by A.man.I

So I haven’t installed the new Mac OS Snow Leopard, but AbsolutePresence has, and shares some great tutorials, and perspective on the upgrade.

from AbsolutePresence

I picked up a copy of Apple’s Snow Leopard today and I have to say it is an improvement. It’s a hard sell to make “under the hood” adjustments seem sexy to the consumer, but here are my initial thoughts:

1. Hard Drive Space–I have an older Intel Mac and I run it like a workhorse, I only had 13 GB left now I have 30. That’s a bonus.

2. Speed, I tested it against version 10.5.7 and iTunes and the native Mac apps respond a lot quicker. Most people won’t notice, but if you run a lot of apps like me you will appreciate it.

3.Quicktime Player X–Screen recording. It’s a nice set for a quick screen grab, no external software needed. If you want to do more in-depth tutorials with editing controls use Screenflow, Camtasia, or iShow U HD.

4. Exchange support–This is one thing that was missing in Apple Mail. I use Entourage at work because it is better, but for those of us who are are on corporate networks this comes as a welcome addition.Instead of using Outlook to access Exchange services such as email, calendar invitations, and Global Address Lists, you can use Mail, iCal, and Address Book.

5. Accessibility–Snow Leopard makes navigating OS X on a modern Apple laptop easier, by offering new trackpad gestures for newer laptops.

Visit the blog to watch a couple of great tutorials.

by A.man.I

by A.man.I

by A.man.I

This best of segment features CNN anchor/correspondent T.J. Holmes. So this is the story about how I landed the interview: Shortly after I relocated to Atlanta and started my blog, my brother who happened to work with T.J. at his former station (KNTV – San Jose, CA) told me that T.J. had moved to Atlanta to work for CNN and I should try to get in touch with him.

It just so happened that around that time, one of my blog posts was about an upcoming CNN special. Shortly after, I received a press release from the network.

“Hmmmmm, why is CNN sending me a press release”? I asked myself. So I called the PR rep and had a pleasant conversation with her about my blog. I told her that my brother used to work with Holmes, and asked if I could arrange a sit down interview with him.

A few days later we set it up. I was invited inside of CNN headquarters. I was allowed to tape some footage of Holmes on the anchor desk, and had a pleasant conversation with him after.

T.J. is true professional, and has a very cool news presentation style. By the way if you ladies are wondering, word is: Holmes in engaged (but you didn’t hear it from me).

The interview is below.

by A.man.I

I’ve had my fair share of covering hurricanes and tropical storms, and last year I stayed busy working the storm season as a freelance correspondent for HDNews. The high def news operation was owned by Cablevision, and I was assigned out of the southeast bureau.

The first half of the summer was relatively quiet, but once the storms started hitting, it was on. Mario Page and I covered a total of four storms last year, T.S. Fay, Hurricane Gustavo, T.S. Hanna, and Hurricane Ike.

T.S. Fay Movie

Twitter really became an effective tool for sharing what I was seeing from the field. Using the hash tags for each storm, I was able to gain a number of follers who were interested in the storms. In addition to Twitter, I posted all of our news stories to my blog, I did some live streaming, and took photos.

Hurricane Ike by far did the most damage out of all of the storms. Mario and I were assigned to cover the aftermath when residents were allowed to return home to Galveston. We turned several stories, and ended up along the Bolivar Penninsula, which was devestated.

My thoughts and prayers have been with those who lost everything. I wonder how recovery is going?

MUR Ike Movie

by A.man.I

Wow, how life has changed in the three years since MUR was born back on August 23, 2006. I’ve gone from being a veteran traditional broadcast journalist, to an experienced social media practitioner. I say practitioner because using social media takes practice. It’s both an art and science, and I’m really just having fun creating multi-media for my world-wide-web audience.

What have I learned? Social media is great for personal branding, building relationships, facilitating conversations, business, and sharing news. You have to dig in, get your hands dirty and do it all… Write, shoot, edit, take pics, and share, share, share.

Networking offline is just as, if not more important than online networking. When people meet you, shake your hand, or have a conversation, then see the online content, that’s when they say “Wow. That’s pretty inovative.”

I’ve produced a gang of videos, both professional and “webby.” I won a Telly-Award this summer. I host an online, professionally produced show about social media news, trends, and innovation. I’ve traveled all over the country to speak, covered big news stories, and conferences, but there still seems to be so much work to do.

For those of you interested in creating, and not just consuming media, don’t hesitate. Start a blog, write a few thoughts; create a Twitter Facebook, or LinkedIN account, or join a Ning network. But make sure you observe, learn, read, then work on your strategy.

If you’re interested in video, buy Flip cam – or better yet, go mobile. I love how my iPhone handles video, and with applications/sites like Kyte, TwitVid, or Qik, you can share your video instantly. Don’t forget about TubeMogul, or Ustream.

If you’re in the news biz and have a job, feel lucky. Two of my past recent employers, BlackFamilyChannel, and HDNews no longer exist. People are looking, hungry, and execs are trying to figure it out. I suggest you get on this digital/social media train and fast, or else it’s going to run you over.

The power of mass media has shifted to the people, and we can all be a part of the evolution. Social media isn’t perfect. I’m a reporter, but I don’t always spell check, and don’t have an editor. I’m not the New York Times, or CNN, but I know they’re watching too, cuz they’re trying to figure this new media game out.

This week I’ll be sharing some of my favorite videos from the past.

Hope you enjoy, and thanks for tuning in!

PEACE!!

A.man.I “theurbanreporter” Channel

East Palo Alto: The Ride – Featuring Salim Channel

I do this for all my rogues.

by A.man.I

AMANI CHANNEL INTERVIEWED ON BELLABUZZ
I was recently interviewed by Atlanta web designer/social media trainer Desiree Scales about video on the web and production. If you have general questions about video production, please check out the podcast.

Desiree has been in the web design game for a minute, and she’ll be featured in an upcoming episode of MediaConnection. Stay tuned.

LENSLINGER SHOOTS FROM THE HIP
For all you fans of news blogs, you have to check out ViewFinderBlues by the one and only Lenslinger aka Stewart Pittman. I’ve been following this reporter-turned-photographer ever since I entered the blogosphere.

One of his recent posts, titled Depleting the Breed really struck a chord.

…now I’m seeing folks whom I figured would die with a station logo on their tit leave the fold for jobs that don’t involve live trucks or nightly deadlines.

It’s a sad truth, the biz ain’t what it used to be. Hats of to everyone who is hanging tuff.

ATLANTA REPORTER-TURNED BLOGGER RETURNS TO THE AIR
I’m sure that just about every TV news pro in the Atlanta market has checked out veteran newsman Doug Richards’ LiveApartmentFire. He’s been providing a daily dose of local news analysis for a minute now.

It looks like his Doug’s love for covering murder and mayhem on the streets of metro Atlanta could only be pacified by returning to the streets. He’s now at WXIA-TV 11Alive News.

I think his blog is even better because he’s in the thick of things providing a unique glimpse of daily newsroom antics. I think his blog will be a good PR/branding tool for the station as well. Doug, has the station put any restrictions on your blog? I wonder.

by A.man.I
My Urban Report hasn’t vetted this job post. @Supeshooter, Mario Page shared the link and it could be a great opportunity.

It’s another example of an opportunity in new media.

Good Luck!

from Craigslist

VJ Editor/Assignment Coordinator

Date: 2009-08-15, 9:03PM
SoMedia is a convergent new media company producing quality controlled, user generated video journalism content for web and TV broadcast. We are building Broad Band Network 3, a series of city-based websites across the US featuring video journalism segments. We also produce three TV series broadcast to over 75 million households in the US on CBS, ABC, FOX etc.
We are looking for a news junkie, who is plugged into the Atlanta scene, to help create and manage video journalism assignments for our Atlanta BBN3 site (the 12th of 20 BBN3 sites across North America).
This position is ideal for someone who is pursuing a career in news and would like to enhance their assignment development skills and network within the new media industry. This position will give you the opportunity to work closely with experienced film and television professionals and get a foot in the door with a growing new media company.
Check out the websites for some of our 10 current cities for examples of the kinds of assignments and videos we produce:
www dot bbn3 dot com/newyork
www dot bbn3 dot com/washingtondc
www dot bbn3 dot com/sanfrancisco

Qualifications:

• Familiar with video/visual medium (understand what makes a story work as video rather than print)
• Familiar with current events and various media coverage of them (traditional news model and new media models)
• Familiar with the interests of our key demographic: 18-34 year olds
• Well-rounded- Must be able to find stories in different genres (entertainment, politics, sports, events, environment, etc.)
• Resourceful- Able to research and find story leads in unconventional places
• Ability to remain objective, finding diverse topics and approaching stories in a fair and impartial way.
• Skilled writer/communicator- Should be able to “sell” the story through titles and brief descriptions
• Internet savvy- Understanding of internet resources and ability to create content for website audiences (understanding of internet audiences expectations and ability to identify “viral” potential)
• Organized- Able to multi-task and complete responsibilities effectively and timely

Job Description:

The Assignment Coordinator would start by finding and composing local story assignments that meet the BBN3 mandate:
EDGY, COMPELLING NEWS THAT APPEALS TO 18 – 34 YEAR OLDS AND WILL CREATE BUZZ ACROSS THE WEB.
Once you have proven your skills at the assignment creation level you will have the opportunity to take on a larger role of assignment management, working with VJ’s through the development and production of their video journalism segments.

If you have what it takes you will then have a chance to move into the TV realm of SoMedia, assisting in the development of TV segments (with IMDB credit).
Additionally, this fall BBN3 will be implementing our VJ on Demand Program, which will offer Assignment Coordinators the chance to take on a Producer role in a revenue sharing model of sponsored assignments.