The Telecommunication Advisory Council came to our class today and discussed the future of multimedia journalism. We had the pleasure of speaking with several different professionals, each with a variety of experiences in Interactive media based at the stations they have worked for. Those journalists included Michael Williams (Reporter, WFOR), Donna Bell (Anchor/Reporter, WJHG), Jackie Barron (Reporter, WFLA), and Kim Wilson (Executive Producer, WJXT). It was interesting to see how convergence was playing a part in each of their careers. For Jackie Barron, convergence isn’t anything new. She’s been with WFLA in Tampa for several years and is very familiar with their converged operation. She finds that as long as you keep to a schedule, you can successfully report for a few different media platforms in one day without sacrificing quality. On the other hand, Donna Bell noticed a big of challenge converging in her newsroom. WJHG in Panama City is a smaller station with less resources. Most reporters are young (1st or 2nd job) and are just making it with one or two packages for television a day. She notices a bit of a decrease in quality when the reporters are required to file stories online.
The main lesson I took away from that class session was that convergence is inevitable. Even the smallest stations are having their reporters file work for the web, despite the already strained resources. All I can suggest to myself and future “backpack journalists” is to keep on a schedule, stay cool, and make sure you really love your craft. Another advisory council member said, “You don’t want a job. You want to wake up every day and have fun….and getting paid is just a nice bonus!”
