mizzou, ONA Northwestern, Futures Lab Director Mike McKean, RJI Communications Director Brian Steffens and other faculty members as they share what they learned at #ONA12. We'll  focus on innovations you can add to your journalism repertoire today.

Come with questions and your game face: We'll be playing Buzzword Bingo (we'll explain, don't worry) for the chance to win fabulous ONA12 gear.

Itching to read about the conference before Thursday? Check out coverage from the conference's student newsroom, Gannett's ONA12 Tumblr and Poynter's "12 bite-size takeaways" from the event.

Also, we highlighted three conference sessions in a post last week.