Elon School of Communications Board Members Discuss the Future with Students

Debora Wilson and Graham Woodlief addressing students

Journalism is currently stuck in a constant state of change.  Every other week there seems to be some major change in the way reporting is either done or published.  Nobody can really be sure what is coming next, a fact that has been particularly troubling to the Elon University journalism students who will be entering the job market in the coming years.

Luckily, School of Communications board members Debora Wilson and Graham Woodlief were able to take time to talk to eager students about the state of media and what changes we can expect in the future.  Wilson, former president and chief executive of The Weather Channel and Weather.com, and Woodlief, the vice president of communications company Media General, took time to discuss their experiences in media and answer student’s questions.

Wilson Weighs In

A recurring topic was exactly what media companies need to do in order to remain viable in the future, especially with a struggling economy and the strength of the Internet.  According to Wilson, media providers always need to be asking themselves “where are people going to be, and what do they want?”

As an example she used her own experiences with The Weather Channel, who were among the first major companies to move to the Internet fifteen years ago.  She claimed that when the usefullness of the Internet was still unproven, her company did a good job in anticipating the needs of its customers.  As a result, weather.com is one of the top 15 web properties on the Internet.

“Every media company is going through economic struggle in this economy,” she said.  “Most will be fine, some will evolve.  Leaders must know where to go.”

Woodlief’s Words

Woodlief had a similar opinion.  After 44 years in the media business, he said he had seen “quite a bit of transformation.”  While things look bleak for some newspaper companies at the moment, Woodlief believed that they would not be disappearing completely any time soon.

“Information is very important to people,” he explained, adding that the job of any newspaper is to gather and provide information to its consumers.  Woodlief explained that recently his company has overseen the convergence of six markets and major restructuring in five markets, decisions that were reached after asking the question “How do we produce information that is better for our customers?”

Advice for Students

For graduates entering the job market, both Wilson and Woodlief were clear in their advice.  “Don’t own the word ‘entitlement,’ ask what you can do to add value to your organization,” said Wilson, adding ”Step up and lead.”

Woodlief encouraged students to view “obstructions as oppertunities.”  Students should be “glad to work, and always want to work harder.”  Reporters these days need to know how to do anything, so students should also be eager to learn during their time at school.

Mac DeMere Races Towards Journalism’s Future at Elon University

by Kevin Clang

When it comes to picking what field of study one wants to major in, some students spent months agonizing over the important decision.  For Mac DeMere, it was easy.  “There was no degree in race-car driver,” he said.

Mac DeMere Visits COM 310

DeMere, a freelance auto-journalist who has spent his career working in newspapers, magazines, public relations and the automotive industry itself, visited Elon University today to discuss the changing face of journalism.  DeMere discussed his career, offering stories and advice, and finally asking students their opinions.

“You must be an expert in your field,” DeMere explained, adding that an expert should be able to “spot fudges and lies, and hear what they’re not saying.”  When you don’t know something, DeMere stressed that you “always find and expert that does.”  The auto-journalist also detailed with the class some of the ways in which journalism is changing.

“I did not take a variety of classes,” he said, mentioning television classes specifically.  “These days, you have to do everything; journalism is in flux.”  Print journalists are now expected to write for the web and television as well, and the three media could not be more different from one another.

DeMere talked about his first experiences in front of a television camera, something the company he was working for sprung on him with little to no warning.  “My first efforts on-camera were terrible,” he said, “Print journalism on air doesn’t work.”  Despite initial setbacks, DeMere admitted that television writing did become easier the more he did it.

The most important advice DeMere dispeled on the class was what he viewed as a journalist’s number one priority: accuracy.  “Give up on completeness for accuracy,” he explained, adding he would rather turn in a story late than turn one in that was not facutally sound.  “One error could lose you your audience for your career . . . not being wrong is all you can hope for.”

As most newspapers and magazines move on-line, DeMere questioned the future of quality journalism.  Although video often obtains ten times the number of on-line hits that print receives, “Written word is still important, powerful, and necessary,” he said, adding that the Internet was best for quick news and fast hits.

Nancy Knowlton Discusses Coral Reefs and Climate Change at Elon University

by Kevin Clang

It is no secret that climate change is affecting every part of the world, from the North Pole to the Amazon Rainforest.  According to Nancy Knowlton, one of the species it has had a large effect on is right under our noses. Underwater, actually.  Though they are often ignored by humans, Knowlton thinks that coral reefs can actually serve as warning signs for climate change danger in the future.

Nancy Knowlton Speaks to Students

Knowlton, a renowned expert on coral reefs and the Sant Chair for Marine Sciences at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, visited Elon University on Wednesday, February 18, as part of the Voices of Discovery lecture series to speak to students and faculty about the impact of climate change on the planet’s reef systems.

“Coral reefs in the Caribbean have experienced an 80% decline in the past 30 years,” said Knowlton.  The main reasons for this degradation include disease, bleaching, and predators.  Most of these can be linked back to humans.  “Humans put carbon dioxide, nutrients, toxics, sediments, and aliens into the water, and take out any coral longer or taller than five centimeters.”

None of this was a worry when Knowlton began researching reefs in 1975.  In just a few years, habitats went from coral domination to being dominated by seaweed.  Thanks to the extra carbon dioxide in the water introduced by humans, temperature went up by one degree Celsius.  Because of this sea urchins, which act as “lawnmowers,” removing seaweed and other unwanted predators off of coral, began to die off.

Should this trend continue, the temperature of the ocean could rise by as much as six degrees Celsius by 2100, a fact that would be devastating to coral reefs.  Carbon dioxide makes water more acidic, and worst of all it is very persistent.  Once introduced, carbon dioxide can remain in the atmosphere for hundreds of years.

Knowlton views this issue as a global problem.  “Reefs aren’t disposable,” she says, adding as an example that to an island such as Hawaii, coral reefs are worth $18 billion annually.  Knowlton went as far to say that coral reefs are the rain forests of the sea, in that they can be home to thousands of different species.  “Coral creates structure that everything else depends on.”

Unfortunately, we may have already caused too much damage to save them. Unless humans significantly change their approach to underwater species in the next few years, our effects may be irreversible, and more species of coral could become extinct. Knowlton lists long-term cryopreservation as a possible solution. “Awareness is not enough,” says Knowlton, “we need to act.”

Alex Kreitman Returns to Elon university with Advice for Online Writing

by Kevin Clang

Alex Kreitman, Online Editor for the Burlington (N.C.) Times-News, spoke about the future of journalism as it pertains to technology at Elon University this morning.  Kreitman graduated form Elon in 2006 with a degree in Journalism.

Kreitman offered both career advice for upcoming journalists and his take on how the world of online reporting and its relationship with print media has evolved during his tenure at the Times-News.

The internet now offers us an instant medium, stories can be posted immediately after they happen.  Kreitman said the Times-News takes this into account when choosing which stories to feature on the front page of its print edition.  National stories are online all day, so often the Times-News instead chooses to put local stories on the front page.

A recent goal of the Times-News has been to get more video to accompany news stories on its website.  In the past any video was good video, but today the Times-News strives to have its video look less amateure and more like broadcast.  Videos should look professional and tell their own story.  “Print and broadcast are converging,” said Kreitman.

One thing that Kreitman says newspapers can do to remain relevant is to be what he calls hyper-local.  “Bigger papers put too much effort covering National stories themselves,” said Kreitman.  By running a story from the Associated Press instead of sending their own reporter, the Times-News saves money.  Remaining loyal to local stories can also help smaller papers seperate themselves from their larger competitors.

Kreitman encouraged aspiring journalists to develop their video and photography skills in addition to their writing.  “Be innovative.  Use your technology advantage.”  The news world is quickly changing and many older reporters are being left out of the loop.  Today, words and video market stories.