TV on Facebook

As I talked about last week, television has a major impact on people's lives. For people in the 16 to 25 years old range especially, two other forms of mass communication known as Facebook and MySpace have swept the nation. It seems like radio and television stations alike have realized this is a new way to hit viewers and are posting profiles and other information on these social networking sites. I received an e-mail while at my internship at WPXI-TV stating that they have now done just that, with some employees posting their own pages as well.

Prospective employees are already using sites like YouTube and Google Video to post video and audio clips so that employers can find them online. Other stations and people who work there have profiles and pages for fans so they can interact with DJs and on air personalities and find out what the latest concerts and giveaways are.

On their sites, Channel 11 includes anything from internship information to links to video and even pictures of the ribbon cutting ceremony and the new building. They said their goal is to reach those who may not visit WPXI.com on a regular basis. They have tracked some success and have also added links to the networking sites on the station's home page. Check these pages out to see if this technique would work for you if you were trying to find an internship or other information on Facebook or MySpace.

Television is changing...

Ever since the writers strike began, viewers were pleading for it to end. They wanted their favorite shows back so they could have some nightly entertainment. Finally the strike has ended, and fans should be excited, right? Well, not so fast. They are still going to have to play the waiting game because most shows will not return with new episodes until March or April. The worst part - shows like "24" and "Heroes" aren't coming back until 2009.

I can happily say that my favorite television shows will return in just shy of two months. It's a little known fact about me that I love crime dramas, so that will make the first week of April an exciting one for me. Criminal Minds, CSI, and Numb3rs (CBS) are all returning the 2nd through the 4th with at least a handful of new episodes for addicts like me.

Also, with an end to the strike, the Oscars will go on as normal with all the big stars on the red carpet. Viewers can expect to see Miley Cyrus, George Clooney, Denzel Washington, and Tom Hanks at the big event a week from today on ABC at 8 PM.

However, since shows will not return until at least next month, the networks' February Sweeps ratings will not see the benefits of original programming. However, I have to hand it to NBC for grabbing my attention during the strike with their reality shows Deal or No Deal and American Gladiators. By the way, did I mention the two-hour finale for Gladiators is tonight at 7?

This just goes to show that television has become a part of everyone's daily lives. And that means we as broadcasters should take our jobs very seriously. Viewers do watch primetime programming but they are still interested in what's going on in the real world. It's our responsibility to put on content that matters because those watching at home depend on us to feed them the facts.

The Moment

You know which one I'm talking about. That scary crazy one that every senior dreads and loves at the same time. You guessed it - job application time!

I recently met back up with 2007 WC grad Stevi Nelson who's working as an account executive at WTAE in Pittsburgh. Stevi and I are still close friends so the meeting was mainly to catch up on things, but the conversation also included my future plans. I vaguely remember when Stevi was applying for jobs, but I couldn't fit it into a timeline. When I asked her when she started sending out her applications she said, "NOW!"

Needless to say, that statement gave me an extra push to get in gear. In the past week, I have started the process by updating my resume and searching for open positions at various stations. I have found openings in the three locations I am considering which are Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Youngstown. This week's activities will include getting in touch with some of my contacts to make sure I am on track and a trip to the Career Center to send out applications. However, I feel it's more exciting than scary to send out those resumes and cover letters.

Where have all the graphics gone?

When I started this blog earlier in the school year, I mentioned that I would do my best to alternate my entries between sales and graphics. As you can tell, I haven't followed that pattern very well. This is mainly because I feel like sales is the area where I see my future career. I feel as though my personality and skills are better suited for becoming a broadcast sales account executive. The fact that the art and graphics departments are quickly shrinking at television stations doesn't help for finding full-time work in the field either.

Recently, I have decided to get more involved with my art and graphics work. I still constantly create and run the graphics for the live remote broadcasts and the Coaches Corner show on campus. However, I do have a love for Photoshop, and am manipulating some photographs I shot recently to update my portfolio. Below is one of my works in progress. I took the original picture and cropped it so the butterfly was on the lower right third. Then, I applied the cutout filter to the entire image, and finally enhanced the contrast and added a little more green to the shadows. I still may make more changes but I feel it has definitely improved.