AP Awards

So, apparently my internship at KDLT went well.  The Associated Press held its first student awards in North Dakota and South Dakota, and I won first place in News/Sports and Feature, as well as honorable mention in Feature.  Here are the links to the stories that did me well.

First Place in News/Sports

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFAm9i_6phU

First Place in Feature

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXuddAM9_kY

Honorable Mention in Feature

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRf7pBaoYuI

Making the News

Most of us have probably spotted a news van flying down the highway or a photographer standing on the sidelines of a football game or even a reporter interviewing one of our neighbors. But, compared to how much work it takes to put together a half hour news show, the little bit of work we see journalists do is a very small part of their day.
Bright and Early
At KDLT News in Sioux Falls, S.D., reporters start a normal day at 9 a.m., although many have been known to come in during the wee hours to put together breaking news or early morning stories. Each journalist--reporters and photographers alike--have to bring story ideas for the day, and they better be good ideas because more often than not, they'll be working on what they pitch.
Gathering the facts
Sometime before 4 p.m.(ideally), the reporter sits down to write their stories. At KDLT, each reporter is supposed to write and edit a minute and a half long story as well as a shorter 45 second story before the 6 o'clock show. The later in the day the writing process starts, the more stressful "crunch time" will be.
Sports reporter Jason Anschutz says he always starts a story with the ending.
"The first thing I write is 'Jason Anschutz, KDLT News, and whatever city I'm in." says Anschutz.

Click here to listen to Krystle Kacner talk about her writing process.



Crunch Time
The last hour before any show will be the most intense time at KDLT's newsroom. At this point in the day, all the reporters are either already editing their reporter packages or are fighting to get into an edit bay to get started. In accordance with Murphy's Law, this is when things will go wrong.
As a reporter and weekend anchor/producer, Stacy Steinhagen has first-hand experience with breaking equipment.
"You never know what it's going to do, except that it'll break when you need it to work" says Steinhagen.

Click here to listen to Stacy Steinhagen talk about what makes her job difficult.


"Ten minutes to show, guys...ten minutes to show."
With just a few minutes left until showtime, reporters are busy speed-editing on tape-to-tape machines and flying through the hallways, trying to get their tapes turned in. This is when the production department takes the final steps toward giving the anchors their first cue.
During the last ten minutes, production assistants scurry around the studio, turning on lights, plugging in microphones, and double checking camera positions. Others are in the directors booth, making sure all the tapes have been turned in and are cued to the first frame of video, while another is making sure every graphic in the script is in the computer system and is spelled correctly.
At two minutes to show, all the production assistants are wearing a pair of headsets and are following the director's directions. The reporters, if they still aren't finished with their stories, are freaking out, and the anchors are sitting at the news desk, reading through their scripts. If anything goes wrong at this point, it's up to them to keep the show moving.

Like what you see?
Check out KDLT News at their website:
www.kdlt.com

What I Learned
Telling a story without any narrative seems to be the most difficult thing in the world for me. Friends who have looked at my piece--as well as others' natural sound pieces--say it makes sense, but I never seem to understand what the point of the story is. I understand the importance of sound--in so many cases, that is what makes or breaks a piece! Sound is what brings a viewer who may not be viewing at full attention into a piece. Sound is what drives the experience of an event home. But, I still haven't totally figured out exactly how and when to use it. I've learned that sound is something I need to keep working on, as much as I dislike it. I've also realized that sound will likely be something I struggle with for a long time, just like video sequencing. I don't think I'll be jumping at every chance I get to do a natural sound piece, but after this experience, I don't think I'll spend the entire time complaining about how hard it is.

Hookah Dreams

Nathan Robertson is doing something few other 22-year-olds would dare try. He's going to open his own business. And, if that wasn't ambitious enough, his enterprise will bring something brand new to Sioux Falls. Robertson is opening hookah lounge.

"Right now, what I'm planning on starting is a toned down version of it because it's a lot cheaper to not have $30,000 worth of kitchen equipment," says Robertson. "It'll be more like a coffee shop, with a few baked goods--Middle Eastern desserts like baklava and stuff."

The Beginning of a Dream
Robertson first became hooked on the hookah in high school, after a few friends bought one of the water pipes in Germany. He's been to several hookah bars in cities across the United States, and he believes it's time South Dakota was exposed to this part of Middle Eastern culture.

"This is part of their lifestyle over there. This is what they do--they sit around and smoke," says Robertson. "That's just part of who they are. Then they come over here--especially here--and there's nothing even close to that."

Bringing it to Life
Robertson says he's been planning for this lounge for a couple years, and it would have taken more time to open shop if he hadn't found a business partner. He hopes to open his hookah lounge inside Common Sense, a gift shop in Downtown Sioux Falls, at the beginning of the year. While it won't quite be what he has envisioned in the beginning, Robertson has a plan for growth.
"I really want, in a year or two, to be not like a full service, sit-down restaurant, but I really want it to be a coffee shop bistro where people can order Middle Eastern foods," says Robertson.

A Foreign Concept

Click play to watch how Robertson uses his own hookah and listen to him talk about safety.



The hookah is a Middle Eastern water pipe first used in northern India. The smoker chooses a flavored tobacco, scoops in into the pipe's bowl, and lights the tobacco with coal. After a few minutes, the smoker then inhales through a long tube.

Is it Safe?

Some, including Robertson, claim smoking tobacco through a hookah is safer than using cigarettes because there is no nicotine and the water filters out most carcinogens.

"It's not good for you, but it's not as bad as some other things," says Robertson.

'It's Definitely a Niche Market'

Click play to listen to Robertson talk about the popularity of hookah lounges across the country.

As well as Middle Eastern people living in the area, Robertson hopes to attract the younger crowd to his lounge. He believes that having two universities in Sioux Falls and the two largest state schools within an hour's drive will help bring his business to life. He says he's seen hookah bars do well in cities with less youth to target--like Rapid City.

"Everywhere I've gone, it hits--it hits big. People love it," says Robertson. Supposedly it's the new fad. It's the new cigar bars."

Can't wait until it opens?

Check out some of these websites to order your own hookah:

http://www.hookah-shisha.com/
http://www.urbanhookah.com/
http://www.hookah-smoking.com/

What I Learned...

"Hookah Dreams" was one of the most difficult stories I've taken on yet.

I stumbled across this guy by complete accident. I had planned on writing a story about a class at Brookings High School where students learn restaurant health codes and how to cook like real chefs, but that one fell through again.

I had been scouring other local news sources for ideas to steal when my e-mail alerted me that someone had sent me a message on Facebook, a social networking site. I temporarily gave up my search to check out the message when I noticed the news feed said one of my friends had joined a fan group of a hookah lounge. I clicked on that link instead of my own message and found this gem.

Before leaving, I had envisioned this story very differently than what Kellyn and I actually put together. I had assumed Nathan had begun construction on his hookah bar, but when we got there and got into the interview, we discovered the lounge was very much still an abstract concept.

We were faced with a problem--how on earth do you show video of something that doesn't exist? Luckily, he had a first-draft of a menu all typed up and had printed off pictures of the furniture he wanted for the lounge. And he and his friend were more than willing to show us how to use a hookah. But at this point, I had to focus my story around the video we were able to get--something I've never been good at.

Now, the story is finished (with the potential for follow ups, of course), and I feel like it actually came together much better than I thought it would that Monday night sitting on his mom and dad's porch. I'm relieved to have it done and kind of want to go try out this hookah bar when it is open; you know what they say--news opens your eyes to new worlds...

Dancing Fools

Country music was first paired with the jitterbug more than sixty years ago, and it continues to be a popular dance in rural America. If you’ve ever been to a rodeo dance in Brookings, you know South Dakota State University students caught the bug, too, and every fall, Farmhouse fraternity offers a night of free lessons to anyone who wants to give the jitterbug a try.
Kyle Sommers will tell you, it's not as easy as it looks. "Not knowing what to do is hard."

Scott Wagner agrees. "Some of the twists--it's kind of confusing for someone who's never done it before."
Dozens of men and women—in almost equal numbers—come to the Volstorff Ballroom at South Dakota State University to learn a few basic moves. No matter how much experience a dancer has under their belt, each has their own reason for mastering the moves.
"Mostly, my girlfriend was pressuring me,” says Sommers.
"I want to be one of those guys dancing, not the one sitting down when one of those songs comes on,” says Wagner.
"Thought it'd be fun, get to know people I didn’t know,” says Andy Walker.

In one night of lessons, these guys have gone from watching the action to making it happen. But, they're not dancing kings yet.
"She won't let me flip--I really want to, but she won't let me. She thinks I'm going to drop her,” says Sommers.

Can you really blame her? This is his first lesson, after all.

The Piano Man

Growing up, you probably had to memorize speeches, algebra equations, and the Pledge of Allegience. As adults, may of us probably try to avoid that kind of work, but John Walker of Brookings chooses to spend his free time memorizing masterpieces.
As the director of keyboard studies at South Dakota State University, most of his time is spent in the classroom. But when other teachers leave campus for their homes, Walker stays late, spending an extra hour each day working towards a dream few piano players try.
He is performing all 32 of Beethoven’s sonatas—from memory.
“It’s really the big goal of a lot of pianists to do this,” says Walker. “I think the only worry is, will I still like it? And so far I do.”
He spends six months learning, practicing, and committing to memory the works of one of music's greatest masters. Twice a year, Walker performs what he's perfected for the public. And for him, each concert wears him out.
“The brain gets really tired of concentrating in front of people after a certain amount of time," says Walker. "I’m exhausted afterward. I just want to eat a full meal.”
And while he's passionate about his work, Walker knows some people might question his sanity.
“My wife is a pianist, so she doesn’t think I’m crazy…Oh, wait—that’s the reason she does," Walkers says, laughing.
What will he do when his five year project is finally over?
“I’m not going to Disneyland, but I’ll do something like that," says Walker. "Maybe I'll go to a ballgame--just, something different.”
But with just seven sonatas down and 25 more to go, Walker has plenty of time to figure out what that something will be.