Thursday, May 6, 2010
Participation
While we did not have a lengthy discussion on how student journalists can get published in the Kirkland Reporter, we did learn that the newspaper takes on a lot of students from the Seattle area. Interns who are in need of class credits as well as freelancers contribute to the Kirkland Reporter regularly, assisting Carrie Wood and Matt Phelps with their work load. The staff also mentioned that they may host a youth essay contest hoping to target a younger population and get them more involved in the newspaper.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
The Kirkland Reporter Online
by Cate Foster
Both Carrie and Matt emphasized the importance of the online content for the Kirkland Reporter. It is important to them to keep the community, not only informed, but also involved, in their local news. This is why they are committed to keeping the online content of the Kirkand Reporter current. They would like to see an increase in the number of visitors both viewing the site and making comments.
The Seattle PI site is, naturally, the most popular news site among the Sound Publishing websites. However, the Whidbey News-Times site is, surprisingly, the second most popular. Carrie explained that this is because of the military presence on Whidbey Island. The large number of military personnel deployed from Whidbey Island visit that site in order to stay informed with their own local community.
In March, the Kirkland Reporter had 68,077 page views. By comparison, the Seattle PI site had 363,341 page views, and the Whidbey News-Times site had 278,906. One way to attract visitors is to have great headlines. The most-read stories are linked with the PI website, which can lead to increased readership. Both Matt and Carrie noted that the Police Blotter, because of its "spicy" headlines, frequently gets linked to the PI site.
Another benefit of the website is that the printed version of the newspaper comes out much cleaner. Stories are frequently published online before they come out in the printed paper, which allows readers to catch mistakes that may have been missed. For example, Carrie said that in a recent story, a former employee of St. John Vianney Catholic Church was mistakenly identified as a priest. A reader let them know that he had actually been a youth minister. Because the reader caught the mistake online, Carrie was able to make the change before the paper was printed, thus allowing the correct information to be in the hard copy of the paper.
Both Carrie and Matt emphasized the importance of the online content for the Kirkland Reporter. It is important to them to keep the community, not only informed, but also involved, in their local news. This is why they are committed to keeping the online content of the Kirkand Reporter current. They would like to see an increase in the number of visitors both viewing the site and making comments.
The Seattle PI site is, naturally, the most popular news site among the Sound Publishing websites. However, the Whidbey News-Times site is, surprisingly, the second most popular. Carrie explained that this is because of the military presence on Whidbey Island. The large number of military personnel deployed from Whidbey Island visit that site in order to stay informed with their own local community.
In March, the Kirkland Reporter had 68,077 page views. By comparison, the Seattle PI site had 363,341 page views, and the Whidbey News-Times site had 278,906. One way to attract visitors is to have great headlines. The most-read stories are linked with the PI website, which can lead to increased readership. Both Matt and Carrie noted that the Police Blotter, because of its "spicy" headlines, frequently gets linked to the PI site.
Another benefit of the website is that the printed version of the newspaper comes out much cleaner. Stories are frequently published online before they come out in the printed paper, which allows readers to catch mistakes that may have been missed. For example, Carrie said that in a recent story, a former employee of St. John Vianney Catholic Church was mistakenly identified as a priest. A reader let them know that he had actually been a youth minister. Because the reader caught the mistake online, Carrie was able to make the change before the paper was printed, thus allowing the correct information to be in the hard copy of the paper.
Kayleigh's Reflection
On April 15, our group met with Carrie Wood and Matt Phelps to discuss the Kirkland Reporter. In the meeting we learned about what their jobs are like and how they got to be where they are at today. My favorite part of the interview process was learning about their backgrounds. Hearing about all their different educational backgrounds and different passions was very insightful. I am very interested in pursuing journalism as a possible career choice after graduation. Having the opportunity to learn what a typical day for a journalist is like was very helpful. Carrie and Matt admitted they have very hectic schedules to meet deadlines, but they also said their jobs are great for having families because the job has flexibility. They both were very passionate about working for the Kirkland Reporter and mutually agreed they wouldn’t want it any other way.
It was fun to see the site where they produce the paper. I wasn’t expecting the space to be so small. The room itself was large, but they are going to be sharing their office space with the Bothell-Kenmore Reporter. The room was cut down the middle, the Kirkland Reporter to the right and the Bothell-Kenmore Reporter to the left. We learned throughout the interview that due to economical issues they have had to make a lot of staffing cut backs. I felt this was good to know and be aware of as a risk of entering a journalism career. Overall, the experience was really great, our hosts were open to answering any questions we had. I was able to take away a lot of great information about journalism as a career and information about the Kirkland Reporter.
It was fun to see the site where they produce the paper. I wasn’t expecting the space to be so small. The room itself was large, but they are going to be sharing their office space with the Bothell-Kenmore Reporter. The room was cut down the middle, the Kirkland Reporter to the right and the Bothell-Kenmore Reporter to the left. We learned throughout the interview that due to economical issues they have had to make a lot of staffing cut backs. I felt this was good to know and be aware of as a risk of entering a journalism career. Overall, the experience was really great, our hosts were open to answering any questions we had. I was able to take away a lot of great information about journalism as a career and information about the Kirkland Reporter.
Why is the Kirkland Reporter important?
The Kirkland Reporter is important to the Kirkland community because it provides relevant and important information to the public. Without the reporter how would the public be informed on issues going on in their community? The answer is, they wouldn't be informed. The Kirkland Reporter allows the community to stay connected. The Kirkland Reporter lets the community know about events going on, crimes to be aware of, high school sports, and other news worthy things going on around the Kirkland area. It’s fun to be able to read articles or quotes from people that you know. It’s exciting for a high school student to be able to read a story about themselves and how they performed during their homecoming football game. The Kirkland Reporter is important because it’s written for Kirkland and about Kirkland.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Jonathan's Reflection
On April 15 my Introduction to Journalism group and I had scheduled an interview appointment with the Kirkland Reporter in Kirkland. The interview was scheduled to start at roughly 1:45pm. After my morning class ended at 1:20pm, I started my adventure down to the Kirkland Reporter from the University of Washington, Bothell.
Knowing that I had more than twenty minutes to get to the site, I was confident I'd make it with time to spare. I had looked up the address and got directions from the internet, I was more than ready. In no more than fifteen minutes I was in Kirkland and within a few turns before arriving at the Kirkland Reporter site. After taking the last turn that the directions gave, I arrived at an empty plaza parking lot. Although confused, I decided to park anyway and proceed to look for the Kirkland Reporter. After fifteen minutes of walking around the outer ring of this plaza, I decided that I was lost. I drove out of this plaza and circled the perimeter of the area and a couple times more, I could not find the Kirkland Reporter, although I did get to see the lovely Kirkland area in a three mile radius of the plaza.
During this time, I saw several auto dealerships, nice new looking apartments, condominiums, food centers, auto shops...etc. After realizing I was already thirty minutes late, I had given up and wanted to just head home. However, something in me wanted to check the inside of the plaza one last time. While doubting myself, at the very end corner hiding to the right, there is a small paper sign on a small window of a office, "Kirkland Reporter."
I joined my group that were more than half way through the scheduled interview time, and received a warm welcome from my group as well as the Kirkland Reporter staff. I introduced myself and the staff did, too. With us in the interview were Carrie Wood, the paper's editor; Mike Walter, the publisher; and Matt Phelps, the sports writer. My biggest impression of the interview was the relaxed atmosphere; we were in a small office room with a single table and a couple chairs. We were able to get through all of the questions that we had wanted to ask, and more. Carrie and Matt were very happy to answer every question that we had.
I have never been to a newspaper office prior to this experience; everything about it was a first to me. And I really enjoyed it!
Knowing that I had more than twenty minutes to get to the site, I was confident I'd make it with time to spare. I had looked up the address and got directions from the internet, I was more than ready. In no more than fifteen minutes I was in Kirkland and within a few turns before arriving at the Kirkland Reporter site. After taking the last turn that the directions gave, I arrived at an empty plaza parking lot. Although confused, I decided to park anyway and proceed to look for the Kirkland Reporter. After fifteen minutes of walking around the outer ring of this plaza, I decided that I was lost. I drove out of this plaza and circled the perimeter of the area and a couple times more, I could not find the Kirkland Reporter, although I did get to see the lovely Kirkland area in a three mile radius of the plaza.
During this time, I saw several auto dealerships, nice new looking apartments, condominiums, food centers, auto shops...etc. After realizing I was already thirty minutes late, I had given up and wanted to just head home. However, something in me wanted to check the inside of the plaza one last time. While doubting myself, at the very end corner hiding to the right, there is a small paper sign on a small window of a office, "Kirkland Reporter."
I joined my group that were more than half way through the scheduled interview time, and received a warm welcome from my group as well as the Kirkland Reporter staff. I introduced myself and the staff did, too. With us in the interview were Carrie Wood, the paper's editor; Mike Walter, the publisher; and Matt Phelps, the sports writer. My biggest impression of the interview was the relaxed atmosphere; we were in a small office room with a single table and a couple chairs. We were able to get through all of the questions that we had wanted to ask, and more. Carrie and Matt were very happy to answer every question that we had.
I have never been to a newspaper office prior to this experience; everything about it was a first to me. And I really enjoyed it!
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Cate's Reflection
by Cate Foster
For some time, I have been intrigued with the thought of journalism as a career path. This is why I chose to take the Introduction to Journalism class this quarter. And this is why I was excited by the assignment of visiting an actual newspaper office. I wanted to get a real-world glimpse at how a newspaper goes from a collection of story ideas to a physical paper that we can hold and read. And I was not disappointed.
Dock at Marina ParkFor some time, I have been intrigued with the thought of journalism as a career path. This is why I chose to take the Introduction to Journalism class this quarter. And this is why I was excited by the assignment of visiting an actual newspaper office. I wanted to get a real-world glimpse at how a newspaper goes from a collection of story ideas to a physical paper that we can hold and read. And I was not disappointed.
The Kirkland Reporter is the local paper for the City of Kirkland. It is a good reflection of the city; it is small and casual, yet professional at the same time. The staff is small, and it was encouraging to see how well they work together. They were obviously committed to creating a high-quality paper while working as a team.
Carrie, Matt and Mike were all hospitable and knowledgeable. They seemed genuinely pleased to talk with us, and willingly shared their experiences with us. The afternoon was informative and enjoyable.
Choosing a Cover Story
by Cate Foster
The decision of what to put on the front page is determined by several factors. The key element in determining a cover story is the art that accompanies it. A story that has a dynamic picture will get chosen over a story with a less interesting picture or no photograph at all. However, this is not the only determining factor.
Hard news stories will, of course, take precedence. But the editor of the Kirkland Reporter also thinks that a variety is important in order to reach a broad audience. The Reporter makes an attempt to balance negative stories with positive ones. Also, sometimes the photograph itself will be the cover. If there are several news stories to choose from, an interesting or timely photograph can be chosen, and the leads of the various articles will be on the cover, to be continued on inside pages.
The decision of what to put on the front page is determined by several factors. The key element in determining a cover story is the art that accompanies it. A story that has a dynamic picture will get chosen over a story with a less interesting picture or no photograph at all. However, this is not the only determining factor.
Hard news stories will, of course, take precedence. But the editor of the Kirkland Reporter also thinks that a variety is important in order to reach a broad audience. The Reporter makes an attempt to balance negative stories with positive ones. Also, sometimes the photograph itself will be the cover. If there are several news stories to choose from, an interesting or timely photograph can be chosen, and the leads of the various articles will be on the cover, to be continued on inside pages.
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