Classes: The Twin Cities Media Alliance offers an extensive program of citizen journalism classes and media skills workshops. For a complete list, see http://tcdailyplanet.net/page/2008/09/05/classes.html
Check out classes and workshops at the Twin Cities Daily Planet! Email lisa@tcdailyplanet.net for more information.
Writers Groups
Come meet the editors and other Daily Planet writers, bring your ideas for stories, and your articles to workshop. Our writers group provides an encouraging environment for novice and experienced reporters. In addition to getting feedback on your writing, each week we integrate one lesson that will help you develop your craft. These include themes like fact checking, relations with sources, and telling many sides of one story.
St. Paul
Rondo Community Outreach Library | 461 Dale Street North
Every Monday from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Minneapolis
2600 East Lake Street | Back entrance of Wells Fargo building
Every Monday from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Upcoming classes: (check http://tcdailyplanet.net/classes for more frequently updated information):
Classes we plan to offer are:
Fall classes
- a brief history and introduction to journalism beginning with the penny press to our current multimedia, multiple platform landscape; identifying and surfacing story ideas and focusing stories; finding information and triangulating sources;
- five W’s; basic story structures; hard and soft ledes; review of first story;
- interviewing strategies; features, investigative reporting, enterprise stories; review of second story;
- getting in print and on-line; op-ed, letter to the editor, blog post, community reporting; review of third story; plans for future.
We will use a class blog to publish and share stories generated during the class, and will explore other options for publishing participants’ writing.
Register for this class through ExCo, www.excotc.org.
Reporting 101
When: Thursday September 24, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Where: 2600 E Franklin Ave., suite #2 (Enter in the back of the Wells Fargo Buidling) Minneapolis, MN in the Seward neighborhood )
You’ve always wanted to get into writing and reporting, but you need some basic skills. In this two-part session Gary Gilson teaches the basics of identifying and developing a story idea, digging, cultivating sources, organizing the material, identifying a lead and writing clearly, cogently and engagingly. And on deadline. Gary Gilson began his career as a general assignment newspaper reporter at the Minneapolis Star for three years, then worked for 25 years as a broadcast journalist in New York, Los Angeles and the Twin Cities, in both public and commercial television. He is a graduate of Dartmouth College and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. He has taught at Columbia, Yale, Minnesota, Macalester, St. Thomas and Colorado College. Gary served as director of the Minnesota News Council from 1992 to 2008.
Register for this class through ExCo, www.excotc.org.
The difference between blogging and great blogging
When: Monday, October 5 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Where: Rondo Community Outreach Library at the corner of Dale Street and University Ave in St. Paul
So you’re blogging, or you want to start blogging…but you want to do it well, and hopefully attract some readers. The key to good blogging is to write well. Jay Gabler, associate editor of the Twin Cities Daily Planet and author of the Front Row Seat blog, offers a two-hour class on writing, etiquette, and promotional tips for bloggers. What information should you offer? How much of “yourself” should you put in your blog? How long should blog entries be? How do you connect with other bloggers and share your blog with people who might be interested?
Create Free WordPress Websites for Businesses or Community Organizations
Instructor: Matt Bartel, Secrets of the City (formerly the Rake and MNSpeak)
When: Tuesday, October 6 | 6:00 tp 8:30 p.m.
Where: Rondo Library | 461 Dale Street North, St. Paul
WordPress.com offers free websites that are easy to design and use, and very suitable for small businesses and neighborhood organizations, as well as blogging.This workshop will teach the basic skills necessary to setup and maintain a web site or blog using WordPress. Each attendee will set up their own basic WordPress site, then learn how to create/edit content, change themes, install plugins and change site settings. We will also cover related topics including social media integration, email address collection and basic web usability/design concepts. “
Intro to Podcasting
When: Wednesday, October 14 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Where: Rondo Community Outreach Library at the corner of Dale Street and University Ave in St. Paul
Join journalist Todd Melby to learn what podcasting is all about, how you can use it in your own reporting, and what you’ll need to get started. This is perfect for writers and citizen journalists who want to integrate audio into their own work, but need to learn the basics to get started. Todd Melby is a reporter and radio journalist. His stories have aired on BBC Radio 4, NPR’s Day to Day, The World, Marketplace, Chicago Public Radio and elsewhere. Locally, he writes about architecture for the Building Minnesota blog and Minnesota Monthly. He’s won an Edward R. Murrow award and a Sigma Delta Chi award for radio documentaries he produced with Diane Richard.
Twitter as a news tool
When: Wednesday, October 21 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Where: Rondo Community Outreach Library at the corner of Dale Street and University Ave in St. Paul
What is Twitter? How do you use it effectively to communicate news, gather information, and build relationships with sources? What the heck is a “hash tag” and why should you care? In this workshop Pioneer Press tech columnist Julio Ojeda-Zapata will teach the basics of using Twitter as a news source, as well as strategies for building your Twitter relationships. According to his bio Julio “has been on the front lines of the Internet and computer revolutions as a syndicated newspaper columnist, editor and award-winning writer for more than a decade. He is author of the hot-selling book “Twitter Means Business,” which documents how the Twitter social-networking service has become a vital tool for companies. Julio covers consumer technology for the St. Paul Pioneer Press, where he writes a weekly Tech Test Drive column and maintains his Your Tech Weblog.
Online Journalism Class at Anoka Hennepin Community College, in collaboration with the Twin Cities Daily Planet This class will be offered again at AHCC in Fall 2009: JOUR 2131 – Reporting, Writing, and Editing for Online Publications “This course introduces students to both the theory and practice of online journalism. It exposes them to a wide range of readings about this still evolving field as well as equally comprehensive readings of the best of contemporary online journalism. In addition to reading and mastering course texts, student are also required to master the basic skills of online reporting, writing and editing for the Internet by developing a series of postings ranging from daily blogs to investigative features to commentaries. Students in this class engage in the entire news process from story ideation, identification of sources, research and reporting, writing, revising, editing, and interactive response to readers. In addition, students are expected to master the use of hypertext links in the creation of online copy and be given an opportunity to post digital sound recordings, video and photography to enhance their reporting. Working with the instructor, students post their edited work at the Twin Cities Daily Planet.” 1. General information about Anoka Hennepin Community College admissions and registration can be found at http://www.anokaramsey.edu/admissions/general.cfm#general”
Past classes:
January
Following the MN legislative session
Instructor: Robbie LaFleur
Where: Rondo Community Outreach Library, St. Paul
When: Tuesday, January 13 | 12:00 pm. to 1:30 p.m.
Email lisa@tcdailyplanet.net to register
It can be tricky to comb through all the information on the legislature, get statistics right, and understand who is pushing what legislation. Join legislative reference librarian Robbie LaFleur for a fast-paced overview of information available on the Legislative Web site. This information will give you tools you need to write about the legislative session. There will be time for questions and answers.
February
Accessing government information for reporters
Instructor: Tim Erickson
Where: Rondo Community Outreach Library, St. Paul
When: Tuesday, February 3 | 12:00 to 1:00 p.m.
Email lisa@tcdailyplanet.net to register
Did you know you can get detailed crime stats and property tax information online? (It makes you giddy, we know.) There is a wealth of government information online to help you in your reporting, but knowing where to go and how to start is sometimes daunting. Tim Erickson presents this workshop to help you access city, county, and state information through government and third party Web sites. Tim will provide valuable hand outs and there will also be time for resource sharing and questions.
Citizen Journalism I
Instructor: Lisa Peterson-de la Cueva
Where: 2600 E Franklin, Minneapolis, MN
When: Wednesdays, February 4, 11, 18, 25 | 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Register through EXCO
Journalism takes practice, and this introduction offers ways to get started writing. Each class combines theory with practice and a focus on craft. Students are expected to report and write an article about something in their community. There is no need to be intimidated! We use a workshop model to create a supportive environment for turning your ideas into a publishable story. Participants will get feedback from peers and instructor Lisa Peterson-de la Cueva.
Accessing court information
Where: Minnesota Judicial Center, 1st Floor
25 Reverend Martin Luther King Boulevard
When: Wednesday, February 18 | 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Email lisa@tcdailyplanet.net to register
Are there records available on the Internet for all court cases? How much discretion can a judge exercise when releasing current case information to the public? What resources does the Court Information Office have that the public should know about? Join John Kostouros of the MN Courts Information Office for a presentation on public access to court information. During this workshop you will practice using the Minnesota Judicial Branch website for reporting and learn the rules of public access to court information.
The nuts and bolts of writing art reviews
Instructor: Jay Gabler
In partnership with the Walker Art Center and mnartists
Where: Walker Art Center
When: Saturday February 21 | 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Email lisa@tcdailyplanet.net to register
Is that garbage or art? How much of my opinion should I put into an art review? How much background information about the artist should I include? These are some of the questions writers tackle when writing film, music, visual art, dance, and theater reviews. Jay Gabler, arts editor at the Twin Cities Daily Planet, will walk you through the nuts and bolts of how to review the arts.
Participants will: 1) Go on a free docent-led tour of the Elizabeth Peyton exhibit at the Walker Art Museum, 2) Use the Peyton exhibit to practice writing reviews, and 3) Receive a free pass to the Walker to return on a future date. Participants’ reviews may be published on the Walker blog and/or the Twin Cities Daily Planet website.
This workshop is free, but please bring your own lunch.
March
Citizen Journalism II — Taking your writing to the next level
Instructor: Mary Turck
When: Wednesdays, February 4, 11, 18, 25 | 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Where: 2600 E Franklin, Minneapolis, MN
Register through EXCO.
This workshop is geared towards people who have done some reporting and writing, and are eager to take their media skills to the next level. Instructor Mary Turck, editor of the Twin Cities Daily Planet will combine hands-on writing and editorial feedback with discussion of readings on journalistic principles and practices. The class focuses on picking a topic, sources for stories, and ways of inviting citizen reaction to your story. We’ll also look at ways to make your stories interactive and will discuss alternative/multimedia approaches to telling a story. We recommend that you take Citizen Journalism I before taking this course, or check with the instructor.
let me know dates on brown bag lunches.