Graduate students tackle Common Experience Theme with class documentary

Where Am I Wearing: A Global Tour to the Countries, Factories, and People that Make Our Clothes is a book by Kelsey Timmerman that was the inspiration for this documentary which is a production of the spring 2013 Documentaries for Digital Media class in the School of Journalism & Mass Communication.

The book was part of the Texas State University 2012-2013 Common Experience program, A Global Odyssey: Exploring Our Connections to the Changing World. In the book, Timmerman travels to the factories in countries that make the clothing most Americans wear, and discovers that most of the workers are paid extremely low wages for 12-to-18-hour workdays. They have no benefits and in most cases, despite the long hours, can barely make ends meet.

This documentary attempts to make that global issue local. Students worked in teams on topics they found within the broad overall subject. The five teams each produced a 4-5 minute segment on their topic which they put together to make the 23-minute documentary shown below:

The following are the teams and their topics for the documentary:

Team 1

Topic: What is the difference between organic and non-organic clothing? What are the pros and cons in terms of the environment, health, and cost.

Title of segment: The Fabric of Our Lives

Producers: Katie Dudley, Sherry Klein, Emily Lyons

Team 2

Topic: An alternative to buying new is buying recycled clothing. This story focuses on an Austin woman who makes and sells clothing from recycled materials.

Title of segment: Material Girl

Producers: Jordan Mueller, Brandon Simmons, Ryan Stewart, Matt Wood

Team 3

Topic: Where are Texas State students wearing? Do they know that their clothes may come from sweatshops where workers are paid next to nothing?

Title of segment: Made in ...

Poducers: Brittany Black, Kiana Fitzgerald, Stephanie Guzman

Team 4

Topic: Where do Texas State University athletic uniforms come from?

Title of segment: Where Are Bobcat Athletes Wearing?

Producers: Valene Bummara, Kristina Kenney, Ashley Vasquez, Kristie Vela

Team 5

Topic: A student group at the University of Texas at Austin successfully campaigned to change school policy on where university branded clothing is made. Can students at other schools do the same?

Title of segment: Students Against Sweatshops

Producers: Jacob Ehrnstein, Eva Fuentes, Femi Omoni, Joshua Twilligear

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Instructor: Dr. Salwa Khan Copyright 2013, School of Journalism & Mass Communication, Texas State University

SJMC Professor Awarded John S. Knight Journalism Fellowship at Stanford

Texas State University Associate Professor Cindy Royal is one of twelve U.S. journalists and innovators to have been awarded John S. Knight Journalism Fellowships at Stanford University for the 2013-14 academic year.

“This group of U.S. Knight Fellows is easily the most diversified ever, with fellows coming from daily newspapers, online publications, tech companies and even an academic institution,” said Knight Fellowships Director James Bettinger. “This wide range of backgrounds and specialties reflects the variety and depth of expertise and commitment that journalism needs right now.”

They will join eight international fellows who were announced earlier this month. The Knight Fellowships champions innovation, entrepreneurship and leadership in journalism by helping the fellows pursue their ideas to improve the quality of news and information reaching the public. Fellows also participate fully in the intellectual life of Stanford University, through academic classes, lectures and symposiums, and individual research.

"I feel that the journalism and mass communication discipline has a unique opportunity to develop technology skills and perspective in a wider audience, including females and minorities,” said Texas State University Associate Professor Cindy Royal. “We will continue to communicate and share through a range of technology platforms, and this represents the future of media."

The 2013-14 fellows will explore proposals that touch on many aspects of journalism. For her innovation project, Dr. Royal will be working to advance her knowledge of data visualization and programming as it relates to communication and develop a platform to provide advanced technology training to the journalism profession

Students Get Inside Look at Sports Broadcasting

Texas State’s 2013 NSAC Team Wins Best Promotion at AAF 10th District Convention

The National Student Advertising Competition (NSAC) team brought home the Judges Special Award for Best Promotion at the American Advertising Federation (AAF) 10th District Convention held April 10 - 13 in Tulsa, Okla. The team had the second best plans book, tying with the University of North Texas and ranked fifth for its presentation and for its overall score with the campaign it developed for the Glidden® Brilliance Collection at Walmart.

Director of Promotions Veronica Garcia and Public Relations Director Rebecca Saathoff led Ana Cedillo, Audrey Cuellar and Anna Lemmons—all advertising majors—in the development of the winning promotional program. In addition to advertising majors, the 20-member NSAC team also included communication design and marketing students.

Advertising lecturer Emmeline Aguirre advised the team for the first time this year and worked with marketing professor Mary Ann Stutts, who has coached the team to numerous district and national wins over the past 30 years.

Texas State competed against schools from Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma and northwest Louisiana, including the University of Houston (first place), the University of North Texas (second place), Texas Christian University (third place) and Texas A&M (fourth place) among others.

Each year, more than 150 colleges and universities across the nation participate in NSAC. Students develop an integrated communications campaign for a corporate client, writing a 20-page plans book and giving a 20-minute pitch presenting their ideas. District winners move on to compete at the national AAF convention in June. For more information about the AAF and NSAC, visit aaf.org.

KTSW Wins Awards from Texas Intercollegiate Press Association

The KTSW-FM 89.9 team brought home 5 awards from the 2013 TIPA in Dallas.

Winners are:

1^st place – Radio Sportscast – Mason Robinson, Weston Warner, Matt Southall

1^st place – Radio, Spot Commercial, PSA, Promo – Emily Reas

1^st place – Radio Feature Story – Greg Burnam

2^nd place – Radio Documentary – Matt Alvarez

2^nd place – Radio Public Affairs – Shannon Williams, Sarah Vasquez, Alex Navarro, Megan Carthel, Lemondria Hobbs

Congratulations to all winners!

Texas State PRSSA Bateman Team wins honorable mention for ‘Be the Difference’

Texas State University’s 2013 PRSSA Bateman Team was one of 16 teams nationally to receive honorable mention for its anti-bullying campaign called “Be the Difference.”

Callie Hill, team leader, said, “Through in-school programs and displays, publications, and traditional and social media, the campaign began an important dialogue. We have learned that the education about bullying must be ongoing as new students make their way onto the playgrounds, school hallways and, of course, online. We believe today’s students in San Marcos have an opportunity to develop a trust between themselves and people in authority — parents and teachers.”

Featured SJMC Student: Zahra Farah

This upcoming summer will be an eventful one for journalism junior, Zahra Farah. She has earned a spot in the prestigious Chips Quinn Scholar Internship and will be interning at the Kentucky Courier Journal. Founded in 1991, Chips Quinn is a Freedom Forum program that trains young journalists of color and only accepts about 20 interns each year.

Farah started out as a student in the Urban Journalism Workshop, a workshop for high school students taught by Kym Fox each summer in San Antonio. She transferred to Texas State from San Antonio College. Farah has previously worked as an intern at the San Angelo Standard Times and was awarded both a Texas Auto Writers scholarship and a Bess Whitehead Scott journalism scholarship.

Professor Grimes Speaks on Sandy Hook Shooting

SJMC students Micah Bustos and Alexandra Walker interviewed Professor Tom Grimes about his recent USA Today op-ed regarding the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting in Newtown, CT. Grimes provided his insights on the tragedy and discussed some of his research on media violence.

Upcoming Speaker: Lauren Appa

The Association for Women in Communications has a meeting this Thursday, March 28th at 6:30 p.m. in Old Main Room 201. Our speaker for the meeting is Lauren Appa. She is a freelance content creator and owner of AppaInk Copywriting http://www.appaink.com/. She is a graduate of UT and a Certificate in Sustainable Business from the Bainbridge Graduate Institute.

There will be snacks and refreshments. We are looking for officers next year and will be handing out applications, so be sure to apply! We will also be collecting dues, which are $34 for national membership and $15 for our local chapter. Make sure you come out for the meeting because it's going to be great!

Upcoming Speaker: Neice Bell

The last SPJ meeting of the semester will feature the publisher of the New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung, Neice Bell. Don't miss this opportunity to connect with local professionals!

Tuesday, April 2
6:30 p.m. in OM320
(meeting starts at 6 p.m./ speaker at 6:30 p.m.)

Bell will discuss how community newspapers are still the most important news source in the U.S. and why that's the case. She will also talk about some of her experiences and what she looks for when she hires someone. We look forward to seeing you there!

Student Media finalists for Region 8 Mark of Excellence Awards

Congratulations to the University Star Staff, KTSW, and the Texas State of Change organization for being selected to receive Region 8 Mark of Excellence Awards! The actual place awarded will be announced at the awards ceremony., during the Region 8 Spring Conference. The conference takes place May 3-4 in San Antonio, Texas at the downtown Marriott Plaza.

Check the conference’s event page for more information.
 
First-place regional winners will automatically advance to the national round of the competition. A list of regional winners will be posted on spj.org the Monday after the conference.

Mass Comm Career Fair slated for March 5

by Jordan Gass-Poore

The Texas State School of Journalism and Mass Communication will once again partner with the Texas Association of Broadcasters for the Mass Communication Career Fair 12:30-3:30 p.m. March 5 in the LBJ Student Center Ballroom.

Charles Kaufman, senior lecturer, said the TAB organizes career fairs with its college campus members several times a year throughout the state.

Kaufman said TAB representatives approached the school and the university’s Career Services about having such an event on campus several years ago because of its close proximity to Austin and San Antonio.

“Our site has presented advantages that other locales don’t offer, so we are fortunate to be a choice site for (TAB) events,” said Kaufman, adding that other mass communication vendors, besides broadcast, have been included in the career fair over time to cater to all of the school’s sequences.

Forty-five employers are scheduled to be in attendance at this year’s career fair, including Community Impact Newspaper, KVUE-TV and Target Corporation. They will be hiring for part-time, full-time and internship positions.

Employer bios are available at Jobs4Cats.

Kaufman said students who wish to attend the career fair should learn about employers prior to the event, dress professionally and prepare a resume.

Career Services offers in-person and online resume assistance.

Student Guides: Gowan, left, and Luna were Professor Walsh’s guides for his stay at Kookmin University. Both students attended Texas State University – San Marcos the year before Professor Walsh taught at Kookmin University.

Korea from a Visiting Professor Point-of-View

by Frank Walsh

Kookmin University serves approximately 15,000 students in Seoul, a city of 10 million residents, in South Korea, a nation that would fit several times within the boundaries of the state of Texas.

As a visiting professor teaching at Kookmin University for a semester, I had the opportunity to not only become familiar with the students, but also with the culture.

I was invited to be a Visiting Professor within the University’s College of Social Science, School of Communication. I was assigned to teach two classes in English, which quickly identified a significant difference between teaching in the United States and Korea: all Korean students must pass an English speaking and writing examination as part of their entrance to a Korean university.

The Korean government, the university system and students understand the need to communicate effectively with an international system of business, communication and education. With the exception of being asked to “slow down” a couple of times, the students understood English lectures and completed assignments and exams in English. There were also students from Indonesia and Russia in my classes.

Students Are Similar

While in Korea, I was asked several times how Korean students compare academically to American students. Returning to Texas State University I’ve been asked how American students compare to Korean students. My experience is that they are very similar. Both groups of students worry about what comes after graduation: will there be enough jobs? There is a higher percent of Koreans with university degrees than in the United States. While the unemployment rate is lower than in the United States, the unemployment rate for young adults in South Korea is about twice the national average.

While the language was difficult for me, the absolute desire on the part of every Korean I met more than made up for my lack. The Korean faculty and staff made the transition into the semester easy. Several of the faculty had obtained their doctorate degrees in the United States – a couple from the University of Texas at Austin. Son, Young Jun, Ph.D., who was my mentor at Kookmin University, had taught at Texas State University – San Marcos for three years before returning to South Korea.

I was fortunate to have two Kookmin students who had been students at Texas State University – San Marcos the previous year as my guides: Gowan and Yuna. Seoul is a city of 10 million residents and while the subway and bus systems are extremely efficient, my guides made using them easy to learn. It would be difficult for me to overstate the time and effort these two guides gave to me. I continue to be extremely thankful to them. See photo

The professional community extended themselves to a significant degree. Four different professionals lectured in my class to provide a Korean context to the subject material. Each of these professionals stayed on campus for lunch with a different small group of students after each of the lectures.

One of the professionals invited me to a dinner with the founder of his agency at a restaurant in downtown Seoul. While this was more than generous, the date was on the Thanksgiving Day in the United State, making me feel more at home.  Another professional sponsored two field-trip tours of his agency for my students. (See photo). This same professional offered to be a full-day guide for me as well as for my wife and daughter, when they came to Korea at the end of my stay. The professional and his family provided highlights of Korean shopping and history, as well as answering all of our questions about Korean food that we had wanted to ask giving us a wonderful window into how the typical Korean cooks and lives.

Scholars and Professionals Gather to Assess Spanish-Language and Latino-Oriented Media

SJMC alum wins big playing "the nerd" in Super Bowl commercial

SJMC alum Jesse Heiman has made quite a name for himself as “Hollywood’s Favorite Extra.” In fact, his resume boasts appearances in more than 100 commercials, popular television shows such as “Chuck” and “Monk,” and feature films including “Old School,” “American Pie 2,” and “The Social Network” to name a few.

Most recently, Heiman is receiving a great deal of buzz for his role as computer nerd, “Walter” in a GoDaddy ad that aired during the 2013 Super Bowl in which he kisses Israeli supermodel Bar Rafaeli. Despite some controversy from the spot, Jesse stated in a recent interview with CNET that he has gotten positive exposure out of it.

“I’ve actually had guys tweet me that they wish they were me, and girls tweet me saying they wish they were Bar.”

Originally a Boston native, Heiman moved to Austin, Texas for school. The 34-year-old actor graduated from Texas State University-San Marcos with a B.A. degree where he studied English and Mass Communication. Currently, he resides in Redondo Beach, California.

You can follow Jesse on Twitter @JesseHeiman

Ad Club Takes on the Big Apple

by Brittany Teague and Kelby Schmidt

The Texas State Ad Club recently made a monumental trip to NYC to explore prestigious advertising agencies, experience city life and enjoy an unending buffet of street food. Junior and VP of Programs Kristopher Garza organized the trip for 32 to officers and members that took place Jan. 7-11. Students toured advertising agencies McGarryBowen, Droga5, Y&R, Poke, Deutsch, Inc. and McCann. They also visited Tumblr and The New York Times.

At these venues, students were given presentations on the respective company cultures, big clients and creative executions. The hosts also advised how to stand out from the applicant crowd, build a creative portfolio and wow your future bosses. The most exciting part for many students was viewing some of the creative executions and exploring each agency’s unique culture.

The Ad Club officers also had the great pleasure of going to dinner with two Texas State Alumni, Michael Baum and Diana Ovalle, while in New York. Diana is Business Coordinator at Ad-ID of 4A’s and previously worked at Deutsch as an Assistant Account Executive. Michael works at Cline Davis & Mann, an agency that specializes in healthcare brands.

Diana and Michael had nothing but wonderful things to say about Texas State. They reminisced about the “good ol’ days” of being in Ad Club and competing on the AAF team here short years ago. Diana and Michael eagerly shared their contact information and connect on social media, and they plan to start a formalized alumni group for Texas State students who graduate and start their careers in New York City.

Students also heard from alumnae Maira Garcia and Monica Apodaca about their jobs in the Big Apple

When students weren’t networking with New York’s finest ad professionals, they ventured out into the city making music videos in Times Square, walking around Central Park, viewing the city from the Empire State Building, admiring famous art at The Met and MOMA and spending way too much money at multi-floor department stores. Exhausted and sore, the Ad Club safely returned home with empty pockets, new connections, bigger dreams and lifelong memories. They can’t wait to see where they go next year!

SJMC Students Win National Broadcast Society Awards

Ten Texas State students attended the National Broadcasting Society (NBS) regional conference at UT-Arlington on November 2 & 3, 2012. Texas State student Lane Lewis won First Place awards for Sports Program and Sports Package, as well as Honorable Mentions for Sports Program Audio and Sports Package Audio. Amber Anderson won 3rd place for Drama Program while Chelsea Kelley won Honorable Mention for Feature Package. Jessi MacCall won Honorable Mention for Hard News. Congratulations to all of the winners!                                                                

Mass Comm Fair Recap

Mark another successful Mass Comm Fair down in the books. More than 45 employers and 350 students attended the fair on Halloween.
 
Two records were broken yesterday. We had the most employers and most students ever attend the Mass Comm Fair.
 
Some employers included the Austin Film Festival, City of Austin, Community Impact Newspaper (complete with costumes), Disney Media & Advertising Lab, Entercom Austin, Frito-Lay, KVUE, Weber Shandwick, YNN and many, many more.
 
No worries if you missed the fair. View the list of employers that attended in Jobs4Cats, or just attend the Spring Mass Comm Fair on March 5. Check out photos below!

Texas State Students Win TAWA Scholarships 

Three Texas State University journalism students received awards from the Texas Auto Writers Association's Harold Gunn Scholarship for Journalism at the organization's annual Truck Rodeo near San Antonio on October 19, 2012. "These scholarships are TAWA's greatest contribution and my proudest moment," Gunn said.

From left to right: Harold Gunn, board member and past president of TAWA; recipients Brittani Wray, a senior and Zahra Farah, a junior; Kym Fox, senior lecturer and journalism coordinator for the School of Journalism and Mass Communication; recipient Lindsay Medina, a junior; and Michael Herzing, TAWA president.

Career Services Job and Internship Fair

Career Services invites you to the Job and Internship Fair in the LBJSC Ballroom.

Wednesday, October 3
1:30pm - 4:00pm

Over 90 companies will be present so bring plenty of resumes. To see the full list of employers click here.

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