Getting the most out of networking

By Heidi Morrison

Lisa Marie Gomez, owner of LMG Communications, and Gary Underwood, Director of Communications at Time Warner Cable for the Dallas area, discussed how simply knowing people is one of the best tools we, as mass communication majors, can bring to the table.


"All of you are going to see yourself at some point in the future," Gomez said.

Gomez said your knowing the right people can get you that job or help you get to that specific source.

She talked about her own experience when she was a reporter and needed an interview with Rick Perry. She kept calling and was getting nowhere.

"They kept giving me the runaround," she said.

Then she called her cousin who worked for the governor. He called the same person she had been speaking to, and that's what made it happen.

"Relationships matter," Underwood added. "If you've got good friends in these industries, you can use them for good."


Underwood said Time Warner hired him because he has relationships and knows how to use relationships to make things work.

"What matters is I know people and I can get that job accomplished," he said.

If you're networking and you want to keep in touch with a specific person, Gomez and Underwood said it takes seven to ten different encounters for someone to remember you.

"Handwritten notes are the best," Gomez said.

Be genuine and simple when making acquaintances, not too outgoing, they said.

They suggsested finding things out about them, their likes and dislikes. The more effort you make to know someone, the more they will appreciate it.

When it comes to applying for a job, Gomez said your networking capabilities is one of the most important things you can add.

"What makes your skyscraper just a little bit taller than the other one?" she said.

They said consistently keeping in touch is important.

"Networking is not the occasional activity," Gomez said.

She recommended two "must-haves" for networking: a LinkedIn page and business cards, as well as two "must-do's": Google yourself to see what comes up and if that's what you want to show up, and send handwritten notes because it shows that you took the time and effort to get in touch with the person.

Underwood said spelling is important for credibility and he mentioned two words we should never use because they are not actually words: "irregardless" and "anyways."

Gomez brought up an imperative point when talking about her internship at KVUE in Austin. She said she was the only intern willing to do everything. Even thought they were not paid, she worked graveyard shifts. She did all the jobs that interns didn't want to do for no pay, which in return, gave her opportunities that the other interns never had.

"When you have an opportunity to shine, take it," she said.

Hispanic advertiser speaks to students

By Allen Reed

The discussion at the Hispanic Advertising & Public Relations in the 21st Century event Thursday was geared toward a multicultural audience.

Ashley Molton, Account manager for Bromley Communications, spoke to a nearly-filled room of students not just about Hispanic-specific issues, but advertising issues in general. Arthur Cavazos, an additional speaker, was not able to attend.

“This type of event is essential because knowing about Latinos and other ethnic groups is not just for those ethnic groups,” said Federico Subervi, journalism professor. “This is not a lecture that was just for minorities or Hispanics.

The change in demographics requires that all of our students, unless they are going to go up and live in Vermont or New Hampshire, know about the change in demographics and different cultures.”

Having a beer in Monterrey or Cancun is not multicultural knowledge, Subervi said — getting a round of laughs from the audience.

Molton, 2004 Texas State graduate, said one does not have to be Hispanic to work in a Hispanic advertising agency, but understanding the culture was essential. The Texarkana native said she is not of Hispanic descent.

She said the increasing Hispanic population is causing more interest in advertising to the niche. However, the advice she provided was not limited to any single ethnic group.

“I’ve never told anybody this before,” Molton said. “But when I get on a video conference or am in a meeting with a client, I smile the whole time.”

She said it makes clients want to work with her. Additionally, “staying close to your childish roots” helps especially in advertising, Molton said. She cited work with Fruit Roll-Ups and Gushers as examples.

“As a general rule, you will be underpaid the first half of your career, and overpaid during the second half of your career,” according to a slide of Molton’s presentation.

Molton said the most important action students can take is to get to know their professors.

“Building relationships with them and take advantage of the connections they have to help you get in the door,” she said. “That’s one of the best ways you can differentiate yourself from the masses out there that are trying to get a job.”

Subervi said he was delighted with Molton’s presentation.

“She has a line of four, six, eight people and she (talked to) about four people already…,” he said. “That says that she did a great job.”

Photos by Allen Reed

Word Cloud of #mcweek Tweets

1400+ tweets about the event were generated using the #mcweek hashtag. This word cloud really provides a strong sense of the enthusiasm of the attendees and viewers - words like "good," "great," "awesome," "excited," and "love" were prominent! This was made by copying all the posts from #mcweek, doing a little cleanup of the text and inputting into Wordle.net.

Keeping up with the evolution of media

Jim McNabb and John Bridgesspoke to a room full of Texas State students on Tuesday about the evolution of media and what the future of media may bring.

The speakers told the crowd that the "old " media is threatened by new media technologies. McNabb stressed that the newspaper industry has to"figure out a way to survive" in order to compete with the ever changing and growing internet.

With the television industry dwindling, there is less money. Hence, with less money there is not enough staff to get thorough news stories nor more news stories. Therefore, online jobs are taking over.

McNabb, who has been in the media industry for over 40 years and now works as a consultant, said that the biggest threat is that "there is not enough revenue."

"Every medium is being asked to do less with more. The beast is hungry and the beast must be fed," Bridges, who works as a sports editor at the Austin American Statesman, said.

McNabb said that future media professionals will mean one person doing it all: shooting, editing, writing and airing. The future media professional must be "a multi-platform performer."

Photos provided by: Jim McNabb and Julia Hankins
Video provided by: Julia Hankins
Story by: Julia Hankins

Fashionistas strut stuff at 2nd Annual PRSSA 'Dress for Success' fashion show

By: Amanda Givens

Students searching for an answer for how to dress in a job interview for the professional world found several ideas at the PRSSA 'Dress for Success' fashion show tonight in the LBJ Student Center.

The second annual 'Dress for Success' fashion show was organized by Kendall Schmidt, emcee for the evening as well as event planner for PRSSA, and her committee of volunteers.

The fashion show featured clothing from vendors such as Betsey Johnson, Kenneth Cole, JCPenney, Strut and The Hot Spot Salon and Spa.

'Dress for Success' featured many fashion choices for men and women and proved that personality does not have to be left at home.

The guest speaker for the event was Jean LeFebvre with Panache Image Consulting based in Austin. LeFebvre works as an image and wardrobe consultant for professional clients all the way to performing closet interventions.

"Research has proven that in less than two minutes, we have formed an impression," said LeFebvre. "And, 93 percent of our first impressions are visual."

LeFebvre said one way to know how to dress for an interview is to know your market by researching the culture of that business. She said to not be afraid to call the company's HR department and ask for tips on how to dress.

Frank Walsh, co-adviser of PRSSA, said the fashion show is part of getting ready for the professional world, and it does not hurt that many of the students enjoy fashion.

"The fashion show is probably the students' favorite event to put on every year," said Walsh. "I think the students did a great job tonight."

Karen Julian, the assistant director of Career Services and liaison to the College of Liberal Arts, said the reason it is so important that students dress well for an interview is because you have once chance to make a first impression.

"It is always best to air on the conservative side in the interview," Julian said. "However, once you get the job, then you can begin to let your personality show, in accordance with the dress requirements."

Julian said one issue pertaining to students deals with piercings and tattoos. She said it is best to cover them up or take them out until you know what the job environment allows.

Dara Quackenbush, co-adviser for PRSSA and coordinator for Mass Communication Week, said the reason PRSSA does the show is because there are so many questions that students have about how to wow the interviewer and dress the part.

"I think Jean did a wonderful job of explaining why it's important to make that great first impression," said Quackenbush. "The show went so well, and this has all been in response to students wanting to dress more professionally."

Schmidt said one feature of the evening was the models were from the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, rather than strictly being only PRSSA members.

"I feel it's a good way for everyone to pull together and show their support, rather than making it an exclusive 'PRSSA members-only' thing," said Schmidt.

LeFebvre offered commentary during the fashion show pertaining to which job environments the clothes would be appropriate for.

"If you can take care of the dress part of the interview, you will be more relaxed and able to focus on everything else about the interview," said LeFebvre.

The 'Dress for Success' fashion show concluded the 2009 Mass Communication Week at Texas State University.

Photos by Amanda Givens, featuring models in fashion show. Models included Shannon Topper, Tisha Trevino, Bee Barnett, Taylor Francis, Amy Osburn, Caitlyn Denham, David Hernandez, Wes Worthington, Austin Hall, Robby Martin and Jon O'Conner

Panelists discuss new media

By Christine Mester

Students were seen tweeting throughout Thursday's panel on new media.

Rob Quigley and Dave Doolittle of the Austin-American Statesman and Elise Hu of the Texas Tribune talked to students about the transition to new media and its role in changing journalism.

Quigley said that resources such as Twitter bring a broader perspective to news stories.

"I'm not going to retweet someone who said they saw a plane crash until I know for sure there was a plane crash," Quigley said. "At the same time, I want to use those reports in our report and collaborate to give a more complete picture of what's going on."

The speakers utilize new media outlets such as Twitter, YouTube and Facebook.

Quigley said Twitter is a tool that promotes instant news exchange, but he stressed the importance of verifying information gathered through new media sources.

"The difference we found is that we can be not only someone who verifies the facts that are out there," Quigley said. "But also someone who aggregates all the different reports out there and works with the community to come up with a more complete story."

Hu said part of the evolving journalism world is linking and sharing information with other news sources.

"We're in this changing time where the resources out there are fewer and there are fewer media outlets as well," Hu said. "I think we can best serve our viewers and our readers by aggregating and by providing a more complete look at a situation."

Quigley sent out a tweet during the discussion and instantly received responses from his followers.

The panelists stressed the importance of experimenting and accepting new forms of communication.

"The model is going to change and it's going to take people who are willing to change with it," Doolittle said.

Ad/PR grads show success is not far away

By Thomas Courtney

Of the four who made up the Ad/PR panel for Mass Comm Week, none were graduates earlier than 2004. Michelle Martin, 2009 PR graduate, Assistant Community Specialist for Computers for Learning, is having success in the PR world.

"We set up computers for low income families and businesses, it's non-traditional public relations, but I like it," said Martin.

She also spends a lot of time working for Health and Human Services of Austin.

Patti Kelly, State Farm, 2004 PR graduate, spent time in California, including two years working for ABCO Marketing, before settling in Austin.

"I moved to California after graduating, I needed a change of scenery," said Kelly.

She played a short news clip regarding 300,000 Hurricane Katrina cars that were flooded for days before being shipped to California to be cleaned up, re-titled and sold.

"Though I am in public relations, it's hard to put a stone cold answer on my daily routine," said Kelly.

Sarah Mercer, 2004 advertising graduate, is working at Dell as a Global Marketing Specialist. Mercer got the job at Dell because,

"I got an internship and it was the best thing I ever did," said Mercer.

She went through a number of paid internships prior to landing her current job and expressed how valuable they are during and after college.

Ashley Molton, 2004 advertising graduate, is working for Bromley Communications doing hispanic public relations for companies such as: General Mills, Juicy Juice, Wonka, Coffee Mate and more.

"You don't need to know as much spanish as you would think when doing hispanic PR, you have to know the culture and understand who you're selling to," said Molton.

Advertising and public relations are fields that span a broad number of industries: electronics, insurance, human services and brand recognition to name a few.

"The most important thing you can do is learn to work with people well, because you will be in teams for a lot of jobs," said Molton.

photo by Thomas Courtney

Alumni Say Dedication Leads to Success

By Emilie Boenig

Students gathered in front of a panel of 4 Texas State journalism and broadcast alumni on Thursday afternoon with questions about life after college, internships, and finding the perfect job.

With Laurie Fluker moderating, the panel discussed how a commitment to a career in mass communication can lead to great success.

In some instances, commitment could mean taking an overnight production job right after college, like panel member Ashley Lowell. She is now an executive producer at KWTX-TV in Waco, Texas.

"You need to remember that what you need is not always what you want," Lowell said. "You learn what you need to do to get to the next step and then you do it."

The panel members emphasized the importance of mass communication students taking internships to learn as much as possible.

"You are going to have to take those jobs that no one else wants to take and keep in touch with your mentors along the way." Food and Wine Reporter for the San Antonio Express-News Jennifer McInnis said. "I would say to you guys a minimum of 2 internships. If they see you're willing to work hard, they'll be willing to help you."

The alumni panel members also said that a variety of internships build the skills that make graduates valuable assets.

"I wanted to get experience in lots of areas so that I could be marketable," Lowell said. "You've got to get in front of the person making decisions."

Panel member Erika Aguilar of KUT Radio in Austin, Texas referred to this as being a Swiss Army Knife, someone who has broad experience in a variety of mass communication fields.

"For a day you get to become an expert on one topic," Aguilar said. "It's always going to be the people who work hard and shine who get the jobs."

Burnie Burns and his Online Video Phenomenon

Burnie Burns, founder of Rooster Teeth Productions and University of Texas at Austin Alumni, came to speak to students about how to make online videos work for them during Mass Comm Week.

Burns started off as a pre-med student and now produces a worldwide popular online series called Red vs. Blue.

Burns switched his major because he saw the Internet business as a bigger and more substantial place to grow.

At UT he started to make a 100-minute feature film. He then got into what he calls, "a mountainous world of distribution," spending the same amount of time making it as he did distributing it.

In 2002 while working at Telenetwork he made a one1-minute Apple parody about a guy switching to Apple for video games, with friends from work. Twenty-four hours after they posted it to their Web site, Drunkgamers, a friend from LA called to tell him he had seen it. "In that moment, it was like the world flattened out," he said. "Here's something that we made in an afternoon in 20 minutes and Matt saw it in 24 hours, half way across the country."

This discovery lead to Red vs. Blue, a Web series that is on its eight season. Burns stressed the necessity of consistency for online space, "If people don't know where to come back on a regular basis you'll just loose them." Their series went from 2,500 views in their first episode to a million in six months.

"Stuff that seems out of reach always works itself to everybody," Burns said.

Journalism student, Bianca Davis, asked, "For someone that doesn't have a background in video or technology, in general, what kind of things do you recommend doing?"

He suggested checking out Jake and Amir, a couple of guys on YouTube that just talk to each other. He also recommended looking into handheld cameras with video capabilities, one step up from cellphones, and playing with iMovie or taking advantage of student discounts for software like Final cut.

Last year YouTube was second only to Google, as sites being used as search engines before google bought them. It now has one billion views a day. Red vs. Blue is on its top 20 most watched.

There are a lot of people coming into feature films from the Internet, they self distribute and are self made, said Burns.

Television and cinema are getting nervous by the growing number of online video activity. They are trying to figure out how to change with this new technology and adapt their networks to it.

Burns said the Internet has become a network farm, a place where when something rises to the top, it is picked by a network to run on TV.

Burns advised students have their own Web site. He is against investing so much time on an online identity, using Facebook or Twitter. Even though Ashton Kutcher has over 3 million followers and tweeted about his new movie, "Spread," it made little over $200,000 in the box office.

Burns suggested integrating social media Web sites ito build a strong hybrid model, making it more resistant to future social media changes.

Grad students offer insight on their experience

By Michael Barrett

Texas State School of Journalism and Mass Communication graduate students Dale Blasingame, Mairin Heard and Maira Garcia had some valuable insight for undergrads deciding whether or not to continue their education beyond a bachelor’s degree.

Dale Blasingame graduated from Texas State in 1999 and has been a TV news producer for the last ten years, until starting on his master’s degree this semester.

“It was tough. I had a successful career and I could have easily just kept on going in the news business and never blinked. Some of my friends and family were definitely raising their eyebrows,” he said.

Mairin Heard is in her second semester in grad school and is focusing on new media.

She graduated from Texas State in December with a degree in public relations.

“I currently do PR and event planning for a t-shirt screening shop in Austin among other freelance work here and there, while attending grad school,” she said.

Maira Garcia also received her bachelor’s degree from Texas State, in print journalism, and is in her final semester of grad school.

Garcia was editor of the University Star for a full year, as both an undergraduate and a graduate student.

The three students had slightly varying reasons for being in grad school.

“The main reason I’m here is because I want to be a professor, so I had to do at least a master's and probably a PhD,” Blasingame said.

“I’d really gotten inspired by a few professors and a few classes,” Heard said.

“I had the opportunity to go to grad school and I think I was too afraid to graduate and get so involved in my career choice and then not go back to school, because I knew I wanted to get a masters degree.”

Garcia, as well as Blasingame, plans to teach at some point in the future: “I’ve always been inspired by teachers that I’ve had growing up and then professors that I’ve had in college. You can just see the impact that they make on their students.”

The panel discussed some of the differences between undergrad and grad school, such as evening classes.

Heard cited the advantage of evening classes for those students who are working full time: “We have plenty of students in our classes that have full time jobs, nine to five or eight to five and then they come straight to San Marcos and go to school. It may seem really difficult, but if you’re good at time management you can make it work and it is worth it.”

“For me, it’s worked out perfectly because I’ve been able to take on different freelance jobs and projects and get to do what I wanted to do during the day and still go to class and get an education at night,” Heard said.

“I think the biggest difference I noticed in the grad program is that the professors see you as their colleagues. They know that if you’re here for a master's there is a chance you’ll be teaching at some point,” Garcia said.

“Everyone is so passionate about what they’re doing, and it’s just a really solid group of people, I guess comparing to some undergrads, who don’t really care about school or who don’t take advantage of it as much. I think in any grad program, you take advantage of it in a different way,” Heard said.

All three students on the panel were enthusiastic in their recommending of grad school to their undergrad audience. However, their experiences were not without minor setbacks.

“The combination of writing broadcast style, and I’m on twitter so much where you have to condense everything down to one line. I had one paper due that was six pages, which isn’t even all that long and I got to two pages and I was like ‘I’m out, I’m done.’ So that’s been the toughest part for me. Everything else has been pretty seamless,” Blasingame said.

Photo by Michael Barrett

Assistant Attorney General Gives In-and-Outs of Open Privacy

By Shawn Dullye

Chris Schulz spoke to Texas State students during Mass Comm Week about privacy laws referring to government documents and private interest. And for those of you who aren't taking media law, that means discussing what documents the public can and cannot request the government to make public.

Schulz started out by asking students "How much do you think Mack Brown's annual salary is?" Mack Brown is the University of Texas' football coach, and apparently he makes $5 million a year, though only a small portion is his actual UT paid salary, the rest comes from annual and salary bonuses, appearances, and sponsorships. As interesting as the answer was, Schulz then asked the students how they thought he knew that, hence, the entire point of the discussion. The public merely has to send in a request to government or government-funded agencies, and said organization must respond within 10 working days stating why or why not the documents will be released.

"I've been curious about the Freedom of Information Act and how that information is requested and it was good to finally get some clarification on the issue," said Joe Doyle, electronic media senior.

Being the assistant attorney general, it's Schulz's job to analyze the public's requests and the agencies' denials and decide whether or not the public interest outweighs the privacy of the documents. Schulz then gave many real-world examples and asked students if they thought the documents should be released. One interesting example was that when it comes to the accusation of sexual harassment, the accusers name can not be released, but the accused person's name can be.

Law is not always considered the most exciting part of the communications industry, but Schulz proves how crucial knowing one's way around privacy interests and government documents can be to a journalist, and gives us the tools to access them.

Rebecca Eller, an electronic media major, said of Schulz's presentation:

"I like the examples, they helped me understand what information is considered private and what is public."

Photo by Shawn Dullye

Media Relations: Where Journalism and PR Intersect

By Julius Coyle

"The Media Relations Side of P.R.," a Mass Communication Week event, focused on media relations and their relation to public relations.

The event took place on Thursday, October 22, from 9:30 to 10:50 a.m., in room 320 of Old Main. The panelists were Donna Tuttle and Laura Lorek.

L to R: Donna Tuttle, Laura Lorek

The panel discussed the ways that members of the public relations community and reporters can work together harmoniously, focusing on the "pitch".

The two panelists talked in detail about the art of the pitch. A pitch is when a journalist attempts to persuade his or her editor to give them the go-ahead on a story.

Lorek added that a good pitch gets the editor's attention, and if you're pitching an event, a press release is necessary.

"I get thousands of pitches a day," said Tuttle. According to her, the first impression of a pitch is important, because you usually only get one shot at convincing an editor.

Tuttle also said that while most people think you can only pitch to the editor, this is not true; you can pitch to anyone in the newsroom. However, it is important not to be pesky or persistent

She went on to say that while some academics think press releases are dead, they are still important for journalists. "We use more press releases than ever before," said Tuttle.

But she cautioned that a press release is not always necessary to pitch something.

"It depends on the goal," Tuttle said. "If you're trying to reach a large audience, than yes [you need a press release]."

As a way of closing, Lorek had these words of advice.

"Be persistent. Always be positive."

Donna Tuttle has worked for the Forte Foundation, the Kent County Daily Times, and the Bloomberg Business News. She is a project coordinator at the San Antonio Business Journal.

Laura Lorek has worked for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Interactive Week Magazine, and the San Antonio Express-News. She is currently self-employed.

Picture and video by Julius Coyle.

Burnie Burns - Making Online Video Work For You

Using New Media in Changing Times

Why Graduate School?

Dale Blasingame, Mairin Heard and Maira Garcia talk about their experiences in the SJMC Grad Program.

A whole new mind

By Jenelle Madrid

Texas State students were given an insight into the Conceptual Age of right-brained thinking on Wednesday night, as a part of the Common Experience.

Daniel Pink, the author of A Whole New Mind, stressed the importance of “right brain” qualities, such as artistry, empathy and emotion.

“We need to prepare [students’] futures from my past,” said Pink. “I did go to law school, but didn’t do very well.”

He said he was following the rules set by the elders of his generation, which were to become a lawyer, accountant, computer programmer or other incentive-based careers of the time.

“Human beings are not horses motivated by crunchy carrots and a pointed stick,” he said. “Autonomy, mastery and purpose work better.”

Pink said there are three forces tilting the scales into the Conceptual Age: Asia, automation and abundance.

“In March of next year, the largest English-speaking country will be India, not the United States,” said Pink. “The global economy runs on English.”

He also said that last year one million tax returns were done in India, which are giving accountants in the U.S. competition along with TurboTax that only costs about $28 a download. With that said, he said that most “left brain” work can easily be automated.

As far as the topic of abundance goes, he said that he finds the standards of living in this country “breathtaking.”

“We have more computing power in our pockets than ever existed in my grandparents world,” he said as he juxtaposed the fact that his grandparents did not own a telephone to how nearly 460,000 cell phones are discarded in the U.S. today.

He also said that incentive-based decision making “slows creativity and thinking, which is one of the most robust findings but also ignored.”

“Humanity requires that we become lifelong learners,” said Student Body Vice President Tommy Luna. “We are the ones that are going to eventually face the 21^st Century.”

When asked how these right-brained ways of thinking can be infiltrated into Texas State, Diann McCabe, assistant director of the honors program at Texas State and chair of the Common Experience, said that it is already going on.

“I would like to see more collaboration on campus,” said McCabe. “Collaborations such as, students from the math department working on projects with students from the journalism department, music with English and so on.”

She also said that the secret is teachers that truly love and are passionate about what they teach.

Pam Wuestenberg, co-chair of the Common Experience committee, said “I hope that the students will use this as they talk to advisors about what they want to do.”

McCabe and Wuestenberg both commented on the long process of generating a theme for the Common Experience and bringing Daniel Pink to Texas State, in which a request was submitted two years ago.

Their hard work will ultimately show through the conceptual growth in the minds of students at Texas State.

Image from danpink.com

Photo by Jenelle Madrid

Student organizations sway students

By Megan E. Holt

Students interested in joining clubs in fields such as journalism, public relations and advertising gathered together Wed. to listen to others who are actively involved on campus.

Represented organizations included AWC, or Association for Women in Communication; PRSSA, or Public Relations Student Society of America; SEPA, or Student Event Planners Association; Ad Club; Apple, Inc.; SPJ, or Society of Professional Journalists; KTSW radio; Bobcat PRomotions; and The University Star.

“Being involved is something that has great benefits,” said Aubri Nowowiejski, PRSSA, SEPA and AWC president and public relations junior, said. “I highly encourage it. I always say that there are two parts to learning – the classroom structure and actually getting out there and practicing what you learned in the classroom.”

According to PRSSA’s vice president and advertising senior, Yenny Ruiz, PRSSA is a club designed to prepare students for interviews, networking and leadership roles. She said PRSSA trains students with how to deal with professionals in a professional field, how to eat during an interview and how to walk into a room.

According to Ben Wirtz, Ad Club secretary and advertising senior, Ad Club is an organization that provides students with opportunities to network professionals at advertising agencies.

“It’s important to network with everyone because your peers will be out there with you competing for jobs,” said Marissa Deslatte, Ad Club treasurer and advertising senior. “Large agencies ask us to bring résumé and hand them out with our business cards.”

Wirtz said students who are highly involved in organizations are better prepared.

“I am a member of PRSSA and SEPA, but am interested in Bobcat Promotions and Apple, Inc.,” said Briana Medrano, pre-mass communication freshman. “We were swayed by the meeting to look into other organizations that may also be helpful.”

Photos by Megan E. Holt

Gary Vaynerchuk discusses social media and passion

By Kaycee Toller

What does a 33-year-old wine expert, entrepreneur and social media celebrity value the most?

Believe it or not, it’s not the seven figure income he’s getting from his book deal with HarperStudio or the millions in revenue that his wine business generates.

Gary Vaynerchuk values doing something he’s passionate about more than any amount of money.

Vaynerchuk spoke today in the Alkek teaching theater to about 400 Texas State students and faculty members.

His presentation, Making a Name for Yourself With Social Media, focused on how social media can be used as a tool for people to create a career that they are passionate about.

Vaynerchuk said that the Internet offers a powerful but underestimated form of mass communication.

“It has allowed everyone in this room a platform at zero cost,” said Vaynerchuk, who pointed out that his business generates more revenue from his Twitter posts than from traditional advertising.

Vaynerchuk said that Twitter is the greatest word-of-mouth tool at this time.

He currently has over 850,000 followers on the site.

He attributes his success not only to his use of social networking sites, but to hard work and doing something he’s passionate about.

“You need to do what you like,” said Vaynerchuk.

Adjunct lecturer John Zmikly agreed with Vaynerchuk’s message.

“It’s all about passion and doing what you love to do,” said Zmikly. “ There’s no reason to be in a job that you hate.”

David Nolan, a senior lecturer at Texas State, said that students should take Vaynerchuk’s advice about being passionate in their careers.

“I ask my students what they love to do and I tell them to find their own way to go do it,” Nolan said.

Vaynerchuk’s way of doing what he loves includes a heavy use of social media, including Twitter, Facebook and his video blog, Wine Library T.V.

Vaynerchuk ignores criticism by those who do not approve of social media as a marketing tool, and sees his use of these technologies as a competitive advantage.

Cindy Royal, an assistant professor at Texas State, uses Vaynerchuk’s success as an example in her classes of how students can use social networking as a self-marketing tool.

“I talk about Gary in all of my classes,” said Royal. “His passion is contagious, and that was obvious today when you saw everyone’s reactions around the room.”

Royal said that Vaynerchuk’s informal attitude has gained attention for his business and himself worldwide.

“He really is a heavy weight in the social media space,” said Royal.

After the presentation, students crowded around Vaynerchuk for autographs and handshakes.

Vaynerchuk is a living example of his advice to students to use hard work and technological resources to create a career out of something they love.

The Changing World of Work

By Elizabeth Beddingfield

Daniel Pink, author of the graphic novel "The Adventures of Johnny Bunko: The Last Career Guide You’ll Ever Need," gave a lecture in the auditorium of the Evans Liberal Arts building at Texas State University Tuesday afternoon that focused on innovative steps toward career advancement.

Pink centered the lecture on what he called the seven lessons of satisfying, productive careers: (1) There is no plan; (2) Think strengths, not weaknesses; (3) It’s not about you; (4) Persistence trumps talent; (5) Make excellent mistakes; (6) Leave an imprint, and (7) Stay hungry.

Pink also said that one of the most direct paths to satisfaction in a career is to make decisions based on fundamental reasoning, what you enjoy; instead of instrumental reasoning, what may or may not be lucrative.

“The genuine ambiguity of fundamental reasoning is far better than the false certainty of instrumental reasoning,” Pink said.

Persistence and risk-taking are essential to advancement according to Pink. Talent is important but it only goes so far.

“The world is littered with extremely talented people who did not persist. There is a crisis of self direction in this country,” Pink said.

Pink got the idea for creating a career book in the Japanese style of a manga graphic novel after he received a Japan Society Media Fellowship that took him to Tokyo in 2007.

Pink admitted that to the average American, creating a career book in the format of a graphic novel was peculiar.

"People who read comics in the U.S. are thought of as freaks and geeks. Not that there's anything wrong with that," Pink said.

He went on to explain that in America, graphic novels are typically youthful stories about superheroes. Japanese comics discuss everything from time-management skills to cooking to politics.

Pink realized the changing format of the job market, the economy and the boom of the information age in which people will watch a video online before checking out a book at the library, could be reflected in the new medium of graphic novels.

Pink received his BA at Northwestern University and went on to law school at Yale (though he never practiced law).

“Law school was 99 percent instrumental reasoning,” Pink said.

Pink is the author of two other career-motivated books along with several articles on business and economics that can be found in publications such as The New York Times and Harvard Business Review.

Texas State University is one of several stops Pink is making on a month-long tour of speeches through the United States and parts of South America.

By,

Elizabeth Beddingfield

Top picture courtesy of danpink.com.Show all

Gary Vaynerchuk - Making a Name for Yourself With Social Media

Brian Cuban - The 1st Amendment, the Internet and Hate Speech

Tim Hayden: Social Marketing - Offline Behavior & Online Conversation

Brian Cuban discusses online hate groups

By Billy Crawford

Brian Cuban spoke to Texas State students and faculty today about how hate speech has connected itself to the Internet and social networking sites.

Cuban, a Dallas attorney and brother of Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, got national media attention in May when he wrote the executives of Facebook requesting that Holocaust denial groups be removed from the social networking site.

“I’m not an activist,” said Cuban after the lecture. “The issue has personal relevance to me, and I’m just trying to do what I feel is right.”

Cuban pointed out that while the First Amendment protects hate speech in public forums, it does not apply to private entities such as Facebook, Myspace, Youtube or Twitter.

Cuban also offered multiple examples of how hate groups and sites serve as an “Internet hate incubator,” increasing the possibility of violent action. Cuban explained how online hate speech could have been a factor in James von Brunn’s murder of a security guard at the Holocaust Museum earlier this year.

“My opinion is that without the hate speech incubator, James von Brunn doesn’t commit what he does at the Holocaust Museum,” said Cuban. “You can build up hatred on Facebook and then walk out the real-world door and kill someone.”

Overall, the audience seemed both enlightened and stimulated by Cuban’s speech.

“I think the things he had to say were very valid points,” said Taylor Thompson, a recent Texas State graduate who attended the lecture. “I would definitely say that a lot of these hate groups should be taken down.”

Aside from bringing up valid arguments for the removal of hate groups on social networking sites, Cuban also educated the audience about the First Amendment application to hate speech and the Internet.

“I didn’t realize the difference between private and public [forums],” said Dara Quackenbush, senior lecturer and chair of Mass Comm Week. “Media law is not keeping up with the Internet, and this presentation highlights that.”

The students in attendance may have benefited most, as Cuban’s lecture provided insight into what type of online speech is protected by the First Amendment.

“I think [Cuban] opened the door for a lot of students in what they can and can’t do online,” said Chuck Kaufman, senior lecturer. “I think that it will make it easier for students to know that they can be held accountable for the things they publish online.”

Cuban said that the best way to limit hate groups or hate speech is to speak up. He noted the most social networking sites respond to issues when a large number of complaints arise, so reporting hateful groups and sites will usually cause action.

“The fight against hate speech can be incubated just as easily as hate speech itself,” said Cuban. “If one person goes online and reports a hate group and gets it taken down, it’s all worth it.”

Photo by Billy Crawford

Social media plays a part in advertising

By Greg Richards


Viral marketing is taking over the advertising world as companies like Game Plan invade the social networking scenes through online and offline affairs.

Tim Hayden, CEO of Game Plan marketing agency and Texas State alumnus, spoke today about how sites such as Twitter and Facebook are being used in joint with live events to advertise products.

“[Consumer] behavior is changing,” Hayden said in the filled classroom lined with rows of desks. “Audiences are no longer listening, they are talking.”

The advent of online networking and mobile devices was a turning point for consumerism in the U.S., according to Hayden.

New technology enabled people to focus on what they want when they wanted to, and this has become a hurdle for some companies, said Hayden. Putting forth effort into bridging the gap between live events and online social media has helped Game Plan jump ahead.

One campaign described by Hayden involved Justin Timberlake’s 2007 FutureSex/LoveShow world tour. Game Plan worked with Dell in creating the “Dell Lounge” which surrounded the stage. There, audience members would order drinks in cups marked with the Dell logo.

Text message campaigns were sent out to concert goers with the enticing prize of a new notebook computer. At the same time, booths were set up in the entry ways with computers and TVs allowing anyone passing by to play video games, all sponsored by Dell.

The effects of all these were enhanced further by the fact that people were snapping photos with their camera phones inadvertently capturing the Dell logos and posting them online on their Facebook and Myspace pages.

At a South by South West after party, Game Plan employed the Dell lounge again, but with help from famed blogger Perez Hilton.

The party was styled along the walls with updates from Twitter that included anything about the events at the party. When artist Kanye West showed up tweets from the audience shot through the roof effectively bringing Dell more attention.

Hayden added that the mobile markets are the new frontier, and that these new technologies are offering “tighter, warmer relationships.” By using devices in such a manner, people “are being themselves through any of the tools.”

At the end of the presentation, Hayden made the point that word of mouth is more powerful than any advertisement.

Photo by Greg Richards

New world of public affairs

By: Scott Collins

Allen Fore, who headed up the public relations campaign that won PR Week's 2009 Public Affairs Campaign of the Year, was the featured speaker at a seminar hosted by Texas State University Wednesday morning. The session was held in the fourth floor auditorium of the LBJ Student Center as part of the university sponsored Mass Communication Week.

Prior to becoming the director of community relations for Kinder Morgan Energy Partners, Fore was a Senior Vice President at the international communications company, Fleishman-Hillard. He also has over 20 years of experience in government and politics at the local, state, and national levels.

His most recent, and arguably most significant, accomplishment was managing the comprehensive public affairs program for the Rockies Express Pipeline (REX), for which his group won the PR Week award.

The REX project is a $6.7 billion, 1,679 mile natural gas pipeline that spans across eight states, from Colorado to Ohio, and has been dubbed "The King of Pipelines".

During the presentation, Fore focused on the importance of transparency and its effect on a public affairs campaign.

"No one can say they don't know anything about this project," said Fore. "It's the most transparent project I've ever seen in the history of the energy business."

Fore explained that educating all the audiences involved, including the landowners, government figures, regulatory agencies, community groups, businesses, and the media, was one of his groups' major goals. He also emphasized that public expressions of support from various outlets are crucial to success.

"Elected officials and the media are very important in this process," said Fore. "So don't wait for them to come to you, go to them, sit down and explain it to them one on one, invite them out to see (what you're planning)."

Fore also showed examples of how the traditional forms of media, such as websites, videos, brochures, handouts, and fact sheets, were used to disseminate information about the REX project. To watch the Rockies Express Pipeline PR video click here.

He explained how his group understood that the public demands accountability, corporate social responsibility, and consideration for the environment, and that the REX Pipeline needed to ensure it did so. The PR Week award is an indication of that.

"I think the industry will see that the kind of things we did, the transparency, the pro-activeness, getting out in front of things, bringing people to you, is a model that many energy companies are going to use in the future," said Fore.

Photo provided by Allen Fore

Making it in the world of media

By Chelsea Stockton


WOAI Reporter Leila Walsh, Graduate Student Dale Blasingame and Austin American-Statesman Writer Patrick George spoke on the convergence of multimedia on Monday, covering all aspects of the “multi” from the traditional radio, television and print to the social facebook, twitter and blog.

In an industry that is constantly shifting and reshaping how it is distributed and received by the public, students can’t help but wonder: Where is this going and what is it going to take to make it?

“As long as there’s someone out there who’s got the skills to gather the news and tell the story through whatever medium it takes, whether it’s through television, radio, print or blog, someone has to have the ability to do that,” George said. “That’s why journalism is always going to be relevant, regardless of the format. The media needs someone who can report accurately, truthfully and fairly, every time.”

Blasingame, graduate student at Texas State University-San Marcos, recalled his days as an undergraduate at the university, recounting some of the very same fears that many current mass communication students approaching graduation are now facing.

“I wish I could go back to that time period, because I have no idea what was going through my head,” Blasingame said. “I was about to graduate with no job and no prospects. Essentially, I worked from the very bottom to the very top.”

An Emmy Award winner and former producer for WOAI-TV in San Antonio,  Blasingame went on to describe the skills he felt that helped direct him to professional success. Along with deadline management and the ability to handle large amounts of stress, Blasingame emphasized (and print students are relieved to hear it) the effect of exceptional writing skills.

“Writing is by far the most useful skill,” Blasingame said. “If you’re a good writer, you can overcome a lot.”

As to those two simple questions: Where is this going? What is it going to take to make it out there? Walsh, reporter for WOAI-TV News 4, offered up her views.

“How are people getting their stories?” Walsh questioned. “Where is this industry going? I don’t know. What does it take to make it? You gotta love it. This has to be your life. We work holidays. We work 10 to 12 hours straight. You have to love reporting.”

As to Making it in the World of Media, Walsh summed it up eloquently.

“The industry is changing. But I think there will always be a need for a good story.”