Web & Social Media
"Social media is the greatest boon to journalism since the printing press" Vivian Schiller
Virtual information consumption is much more common today than print news. The availability of a website is convenient for viewers, easy to navigate, and costs a lot less for publications.
Additionally, social media reporting reaches a broader audience and drives more traffic to websites and articles.
During the pandemic, online was the mainstream for The Whirlwind, so a large portion of the artifacts in the other sections of my portfolio are online content published on our website. Because of this, I learned a lot about virtual storytelling and the most effective ways to create a piece of media that will capture the attention of consumers and remain journalistically accurate.
Since I’ve grown up in such a virtually-minded generation, I’ve watched the media evolve drastically from the time I was old enough to understand the news to the present day. In my professional life, I’m excited to continue to explore forms of media that are largely untapped by journalists and evolve my skills and knowledge along with publications.
Social Media
Senior Showcase: Sunday Livestreams
During the 2020-21 school year when I took on the job of Social Media Director, I wanted to explore different types of reporting that live on a social media platform. Because of the pandemic, 2021’s seniors missed a large portion of their senior year and a lot of the experiences and celebration that comes with their last year of high school. I decided that I wanted to try a livestream-format interview with a senior every week in order to highlight their accomplishments and future goals. I organized dates, times, and the lineup of seniors that we would interview, and reporters on The Whirlwind signed up for one of the showcase days. We did a total of eight showcases, all live-streamed on Instagram.
Albany Visitors Association: Social Media Posts
At the beginning of 2021, I applied for a Media and Marketing internship at the Albany Visitors Association (AVA). I got the position and have since completed over 150 hours of volunteer work for the AVA. One of my responsibilities is to post notable content and promote local businesses on the AVA Instagram in order to drive traffic to the website and encourage tourism.
Winter Break Recommendations
Due to the pandemic, many people in 2021 chose to stay home for winter break rather than traveling. I was tasked with creating a list of local recommendations to post on the AVA Instagram to let people know that Albany is just as exciting a place to spend the holidays any other location. I created one post to promote local gift-buying and one to announce exciting events and activities to do during the break.
First Fridays
Like many cities, downtown Albany organizes “First Friday” events with local businesses on the first Friday of every month. Usually businesses will have some type of sale or activity to do that is exclusive to First Fridays. On the AVA Instagram, I promote the First Friday events during the week before they happen so that people know the activities that are available to them. During the pandemic, the more foot traffic that the city has downtown the better. Supporting local businesses through the AVA is incredibly important to me.
Web
Whirlwind Breaking News
Breaking News is endlessly important to maintain a well-rounded news site that’s up to date on everything happening around campus. All of the breaking news that I’ve done is in written format, because I find it the easiest to navigate when it comes to a quick turnaround time. It also takes less time to edit, and can easily be added to as new information comes out.
OJEA
Breaking News: Superior 2021
Breaking News: All in-person activity shut down district-wide
One of the most viewed pieces of breaking news that we wrote for The Whirlwind was when all in-person activity was shut down district-wide due to Covid, and many people were unsure how long things would be shut down or what that entailed for school and extracurriculars. In this breaking news piece, three of the head editors of last year’s staff including myself worked on continually updating the article with the most recent information about the pandemic, quarantine, and announcements pertaining to the shut-down.
Website Profile: Collection of Works
I've published many stories on The Whirlwind website, usually based around a timely or relevant subject. Click the button below to view my full body of works that are published on the web.
Albany Visitors Association Blog Posts
One of my responsibilities as a Media and Marketing intern at the Albany Visitors Association is to observe recent events, topics, and places of interest and write timely blogs to be posted on the AVA website. In each blog, I promote a topic in order to encourage people to engage in local activities and embrace the beauty and fun within Albany. My blogs also help people navigate events to attend or places to go around holiday seasons, or help Albany visitors figure out the best places to go while they're in town.
Discover Oregon's Outdoor Winter Experiences
For this blog, the objective was to promote the Oregon Challenge Passport, a booklet of activities around the Willamette Valley that encourages people to go out in nature during any time of the year to experience Oregon’s beautiful scenery. The blog post begins with an explanation of the passport and how readers can get one, and the second half is recommendations for places around Albany to go hiking in the winter. I did extensive research on each location to accurately portray their traits and how they change in the wintertime.
Capture Autumn Photos in These Scenic Albany Locations
With the knowledge that many seniors choose to have their photos taken in fall for senior portraits and families enjoy having family photos taken in the autumn, the idea for this blog post was cultivated. After running it by my supervisors, I got to work contacting local photographers around Albany to ask them about their favorite locations to capture fall colors. I went out and captured pictures of some of the locations that were recommended and used some photos taken by locals with permission to make a photo gallery of most of the locations that are mentioned in the blog.