Cannabis Journalism Day #5
This morning our guest speaker was Zac Cohen an essayist for @thebabysmouth, who is from New York. He also works for Blank Space Media, a media company that “builds brands, designs ads, and creates culture with their clients, partners and communities.”
I enjoyed hearing his perspective on media and it’s role in society, particularly in the digital age. He asked us all why we want to go into news reporting or any type of media or public relations. I thought Makayla gave a perfect response when she explained how media has an undeniable presence in our culture, and we need to contribute to it to help it thrive. It’s kind of like giving back to society in a way. It’s all about sharing our thoughts and ideas with the public, and creating our value systems by pursuing something we’re passionate about. The speedy rate at which we share and produce media content (thanks to perpetually evolving technological advances) has evidently enhanced our relationship with one another, and ameliorated our understanding of the world in general.
Research Progress…
My research for the final project has been going well. I’m a bit afraid that my paper is currently a bit boring and redundant in some areas, so i’m going to work on cleaning it up with finishing touches this weekend. I’ve found a few more reputable articles and sources while scrolling through twitter today, which wasn’t too difficult now that i’m following about 30 cannabis related activist profiles.
We were let out of class early today so we could spend some time on our final projects, and consolidate our medium posts into the publication. I still need to copy my tweets into canvas, and turn in my twitter analytics stats.
Final Thoughts…
I’m definitely glad that I took @CannabisJournalism as my interterm class, and I look forward to Data Journalism with Andrew Matranga next quarter! Although I thoroughly enjoyed listening to all of the speakers that spent time with us, I think that my favorite guest was Jake Browne, because I feel as though I learned the most from him. He gave off a very confident and comfortable vibe, and seemed to have a highly recognizable passion for what he was doing. He admitted to not being paid well for his position, and explained that being a pot critic for the post was never his intended career path. His honesty and genuity really said a lot about his character.
I’m very grateful that we were introduced to medium and twitter, because they are two digital media platforms that I wasn’t too familiar with just a week ago. I do intend to keep using twitter, especially since I hope to get into journalism. I think that a social media and online presence is critical for self promoting individuals who aim to get into the media industry. I’m also glad that I was able to listen to all of the guest speakers. They were all very informative and they could serve as good networking connections in the future. Now that I’m following them all on twitter, it will be easier to keep up with their career progress and see where the future takes them. Below are a few of my tweets and favorite retweets and discoveries from the past week…
When the two speakers from Sweet Grass Kitchen came in, I remember discussing the internship opportunity that they offered with some of my classmates after class. Some said they’re not sure if they’d want to have that kind of lable on their resume or attatched to their name for future employers. I disagree, because I believe that this now legal product should be further accepted by individuals in our society who have a passion for promoting and expanding the industry. These particular individuals can help educate inexperienced people on the realities of this once tabooed drug.
Overall, I’m certainly happy that I signed up for the course and I think I got a lot out of it in the end.
