getting interviews

Getting interviews for stories are hard. There are so many steps that go into good interviews, but it is so hard to master because people can be so unpredictable. While trying to interview people for stories, the first step is think of the questions you want to ask, and what view you want your story to take. That within itself is difficult because even when you think you are asking awesome questions, when it comes time to string them into your story, they could be completely useless, or they could flow flawlessly. Another part of interviewing that is a pain is actually getting ahold of the people you need to interview. People's schedules are hectic and no one has time to meet up to answer questions. It seems so easy to just shoot them an email, but sometimes those get lost, or people just simply don't check them. It also may be easy to call people, but that also can get sticky because after a little people tend to not care anymore or they get inpatient. The last thing that is difficult about getting interviews is having the confidence. To be able to approach, call, or even email someone that you don't know can be very overwhelming. Making sure your nerves don't mess up what you have to get done is really hard to push to the side and sometimes it gets the best of you. Although I have been doing this for a whole semester now, it still can make me feel very stressed and I know that it will continue to be stressful. All I can do is practice and hope that as my career in news writing continues, I become more capable of having a productive, and successful interview.

Reading in the Boston Globe

Reading the story in the Boston Globe about Bitcoin is really interesting because it is about an app used on a phone that is a virtual currency used around the world. This app varies in value and sometimes the money drops to even lower than real money value. It said that when a man tried to use it to pay at a restaurant, the value was so low on money that he would be over paying and it would make sense to use real money. The value varies all the time, "At the start of 2013, a single bitcoin was going for $15. After zooming past $200 over several months, the currency tumbled to about $50 less than a week later. Since then, it’s once again climbed, and as of Monday was valued at $142." said the article. It is interesting that this app can be used to buy just about anything when the value of the dollar fluctuates so often. The article says that users can obtain the bitcoins by trading them through online exchange with other users. Money can also be free if the users solve a mathematical problem. Reading this article is very interesting because it is saying that only 2 establishments are accepting this form of currency in Boston and a few are using it in New Hampshire since this program has been out since 2009. This form of paying is scary though because the value of money is continually fluctuating and it is going to be hard to depend on if more companies start accepting it. 

Jaws story #2: 2 Deaths by the Sea

10-year-old Alex Kintner doesn’t return to shore after kids scramble out of the water when shark was seen. This happens to be the same day the body of 17-year-old Chrissie Watson was found dead on the beach due to unknown attacker.

As the raft that Kintner washes up to shore, a large bite was taken out of the raft, and the surrounding water was tainted with blood, mom begins to panic.

Before this tragic event, the beach was full of happy, playful, tourists enjoying the warm sunny day. Kids, including Alex, were begging parents to swim longer. After mother lets son go back into the water, many kids follow to play.      

As kids were playful, a man and his dog were on shore playing fetch. The dog continued to run in and out of the water fetching the stick. Once the crowd begins to scream and get everyone out of the water, family and friends search to find everyone they are with.           

            During the moment dog owner calls out to dog Pippet, and there is no response. All that is seen is the stick that was once being played with, floating in the water.   Pippet is declared missing as well as Alex.

Jaws story #1: Shark Attack takes a bite out of Amity Island

AMITY- Police Deputy Jay Hendricks makes a horrendous find Monday morning on the fine beaches of Amity Island. The mangled body of Chrissie Watson, 17, was washed ashore and the attacker is unknown.

            Watson was last seen leaving a beach party late Sunday evening with Trinity College student Christopher P. Hoggenbottam III. Police have been told that both teenagers were heavily drinking and possibly smoking marijuana.

            Watson was a member of the varsity swim team at Amity High School and also a lifeguard at the Amity Island YMCA pool in Oak Bluffs. When Watson left the party, she decided to go swimming.

            Entering the water in the remote section of South Beach near the Shoal bell bouy, the water was calm and weather was clear. After not returning from the water, Hoggenbottam notified the police at 6 a.m.

            After finding Watson’s dismembered body at around 8 a.m. according to police, she was then taken to the coroner’s office for an autopsy. There are no signs of this being an attack from another person, nor signs of foul play, so no charges have been filed.

            While talking to Police Chief Martin Brody, he seemed very confident that this was not a shark attack. “There had never been a shark attack before,” said Brody.

            Because this island is known for its Fourth of July weekend, Police wants to assure that the beaches are still safe. “The water is perfectly safe to swim” said Brody, and then went on to say, “I’d let my own kids go in and they are very young”.  

Police continue on with the investigation and although a shark attack has not been completely ruled out, beaches at this point in time are free of danger. All beaches will remain open for swimming. “Always use caution, but there is no reason not to go in the water on any of the beaches so far” said Brody. 

Reading the Boston Globe

While reading the Boston Globe today, the first story on the website was "Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, bombing suspect, charged with conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction" and it was really interesting. It talks about how the bombing suspect that is still alive, but in critical condition, was given his trial today while in the hospital. The way the trial played out, the suspect would shake his head and answer with yes or no questions, while the judge was in his hospital room. I think it is pretty crazy that they are willing to send the judge into his room at the hospital to get the court case started, instead of waiting until he has recovered enough to be out of the hospital. While during his trial they believe that Dzhokhar was planning to bomb for mass destruction. His older brother was shot in the shoot out, and Dzhokhar was shot multiple times. It is good to see that this incident is taken seriously, and that the US doesn't want to waste any time convicting him for creating this tragic event. The outcome seems to be leaning towards life in prison or the death penalty.  

Writing for the TNH

Writing for the TNH is really nerve-racking. Having one of your pieces published by the experts, and then shown to the whole entire school makes me scared because I don't want people to negatively judge my story or writing. I know it is good to hear feedback, and take that to expand and fix your writing, but sometimes it isn't fun to hear. As a writer you always want to hear that your stories were successful and they are exactly what the reader was looking for. It is hard to hear or see that it was a failure or people didn't like it, especially when you've worked really hard on it. Hopefully taking a piece that the TNH gives me tomorrow night will turn out good. I am really hoping that it will be easy to get the sources and write in an interesting way, so people who get the newspaper will want to read it. Writing a story on a person will be the hardest one I have to do because there are many different ways to get a good story. It can be written through the perspective of other people and what they have to say about the person. Or it could even be written all on the history of the person, there is a lot of flexibility and it will be interesting which way I go about it.

trying to find a story

Covering a requested story is really hard and puts a stunt on my creativity. I am the type of writer that likes to explore many options and plan out the story, before I have to actually make a decision on what I write. When I get assigned topics that I have to develop more and ponder on, it really puts me at a standstill and I struggle explaining myself. This week I have 2 days left to find and write a story, and I am stuck. Do I write on an issue, or do I write on something random, or do I use my free pass to better my research for next weeks story? Doing the issue story would be good to get out of the way, but it is hard to get the sources before the due date. Formulating a story in a short time period is very hard and even though it is preparing me for the real journalism life ahead of me, it is really demanding and I don't like the pressure. As a writer I like to take my time and perfect things, and in this industry it is a task that I need to condense.

Boston Marathon bombing

Watching the news and reading things online about the bombing that happened today at the finish line of the Boston Marathon is horrendous. To see such a tragic thing so close to home, is eye opening. These people that were injured were innocent and had no idea that their life would be flipped upside down in a matter of seconds. It is astonishing that only 2 people died, but it is still very depressing. More than 100 people are also injured, that may be a lot, but there are even more than that suffering. Family and friends of these victims watch the news as their loved ones are hurt. These bombs not only terrorized us, but also put an emphasis on the fact that people in this world are cruel and disgusting. Who in their right minds would kill and hurt random people just because? It is sad to see that people like that are still living in this world, and things like this could happen any day. Prayers go out to the victims, friends, family, and anyone else affected by this tragic event.

Behind the scenes of Cosmopolitan

I thoroughly enjoy each new print of the magazine Cosmopolitan, otherwise known as Cosmo, because it isn't afraid to put risky things in it. Cosmo has become a favorite of mine a few years back and I receive every issue. Each month I first scan through the index and see what story catches my eye first, and immediately read it. I do this because if the title can catch my eye that fast, the story must be equally as interesting. One thing I admire that Cosmo does, and no other magazine dares to do, is talk openly about things that most people feel uncomfortable talking and reading about. The heavy known topic that most readers acknowledge Cosmo for is their juicy deets on the sex life. Talking about sex is almost like a taboo and a closet topic, most people don't openly share their bedroom life, but Cosmo tells all. They let readers in on what is hot, what is sexy, what to do to please a man, and many more vivid and wild attributes to a confident woman. My favorite thing that Cosmo does is bring the readers in with the bright colors, the relatable stories, and funny, inspiring stories. It shows the readers that they can be who they are, and someone will appreciate them no matter what. Cosmo has shown me that daring writing is worth it, and readers will be interested in hearing about the topics that most writing companies are too scared to write about.

Reading the story A Murder in Vail

When reading the story A Murder in Vail, it was very shocking. The way the man just walked into a bar and unleashed his gun among harmless innocent strangers is crazy. The story was written so smoothly and it flows but still keeps the reader interested. When the man was laying on the ground after shooting 2 random men that happened to be in the wrong spot at the wrong time, it is interesting that no one would try to stop him. This man is old, and is sitting on the floor against a wall, and as he goes to a laying down position someone should have tried to grab him. Also what is pretty concerning about the story is how long it took the police to respond to the scene. According to the story it took the first police man 29 minutes to arrive and address the scene, that is a very long time for someone to be in charge of a powerful weapon against many innocent people. To question if the gun was real, instead of just sending out the police with hope to stop the madness should have been easily the first step. This story is hard to imagine and very upsetting that people were just going about their normal day, and this town known man has to ruin his life after "trying so long not to do it."

looking at the Boston Globe

While looking at the Boston Globe I came across a very tragic story called 2 life trajectories intersect tragically in Lakeville. This story is so depressing because an 18 year old girl on her way back to school during Easter weekend was killed in a car crash with a drunk driver. The drunk driver was double the blood point alcohol and also had been on drugs. The 18 year old girl was religious and had a loving family, with a lot of future left ahead of her. It is very saddening that this happened to this girl because the drunk driver had been in trouble with the police many other times, and should have been held accountable before this happened again. After going to court the drunk driver got charged with homicide, drunken driving, and other driving misconducts. This story caught my eye because things like this shouldn't happen and many people die because of bad instincts of other people. Hopefully after people read this sad news story they learn that they should not drive drunk and save others.

finding my story

This week I plan on writing my story on the upcoming annual slush cup happening at Sunapee mountain this weekend. Every year close to the end of the ski season, Sunapee mountain makes an event known as the slush cup. Basically what this means is a skier or boarder will start on a slope, and as they ride to the bottom of the slope as fast as they can, they must make it as far as they can through a large mass of water and slush. It is interesting to watch and see the techniques behind it and it is challenging to pursue because there are many different ways to be successful. I am interested in writing this story because it is a really awesome event for people to hear about, and I will most likely be attending. My ideal story will portray the skier side of the story because my brother took on the challenge last year, and is planning on doing it again this year, so I would like to share the story through his perspective. Also I will throw in the viewers aspect of watching, and people that go every year to celebrate the crazy event.