On December 9, 2024, RHS’ Mass Media and Yearbook classes went to the University of Oregon in Eugene. During their time there, they attended four different sessions. Each session focused on the different parts of media, for example how to fact check claims on social media and the evolution of journalism. The ones that I went to were called, “Rizzing up Your Resume,” “How to Fact-check Claims on Social Media,” and “DJ Krakenn Builds a WordPress Portfolio.”
The first one, “Rizzing up Your Resume,” was presented by Glenn Krake who is also known as DJ Krakenn on soundcloud. He was named Oregon Best Journalism Teacher in 2018, CSPA National Journalism Adviser of the year and JEA National Yearbook Adviser of the Year. Currently he advises yearbook and journalism at West Linn High School and serves on the OJEA Board as the Oregon JEA State Director. His session was about ways to put together a journalism resume and portfolio that could earn you scholarships. The basics are education (which would include coursework and awards), experience (which is staff position and internships) and skills, or portfolio skill expertise. You have to make an impression on one page that’s clean and designed. He states, “You only have 7.4 seconds to make an impression.”
The second session I went to was “How to Fact-check Claims on Social Media.” The speaker was Sara Roth who manages VERIFY’s digital and audience teams and oversees VERIFY’s website and social media platforms. Before joining VERIFY, she was the Digital Director at KREM in Spokane, Washington, and was an investigative reporter at KGW in Portland, Oregon. Sara received her Bachelor’s Degree in creative writing from Bucknell University and her Master’s Degree in multimedia journalism from the University of Oregon. During the session, she explained how to spot artificial intelligence and fact-check claims on social media. Sara explained the checklist to go through when fact-checking the media: first, whose name is in the content? Second, check the credits (who posted it) and who the photographer is. Third, do a reverse image search. Finally, find out if other credible reports exist; you can Google the fact and ask: is this realistic, does the context make sense and does someone stand to profit or benefit? With these tips, you should be able to tell if the claim is false or true.
The final and third was “DJ Krakenn Builds a WordPress Portfolio” (presented by the same person as my first session). He explained that an online portfolio is a digital collection of your work, experiences, qualifications, and skills. When an employer looks you up, they probably don’t want to see questionable things you have posted in the past. With an online portfolio, it will make you look more professional. Some tips to building a WordPress portfolio are to list out your skills and expertise and attach samples of your best work. Having a good portfolio will help you showcase previous work to potential employers and give you a better chance of getting a job. It will help you stand out from the other people appling.
Overall, Fall Media Day was a fun experience. It helped me understand different things about Mass Media. Going with friends made it so much more fun and enjoyable. I would recommend anyone that is interested in media or journalism to go.