Kyle, why don't you blog anymore

I do blog...on Twitter.

Ok, that's mean.  Not everyone is on Twitter.

I am involved in a number of projects right now in two different jobs.  I sorely miss blogging.  It's so good for my mind to reflect on what I'm doing everyday.

But, alas, too many items on the priority list rank higher at the moment.

That's a lame excuse, but it's a sincere one.

I'm having a wonderful time co-advising at the Royal Purple at UW-Whitewater (yes, we're working on the Web site), but that, along with a teaching gig, are eating up what little free time I used to have.

I'm not shuttering this blog.  I will return.  I have a lot to write about.  There are so many blog entries I started typing in Blogger, but haven't finished them.  So many drafts, just waiting to be fully-fledged blog entries.

It makes me sad.

However, I am on Twitter, and Tweeting frequently.

I am not silenced, I'm just hunched over my desk, working feverishly.

Back on the radio

I started a new routine today, spending a few minutes with our morning radio audience talking with host Bob Dailey about what the newsrooms and online team are working on.

This is part of some format changes at WCLO and the inclusion of some new content in the morning drive time.

I'll be using the time to focus on what stories are getting extra attention in both newsrooms. Today, for example, I talked about Stacy Vogel’s profile of Ed Martinez, an employee at the Rock County Job Center who has 30 years of experience with General Motors. I talked about the interview I did with Stacy about the profile and where people can hear it online.

We will also discuss the online polls, blogs, podcasts, videos, stories users are commenting on, and other online content.

It's a chance to talk about online content we don't normally talk about on the air...and I'm excited about it.

I'm also be glad to be back on the radio on a regular basis. I've come on live a couple of times over the years, but since leaving my reporting job, my on air time is mostly in a digitally-reproduced mode (Memorex).

The segment is on around 6:20 a.m. most weekdays.

RSS v. Twitter

RSS takes a lot of flak for being "old" technology.

"Old", in this case, meaning it's not instant....like Twitter.

While "instant" is important, it's not everything.

When I find a new source of information on the Web I would like to receive updates on, I perform a test to decide what's more important...the urgency of the updates, or the importance.

For instance, when subscribing to a source of breaking news information, I'll use Twitter because it's faster.

However, when subscribing to a blog about new media, I would use RSS because I don't want to miss any updates.

Twitter is fast, but it's so fast that I miss a lot of content from my feed when I'm away.  With my RSS reader, everything is saved until I see it.

Sure, I could it up so I could see all of my Twitter updates, but frankly, there are some Twitter feeds I don't need all the updates for.

In a few cases, I subscribe to an information source using both RSS and Twitter because the source is both urgent and important.

Much like other "old" technologies, their value persists through transformation.  Indeed, RSS used to be the fastest way for me to get new information from the Web.

It's no longer the fastest, but it's a vital way to make sure nothing important gets past me.

New York bias

Have you ever felt like the national news networks put more focus on stories in their hometown?

As you may know, the "Big 3" networks are all broadcasting out of New York, and many of the cable networks do the same.

There is a lot written about media bias, but I think the most under covered aspect is the New York bias.

It shows up most blatantly with weather coverage. Here in Wisconsin we can routinely predict when the networks will go into snow storm emergency mode...because it's usually a day or two after we get dumped on, with little to no mention on the national news until the storm reaches the East Coast.

It's no mystery why there's such a focus on New York. First, important things actually happen there more often...no doubt. But second, it's only natural that newsrooms would report on what's going on around them.

It would be helpful for newsrooms in New York to occasionally as themselves this question when they decide what to cover: "Does this story really affect anyone outside of New York?"

I excuse the bias because of the reasons listed above, but what baffles me is the lack of public critique of this particular bias.

In grad school the "New York" bias was mentioned a few times, but not considered a major issue.

I suppose I need to cut New York newsrooms some slack because the lack of critique. Perhaps I'm in the minority on this concern. If so, carry on.

I'm more interested in what's going on around me. Certainly some things that happen in New York and the East Coast affect my life...

...but not snowstorms.

Is new media making us smarter?

There's a fascinating debate going on among new media types about whether the vast amount of information made available via the Internet is making us smarter.

There is credibility to the arguments on both sides, but what it really comes down to is how you define "smart".

If "smart" means the quantity of information that's available, then yes, we are smarter.

But I would argue that the definition of "smart" is how you process information. See if you can follow this lame analogy, no doubt inspired by being raised in a farming community:

Imagine a stack of hay bales (information) outside a barn (your brain). What makes you smart is your ability to get the hay in the barn....how fast you can do it, and how well you can organize it.

All new media has done is given you a lot more hay bales to contend with.

By my definition, if anything, new media has made being smarter a greater challenge because of all the data we must now learn to organize.

What do you think?

A fresh breath of analog air

I took a digital hiatus last week.  I had no connection with communication technology.  I was at a camp in Wisconsin's north woods with my family.  I will even admit that I had access to wi-fi service there, but elected to avoid the temptation by leaving the lappy at home.

What did I learn?

I learned that I may not need technology as much as I thought I did in my personal life.  For work, certainly it's a necessity, but for the rest of my life, like most "things", it has marginal value.

The value lies in the life you live with your loved ones.

But there's still that "work" caveat.

In my second day plugged back into the nets, I've gotten a headache...no doubt from the amount of time I've been in front of a monitor sifting through all the communications I missed while I was gone.  My eyes apparently enjoyed the natural sunlight I treated them to for the last week.

To be clear...I am still very much addicted to new media and finding ways for traditional media to find its place in new media.  This is who I am, and it's not going to change.

For all of you who are like me (you know who you are), I hope you're still able to step away every now and then.

If you haven't, you'll be surprised at how clear the air is outside the digital chatterbox.

Take a break...and leave the temptation to connect at home.  I highly recommend it.

Now, back to organizing and transmitting 1s and 0s.

A career in religious studies?

As a college student, I must have been an idealist. I settled on a major in Religious Studies at UW-Oshkosh. Thank goodness my minor was Radio, TV, and Film.

The religious studies courses captured my interest. I loved learning about religion as a form of history archeology, and literature. Of particular interest were the courses I took with Edward Linenthal, who now teaches in Indiana.

It started with a course about the Holocaust...but not just the Holocaust. We studied how the Holocaust is remembered (and in some cases, not remembered). This fascinating course got me started taking every course Linenthal offered about memory and memorials. I still read about these topics today.

I can't really explain why I find the topic of memory and memorials so fascinating. Perhaps it's because it wraps together history, politics and anthropology in a highly controversial package...just my cup of tea.

I could go on forever on this topic...those who get me started soon regret it. Perhaps I need another new blog.

Whenever I say I was a Religious Studies major, I'm immediately having to explain myself. 1) I have to explain that, no, I was not at seminary and not looking to become a member of the clergy....this was a UW major...very secular. 2) When I talk about my interest in memorials of tragic events, people focus on the tragedy. This is a problem if you see my bookshelf at home. I have a lot of books about death and destruction. When I explain that it's not the death and destruction I'm actually interested in, I usually get a skeptical glare.

So, how does any of this play into my day-to-day work in the news business, promoting new media, and working on a college campus?

It gives me passion. I learned in college how to take a passion for something and pour my heart into it. For that course on the Holocaust, I probably did more writing than any other class I've ever taken, grad or undergrad. I loved every second of it and was bummed when it ended.

The same applies to the work I do today. I work on numerous projects everyday for many hours and often at home. I'm always thinking about it. Why? I'm passionate about it, and when you're passionate about something, you tackle it with everything you've got.

I'm very fortunate to have work that I enjoy.

I can't promise you professional success if you follow your passions in college, but I can promise you a lesson in hard work...work you'll love.