Solid ideas come out of story pitching session

A look at the board after story pitching for the Introduction to Multimedia class.

The inaugural session of Introduction to Multimedia began Monday, June 15. Yesterday, I opened lecture with a presentation called “Why multimedia?” which was a quick history of newspaper journalism and the progression from Penny Press days to the digital realm.

I also did a primer on story ideas.

Today, students each turned in two story ideas that could potentially be used for multimedia projects. I was extremely pleased with what was offered up.

Since quite a few of the students in the course are current for former journalism students, they’ve done pitching prior to this. Those who had not, though, offered solid ideas for a first start.

The students were asked to focus on ideas that:

• Provided a “slice of life” of communities within the 209 area code
• Could be reported and covered in a six-week period
• Contained heavy visuals
• Could result in a minimum of three interviews

The ideas included stories that were highly focused, and some that were more general.

Notable ideas, included:

• A “day in the life” of a police department public relations officer
• Real-life ghost hunters
• Concert in the Park series
• Hot dog vendors in Stockton
• A ministry/organization that provides suits to men in need for job interviews
• Misconceptions of Stockton from surrounding communities
• Following a minor league baseball player
• Farm to fork movement in action
• Last days of a 100+ year old Baptist Church

Tomorrow, the students will choose a story that will hold their interest through the semester. They’ve been given the option of reporting the entire project themselves or teaming up with a group of no more than three other students.

We’ll see what makes the cut.