The Growler

The Story:

“The Growler” (Official Title TBD)

The Pitch:

Mrs. Joyce,

I am interested in writing a story about craft beer in the state of Mississippi with a focus on The Growler on the downtown Square. The Growler opened in on Sept. 5, 2014 however, three years ago this would not be allowed in the state of Mississippi. Mississippi and other states in the South had Prohibition-era laws, which required low alcohol-by-volume (ABV) that prevented many craft brews from entering the state.

Until July 2012, Lazy Magnolia was the only brewery to open since 1907. The new law in Mississippi has raised the ABV to 10.2 percent. This increase has welcomed a new assortment of craft brews in to the state and has changed the way many consumers buy beer.

I would like to do a story on The Growler because if the law did not change it would not be here. The Growler carries 30 craft beers on tap that rotate according to season. The story will focus on the new craft beer laws as wells as how and why The Growler chose Oxford. I will talk about how The Growler coordinates with the state to receive their inventory of craft beers.

A growler is a glass bottle that carries a half-gallon of beer. The growlers are filled straight from the tap and must be refrigerated and consumed between seven and 10 days after purchase. The beer will be good for two to three days after the seal has been broken.

Let me know your thoughts,

Nancy

Gone Girl

Gone Girl is a powerful profile story written about Elizabeth Smart. It is evident that New York Post staff writer, Margaret Talbot, spent a lot of time researching and interviewing Elizabeth Smart before publishing the story. Talbot’s profile has a nice story structure that keeps her readers engaged through out the piece.

Smart was kidnapped while she was sleeping in her bed at home. Awakened in the middle of the night with a knife on her throat, Smart was forced out of her home and remained hostage for nine months in Salt Lake City, her hometown.

Talbot begins the piece by describing Smart as she sat back stage before telling her story at the annual conference of Key Club International. In the opening scene, Talbot provides a detailed image of Smart and how she resembles poise and strength when telling her story. The flashbacks in the profile kept me wanting to read more.

The quotes throughout the piece are strong and provide insight on Smart and her journey to freedom. Talbot utilizes quotes that help guide and tell the story of Smart and her resilience. The way the quotes are incorporated into the piece allow to reader to feel as if they are listening in on a conversation or listening to Smart at the conference.

I thought this profile piece was a great read. It was long, but I was engaged the whole time. It was obvious that Talbot spent a lot of time researching and listening to Smart tell her story. Talbot made sure the reader knew the type of person Smart was. Including the information about thought process Smart was having when approach by the first cop. This helps the reader understand her mentality throughout her kidnapping. Talbot even goes into detail explaining Stockholm syndrome. Overall, Talbot’s profile on Smart is a well rounded piece and there are no holes in the story.

 

Ira Glass On Storytelling

Ira Glass is a radio personality and creator, host and executive producer of the award-winning public radio show This American Life. Glass discuses many helpful points for storytelling. It is important for storytellers to understand the building blocks of a story in order to be successful.

According to Glass, you don’t want to write in the style based on topic sentences and facts to fill the argument. Instead, Glass placed special emphasis on the anecdote. An anecdote is a sequence of actions that takes the audience on a journey that will eventually reach a moment of reflection. The sequence captures the audience’s attention by leading them from one thing to the next, making them head towards a destination. Anecdotes should constantly be raising questions and also answering them.

The second building block is a moment of refection. “ Here is the point of the story,” said Glass. Through the use of an anecdote one can make a boring story more interesting by engaging the audience.

Glass then went on to discuss the difficulty of finding a descent story. Finding a descent story and producing a story require the similar amount time. It is the storyteller’s job to determine what does and does not work in a story. “The trick is to have perseverance, have an anecdote that has an interesting moment of reflection,” said Glass. Creative work can be hard to find, but it is important to be ruthless when developing a story.

For beginners, the first couple of years their the work turns out to be not that great, but their taste is still good. A lot of people never get past this stage and instead they quit. Glass noted many people in the broadcast field go through this phase. Glass believes this phase it totally normal among beginners. “The most important thing you can do is a lot of work,” said Glass. It is normal for things to take a while, but you have to be a warrior. By doing a lot of work one will be able to eventually close the gap.

Beginners make two common errors, according to Glass. Many people want to sound and act like people on television and radio. Everything will be more compelling the more one talks like a human being. “ The more you are your own self, the better you are,” said Glass.

Finally, Glass placed emphasis on eliminating useless material. “Not enough gets said about the importance of abandoning crap,” said Glass. By killing useless information one can make the story that much better. One has to be a killer about the boring parts and use the parts that get to the hearts. Failure is a big part of success claims Glass.

Knuckleball!

1. What was the inspiration behind the documentary?

2. If you could go back and change one thing about the piece, what would it be?

3. What did you find most rewarding about producing the film?

Marshall Ramsey Speaks at the Overby Center

Marshall Ramsey, an award-winning cartoonist, spoke to Ole Miss students this past Tuesday. Ramsey is currently a cartoonist for The Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Miss. A two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist, Ramsey’s work has appeared in USA Today and The New York Times.

Ramsey attended the University of Tennessee where he worked at the student newspaper, The Daily Beacon for five years. It is here where Ramsey learned the discipline for his profession. After graduating from the University of Tennessee, Ramsey became a janitor at Pope High School in Marietta, Ga. This is when Ramsey stopped drawing for six months. Ramsey eventually landed a position at the local paper as an advertising artist. Then, Ramsey was able to establish himself as one of the best cartoonists in America.

I thought Ramsey was an excellent speaker. Ramsey’s energy and humor engaged the audience. All of Ramsey’s work was colorful and witty. I enjoyed hearing Ramsey talk about his work and what motivated each cartoon. In addition, it was interesting to hear how his drawings infuriated many people. “When people disagree with me I take it with grain assault,” said Ramsey. When it comes down to picking a target, Ramsey claims he tries to make fun of people equally.

Many cartoonists face scrutiny. The recent incident in Paris serves as an example of how cartoonist can impact individuals and even the world. “When drawing cartoons it is about being right,” said Ramsey. There are repercussions for every action.

The story of Marshall Ramsey’s success shows hard work will pay off. Ramsey told students, “It is all about the attitude.” As journalism progresses, developing a personal brand is very important. When people see your name they know what your stand for. Ramsey claims when people create something interesting and entertaining, people are going to see and look and it. Ramsey emphasized how the lowest points in his life ended up being the best moments. I took that statement into consideration. Perseverance is key.

Hearing Ramsey speak made me want to get in touch with my creative side. I learned a lot from Ramsey especially since I am unfamiliar with his field of work. I need and want to establish a brand for myself. This will become helpful when entering the working world this May.

Page One: Inside The New York Times

The documentary Page One: Inside The New York Times illustrated how the newspaper industry responds to the emerging digital era. For example, The New York Times incorporated a media desk to keep up with changes in the media industry. These changes caused the advertising market to turn upside down. Clay Shirky claimed changes in the media industry were a “transition into a revolution.” Newspaper ad revenue started to decline, forcing many layoffs in the industry. Around the time of 2009 and 2010, journalists were doing everything in their power to remain on top of changes in how news is consumed. WikiLeaks created a new world for journalism. Many journalists felt that their job was being completely ripped open. Through technology and the Internet information is more accessible on various platforms. For instance, an aerial video was leaked on YouTube of civilians in Baghdad being killed. This leak showed journalist that there was a new way to do news. The digital age revealed various platforms where news can be consumed. These platforms provide cheaper costs for the production of news. The New York Times currently charges full access to its website. The emerging platforms allow for The New York Times to become accessible in various ways. The media desk at the newspaper helps journalists at the Times stay current with changes in the media industry. It was interesting to see such a dominant organization respond to significant changes that alter their way of doing business. The Times handled the transition into the digital age in a proactive way. I hope the advancement of technology will help the Times determine when and if their employees are plagiarizing or performing any other unethical actions. The documentary did not elaborate on the use of apps. Rupert Murdoch, chairman of News Corporation, said, “iPads may well be the saving of the newspaper industry.” Page One could of spent more time illustrating how their team creates and manages their apps. Also, it would have been interesting to hear about how the newspaper’s revenue has been impacted by the digital era in comparison to print. Other than that, I thought this documentary was intriguing. The digital age will continue to change how news consumers receive their news.

Booze on Sorority Row?

The following soundbites were collected by asking Ole Miss students for their input regarding sexual assault on college campuses. The main focus was whether or not sororities should be allowed to have registered parties on campus in an attempt to reduce sexual assault. Listen below to hear their feedback.