Learning to think like a mojo

By Craig Henry
Special to chipsquinn.org

Posted: Aug. 24, 2007

Craig Henry

As I sit at my desk, a little balloon keeps popping up in the corner of my computer monitor. It’s giving me updates on regional and national news.

The pop-up balloon makes me think about the job I have at the Argus Leader in Sioux Falls, S.D., and how much newspapers have changed in the past few years alone.

Though I am still new to journalism, I find it hard to accept that newspapers are so much more than a product that is printed every night and delivered to people’s doorsteps each morning.

In other words, I find it hard to accept that newspapers are no longer just newspapers.

And I’m no longer just a reporter.

And newsrooms are no longer newsrooms.

In the room where my desk is located, the sign on the wall still reads – in big black letters – “newsroom,” but I’ve been told it is an information center.

And I am a news-gatherer.

A news-gatherer – what is that?

It’s a reporter, photographer, videographer and a Web-site updater rolled into one.

In some information centers, my title would be mojo – short for mobile journalist. My actual title at the Argus Leader is online journalist.

I’m still getting used to the changes.

But I’m starting to like them.

I find myself looking at stories in a different way than I used to.

Never before had I thought about what would make for a great photo or video footage when I was out reporting a story. I knew the photographer assigned to the story would take care of the art, and video was still very new during my internship days.

But now that I am a full-time member of the Argus Leader information center, I find myself thinking on the way to an assignment – laptop, digital camera, video camera and, of course, notebook and ink pen beside me:

“How can I make this story more visually appealing?

“What would make great video to go along with this story?

“Could I possibly create a photo gallery to go onto the Web site?

“How about an audio slideshow?”

It’s a new world.

The changes have improved the way I, and other news-gatherers, approach stories and they allow us to tell stories in a completely new fashion.

Though it is taking me, and I’m sure many others, time to adjust to the changes, I know we will succeed.

I have to go now. Another balloon just popped up about a story I want to read.

Welcome to the information center.

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