Final Project Video | Bridging the Gap

This short video is a look at our final project and what we accomplished over a month of research into seniors and technology.

Processing Towards Something Bigger

Today is the day. All of the hard work over the past month has come down to tonight. During our project there has been a lot of ups and downs, but when isn’t there. Group projects like this can only prepare students for what the real work world will be like, that means when things go wrong, because we all know they will, you can handle that pressure and come through successfully. I am exhausted and eyes are blurring but I can still say I pulled through and finished the job I set out to do with my group. A summary of what has led me to here:

Starting from the beginning….

When we first began to settle into groups I was still sitting alone. I didn’t know anyone in my class and unfortunately hadn’t been asked to take part in any of the group projects. But this gave me the opportunity to feel it out and see what everyone else was doing. I ended up being suckered into the great idea of “bridging the gap” between technology and senior citizens. I love technology and communication so this was a interesting subject to me.

From there …

We had a hard time at first at pin pointing how exactly we wanted to tell this story. There are so many directions you can take from this subject that it was a bit overwhelming. Our group comes up with some excellent ideas but we did lack in the follow through at times. But with a few baby steps we finally starting walking toward something. John and myself headed to the Corvallis Senior Center and Stoneybrook Assisted Living Home to try and make a few contacts. The senior center had an amazing contact for us named Dwight Payne who would come in and actually teach other seniors how to use computers. Dwight ended up being one of our main resources for information and was an excellent interviewee. He eventually introduced us to Sheri who was also very beneficial to our project.

On the other hand Stoneybrook Assisted Living Home ended up being more of a challenge. I met with the administrator and sat down to a great interview with her early on, but when I tried to contact her again for interviews with any of the homes residents I was dodged, five times! I emailed her three times and called about three more and never heard from her again. I know I should of gone down to the home again but at some point you just take the hint that no one wanted to speak with us. I didn’t want to invade anyones privacy at the home so I decided it was better to put it behind.

Over the course of our project it was extremely difficult to get anyone together at the same time. We all are busy people who work and go to school making things difficult at times. I wasn’t always able to make it to the interviews, which I had hoped to be able to do, and a few times I asked to contacted and wasn’t. Communication is key when working in groups and when it fails it is hard to pick back up from where you left. I felt that during this project it challenged my managerial skills.

There is so much on this subject that I felt we didn’t get the chance, or time, to look deeper into. That is why I keep reminding myself that this project is just a stepping stone into something bigger. This idea we have of bridging the gap of technology and seniors is being practiced all over the world, and I hope I continue to explore this topic. I loved being able to sit down with my mother and grandmother and talk about what technology meant to them and how it has changed so drastically over the years. Everyone has such great stories to tell.

I have put a lot of hard work into this project. Did I get to do all that I wanted to do? No but I did with what little time I had on top of working two jobs and going to school. During the project I took the leadership role as much I could because we needed it to get going. I did not stand over anyone and tell them what to do but I made sure to call, text, email whenever I felt necessary to meet up or check in. It was frustrating at times because I didn’t feel as if I knew what everyone was doing, but again that goes back to the challenges of working in groups.

If we could of done it differently I would have scheduled times for everyone to walk into a senior center and attempt to get interviews instead of just a few of us. I think I would have tried to organize the project a bit better than it was. Sometimes I just felt we all weren’t on the same page. I would have loved to get more interviews with seniors but again not all of them are open to being recorded.

I wish I could of learned a few new skills and taken advantage more of the opportunity try new things. But overall we pulled it together and ended up with a very good beginning to something that could lead to something more in the future.  I was happy with my finished website you can check it out here WiseNet.

A Society Dependent on Technology.

During our project we all learned new things about the way people view and understand technology. I learned that my grandma isn’t afraid of it at 90, she just doesn’t care. We all learned different insights into why or why not technology may or may not be present in someones life. One of our group members, Jonnie Motomochi, wrote about his experience and I thought he brought up a great point about how we do take for granted technology and computers today. Everyone relies on technology so much today. Technology is so ingrained into our lives that it is hard to remember the simplicity of being a child and never having to worry about emails.

A Learning Experience. By Jonnie Motomochi

Two words: Dwight Payne. This guy was “the man” as I like to call certain people because they’re simply awesome. Dwight falls into both categories, especially the awesome category. He opened up seniors to show a side of themselves that I could not believe, and still can not believe.
Dwight was helping others out with the computer, the internet and any question they sent his way, he would answer it the best way possible. As he said himself, “I sometimes don’t know the answer to their question but I will Google it or look up a video tutorial on YouTube.”
Dwight Payne showed me that seniors actually do want to learn and they do want to try new things. At first, I was a little reluctant about the idea of throwing the idea of the internet at seniors. I thought it would be extremely difficult to find someone, in our short period of time, who would volunteer and just throw themselves into our project: Bridging the Gap. However, Dwight did just that. We even got footage of a webcam conversation between Dwight and his friend in Maryland, Shari. When talking about computers and technology they mention how they still can not believe how far it has come in such a short period of time. “Imagine what it will be like in ten years or even five years,” Shari stated.
Again, they are completely right. Where will the internet technology be in five to ten years? What about 20? I think my generation takes for granted what we have. I asked that question to Shari, via skype, and she agreed. She talked about how amazing the webcams are and how great it is to talk for free anytime, anywhere in the world.
I realized we do take all the technology we have for granted. Computers, the internet, Facebook, Skype, Twitter, email and instant messaging all seem like a part of my life now. Look at all the online quizzes the students have to do now around the country. Majority of professors post everything up online including notes, tests, and the syllabus. Everything students do for school is online. Think about it. Students register, buy books, register for dorms, register for email, find transcripts, read homework and lectures, all online. Seriously, I do not think Oregon State University or other universities could survive without a computer or the internet today. Everything is too dependent on it.
There was a lot I realized from chatting to Dwight and Shari, and it was enjoyable to see how much they loved talking to each other through the internet. It is truly mind boggling how much we have taken for granted and to get an understanding of how fortunate we are to have all of this equipment available to us. Imagine the next generation of children, how fortunate are they going to feel about their new and improved technology?

A Rough Outline of a Tech Gap

Bridging the gap between generations in the world of technology.
We are looking in-depth into the way different generations view and use technology today. By getting in touch with people who are living in assisted living homes, using senior centers and our own personal experiences we will look at how people are using technology in their own lives, or how they aren’t.
In the course of our information gathering we plan on using video camera equipment, still photography, voice recorders plus computer software to design graphics, video production and website development.
Sources for our project consist of professionals, seniors, family, friends and students.
Sources with the Corvallis Senior Center and Stoneybrook Assisted Living Home are administrator’s Lorene Hales and Theresa. We have contacted family members who all have been impacted by technology in some way and plan to incorporate a little about our own family stories. We have made connections with professors on campus who work in psychology and new media communications such as Bill Loges. Students and community members will be interviewed for additional resources. A connection with a man who volunteers his time at the Corvallis senior center has proved useful and a plan to interview him is necessary. We are awaiting reply from the administrators of both senior homes on who would be willing to speak with us on camera and possible take a lesson on how to use a computer in a resourceful way, e.g. skype. In the process of trying to seek permission to speak with seniors at the Stoneybrook Assisted Living Home we were denied and after three emails and four phone calls still no one got back to us about our project.

Schedule for completion:

Nov.2 – Nov. 13 – Gain contacts and get in touch with sources. Feel out who we want to interview and connect with. Outlining how we want to tackle our projects idea. Visit senior centers, assisted living homes, and retirement complexes. Design our graphic logo to establish branding.
Nov.16 – Nov. 21 – Interviews will be conducted with administrators, business employees, family members and volunteers. Gathered video footage and digital recording of interviews conducted along with still footage. Interviews with Loges and OSU students will be conducted at the end of the week. Present a rough draft, e.g. of what we have.
Nov. 23 – Nov. 28 – Filming of the assisted living facilities and seniors living there. We will be sitting down and having a discussion with seniors living in these homes and their thoughts on technology. Start putting more video footage as well as put together the first pieces of our written work. Begin designing our online presentation format.
Nov. 30 – Dec. 4 – Pull the final pieces together. Outline our video production. Finish up our website and blog posts. Put together our final writing.

We are really wanting to get a feel for how people feel and relate to technology through our interviews and discussions.

Bridging Our Project

For the past month I have been working with these fabulous people on a wonderful project about bridging the gap between technology and the different generations. Here is a bit about what we have been doing and what are skills are.

Group Members

Mike Martin |  Performing research into technology information, e.g. email providers.  Putting thought in to what we want out of our interviews and writing out a base for interview questions the group will be asking seniors.  Also will conduct an interview with fellow group member John Carney on his thoughts and passion about this subject.  Assist in writing our final story.

Skills  |  Basic Final Cut Pro and photoshop. Strengths in writing and is very adaptable.

Jonnie Motomochi |  Coming up with a outline of questions we will be asking people who are closely involved with the seniors, e.g. effects they see technology having on them.  Taking the time to help sit down with seniors and teach them the basics of computer use or other tech need-to-knows.  Assist with writing our final story.  Interviewing parents for additional ideas.

Skills  |  Strong interest in writing and interviewing.  Comfortable in front of a camera.

Mariah Zook |  Planning and conducting interviews with psychology/philosophy professionals about our subject to get a better understanding about why seniors would feel a certain way towards tech.  Contacted senior centers to get basic information and sources.  Assist with writing our final story.

Skills |  Strengths are in writing and interviewing.  Comfortable in front of a camera.

John Carney |  Will be an interviewee for the project.  Connected with senior centers and assisted living establishments in Corvallis.  Spending most of the time behind the camera shooting footage and interviews.  Assist in writing our final story.

Skills  |  Film, editing, Final Cut Pro and sound are all strong. Communication skills.

Makenzie Marineau |  Assist in writing our final story.  Interviewing parents on how technology has treated them.  Made contacts at senior and assisted living homes.  Will be conducting interviews with administrators of the businesses.  In charge of putting our final project online with videos, writing, photos and additional links that were all collected during this process. Managing group and individual tasks.

Skills  |  Writing, photography, online presence and communication. Leadership.

Lessons in NO.

I am a volunteer, intern, student, employee, daughter, sister, friend, supporter, writer and more.  I live a life on the go and prefer it that way.

Lately I have been contemplating the simple word no. Every time I mention to an acquaintance what things I am working on in my life they just stare blankly at me, my friends tell me I am crazy and I need to stop the madness, but I won’t. I love what I am doing in my life right now, the progress I am making and how much I am learning. Why on earth would I turn down an excellent opportunity to take on something new. For one it might be my 8 am to 7 pm work schedule I am on (that isn’t including time set aside for homework. I am a bit surprised that I’m passing any classes at all). Another may be the fact I don’t have the energy or time to run anymore, and this is coming from a avid runner and life long athlete. The things that make me sane and give me that break from work unfortunately I am not making time for anymore.

It seems these days the only time I ever catch myself uttering the word “no” is when I speak sternly to my dog. Yes it is true, I am one of those people, the ones who can’t turn away requests, people, or what ever might come bobbing by. Is it worth the extra long hours and stress of trying to please a co-worker or friend, to me yes it is. Sometimes I secretly hate myself for being a ‘giver’ but I don’t regret the way I am. But I do understand there is a time to speak that awful word, not only for my health but my happiness too. For those others out there like me who can’t seem to turn down even the most random of people I suggest practicing putting yourself first for a day and see how you like it. I am taking a bit of my own advice and putting this last thought into practice for this week. Word of the week: NO.

The life I have been describing I know isn’t too far off from many other college students. A lot of pressure is put upon students to receive fabulous grades on top of being actively involved on campus, interning and work. Oh and you can’t forget the wonderful social life you have to keep up on too. This has always been described as the time to be meeting new people and developing great relationships you will carry with you for the rest of your life. When does the break come in? I have been asking myself that same question this past year, and I really believe it is up to ourselves to find that balance within all the craziness. Pick and choose, say no to a few requests and find time to set aside for YOU.

All About Creativity | Great projects by some awesome young adults.

In the storytelling world a big must have is creativity. In the past week I have stumbled upon a few great videos that do an excellent job of tying in creativity with their story telling. Both of these examples are of course produced by college age students. It is because of work from people like this that inspire me daily.

I a HUGE fan of NPR and I listen everyday, and when I came across this the other day on the wonderful twitterverse I just had to share it because I loved it.  NPR’s hard working 40 or so fall interns recently put together an i.e. (Intern Edition) show, which is featured on their website. Their website also provides more details about who these fabulous interns are, stories they have done and some blogging.   This production is a must see.  Not a surprise that after viewing this I wanted to run immediately to fill out an application to intern here! Click here for your viewing pleasure.

Next is a group of students from the University of Oregon who have been making national headlines. Supwitchugirl (groups creative name) posted a music video supporting their beloved Duck football team but it quickly turned into a much bigger issue concerning a guest appearance from Puddles, Oregon’s mascot. Puddles is a copyrighted Disney figure, which meant UO was afraid to get a knock on the door from Disney about the unauthorized use of dear Puddles. Moments after posting their video onto YouTube it was taken down and the whirlwind of press coverage this group of students received since has been amazing. ESPN Talk Radio, Sports Illustrated, Dan Patrick, The Oregonian plus many local news sources have covered this story and soon enough the video was back up for viewing.  On top of their now popular “I love my ducks” production there are more available videos at motimer4’s Channel on YouTube.

“I Love My Ducks”

Produced and Directed by Brian McAndrew. Starring Jamie Slade, Michael Bishop, Brian McAndrew, and Puddles the Duck. Special thanks to Bob Martini.

Charging Liberal Bias. Conservative Strategy Wins.

Lately I have been thinking what a moron I am to have not been recording my Politics in the Media class lectures because Professor Robert Sahr is phenomenal. He brings up such great points of discussion and carries great knowledge that is always leaving me great thoughts to ponder. One particular point he brings up quite often is the charge of liberal bias. I think it is a great insight into how media is portrayed. Here is a collection of his notes and sources discussing similar issues in the news.

The CHARGE of “Liberal Bias” (very important conservative strategy in recent decades)

Why many people believe national media has liberal bias:  There appear to be two main reason:

• It is widely stated and seldom rebutted, e.g.,Rush Limbaugh always says “liberal media”
• We see what we look for:  if we expect a certain kind of bias we are more likely to believe we find evidence of it than if we do not expect it

Note that most media analysts reject the “liberal bias” view, arguing there may be a conservative bias, or at least a “mainstream bias,”and many      analysts are not themselves liberal

Evidence that challenges or undercuts “liberal bias” charge

To prove liberal bias, almost always conservative point to the fact that polls show that more journalists identify themselves as liberal (or at least Democratic) than conservative (or Republican).  This is true, but focusing only on this point ignores important evidence in a different direction.

1.  Endorsements: With only four exceptions (1964, 1992, 2004, 2008) since records began be kept in the 1930s, more newspapers – often many more – endorse Republicans than Democrats for President (see below)

2.  Talk show hosts and political columnists: Many more (about 70%) are conservative than liberal

2.  Media ownership:

Owners/executives are usually politically conservative

Increasing sharp concentration of ownership, with decreasing number of companies controlling media

So, even if journalists are politically liberal, they would have to challenge the views of owners/executives, who control       their advancement

4.  Actual Coverage (most important): Regardless of whether journalists are politically liberal as individuals, what counts is the actual coverage of conservative and non-conservative presidents, candidates, etc.

Compare media treatment of Presidents G.H.W Bush (initially positive) and Clinton (initially negative)

Compare media treatment of Presidents Carter (consistently negative and Reagan (generally positive)

Compare media treatment of Presidents George W. Bush (generally positive) and Clinton (almost uniformly negative)

An effect of the constant charge of “liberal bias” is that it challenges national journalists to be tough on non-conservative presidents, maybe to go easier on conservatives.

One reason for constant emphasis on “liberal press” and President Clinton as “liberal” appears to be to push journalists in this direction (note, though, that the Wall Street Journal and other analysis suggested that Clinton is not a liberal but instead a relatively middle of the road Democrat).

Is there, despite all these points, a liberal bias among national media?

The following analysis from Media Matters critiques the MSNBC survey. Although Media Matters admittedly is liberal, their analysis contains useful points in relation to sample (the small number of all journalists), the data about overall contributions to parties by media organizations, the non-inclusion of data from publishers (who) are very likely to be conservative and Republican) and editors (almost as conservative, having been selected by publishers), and similar points.

The following are useful links to past pieces regarding media bias.

• Scoops, Impact or Glory: What Motivates Reporters? By Byron Calame, Public Editor. Published: December 3, 2006. The New York Times.
• Let This Leak Go. By Richard Cohen, Op-Ed Columnist. Published: October 13, 2005. The Washington Post.
• The Runaway Train That Hit Scooter Libby. By Cohen, Op-Ed Columnist. Published: June 19, 2007. The Washington Post.

Living in a Digital Generation

I grew up in a generation where the internet was invented, cell phones are used instead of land lines and people communicate via technology in more ways than we ever would have thought possible, but for the generations who did not learn how to use a computer in junior high or send a text message before they could walk (a hint of sarcasm) all of this tech talk might by a bit too much to handle. This is what is driving a group of students, including myself, to pursue a project on bridging the gap between people and technology and how they use or don’t use today’s newest inventions.  We want to investigate in a range of people more around 60 years old and up.  It’s funny to think that the newest tech device to someone might just be a computer vs. today’s generation of students who may now own a kindle.

Computer confusion?

Times are constantly changing and it seems today that technology is moving along quite rapidly. What then happens to all of those people who didn’t grow up with a mouse and keyboard in front of them, to the people who don’t even know what the word skype means? That is what we want to look at and explore. Listen to peoples experience and how they deal today compared to years ago. We want to find out how technology can enhance their life in ways they wouldn’t have thought possible. How may you ask? By providing them the tools and assistance needed to get in touch with a loved one or old friend with the use of technology. By looking at stories of triumph and failure in the digital age we can give those who are afraid a glimpse at the positives it can provide.

Myself, John Carney, Jonnie Motomochi and Mahria Zook are taking on this project for the next month and a half with the end result being a documentary film, blogs of interviews and stories, more knowledge of computers among elders and a program set up to continue sending volunteers to retirement, assisted living and senior centers to teach and educate people about technology.

Someones grandson or granddaughter could be over in the Middle East as a solider thus not allowing them to visit in over a year and we want to show them that they can visit, they can talk and they can see their grandchild with the help of a computer. That is just one example of what many people face today living in a digital age without the proper knowledge of how it works.  There will be a great deal of hard work and energy thrown into this project and we all are excited to jump to it.

SPJ provides never-ending education for journalists

“The content of any new media is the old medium.” – Jack Hart.

On Saturday, Oct. 24, the third annual Society of Professional Journalists: Building a better journalist conference attendees took away valuable information, useful tactics and tools for bettering journalistic skills.  With a amazing panel of speakers to host each session the event was a huge benefit to students and seasoned journalists alike.  With so many wonderful options to choose from on the list of training opportunities it made my decision difficult in narrowing the sessions to sit in on.

- Thinking Big at a Small Paper -

I opted to attend Thinking Big at a Small Paper and Storytelling with Style in the morning.  Lee van der Voo and Nick Budnick spoke about a 2009 police misconduct investigation they were involved in and how they put together a wonderful piece as the underdogs.  It was very informative for tricks on how to use your small paper status to get more information and pull it off with limited resources.  Budnick pointed out that you can use your “underdog” status to your advantage in investigative work.  You possibly may be able to get more information from your sources considering you have good relationships with community members and the town you work in.  Other tips included how to use a more personal approach to your public record request, which usually shows more results than a long formal request.  The more formal and impersonal the more likely someone reading it will put it aside immediately and make a mental note to never let you see that information, it could seem likely you would use the record negatively.

- Storytelling with Style -

“Look at the story not as what it is, but as what it means,” Anna Griffin and Jack Hart said in agreement.  Hart, legendary writing coach and author, along with Griffin, columnist for The Oregonian, shared how to make your work stand out from the rest.  Storytelling with style was a great reminder to journalists to be creative and think outside the box when it comes to narrating your story.  Think about yourself as the reader, and while you read, learn.  Ask yourself “why did they start the story that way, or why did they end it that way?” Get your brain thinking in the terms of what makes for good storytelling.  Try breaking down stories while you read them.  Everyone at the conference also recommended buying Hart’s book  A Writer’s Coach.

“Think of yourself as a writer; not a reporter.  Think of the people as characters; not sources.  That is what equals a good reporter.” – Hart & Griffin.

- Video for the Web -

The second half of the day for me consisted of learning how to shoot video footage for the web and a great discussion on science and tech writing.  I was amazed to learn that the iPhone now even has an application that allows you to shoot, record, edit and upload video straight from your phone to the web.  Great tool for breaking news or when you are thrown into a situation and equipment isn’t working or you have none.  TJ Mullinax from the Yakima Herald shared his pointers on how to shoot a good news segment in any situation.  When shooting Mullinax stressed the importance of not zooming in or panning while shooting because your final product will most likely lead to motion sickness.  Mullinax also carried on him many photography tools, the Canon EOS 5D being my favorite (On my wish list!).  I have a great yearn to learn valuable skills in video production, this was just my first step.

- Covering Science & Technology: So you want to be a tech writer? -

A great discussion on science and technology writing ended a great day of education at the conference.  David Wolman, author and contributing editor at Wired, and Marshall Kirkpatrick, lead writer for Read Write Web, shared their ways of writing in a rapid and ever changing beat.  Kirkpatrick and Wolman use almost completely different methods in their writing.  Wolman strongly recommends sit down informational interviews to find the key parts to the story.  Wolman loves to ask the question “so what else have you been working on?” He said this question has led him to many other interesting pieces he has wrote on.

Kirkpartick on the other hand puts out more material in one day.  He will usually produce two to three articles for the web a day.  There is a detailed intertwined list of RSS feeds that he receives constantly to point him in the right direction of what is the hot topic of discussion.  More detailed notes are available from Daniel Bachhuber about this session.

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Overall the conference was a great success and it was awesome to meet some extraordinary writers and journalist enthusiasts.