the repurposed journalist

Every visual storyteller needs to know the mechanics of the craft. That’s never been more true than today – in the age of You Tube. But what do you say when you turn on the camera?

Discussion in new media guru Drew Keller’s MCDM (University of Washington) COM 583 class Monday night, centered on how we consume You Tube “stories” and how that consumption defines us more than what we watch. Amateur producers (that’s you and me) affect the way we consume it. Studies show that we can watch You Tube for hours because the content is seemingly endless.

In Monday’s class we examined how You Tube has become so prevalent in today’s culture that it’s becoming a social network in and of itself.  We gravitate toward those who watch the content we watch ourselves. We examined the video diary phenomenon and how deep that well appears to be as well.

As an award-winning TV news veteran, it’s difficult at times for me to assimilate into this new home-made video culture. I hate to admit it but I had become a TV snob. I come from an industry where I was among the select few who were given the keys to the broadcast machine. You had to work hard to get those keys. I always felt like you had to earn them. Not anymore. Today all you need is a You Tube account, an i-phone and something to say.

All too often it’s that third component that’s missing in You Tube content. It’s my hope that when I post something on You Tube I will at least have something to say.

Shouldn’t we all expect at least that much?

Channels of Hope: Austin to Africa

It’s the trip of a lifetime. An international charity approaches your local TV news station with a proposition: Provide us with an eager journalist willing to tell stories that’ll literally save lives and we will cover the costs of your trip to Africa.

“Going to Africa? That’s not what local news usually does.”

KVUE TV’s Tyler Sieswerda is emphatic over coffee at a downtown Austin, Texas Starbucks. “There’s a bigger purpose.”

 The 43 year-old anchor/reporter is referring to the trip he took in January to Swaziland with international Christian charity World Vision. The KVUE-TV series entitled, “Channels of Hope: Austin to Africa” airing this Thursday and Friday at 6pm chronicles the ongoing struggle to get clean water for those living in extreme poverty.

On Saturday, April 21st, Sieswerda will host a special also entitled, “Channels of Hope: Austin to Africa.” http://www.kvue.com/

KVUE did not promise World Vision anything in exchange for passage to Swaziland. The station agreed to come and see what was going on and consider doing stories.

The series and special (shot by KVUE photogragher Robert McMurrey) also follow the  life-changing trip taken by Austin pastors witnessing the work World Vision is doing in Swaziland to help save lives. Providing clean water is one step. The sub-Saharan African nation has one of highest per capita rates of AIDS in the world.

What did Sieswerda take away from the trip? He won’t worry or stress about his day-to-day issues because he says, “there are many people in Swaziland who aren’t sure if they can find a single meal to feed their children today.” Or, he says if they’ll be able to give them a simple thing like water that won’t make them sick. “There’s a lot more to life than what we’re doing every day at work,” says Sieswerda.

Sieswerda struggled to find his purpose earlier in life. He credits his TV career to his mother who suggested he pursue journalism when he was selling insurance. Tyler took a couple of community college classes and that was it. He was hooked.

Journalists he looks up to are Anderson Cooper at CNN, David Mur at ABC News and NBC’s Brian Williams. After a 17-year career with stops in Grand Junction, Colorado, El Paso, Texas, Phoenix and Atlanta, Sieswerda was ready when the opportunity to travel to Africa presented itself late last year. World Vision was looking for a station to partner with on the Austin Campaign for Children http://austincampaignforchildren.org/ Siesewerda jumped at the chance to go. He says, “Taking that step toward re-purposing was easy.”

Sounds easy. Sounds like the trip of a lifetime, right? Sounds like anyone would jump at a free trip to Africa if given the chance. 

Wrong.

Of the 12 reporters and anchors on the KVUE TV staff only three said yes. “I just don’t understand it,” says Sieswerda. “Anytime you go – you change, it broadens your perspective … it gives you a better understanding of the planet.”

And maybe a little deeper sense of purpose.

Seattle to Uganda: A Journey of Hope and Health

The Seattle Channel invites you to a public screening of a new documentary “Seattle to Uganda: A Journey of Hope” which follows local women on an inspiring trip to a small village in Northern Uganda. It’ll be shown Sunday, April 15th at 4pm.

In the fall of 2010, Seattle resident Maureen Brotherton invited 10 women—most of them unknown to each other – to join her on a journey to visit the women in Aminocira, Uganda. Seattle documentary filmmaker Penny LeGate followed along as women from opposite sides of the globe “forged a partnership that continues to inspire awareness, social change, health opportunities and hope for a better future.”

The free, public screening of the half-hour documentary will take place at Seattle University’s Wyckoff Auditorium, Bannan Engineering Building, 901 12th Ave. Brotherton,

LeGate and several of the women will reunite for the preview and a post-screening talk.

The Community Stories series is about the inspirational people, the relevant issues and the cultural traditions and rich histories that make up our many communities. These short television profiles highlight our residents through stories consisting of personal interviews, slice-of-life episodes and insightful portraits. The series has won several local Emmy awards.

To attend, RSVP to Lori Patrick at lori.patrick@seattle.gov or (206) 733-9764.

Lee Schneider is headed back to Haiti.

And now Schneider, a documentary producer, is officially launching a campaign on Kickstarter.com to raise money for the return trip where he plans to continue shooting for an upcoming documentary focusing on architects and how good design helps the homeless and victims of disasters (like those recovering from the January, 2010 earthquake) in Haiti.

Here’s the link: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/docuguy/shelter-return-to-haiti?ref=live

His production team is also researching stories in Detroit with the hope of filming there as well, after Haiti production is complete. This Re-purposed journalist is hoping to reach three target audiences: architects, community activists…

And you.

Lee is a former producer for the ABC News (Good Morning America) and NBC News (Today Show, Dateline) and National Geographic among others. Schneider has always been a passionate journalist who sought to observe and report, to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable and remain objective. But as a re-purposed journalist, Lee Schneider now wants his work to help move the ball down the field. In this case – he wants this documentary to actually help get something built.

When he arrives in Haiti, Schneider will focus on stories and profiles he has researched for the past year. When he moves on to production in Detroit, he says he’ll be looking for projects akin to those underway at The Alley Project (TAP) https://www.facebook.com/tapgallery, a collaborative community “design for good” project where architects and community activists donate their time to design and build neighborhood projects.

“When I worked at NBC I was working for GE. That’s what I stood for. When you work for Nat Geo, (owned by Fox) you stand for Rupert Murdoch.” Schneider, a veteran of NBC Dateline, Fox and ABC’s “Good Morning America” is now directing Shelter http://docucinema.com/shelter/,  His documentaries have aired on History Channel, Discovery Health Channel, The Learning Channel, Bravo, Food Network, Court TV, ReelzChannel and A&E http://www.linkedin.com/in/leejschneider.

Schneider also writes a blog for Huffington Post and does online strategies for businesses with a socially responsible mission. His production company http://www.docucinema.com/about/ creates “cause-driven” nonfiction films.

He’s been blogging since 2009. He started by writing a blog called, “500 Words on Thursday”. He averages 2-3 blogs a week. He blogs about once a month for the Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lee-schneider/participatory-design-in-d_b_1340633.html.

Sure, Lee Schneider admits it’d be nice if a show like NBC Today Show ended up doing a story about community renovation in Haiti as a result of the awareness he’s helping create, but he says, “The goal is to build something.”

Schneider’s hoping the Shelter doc will air next year.

As this re-purposed journalist navigates his way up the steep, short hike of life, he’s wondering if you share his fascination and distaste for You Tube. Am I alone?

Do you You Tube? More than two billion of us watch You Tube every day.

YouTube streams 4 billion online videos each day, more than one for every other person on Earth and a 25% jump over eight months ago.

http://mashable.com/2010/05/17/youtube-2-billion-views/

In “Watching You Tube: Extraordinary Videos by Ordinary People”, author Michael Strangelove examines the You Tube phenomenon. New media guru and MCDM instructor Drew Keller has assigned it as this week’s reading in his COM 583 Storytelling class on the University of Washington campus.

Keller’s questions:

What do you think happens to the social order if tastes are no longer closely controlled by institutionalized influences? or How would you describe the complex relations between producers and consumers?

The answer to the first question is simple – You Tube, the natural by-product of a relaxation of the institutional influences of broadcasting. As newsrooms across the nation continue to cut back in hours of programming, You Tube claims that twenty hours of video are uploaded to its servers every minute.

Twenty hours – one minute.

That’s roughly as long as it’s taken you to read from the top of this post to this point.  Twenty hours of video. What’s popular? Charlie Bit My Finger http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OBlgSz8sSM (with more than 438 million views).

This may sound old school but in the age of You Tube, high quality storytelling (visual journalism) in this country seems to be eroding. I use this blog to celebrate those who keep its purpose alive. You can also find their work on http://www.facebook.com/groups/TVNewsStroytellers/ This is where you can see broadcast television storytellers like John Larson, Boyd Huppert, Wayne Freidman and John Sharify (to name jut a few) share their excellent craftsmanship with peers. This Facebook page is where journalists seek the recognition and approval of peers they respect. These are the best of the best.

It’s a page where you’ll never see “Charlie Bit My Finger.”

But Strangelove says, “We are moving into a post television era”, adding that You Tube “demands our attention, fragments audiences, worries advertisers, troubles TV execs and erodes monopolization by media corporations.” His insights into the You Tube phenomenon move the ball down the field.

You Tube levels that playing field.

It breaks down the barriers between producers and consumers. It gives anyone with a mobile phone a chance to post a video or picture. But capturing a lucky moment with two boys in a chair is one thing – crafting a story with purpose and style and direction under deadline is something else.

God bless England’s Howard Davies-Carr, the father of the boys, for being there to capture a special, honest moment with two boys on a chair sharing a moment but he’s not a journalist. He’s not a storyteller.  For that you need to spend years honing your craft and refining your talent, seeking feedback from those you respect.

For that you need a purpose. It’s the crafting of a story.

So for me, we’ll always need places where the barriers between producers and consumers exist. Strangelove quotes French sociologist and author Henri Lefebvre,  “The everyday is what’s left over after all distinct, superior, structured activities have been singled out.” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiHfntd7jIs. You can find Lefebvre on You Tube.  The video is 9:27 long. It’s in black and white and all in French. It still has more than 15,ooo views.

Bottom line – it is the role of the storyteller to distill the “everyday” and make it memorable. Life still needs some translation. We can all see a sunset. But not everyone can find the words or the pictures to capture it and bring it back home.

Incidentally, I took that photo with my i-phone. I’m thinking of posting it to You Tube 😉

John Schenk’s Tips for Finding Purpose after the Newsroom

1.   Improvise

2.   Work for a humanitarian organization.

3.   Be careful what you pray for.

John Schenk is a film buff. He specializes in old B-westerns. Many of the stories he’s covered since he left the newsroom were right out of the lawless Wild West, where the quick and dead always got the headlines. It would be the voiceless innocent caught in between who would need a journalist and witness.

Schenk remembers it vividly. It was Fall 1990. He was frustrated by lack of access to rumored pockets of starvation in southern Sudan. A friend offered to listen to him vent but after a while she suggested they pray about the problem.

Schenk said he began slowly but soon the words came “in torrents”. Suddenly he was saying: “Lord, you gave me the skills. Get me into the places of greatest need and get me out and I’ll tell the stories of your suffering people.”

Be careful what you pray for.

Soon he was en route to Romania where the fall of the dictator Ceausescu had unveiled horrid “orphanages” where “effective” children had been warehoused.  “I saw suffering like I’d never witnessed before. It was like my crash course for what was to come.”

Soon Schenk was in Beirut, an “apocalyptic” landscape after 16 years of civil war. Then the prayer inspired by southern Sudan was answered. He and a colleague “smuggled” 50 tons of food up the Nile to a remote region long-suffering under civil war and a killer disease called black fever (Leishmaniasis).”

January 1992 brought Mogadishu. Eighteen months before the “Black Hawk Down” incident that incensed Americans. Mogadishu was a lawless, crumbling city where men (and boys) with guns, chewed drugs and stole food from the unarmed masses. Schenk and his boss were drawn back many times over eight months by the suffering.

Schenk started out on a city daily in Pasadena, California in 1972 and finally walked away from deadline pressures and the intense daily grind of a police and crime reporter in 1981. He evolved from a “pretty much squeaky clean sort of guy into something of a gonzo journo” fueling his trade with “lots of alcohol and drugs.”

Schenk developed an expertise in outlaw motorcycle gangs and “their migration into organized crime in the 1970s.” He co-authored an investigative piece called Born to Raise Hell Inc. for MacLean’s Canada’s weekly news magazine in 1977.

“By 1981 I was looking to get off the adrenalin treadmill,” Schenk said.

Schenk left the Toronto Sun that year, burned out and looking for “something more meaningful,” he recalls. Maybe he’d hitch hike around the world. “I thought I was going to have to walk away from journalism completely.” Instead, he re-purposed his journalism skills. “Turns out it was as much my lifestyle as much as my trade.”

Then he heard World Vision Canada was looking for a freelancer to go to Ethiopia. It was 1985 and that country was in the grip of The Great Famine.

Schenk worked with World Vision for nine years all over Africa producing stories and still photos of World Vision development work and responding to fast-breaking natural disasters and armed conflicts in Angola, Rwanda, Somalia and southern Sudan, taking assignments in Lebanon and Romania. He videotaped gruesome images of the Rwandan genocide up close.

So, how to re-purpose one’s life?  John Schenk says, “Don’t presume media or public relations are the only tracks. Don’t underestimate the value brought to any organization by someone used to marching off the map,” he says. John especially recommends looking at humanitarian organizations.

“A hard core journalist is an improviser, sees problems, challenges. They cut through systems and protocols and find solutions. And lives get saved.”

“It’s a place where a journalist can be a pioneer.”

He recalls 2005 in the mountains of Pakistan when World Vision responded to a 7.6 magnitude quake that killed 76,000. A colleague, another former journo turned to him and said: “These mountains, we’ve got to get up there and see what’s going on.”

Schenk had been thinking the same. He replied: “Yup, but we can’t go empty-handed.” John writes, “A few days later we were marching up steep slopes with men from a devastated village, carrying 900 blankets on their backs.

We returned to camp and spent half the night writing our stories, sending our photos to World Vision HQ by satellite modem and describing our day in interviews to major media outlets from nearly every time zone on the planet.”

John Schenk has indeed been brought through some of the most dangerous places on earth. God has held up his end of the “bargain”.

And telling the stories he found there is where John Schenk has found his purpose and an answer to a prayer.

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Editor’s note: John Schenk works with World Vision Global Communications. He will be in Tacoma, Washington Wednesday night, February 22nd as part of a panel to discuss the Pacific Lutheran University Media Lab’s documentary “Over Exposed: The Cost of Compassion”.  Schenk is among those featured in the award-winning documentary. The film will be shown at 7pm at Lagerquist Hall in the Mary Baker Russel Building on the PLU campus. Admission is free.

John Schenk helped edit portions of this copy. Some habits die hard.

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