Modern media takes a hold of NGU
The following is excerpted from The Vision Magazine’s Fall 2014 edition. Read the article in its entirety by picking up a copy of “The Vision” on newsstands across campus, including the library and the Stud.
Original Story by Alex Kern, The Vision Magazine Editor-in-Chief
Edited by Faith Auslund, The Vision Magazine
The staff of “The Vision Online,” “The Vision Magazine” and “The Vision Annual” pose for a group picture during the Fall 2014 semester.
Like everyone else, the mass communication department at North Greenville University has had to adapt to the changes in modern media. Due to the shifting of information outlets, the department has undergone a major transformation in the beginning of the fall of 2014. Three of its practicums have merged into one.
This encompassing practicum, labeled Digital Media Practicum, includes an online news site, a magazine and an online annual.
Andrew Stevens, adviser of NGU’s radio station and annual said that “The Vision” is a practical lab for students and is designed for students to be able to showcase their abilities and, ultimately, to bring glory to God.
Carli Frady works on a story for “The Vision Magazine.”
“We want our students to be prepared for the future because this is where the future is going,” said Stevens.
“People want their news now,” he said. “They want to be able to select their news. They want to be able to consume it how they want. Digital media allows you to choose what you wish to see.”
Because most people in today’s society refer to news sites for information, “The Skyliner” has finally turned its last page and moved to an online version, which is updated several times every week with current information by the online staff. This information varies from announcements at NGU, events in the political sphere, changes on campus, clever cartoons, profiles on professors and so much more.
“We’re exploring all the online possibilities,” adviser Karyn Campbell said.
Staff members of “The Vision Annual” work with adviser Andrew Stevens on double page spreads.
Demi Blackmon, managing editor for the online news site, said she and Editor-in-chief Jeremy Wetherton assign two staff members to come in each day, Monday through Friday, to upload stories. The writers strive to create short pieces of news that hook the audience, such as “How to navigate the caf with ease”.
With the recent demise of “The Skyliner,” another version of printed media will now be available for NGU students, faculty and staff. “The Vision” magazine strives to print more in-depth stories in a style called literary journalism, which borrows techniques from creative writing, but it does so in a nonfiction way.
Students who write for “The Vision Online” discuss upcoming stories during a weekly meeting.
The magazine will cover lifestyle, news on the NGU campus, such as the new equestrian program, opinions about political events happening around the world, such as the rising concern about ISIS, mission trips in a section called “Mission Addiction,” historical aspects of the university and more.
Whereas “The Vision” online uploads new stories every school day, the magazine prints one edition per semester as magazines have more pages than printed newspapers and take longer to lay out.
The third and final practicum to be merged with “The Vision” is the annual, which has replaced the yearbook. The annual is an online timeline created from web pages. The staff will upload events and pictures of students and faculty, similar to the yearbook. At the end of the year, when the staff has finished, the timeline will be frozen, which means it will not be changed. For years to come, it will be available as it was the day the staff froze it.
