Blogs

Class was a little frustrating this week.  We were teaching them about editing, but only six students came out of 12.  Only two students had their own audio, and the rest had audio on the equipment that was checked out by the missing students, argh.  So they wound up just editing other people’s sound.  I talked about destructive and non-destructive editing, and had them do one edit just taking out pauses, ums, and sound they didn’t think was interesting.  That first one was a destructive edit.  Then I had them do a second edit that was non-destructive, cutting and pasting out clips into new files, and arranging those in a multitrack.

Class went somewhat well, but had some challenges.  We started with them reviewing the letters they are writing to their city council person and the DOE.  Then we moved into digital editing – they were supposed to be editing their “What’s in a Name” interviews with their parents.  But some of them didn’t have sound, and some of them didn’t have functioning computers, and some of them had edited a bunch and were sort of bored, and some of them hadn’t edited at all before and were struggling!  It was a little crazy.  But they all mostly got into it, and some of the quiet ones got really into. 

Are you sick of big newspapers misrepresenting your organization?  Would you like to be the one to report on the issues and needs of your community?  Then sign up for the free CNPI fall Journalism training.

Learn to research, write, interview, and produce your own press.  For more information, email Abdulai.

Radio Rootz gets interviewed by the Utne Reader for the September 2008 issue.  Utne Librarian Danielle Maestretti writes about a new generation of reporters and activists, and interviews Root youth!  Read on Utne what happens when the work goes beyond producing a nice sounding product.

Google, in coalition with public interest groups, is trying to draw support for the opening of the unused television airwaves with it's Free the Airwaves project. The unused airwaves, known as "white spaces," are open spaces between digital TV channels. If the FCC allows for open access to the airwaves, there is potential for the development of new technology that will make it possible to provide wireless broadband Internet access over the signal, potentially making it possible to allow for universal access to the Internet.