Northwest connections

What a marriage proposal!

Social media/youtube at it's best! Well, pretty awesome anyway. This clip has gone viral on youtube. It's a marriage proposal of epic proportions set to a song by Bruno Mars. Filmed in Portland and, according to the story I saw on ABC News, the people in the clip are all theater people so performing is something they do. My guess is that it went viral after Bruno Mars posted something on twitter about it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_v7QrIW0zY&feature=related



Photographer to loggers

I came across photos taken of and by Darius Kinsey (1869-1945) when I was in Brookings last weekend. Born in Missouri, Kinsey was in Washington by the age of 20. His claim to fame was that he photographed logging camps and the people who worked and lived there throughout the Northwest. He also loved to photograph trains. In some circles, he was known as the Ansel Adams of logging. While he traveled the Northwest photographing loggers and their work, his wife Tabitha was at home in Sedra-Woolley, Washington where she developed the plates he returned with.

Tabitha and Darius Kinsey at their Sedro-Woolley, Washington home in early 1900. 

Vanport Flood

It was the second largest city in Oregon the morning of May 30, 1948. Before the day was over, it was totally destroyed. Vanport City, Oregon was built as housing for workers at the Kaiser Shipyards. At one time, over 40,000 people lived there. By 1948, the population was down to about 18,000. With houses standing empty, the Housing Authority of Portland opened Vanport College to attract returning veterans. After the town was destroyed, the college refused to die. It moved to downtown Portland and is now Portland State University.

Many of the returning veterans who were attracted to Vanport were African Americans. Many of those who lost their homes remember the day like it was yesterday. Most barely escaped with the clothes on their backs.

A 200 foot span of the dike holding back the Columbia River gave way at 4:05pm, washing the town away so quickly that by nightfall, Vanport was gone. Fifteen people died although by some accounts there were more whose bodies were never found. Like officials did during Hurricane Katrina, authorities told Vanport residents they were perfectly safe. "REMEMBER:

                                       DIKES ARE SAFE AT PRESENT.
                                       YOU WILL BE WARNED IF NECESSARY.
                                       YOU WILL HAVE TIME TO LEAVE.
                                       DON'T GET EXCITED."

Vanport residents, including her children, were instantly homeless following the break in the dike. People were billeted wherever a place could be found.

Vanport City, Oregon- destroyed by flooding on May 30, 1948, leaving over 18,000 people instantly homeless.

If it did nothing else, the Vanport Flood brought about changes in public housing in the Portland area.

Sports/Action

Emily Unrau prepares to pull her hair back before getting strapped into the bungee trampoline ride at the Linn County Lamb and Wool Fair. Unrau, a seventh grader at Scio Middle School, was on the ride because of a challenge from her little brother Devon.

Emily Unrau goes up in the air while on the Bungee Trampoline ride on Saturday afternoon at the Linn County Lamb and Wool Fair in Scio. Unrau wasn't afraid as she thought she would be despite not being a big fan of heights. One trick she did not try was a somersault in midair.

Emily Unrau is all a blur as she spots the trampoline on her way down as fair goers look on. The Scio seventh grader was on the ride thanks to a challenge from her younger brother, Devon. The Unraus, who own a dairy farm southeast of Scio, were in town for the Linn County Lamb and Wool Fair.

Smoke detector reminder

Debbie and John Nuber of Scio could have lost their lives in the fire that destroyed their home two weeks ago. Instead, they were saved by their working smoke detectors. Last week, the couple erected this sign as a reminder to people regarding the importance of working smoke detectors. The home was a total loss but the couple got out safely because their smoke detectors worked. 

Update on Jefferson bridge

ODOT officials, along with personnel from Hamilton Bridge Construction of Springfield, shored up the sagging bridge deck of the Jacob Conser Bridge that spans the North Santiam River in Jefferson to allow limited access. According to an ODOT update, Oregon Highway 164 is now open to vehicles under 80,000 pounds.

Free shoot

Assistant Division Chief Howie Ellis controls hot spots during an early morning fire on Thursday, May 17 in Scio. The barn, which was filled with hay, was a total loss. The boat sitting outside and the hay inside the barn were destroyed. A battery charger was to blame. No firefighters, the owners or their animals were injured.

Robert Primm, left, and Pat Burger, members of the Scio Fire Rural Fire District's volunteers on the swift water rescue team, during training in the Calapooia River near Monteith Park on May 12. The pair were joined by three more team members as well as personnel from five other emergency response organizations in the area. For Scio's team, this was only their second training session following their 10 hours of classes. Less than three weeks later, team members responded to their first actual emergency on May 18, when a drowning occurred in the Gates area.

Bridge to Jefferson closed

The Conser Bridge that leads to Jefferson was closed just after noon on Friday when damage was discovered on the west end of the concrete structure. According to ODOT officials, a local resident reported a sharp bump in the westbound lane. The bridge was then closed to all except pedestrians, motorcycles and bicycles. Once ODOT began their survey of the damage, the bridge was closed to all traffic.
Built in 1933, the bridge has served Jefferson and the surrounding areas as the quickest route to Albany and to Interstate 5. Now, it appears people will need to find an alternate route for at least the near future. Jim Squire, ODOT's District 4 Maintenance and Operations Manager, said the bridge will remain closed until it is determined to be safe for all traffic. A piece of rebar inside one of the stringers that holds the overhead arch in place broke, causing the beam underneath the bridge to begin to sag. Hamilton Bridge Construction was contacted to jack the beam up in an attempt to stabilize the concrete structure. A bridge engineer was expected to inspect the bridge on Saturday.
Meanwhile, traffic is being rerouted either north toward the Talbot Road interchange or to the North Jefferson exit to Interstate 5 or through Scio. Squire said ODOT will work closely with the communities affected by the closure. He also said that ODOT will inspect the bridge completely to make sure that it is structurally sound. "We will be looking at all components before we open this bridge back up," he said Friday evening.

The westbound lane on the west end of the Conser Bridge leading to Jefferson had  dropped well over two inches when the Oregon Department of Transportation closed the bridge for safety reasons. 

This stringer that helps hold up the concrete arches was partially broken before ODOT workers used a jackhammer to chip some of the concrete away to expose the 80 year old rebar. The pieces seen here originally were secure on the bridge platform. One piece was corroded and broke while the other one snapped. No time has been set for the bridge to reopen.

Media blog #2- Print vs online

News

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Newspapers. Some people start their mornings out by pouring a cup of coffee and opening the newspaper. Others open up Google and find the latest news. For those of us who like to hold the paper in their hands, an online version just doesn't cut it. For those who like to see what's going on in the world at large, online is really the only way to go. The Albany Democrat-Herald is the local newspaper that caters to both tastes. According to their website, the D-H as it is typically called, has a circulation of 16,000 with their website garnering nearly 1 million page views per month. There are pros and cons to both online and print newspapers. The bottom line, in my opinion, is let the reader decide. Keep print newspapers, keep online newspapers. Together, they help educate the masses. Separately, readers are the losers.

Describe

The primary focus of both the online and print version of the Democrat-Herald is local news and sports. Today's edition (May 16, 2012) focuses on the primary election results, an upcoming Civil War reenactment and area sports results. The print version is laid out with local news and information filling the front portions of the section A.
Just under the masthead, the top story above the fold is about the Albany fire, police levy passing. The story has a quote from the mayor of Albany, thanking voters for "seeing the value of our city's police and fire departments." There is some national and international news but those stories do not hold a prominent position in the paper. There is only one main photo on the front of the print version. This photo was taken at the Linn County Courthouse in Albany, adding yet another community connection. The other two main stories, while not just specific to Albany, they do have relevance to the community. One is about Scio's Will Tucker retaining his Linn County Commissioner seat. The other is a story on a state race for attorney general.
The inside section includes several photos of participants of the Civil War reenactment. Inside that section, there is a wide variety of sports photos. The sports page features West Albany High School golf- both men's and women's- as well as Beaver baseball, which, while taking place in Corvallis, a lot of Beaver fans live in Albany so this story fills the college sports niche. The three photos on the first sports page feature West Albany athletes- sure to please Bulldog fans!
The online version is different in that there are no actual stories on the home page. Instead, there is a slide show of photos with a teaser for each and a link so readers can find the entire story. The online version makes it easier to find more stories at a glance because of the links. For example, shoppers at Target would be interested in reading about the remodeling at the Heritage Mall store. There is a lot of advertising on the home page as well as a couple of videos and links to the special editions the D-H publishes.
As far as advertising, both the online and print versions center their advertising on local businesses- Fisher Funeral Home. Grocery stores-4 Seasons, restaurants- Sybaris, Bailey's, banking institutions-Selco Credit Union and gardening centers-Peoria Road Farm Market- seem to make up the bulk of the advertising in both versions. There are a lot of ads but they are spread out, with no more than two or three on a page, so they do not seem to clutter up the print version.The print version's classified section is much easier to navigate than the online section.

Analysis

In my opinion, the thing that really sets both versions apart is that they do focus on local issues and stories. Considering the only real competition are other newspapers owned by the same company (Lee Enterprises), there really is no competition because the Corvallis, Albany and Lebanon newspapers often share stories that are specific to local interests.
The biggest difference between the two versions is that the online version offers readers an easier way to find more stories at a glance. Considering how many people are on the go, being able to find what story you are most interested in- not everyone is most interested in the front page stories!- using the online version allows readers to streamline their reading preferences much easier.
Another difference is actually hearing from Hasso Hering. While it's always good to read the written word, Hasso Hering being on film brings him to life better. It also allows readers a better chance to interact with him. It's much more fun to yell or complain- or complement- when you can see someone on screen rather than just read his words in print.
The print version makes it much easier for readers to keep specific stories and photos for their scrapbooks. While that might not seem important to some people, for others, it's fun to clip and then keep. It's a little harder to keep a link.

Interpret

The primary target audience for the D-H is people in the Albany area. While it is the largest newspaper in Linn County, it does not cover the outlying areas as much as people who live there think they should. The major population center is where most of the subscriptions come from and where most of the advertising dollars are geared so that is where the news is centered.
Since the target group is Albany area residents, most of the ads are Albany businesses. All of the ads in the front page section are either Albany businesses- Kutsch & Renyer Dentistry, Pyburn & Sons, and  Mid-Valley Hearing Center- businesses that have a strong Albany connection- NW Natural Gas, Allied Waste- or are businesses in Corvallis with no similar business in Albany-Creative Crafts.
I think they do a good job, both in print and online, in making sure ads don't offend people and that the ads seem to make sense with the stories on the same page. For example, in the print version, when you open the front section, the first ad visible declares, "Shop locally." What better way to get the paper's message across that they are the local paper? The online version has a nice local ad on the home page, again promoting the fact that the D-H is the hometown paper.

Evaluate

The two strengths of the print version would have to be the strong front page- the stories all election results, most of them local. With the primary being yesterday, that's big news. The other front page feature- In the News- gives readers a very brief look at what's happening outside the area.
Another strength is the sports page. It provides great local coverage as well as some national sports news. There are also some great photos.
A weakness in this particular issue is that there is only one real photo on the front page, and it's not particularly exciting. The other two photos are mug shots- one of them not very becoming for the subject- and that's it.
Another weakness is the layout of the opinion page. The letters to the editor, which are all from area residents, should be at the top of the page. These are the people who the paper serves and who is the target audience for the paper, including their advertisers. Give them the top of the page. The political cartoon can be moved to the bottom.
In the online version, the biggest strength is the slide show with what are viewed as the top stories. It makes it very easy to click through and see if there is a story of interest and then equally simple to click on the link to get to the story.
Another strength is the search box at the top of the home page. I use that quite often to find stories about specific people or events. It's much easier than trying to search manually.
A weakness I see is the open up ads. Whenever your mouse arrow gets near one, it opens up, sometimes filling the entire page. While I understand the need for advertising, those can be more annoying than helpful.
Another weakness is trying to utilize the jobs link. If I wanted to look elsewhere for a job listing, I would go to another website. I want to look for jobs in Albany, not something specific, just in general.

Engage

I don't really interact with either the print or online version. I'm not big when it comes to sharing opinions either online or in print. I follow the D-H on facebook. It's kind of nice to get an early look at specific stories. I don't follow them on twitter although I do follow a couple of the reporters.

Conclusions

I think this assignment was interesting. It taught me to think twice about only reading one version and not the other. To get all the local information as well as breaking news and world news, it's both versions together that make the difference.

The Albany Democrat-Herald then.....


and now.

                                                                                 

Canzano speaks to college journalists

John Canzano, sports columnist for The Oregonian, was the keynote speaker at the Oregon Newspaper Foundation's annual Collegiate Day, held at Linn-Benton Community College on Friday, May 11 in the school's commons area. Canzano was introduced by Ryan Frank, the publisher of the Oregon Daily Emerald.
Canzano's goal for the day was to share something he learned about journalism at each of his stops before landing at The Oregonian.
"You are never as good or as bad as you think you are," he told the nearly 100 collegiate journalists and their instructors. He said the newspaper business is not dying but "has changed and reinvented itself." Canzano observed that he never expected that, in addition to the newspaper, he was also doing television and radio shows.
Probably his best piece of advice in his hour long talk was to "stay flexible but stay true to the content." He said that journalists who are flexible and open-minded are the ones who thrive.
Canzano described how he had, at age 17, gone to his local newspaper, asking to write editorials. His pitch was that he could bring a new voice to the paper. The editor decided to give him a chance and Canzano wrote a commentary on the lack of respect from people during the National Anthem during a high school football game. From there, he wrote one commentary a month before going off to college.
Following his graduation, he taught English and Spanish at a public high school but decided that was not what he wanted to do with the rest of his life. His first newspaper job was for that same small community newspaper where he found himself as the lone sports writer. He had found his niche. "You have to love this if you are going to excel," he told the collegiate journalists. "It didn't feel like work to me," he said of his sports writing job.
He moved up to the Santa Cruz Sentinel where suddenly, he became recognized as "a sports guy." With the title came reporting on sports he really didn't know a lot about. "I learned how to write about them." His goal was to connect with the people so he could get something that was compelling to write about.
Next, Canzano found himself at the Fort Wayne News Sentinel where he covered Indiana basketball during Bobby Knight's heyday and Notre Dame football. "This is where I learned how to cover a beat." In order to get good stories on a consistent basis, "I never turned my tape recorder off." He also learned how to work for a bad boss until he decided to quit.
He drove from Ft. Wayne to Tallahassee, Florida, "for no reason," deciding he was done with the news business. He got a job at Barnes & Noble and applied for grad school at Florida State University. As the sports season drifted further away, he realized he missed writing.
Unbeknownst to Canzano, the Fresno Bee was searching for him to offer him a job. He went through a number of interviews before meeting up with the man who would become his mentor, Charley Waters. "I was 28 years old and the youngest sports columnist in that size paper in the country." He was thrilled and he heeded Waters' advise. "There's no more influential person than Charley." He said he always paid attention to what Waters said. "It's like having a grandpa who knows the business." He encouraged everyone to find their mentor.
He was a finalist for a job at the Chicago Tribune but didn't get it. Canzano's dream job was to work for the San Jose newspaper but when he got it, he realized the news business had shifted. He knew he needed to find an angle to be happy.
That was when the Oregonian discovered him. He went to Portland for an informal interview, thinking that he could stay in San Jose as the number five sports reporter in a large market or move to a smaller market but as the number one columnist. He called the move a no brainer.
He writes about people- not just the Blazers or Ducks. He finds an angle. A great example was a story he mentioned written the end of April. He wrote about a young girl with Downs Syndrome who not only gained Canzano's respect but also that of the other athletes and parents at a local youth track meet.
"Don't let anyone tell you this industry is dying." He said it is changing but that journalists are still important to people. As to the collegiate journalists, his advice is to get that dream job and "make it your own."

Joyce Carol Oates mesmerizes audience

On Wednesday, May 9, the ballroom at the CH2M Hill Alumni Center on the OSU campus almost filled to capacity to hear world renowned author Joyce Carol Oates. The author was recently named the first recipient of the OSU Stone Award for Lifetime Literary Achievement and was scheduled to receive the actual award the following day. Her words, her smile and her quick wit when answering questions kept audience members mesmerized for over an hour.

Lawrence Rodgers, the executive dean of the Division of Arts and Sciences at OSU began the evening with a welcome, some special thanks and a brief description of the Stone Award. He also thanked Marjorie Sandor and Molly Brown and her staff at the OSU Foundation.

Keith Scribner, an English and Creative Writing associate professor, then had the privilege of introducing Oates. He gave a brief bio of Oates' accomplishments and some of the reasons why she was receiving the inaugural Stone Award. "Her work compels us, speaks to us like no others." He added that it is easy to get lost in Oates's words. "To read Oates is to be inhabited by her."

Oates took the podium with a rousing welcome by the audience. She spoke briefly about her writing, especially regarding the many voices she uses in her stories. "All the voices become universal voices," she said before beginning with the first short story of the night, San Quentin. 

Set in the famous California prison, the story is based partly on her own experience teaching there. The audience listened in rapt attention as Oates' wove the narrative, using two of the voices she spoke of earlier. The story had two very distinct voices- that of the teacher and that of the prisoner. She also used many descriptive analogies to move the story along.

Brutal Murder in a Public Place proved to be a rather whimsical story about a bird stuck in the Newark Airport. Oates explained that the story came to her when she was in that airport and heard a bird chirping inside the airport. After she completed the reading, she said this was another voice that she decided needed to be heard. "It's a strange story," she added.

With Scribner moderating, Oates spent the next half hour or so answering questions. She also offered up some words of wisdom. "Most passionate writing is not premeditated." She told the audience that she likes to write about common people and become the "voice of forgotten people."

One of the things I found the most interesting was how easily and quickly she was able to answer some of the questions. She also showed a lot of humor, especially when bantering back and forth with Scribner. 

Oates's successes with the printed word gives hope that books will indeed survive. The thoughts of Jeff Jarvis about killing books to reinvent them did not seem to be relevant in Oates's world. She firmly believes in sharing the written word in both her books and when she gives readings. As she was signing autographs after the reading, it was very obvious that she enjoyed the experience of interacting with readers. Would that happen if no books were being offered for autographs?

Landmark assignment

 Landmark

Three year old Aiden Presson rides Jasper the Frog at the Brass Ring Carousel project in downtown Albany. Volunteers have been working on the project for nine years. The workshop and museum/gift shop are open to the public Mondays through Saturdays from 10am until 4pm and on Wednesdays from 10am until 9pm.

Portrait

Alonzo Fandrem and his dog, Simon, relaxing at Monteith Park on one of the first sunny days of spring on April 27, 2012. The pair spent the morning running through the park while Mom and Dad, Amy and Kevin Fandrem looked on. Simon truly is Alonzo's best friend!

Feature

Four year volunteer Steve Yellan carves Kitty the Unicorn whose likeness appears behind him. Yellan inherited this animal about four months ago. A total of 58 animals will complete the project with 52 of the animals on the carousel at any given time. Extras will include special holiday animals. Volunteers are doing all of the work to create the carousel which will eventually be housed in a new building where the existing 1st Avenue building now sits.

Joyce Carol Oates

Joyce Carol Oates smiles while signing autographs following her readings at Oregon State University. (Need to work on fixing this!)

Joyce Carol Oates graciously signs autographs for many audience members who packed the ballroom at CH2M Hill Alumni Center on the OSU campus on Wednesday, May 9.

Photojournalism assignment 5

 Overall

On duty in the Courtyard Cafe, Judi Madarus serves up helpings of kindness with her favorite phrase. "Have a great day!"                                 

Medium

Student Henry Winowiecki enjoys a visit with Judi Madarus between classes at Linn-Benton Community College.

Closeup

One of Judi Madarus's passions is flowers. In order to give a splash of color to the Linn-Benton quad, Madarus plants tulips, daffodils and sunflowers in the quad outside the Courtyard Cafe.