By Day And By Night

In my twitter bio, I write: "I fight crime by day and blog by night."

And it's true. Here's an update on both aspects.

I've been on the job about 3 months now, and it's almost hard to believe. They're keeping me busy at work. Here's just a sampling of what I've done:

• Pitched events to major media markets.
• Comprehended the budget and appropriations process in Congress.
• Learned to love Excel (sorting columns saves my life!)
• Recruited, interviewed & selected interns. (Wait, wasn't I just in the other seat?)

I am learning a ton, and so thankful for the opportunity that this job has provided me. But as for the other part of my twitter bio, I really do "blog by night." In addition to Digital Disciple, I write for 2 others.

Capital Comment Picked Up By Hyperlocal News Site "TBD"

Here's the big announcement: Capital Comment has been picked up by TBD, a new DC-based hyperlocal news site that launched in early August. I'm totally stoked for this opportunity. TBD operates on original reporting and collaboration from WJLA-TV. It has a huge emphasis on community engagement and links to local DC blogs. I'm honored to have Capital Comment part of the Community Blog Network. I'll have a more formal announcement on Capital Comment itself. I also praised TBD's launch in a recent blog post, if you want to learn more.

Here's my bio from the TBD site:

The Bluevine Collective Provides A Creative Worship Space Online

In May, I met with Stan and Matt, a pastor & media guy from St. Luke's United Methodist Church in Indianapolis. At the time, they were just about to launch a creative, multi-author blog project called the Bluevine Collective. I knew I was headed off to Washington, D.C. to start my first job out of school, but really didn't know my role for the Bluevine Collective.

Once I got rolling though, I wrote about themes of hospitality, caring for the poor and homeless. Now I'm in the middle of a series on the clash of the Gen-Y dating culture, feminism, and the Church. I would LOVE your thoughts on the whole topic, so feel free to stop by and leave a comment or two.

The other bloggers add insights about meditation, spirituality, music and relationships. If you haven't already checked out the Bluevine Collective, do it now.

So, between work and juggling 3 blogs, I've managed to stay pretty busy.

Re-Entering the Butler Bubble

(via Luciano Joaquin/Flickr)

This semester is different from everything else I've experienced at Butler.

I'm living in my sorority house for the first time, which is a bigger adjustment than you might think. My closet is in a completely separate place from desk, which is also in a completely separate place from my bed. I don't have my own kitchen, but it does mean I don't have to do the dishes (ftw!).

Until now, Butler has spoiled me: I lived in the residence halls for two years as a RA, so I got a lot of personal space. Even in when I lived in D.C. I only had one roommate, and she was pretty swell. But now, I share my study space with three other girls.

Living in the Capital opened my eyes a more diverse group of people. I have a new respect for work ethic, and for socializing - that includes being flexible and being open to meeting new people all the time (which happens every day in D.C.!)

Professionally, I know it's time to prepare for the real world. But my schedule - 5 classes (three are nightside) and interning 15 hours a week - makes it hard to separate academic pressures from finding time to relax and reflect, let alone apply for jobs.

My personal time with God has suffered. I'm working on finding my quiet time, personal space to spend with him.

Today I hosted a group discussion at the Blue House, where I'm an intern. It was called "How Do I Re-Enter the Butler Bubble?" Ironically, it not only helped other students unpack their out-of-Butler experiences - it was therapeutic for me, too!

I think one of the Butler students explained her experiences best (and this is paraphrasing): It's good to have those experiences to learn who you are when you're by yourself. If you live your life filled with too many activities, all the noise blocks out the quiet time. If you don't have the quiet time, you can't listen to that voice (I call it God) inspire you.

For now, I'm still adjusting to this lifestyle - the syllabi, the disjointed class schedule, the chaos and sisterhood of my sorority house. All of it.

PubCamp Weekend

http://www.flickr.com/photos/vincentgallegos/ / CC BY-NC 2.0

What does it look like when public broadcasters and social media rockstars come together? It looks like PubCamp - short for "Public Media Camp."

Folks from NPR, PBS, their affiliates (and a those from a multitude of other organizations) gathered last weekend at American University to discuss how to strengthen relationships with the public through collaborative projects.

The Format

It wasn't a conference, it was actually an "unconference" (no joke, that is what it's called). There is no committee that pre-plans every session. Participants come ready to lead a session. During the first hour, leaders plot out sessions on a large chart - based on suggestions from peers. Participants are free to move about the unconference and attend whichever sessions they like. Radical, huh? It was modeled after events like CongressCamp and PrivacyCampDC.

My Role: "I Am Sponge"

On my first day at NPR, my supervisor, Andy Carvin asked me: "Can you help me at Public Media Camp?" (Have I not had "intern" stamped across my forehead for the last 18 months?) Of course I could volunteer, I said. After all, my supervisor Andy Carvin was one of the main collaborators of the first ever PubCamp. Not to mention I find this whole idea of "unconference" plus public media absolutely thrilling!

This was going to be epic.

Following the spontaneous style of unconference, as a volunteer, I showed up - coffee in hand - to help with registration. I sat in on sessions mostly as a sponge - then as a notetaker to contribute to the Wiki.

The Sessions

Getting Seniors and the Underserved Online - This one intrigued me, simply because my family is always trying to understand what it is I do online - and why I think it's so important. Mark Ryan from a Fort Wayne station discussed his experiences helping senior citizens navigate technology. The second half featured folks from PBS Kids, who talked about interactivity for the Web's youngest audience and participants.

Using Social Media for Story Ideas - This session was led by Maria Carter of KCUR (PBS affiliate in Kansas City). I volunteered to be the official note-taker for the discussion, and my notes are on the Wiki.

iPhone Apps Contest - This highlighted the results of a contest done through iStrategy Labs called Apps for Democracy. The session highlighted the successes of that contest and asked, "How can public media harness that to help their audiences?"

Some cool apps that came out the original contest: Stumble Safely. It points out all the watering holes in town so you can have a safer bar crawl. For those looking for something more civic-minded, Are You Safe? organizes demographic information into a user-friendly format. Moving to a new town? Use the app to find out the safest neighborhoods.

I - along with nearly 300 participants tweeted all day Sunday with hashtag #pubcamp. If you follow the tag, you can see the conversations that started this weekend.

The People / Follow PubCampers!

Finally, it was great to meet people with similar interests, and fascinating jobs. Here's a few noteworthy people who were in attendance (they're famous in my book):

Craig Newmark, of Craig's List (@craignewmark)

Jonathan Coffman, PBS social media guy (@jdcoffman)

Aaron Ginoza, NPR Business Affairs Coordinator (@ninjaclectic)

Jeri Eckdahl, with NYU's School of International Affairs (@misspolitica)

Andy Carvin, NPR social media guy (@acarvin)

...Not to mention folks from the Center for Public Broadcasting, The Sunlight Foundation and neat stations like WNYC and WBUR.

Follow Up

So what happens next? What resulted from these spontaneous discussions? At the end of the unconference, the large group reported back with pros and cons. The idea is that many people from this group will take what they've learned and head up a PubCamp in their area. There are already five planned for the near future. I'm not sure of exact details, but I know several PubCampers plan to continue discussions that will result in concrete projects. For example, @misspolitica hopes to spearhead a singles group in New York City.

Since participants are so active online, there are several great reflections posted to personal blogs. "Jessie X" wrote an excellent post on her "take-away" that was "retweeted" several times on Twitter - I think, because of her great analysis of conflict between traditional jouranlists and Gen X'ers.

Bloggers from We Love DC, a local blog, gave an excellent overview of the experience on their site.

On my first day at NPR, Andy asked me, "Can you volunteer?"

Of course, I said.

Thus begins my journey into public media...