Need a Job? Check out Drake Media Gigs

A note from members of the Drake School of Journalism and Mass Communication Junior National Advisory Council:

Looking for a job? Tips on updating your "new media" skills? An opportunity for professional networking? A chance to help Drake journalism students launch their own careers?

The J-School's Jr. National Advisory Council is excited to announce

www.DrakeMediaGigs.Wordpress.com - a forum where we'll be posting career opportunities submitted by members of the Drake alumni family and of the professional media community.

We realized the need for such a site after discussing the frustrations of both job seekers and alumni with job opportunities. It's clear that Drake professionals are out there looking for talented people to hire - both for internships and full-time positions - but don't have an easy way to announce the openings to the Drake journalism community specifically.

We hope to meet that need.

In addition, we will use the site to post job-hunting tips and links to media career resources, as well as information about job fairs, skills workshops and other tools you can use to jump-start your professional lives.

For example, the SJMC is currently planning a series of workshops on campus this spring, aimed both at graduating seniors and area professionals seeking to ensure they have the skills necessary to compete in this challenging media environment.

If you're interested in hearing about these opportunities, simply sign up to receive updates via e-mail by clicking here.

Or via RSS updates by clicking here.
 
It's all free and we won't use your e-mail for any purpose other than to send you updates.

And remember that we're just getting started, so please be patient while we get the word out and work out any kinks as we get the site off the ground. We're also open to ideas, questions and suggestions - submit those to drakemediagigs@gmail.com.

DEAR PEP: How Long Should A Resume Be?

DEAR PEP: When, if ever, is it acceptable for one's résumé to make the jump to a second page? I thought this was a career "don't" in most situations, but I'm currently reviewing résumés for an open position in my company and am surprised by how many two-page résumés I'm seeing! And from people who've been out in the "real world" for less time than I have. Has the standard changed? -Alum who is actually hiring people

Dear Hiring Alum: Yes, the rule had been to keep it to one page and that is still the ideal, but because people move around so much now--sometimes whether they want to or not--you can no longer always get all the job details on one page. Still, employers are in a hurry and more overworked than ever, so don't waste time with filler information. Some tips:

• Get to the point. Include only relevant experience and skills. If you are on your second job, cut the fact that you edited the college magazine.

• There is no need to explain what you did on specific jobs, unless it is unique to the position. An editorial assistant needs no explanation unless you also managed photo shoots or wrote major features. In general, you just need: Employer, job title, dates you were there.

• Full addresses of employers is no longer needed. Just include the city.

• Keep the type size readable. It's better to go to a second page than to cut your type down to 9 pt. Some faces, though, fit more words, so experiment. For example, Garamond goes almost 20 percent farther than Arial. ( I typed an 8-word sentence in both faces at 12 pt. The Arial line was two words longer than the Garamond. Go ahead and critique my math.)

• Don't list references. Say only "references available upon request."

• Your accompanying letter is a vital supplement. This is where you fill in the gaps, add perspective, detail, and personality.  Check my post on writing a letter of application.

• Don't take up precious space with an overblown logo for yourself. Make it comprehensive, clear, and readable.

Alums on camera

Magazine alums are comfortable in video format. Wendy Naugle (’96) was on the Today show December 15, comfortably telling Al Roker how to make smart choices with Christmas eating. Wendy was amazing, of course. Even made Al laugh. And gave great information.

Meanwhile, Abbey Klaasen (’02) introduces the “3-Minute Ad Age,” a daily video news show on adage.com. Abbey is the cool, crisp, lively anchor of the program. My favorite was the December 5 segment with NBC’s Brian Williams who spoofs new media hype.

Nice work, Wendy and Abbey.

Time's Top Ten Magazine Covers of 2008

In what so far appears to be a successful attempt to appeal to every magazine junkie in the country, Time has selected the top ten magazine covers of 2008.  

Writer Arthur Hochstein offers a background and an interpretive narrative on each selection.  Cover number one was The New Yorker, November 17, 2008.   Number four is Entertainment Weekly's delightful parody of The New Yorker's controversial Barry Blitt cover showing the Obama fist bump.   Number seven is Interview's September 2008, a glittery pop-art illustration of Kate Moss.

We have the EW and Interview covers in the Center's current display in Meredith 111. 

 

Waste trees; save your career

A recent grad shared the following experience and thought the rest of you might benefit from her perspective:

As a research editor, I fact-check articles, making sure everything is fair and accurate. I've learned that the best way to communicate changes or concerns to editors is usually through e-mail. Why? Because then there's a written record that I've done my job. If I tell an editor something really important over the phone, but it doesn't get changed for whatever reason, there's no record of that phone call. If there's any issues, I'm left stammering to my boss, "I swear I told the editor about this. Really." I've become a little insane about my e-mail habits: I save or "bcc" myself on almost everything now. Furthermore, I print out e-mails that are especially important and put them in my file for whatever story I'm working on.

This all sounds super paranoid, right? But honestly, if something goes wrong and an editor doesn't want to look bad, guess who's a really easy scapegoat? The young, fresh-out-of-college fact-checker. It sucks, but it happens.

And it almost happened to me earlier this week. Two editors called me down to talk about a story. I grabbed that story folder and headed into the office, and they started being all like, "Why didn't you tell us about XYZ earlier? Why is this just coming up now?" And I very calmly said, "I sent you an e-mail about that a week and a half ago." Blank stares. So I opened my story folder, and—this was so awesome—a copy of that e-mail just happened to be the very first thing in the folder. I whipped it out, set it in front of them, and then they were the ones left stammering. Bam! Awesomeness. I tried really hard not to gloat as one of them was muttering, "Oh, yeah, um, I must not have read this carefully at the time." Later the other one sent me an e-mail to apologize.

Would it have been as effective if I didn't have a hard copy of that e-mail? No. So I'll keeping using up paper and killing trees as long as that habit keeps saving my ass in ridiculous situations like the one above. And this comes in handy in other situations besides fact-checking. If you're writing an article or helping to set up a photo shoot, it's nice to have the instructions and later communications in writing, just in case there's any confusion later on. Sometimes after a meeting or lengthy phone call, I'll type up the summary and e-mail it to the editor with a note like: "Just want to make sure we're on the same page here and I'm understanding everything."

The only exception to my e-mail rule is if the information is legally sensitive. If I write something in an e-mail that says, "I don't think we should print this because it could be libelous for x, y, z reasons," that e-mail could be used against me and my company in court if we got sued for that story. Even if I didn't save or print it and everyone I sent it to deleted it right away, it lives on in the company's server. E-mails can never be completely destroyed, so I always have a verbal conversation with editors about legally sensitive matters.

Fun stuff, right? But you'll be surprised by how professional little things like this can make you look.

Hands on progress

On the heels of the passage of Proposition 8 in California, coverage has focused on our lack of progress on giving equal rights to gays and lesbians. It may be good, though, to see how far we have come. The covers here give some perspective.

The first two, ten years apart, demonstrate that magazine editors, when faced with the prospect of illustrating gay issues, went no farther than the hands. Be safe. Stick with symbolism, not actual people. Heaven forbid we should look at faces. Time’s cover is from 1979. Newsweek’s is from 1990. Not much progress in the intervening 11 years.

Also, not much originality. At least Newsweek did not ask “How Gay is Gay.”

Fast forward to People magazine August 2008. Look at Ellen Degeneres and Portia de Rossi’s wedding. Faces and everything. Just like real people celebrating their wedding.

Life.com Archive to Launch Soon

Margaret Bourke-White. Alfred Eisenstadt. Gordon Parks. W. Eugene Smith. Those of you familiar with Life magazine know that these are some of that famed magazine's famed photographers. Now you can see their photos and more than ten million images from the Life photo archive. The new Life site--Life.com--Your World in Pictures--will launch in early 2009.  It is co-sponsored by Getty Images. 

Here's how they're planning to make money from this venture: Images will be directly linked to the sales site QOOP.  Getty Images will handle licensing for commercial purposes.  So it will be a fun site to browse.  And, Time Inc. hopes some of those browsers become buyers.


 

Time Magazine's FDR/Obama Cover: An Eerie Gimmick

This cover bothers me. It’s the November 24, 2008 Time magazine, with the cover line, “The New New Deal: What Barrack Obama can learn from F.D.R.—and what the Democrats need to do.” The cover story, “The New Liberal Order,” is by Peter Beinart.  

Time’s managing editor Richard Stengel says the story suggests that Obama might restore order in the way FDR did, by forging a liberal majority. “Liberalism is about regulating,” he says.

All that sounds great. I am all for order. I respect FDR.  And I respect Obama.  So why does this cover bother me so much?

For those of you not glued to cable news and Internet, the cover uses an original image of FDR, with Obama’s face Photoshopped into FDRs.

I find it eerie and a little disrespectful.  I am comfortable with the connection—most historians credit FDR with helping to pull us out of the Great Depression.  Americans looked to him with hope and supported him by electing him to four terms of office, making him the only president to be elected for more than two terms. In 1951, the 22nd Amendment imposed a two-term limit on the presidency to keep that from happening again.

So the magazine's overt message is solid.  It is the image itself I find troubling. It takes our new president-elect, a very serious man, and makes him look a little like a 1930s playboy. In FDRs time, that cigarette holder—or whatever it is—and hat may have looked dapper and sophisticated. Today, they look silly, and they make the president-elect, who has great promise, look a little less than himself.

Photoshopping is a great tool for cleaning up photos. Should it be used to replace one president's face with another on a major magazine?  What an odd question to even have to ask. The clear answer to me is:  "No."  That's a gimmick.  It's neither good design nor good journalism.  And it certainly is not good photography, if it is photography at all. 

Magazine Cover Design: Newsstand vs. Subscription

Look at how Ladies’ Home Journal changes its cover to appeal to two different audiences: newsstand buyers and subscribers. The cover photo is identical.

The newsstand cover (below) has:
• far more cover lines—on both sides, so it doesn’t matter if other magazines on the newsstand cover the left, right, or even the bottom.
• varied typography, both in color and size. The giant “Paula Deen’s Halloween” is designed to grab you from two to three shopping carts away.
• a number—essential, in magazine lore, to grab the reader quickly and to imply value.
• the barcode, which drives art directors nuts. Not the prettiest cover element.

The subscription (above) cover has:
• more subdued typography—the same size, with no giant cover lines.
• an airier look—the buyer has already signed up, so no need to charm her with numbers or multiple sell lines.

Drake Wins Another Pacemaker

Drake walked away with another Pacemaker this year—for Drake Magazine. The judges were complimentary about Drake Mag, of course,  but also made some great comments about Think. You can read details here. Some excerpts:

Drake Magazine, Drake University School of Journalism. Of the many good magazines I saw, this one had a sophistication and comprehension of magazine structure and design that were not equaled elsewhere. The cover, a simple but elegant graphic based on words and a geometric background, was inviting and clear. The index, on a two page spread, echoed the cover graphic, and elegantly presented the total contents — front of the book, well, and back of the book — in clear and size-appropriate order, with the four well stories visually predominant but the other elements quickly grasped, and easily found in the magazine itself. At least one of the well stories was a new and surprising subject to me: diabulemia, in which diabetics forgo insulin injections in order to lose weight. A fashion/cultural comment feature called Girls Gone Mild (a bit of a cliché in a headline these days) was fun and interesting. A piece on on-line universities was informative. And the fourth well piece, on video games, took a sharp look at their impact on study habits. I was especially impressed by the attention given to the front and back of the book sections, and by the elegant transitions between these sections. Bits & Pieces offered cultural observations, a brief book review, news snippets (a story about how hedgehog safety resulted in a safer McFlurry container) and other short items. The back of the book, like the front, featured a number of clever short items under catchy rubrics: Spare Change (stories about personal finance), Folks, Say What (an article about students experimenting with a robot baby, as a family planning exercise). Photographs throughout were fine, though this was not the magazine’s strongest element. But altogether a really impressive effort, beautifully designed, with a coherent clear editorial mission.

Think. Drake University. There were three good entries from Drake, but I was impressed by the unabashed advocacy in this one. The issue includes a surprisingly opinionated editorial letter on the need for America to get back in touch with the world. This viewpoint is carried out in the articles, book reviews, short takes on consumer buying and global responsibility. It’s not to everyone’s political taste, but I admired the forthrightness of it.

Obama on Time and Newsweek

Here's the first of the historic covers.

Tina Fey and John McCain in Life Magazine: 2004

Life magazine editors in 2004 had an eye for a political pair--they put John McCain and Tina Fey on the October 15 issue that year. (At the time, Life was published as a newspaper supplement, one of its many incarnations in a long history.)  The cover line:  "Why We're Voting: Inside the booth, with Tina Fey, John McCain, Manny Ramirez, Andre 3000 and other upstanding citizens."  In her interview, Fey says she is a registered independent and, when asked her preference for Bush or Kerry, she notes,  " Comedians should keep it to themselves so they can make jokes about everyone."  Prescient, Tina.  And McCain says his daughter was irate with him for endorsing George Bush in the 2004 Presidential election.  "I've never been so angry at you," she told him.  Prescient as well.

The cover caption reads, "Fey straightens out McCain."

One big difference between Fey and McCain's current running mate, Sarah Palin: wardrobe.  Tina is wearing jeans and a blazer that, while they look great, were probably not part of a $150,000 outlay.

How To Write a Letter of Application

Recently, I had a chance to read letters of application from several talented students. They did quite a few things right; they did a few things wrong. Let’s talk about both.

Salutation
When you are applying for a job, don’t get too cozy. Never use a person’s first name unless that person suggests it.

Use the proper prefix. I am not Mrs. Prijatel—I am, indeed, married, but I do not have my husband’s name. Students have it easy with me and could simply call me Professor Prijatel. In other instances, use the safe route and go with Ms. or Mr.

What do you do with a person with a name like Dana? Or what happens when this current crop of Dakotas and Taylors gets into the workplace? Take advantage of the wonders of Google and look the person up. Chances are great you will find a gender-specific reference. Look at the organization’s website and you might find a photo there.

Information
Make sure you give enough contact information—address, phone number, email address.

How to Start It

Don't begin with "My name is...."  I will see that in your contact information.  Start with, "I am applying for the position of blankety blank, which you advertised in the Des Moines Register.  I believe I am the right candidate for the job."  Don't tell me you "would like to apply."  Just apply.

List Your Qualifications

Tell me what you can do for me, not what I can do for you.  Give me your credentials and show how you can make my life easier.

Details
Edit your letter and then edit it and edit again. It should have no errors.

How to End it
Let the potential employer know where, how and when to contact you. And make sure you are accessible. You can also include a line such as “I will contact you later this week to see if you need additional information.” And then contact them ever so politely, with a well- written email or a highly professional phone call.

And remember: Always put your best foot forward for even the most mediocre jobs. You’re making a contact and contacts build networks, which lead to jobs.

Format
It is easiest to use block format—everything flush left:

Your name
Address
City, State, Zip
Phone number
Email address

Dear Ms. Whozywhatsit:

I am applying for the position of blankety blank, which you advertised in Sunday's Des Moines Register.  I believe I am the right candidate for the job.

Give your qualifications.  Offer details and examples.

Tie your qualifications to the job.

End with a note that reiterates your interest in the job.  Consider offering to contact them within a week or so.

Sincerely,

(Your signature here. And remember to sign it.)

Ima Napplicant

“Monetize” Should Not Be A Word

Merriam Webster lists this fingernails-on-the-chalkboard word as a transitive verb originating around 1879. Nearly 140 years ago some clown began talking about monetizing whale bones or some fool thing. Modern clowns are talking about monetizing Internet content or other fool things. It should stop. This is an awful word.