Classes

Check out classes and workshops at the Twin Cities Daily Planet! Email lisa@tcdailyplanet.net for more information.

Writers Groups
Come meet the editors and other Daily Planet writers, bring your ideas for written and video stories or photo essays. Our writers group provides an encouraging environment for novice and experienced reporters. In addition to getting feedback on your writing, each week we integrate one lesson that will help you develop your craft. These include themes like fact checking, relations with sources, and telling many sides of one story.

St. Paul
Rondo Community Outreach Library | 461 Dale Street North
Every Monday from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Summer schedule:
St. Paul writers groups meet weekly, but no summer classes are scheduled at this point, but check back for updates. Some summer classes may be scheduled on short notice, depending on demand.

Fall schedule:
Check back later this summer for a full schedule of classes this fall. Among the classes we plan to offer are:

Introduction to Citizen Journalism (Mary Turck)
Introduction to Podcasting (Todd Melby)
Photojournalism for Citizen Journalists (TBD)
Finding the Story, Reporting It and Writing It
Twitter as a News Tool (Julio Ojeda Zapata)
Facebook: How to be a Power User (Jay Gabler)
Free WordPress Websites for Business or Blogging (TBD. Also see description below).

Online Journalism Class at Anoka Hennepin Community College, in collaboration with the Twin Cities Daily Planet
This class will be offered again at AHCC in Fall 2009:

JOUR 2131 – Reporting, Writing, and Editing for Online Publications

“This course introduces students to both the theory and practice of online journalism. It exposes them to a wide range of readings about this still evolving field as well as equally comprehensive readings of the best of contemporary online journalism. In addition to reading and mastering course texts, student are also required to master the basic skills of online reporting, writing and editing for the Internet by developing a series of postings ranging from daily blogs to investigative features to commentaries. Students in this class engage in the entire news process from story ideation, identification of sources, research and reporting, writing, revising, editing, and interactive response to readers. In addition, students are expected to master the use of hypertext links in the creation of online copy and be given an opportunity to post digital sound recordings, video and photography to enhance their reporting. Working with the instructor, students post their edited work at the Twin Cities Daily Planet.”

1. General information about Anoka Hennepin Community College admissions and registration can be found at http://www.anokaramsey.edu/admissions/general.cfm#general”

Past classes:
April

Lunch with a journalist: Julio Ojeda-Zapata
When: Wednesday, April 22
Where: East Lake Public Library, 2727 E. Lake St., Minneapolis.

What is Twitter? What’s the next big social networking tool? And what’s life like at the Pioneer Press these days?

Pioneer Press tech columnist Julio Ojeda-Zapata will be our featured guest at our next Brown Bag Lunch with A Journalist, According to his bio, Julio “has been on the front lines of the Internet and computer revolutions as a syndicated newspaper columnist, editor and award-winning writer for more than a decade. He is author of the hot-selling book “Twitter Means Business,” which documents how the Twitter social-networking service has become a vital tool for companies. Julio covers consumer technology for the St. Paul Pioneer Press, where he writes a weekly Tech Test Drive column and maintains his Your Tech Weblog. He lives in St. Paul, Minn., with his wife, son and a hopelessly spoiled guinea pig called Pepita.”

Video reporting
Instructor: Ashley Siebels
When: Thursdays, April 23, 30 and May 7 | 6:00 to 9:00 p.m.
Where: 125 SE Main Street #244, Minneapolis
Cost $80 Register through MTN
(There is also a $20 (non-Minneapolis) or $25 MTN membership fee which allows participants to use MTN cameras after the class is done.)

So you want to be a video reporter. There’s nothing stopping you from becoming the next Tom Brokaw, except of course knowing how to shoot and edit news stories. In this class Ashley Siebels will show you how to choose an appropriate subject for community news reporting, shoot video, and edit it using imovie. The class will have some instructor led activities and lecture, but you will also have lots of room to work with your story. Students will be expected to produce one story in the three-session class.

If students produce two video reports whose content and quality is applicable to the Twin Cities Daily Planet and MTN, the TC Daily Planet will reimbursed the cost of the class.

May

Create Free WordPress Websites for Business or Blogging
Instructor: Matt Bartel, Secrets of the City (formerly the Rake and MNSpeak)
When: Wednesday May 6 | 6:00 tp 8:30 p.m.
Where: Rondo Library | 461 Dale Street North

WordPress.com offers free websites that are easy to design and use, and very suitable for small businesses and neighborhood organizations, as well as blogging.This workshop will teach the basic skills necessary to setup and maintain a web site or blog using WordPress. Each attendee will set up their own basic WordPress site, then learn how to create/edit content, change themes, install plugins and change site settings. We will also cover related topics including social media integration, email address collection and basic web usability/design concepts. “

Arts Writing: From Pitch to Publication
Instructor: J. and S. Gabler and Schouweiler
When: May 4 and May 11, 2009 | 7:00 PM – 9:00 p.m.
Where: Pratt
Cost $21 (discounts available) Register through Minneapolis Community Education

You will learn the process of writing on the arts, whether for print or online publication. The class will provide tips on finding story ideas and will walk you through the practical protocols for pitching an editor on your idea, and getting your piece ready for publication.