Borderzine among 150 newsrooms in national fundraising campaign supporting quality journalism

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Washington, D.C. – The Borderzine Reporting Across Fronteras project at UT El Paso is among more than 150 nonprofit newsrooms across the country that will participate in this year’s NewsMatch, the largest grassroots fundraising campaign to support nonprofit news organizations. The national call-to-action will launch on Nov. 1, 2018. In 2017 NewsMatch helped to raise more than $4.8 million from individual donors and a coalition of private funders. This year the number of nonprofit news organizations participating has jumped by more than 40 percent.

Lessons learned during my internship in TV news

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University of Texas at El Paso students preparing to complete their bachelor’s degree in any communications major, such as Digital Media Production and Multimedia Journalism, must look for a media organization to conduct an internship if they wish to succeed in the demanding profession. An internship is fundamental for future journalists entering the job market, employers say. Students pursuing a major in journalism need a place to practice the craft of the profession and local news media outlets in the El Paso-Ciudad Juarez region offer great opportunities for UTEP students to complete their internship training. I had the good fortune of being selected for an internship at Entravision Univision 26, one of the highest -rated stations in the region. News Director Uriel Posada gave me the opportunity to enhance my communication skills during the fall 2016 semester.

Writer examines ‘America’s War Machine’

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When veteran Washington, DC political journalist James McCartney passed away suddenly in May of 2011 from an aggressive form of cancer he left behind an unfinished manuscript about his decades-long reporting on the U.S. Military establishment. After his death, several friends approached his widow, former Washington Post journalist Molly Sinclair McCartney, and asked what would happen to the half-completed manuscript on Jim’s desk at their Florida retirement home. Related: Q & A with journalist Molly Sinclair McCartney on her book, ‘America’s War Machine’

“I don’t know,” Sinclair replied. Several suggested she take up where McCartney had left off and finish the book. So she did.

La reunión de la Asociación Nacional de Periodistas Hispanos fue oro puro para la nueva generación de periodistas

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EL PASO – Hace un poco más de una semana, se presentó aqui una reunión de periodistas hispanos en la Universidad de Texas en el Paso (UTEP) — la segunda conferencia de la Asociación Nacional de Periodistas Hispanos (NAHJ). La reunion congregó a una amplia gama de reporteros, productores y editores de la ciudad y el resto del país para abordar temas de interés a la comunidad hispana. Estas reuniones simplemente valen oro. No solo por las oportunidades de obtener adiestramiento adicional, o por el ‘networking’ como le llaman mis colegas más jóvenes dentro de los medios, sino por el simple hecho de poder observar y escuchar las historias que los colegas más experimentados platican. Sus historias sobre como comenzaron en los medios, las veces que tropezaron y se levantaron y las lecciones que tuvieron que aprender a las malas.

Borderzine wins one 0f ’50 States for Good’ grants from Tom’s of Maine

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Borderzine, a bilingual journalism training program based at The University of Texas at El Paso, has been selected as one of 52 winners from across the country in the seventh annual Tom’s of Maine “50 States for Good” community giving program. Borderzine was selected to represent the state of Texas and will receive $20,000 to fund its mission of transforming U.S. newsrooms into more inclusive workplaces that reflect the nation’s demographic diversity by placing more young journalists of color in news internships and jobs. “This generous gift from Tom’s of Maine advances in significant ways Borderzine’s mission to prepare a young generation of multicultural journalists that reflects and interprets the real story of immigration and the borderlands for the rest of America,” said Zita Arocha, director of Borderzine and associate professor in UTEP’s Department of Communication. Specifically, the funds will be used for a combination of internships, technical support for the Borderzine website and recruitment efforts for Borderzine’s annual high school journalism workshop. The contest’s process began with community members taking to social media pages to share #OneWaytoHelp their communities, amassing nearly 10,000 submissions.

Borderzine and Univision 26 showcase the next generation of bilingual journalists

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EL PASO – A special collaboration between Borderzine and Noticias Univision 26, one of the biggest media outlets in the borderland, gave the opportunity to four bilingual students majoring in multimedia journalism at UT El Paso to showcase their journalistic abilities. Journalism students Mabel Gutierrez, Sara Villegas, Esther Jurado and Daniel Alvarez worked with Channel 26-KINT TV on a special assignment focusing on the university and student life. All four of them shot, edited and wrote their own stories which aired on the Spanish-language TV station. The constantly shifting media landscape in the contemporary world has created a new type of journalist. Multimedia journalists, or MMJ’s, are able to produce a stories on their own that used to be done with a crew of two or more people.

Cal State LA celebrates the life of the martyred border journalist Rubén Salazar

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California State University, Los Angeles, celebrated the 87th birthday of the late Mexican-American journalist Rubén Salazar with the inauguration of an exhibit entitled “Legacy of Rubén Salazar: A Man of His Words, a Man of His Time” that will be on display at the University’s John F. Kennedy Memorial Library until March 26. Salazar was a Mexican-American journalist who was struck and killed by a tear gas canister fired by a Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department deputy during the National Chicano Moratorium March on August 29, 1970. He was 42. “Rubén Salazar was with our people by reporting accurately, fairly and perceptively about our people when he was working as a reporter. Today Latinos become larger in numbers, but not necessarily better understood by the media or our society,” said Dr. Felix Gutierrez noted Chicano and Mexican-American history and journalism scholar.

Borderzine multimedia experience leads to journalism career opportunities

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It’s been five years since my wife Danya and I first walked into the Cotton Memorial building for our introduction to journalism class at the University of Texas at El Paso. This is where we met our mentors David Smith Soto, Zita Arocha, and Lourdes Cueva Chacon. And where we learned the countless lessons we referenced every day at our internships and now at our jobs working for a daily newspaper. I was a creative writer at heart and felt comfortable with my storytelling abilities. Danya was an artistic photographer and felt comfortable telling visual stories.

Borderzine redesign reaches out to Border Life readers across all platforms

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The 6-year-old online Border Life magazine, Borderzine, crosses another milestone this month with a redesign, enhanced digital features and visuals to better reflect its mission to publish rich relevant content about the borderlands by multicultural student journalists. A few of the exciting changes include a responsive design that allows readers to easily navigate across computer platforms and mobile devices, an updated logo, new story categories covering “Immigration and Fronteras” and “Diversity and Ideas” as well as a snazzier portfolio page to showcase the multimedia journalism of our student reporters. Here are some highlights of what we’ve added:

 At the core of the new Borderzine.com is the responsive web design, which makes the site look good across computer platforms and on mobile devices.  We’ve updated our look with a fresh, new logo inspired by the sunrise over a Southwest landscape – the vibrant glow of a new dawn in multicultural America.  New category sections on the home page showcase our unique and varied content.

Website to track border deaths by law enforcement officers wins startup grant

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Washington, D.C. – A Spanish-language website and database to document incidents of undocumented immigrants killed by law enforcement on the southern border of the U.S. is among four media startups to receive a $12,000 grant from J-Lab. EncuentrosMortales.org is the idea of D. Brian Burghart, editor and publisher of the Reno News & Review, who created FatalEncounters.org, a crowd-sourced database attempting to track police use of deadly force in the United States. EncuentrosMortales.org will collect public records and media reports of undocumented people killed during interactions with law enforcement officers. “I’m very excited to be able to move forward with EncuentrosMortales.org. Law-enforcement-involved homicides along the U.S. border is an important and underreported issue, and I hope we can bring together technology, languages and volunteers to get a much better idea of our government’s activities,” he said.

Un coquí puertorriqueño atisba su futuro desde el Valle Imperial

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EL CENTRO, Calif.– Después de la huelga estudiantil de Mayo 4 del 2010, que forzó el sistema universitario de Puerto Rico a cerrar por tres meses, muchos estudiantes dejamos nuestras casas y familias para continuar nuestros sueños de hacernos profesionales algún día. Siendo una de esos estudiantes que emigramos de Puerto Rico buscando un mejor futuro en los Estados Unidos, me mudé para California para poder continuar mis estudios y no me arrepiento de mi decisión. Me mudé para Imperial Valley porque mis hermanos han estado viviendo aquí desde hace tres años y porque mi hermano mayor vivía en Mexicali, Mex. con su esposa mexicana mientras el terminaba su internado en medicina y ella terminaba su bachillerato en artes plásticas. En su momento decidieron que lo más cercano a nuestro hermano mayor, mejor.

Premiados periodistas de Juárez — escriben sobre la violencia pese a los riesgos

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EL PASO, Texas — Sandra Rodríguez reportera de investigación de El Diario de Juárez describe su profesión con la sabiduría que le otorgan los 20 años de esfuerzo y dedicación. “Un periodista es un profesional de la información cuya responsabilidad es reflejar con técnicas específicas los hechos que ocurren en cada comunidad, tratando siempre de acercarse lo más posible a lo que se puede considerar como la verdad de lo sucedido”. A través de su carrera, Rodríguez ha sido testigo de cómo el crimen organizado acapara la nota del día. Simplemente en el año 2010 Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua fue invadido con más de tres mil muertes, donde reporteros formaron parte de esa cifra. Día a día se ve en la redacción de los reporteros cómo la sangre envuelve los casquillos percutidos del victimario.

New frontline in war on freedom of speech

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EL PASO, Texas — College campuses are and should be considered a utopia for students, faculty and staff to make their voices heard, whether espousing new ideas or protesting against the injustices of the world. Recent events at universities across the nation make it painfully clear this is no longer true. A significant case of censorship in college media recently occurred with the firing of an advisor at the University of Colorado at Boulder’s student newspaper, the CU Independent. After being fired from her position, Amy Herdy claimed the reason behind her dismissal was retaliation for her attempts to defend her students from hassles they were receiving from faculty after stories were published in the paper. Herdy also said that Paul Voakes, dean of UC-Boulder, requested that the advisor provide him with notification if the student newspaper planned to run anything that the university may deem to be controversial.

Investigative journalism in decline in U.S.

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EL PASO, Texas — The economic gloom continues to loom over the media industry. With major U.S. media companies dealing with decline in revenue and diving into bankruptcy, news publications have been forced to cut costs to maintain profit margins. Among the hardest hit are those staff in the newsroom, particularly those involved in public investigative and accountability reporting.  During this dismal economic climate, the expense to fund a potentially lengthy, time-consuming investigative story, the reluctance to engage potential legal consequences, and their possibility to be fruitless endeavors are often the reasons why media companies are still reluctant to keep funding investigative issues, media critics say. According to the American Society of News Editors’ annual newsroom census approximately 5,900 positions were eliminated during 2008, and 5,200 full-time newsroom positions where eliminated in 2009. This means the total employment in American print newsrooms has dropped by around 14,900 since 2000.

C-ya ‘round suckas!

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EL PASO, Texas — It is The Prospector tradition that the graduating seniors write a goodbye column.
 So, now that my time here at UTEP is coming to a close, I can’t help but take a look back at my journey. Years ago, if anyone asked me what I was going to do with my life, I would not have had an answer. But now that I am graduating, I am excited to say that I have an answer to that question –a journalist. There are many people out there that will say that journalism is a dying field and that the odds of finding a job are slim. The truth is that journalism is an evolving field and this is a very exciting time to be entering the workforce.

Making The Most Out Of It

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EL PASO, Texas — Every semester we hear from our teachers as well as guest speakers that internships are vital if you ever want to land a job. Most companies will not hire anyone unless they have some kind of previous experience. As journalism students, we have chosen a career that can be very tough to break into. To make it in this business you have to stand out. You prepare yourself to be the best, to be ready to for the better job opportunity down the road.

Reporters’ Lives — and Deaths — on the Mexican Border

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EL PASO, Texas — With the constant violence in Mexico has come an increase in reporting about the ongoing drug war in Ciudad Juárez, the neighboring metropolis across the border. In 2009, more than 2,600 people were killed there. El Paso Times Editor, Chris López, has dedicated himself to following the turmoil ever since he joined the paper in 2009. “This is one of the most dynamic stories on the border — and in the country,” he insists. El Diario de El Paso, the sole Spanish-language newspaper here, also sees the importance of reporting on it because readers often have direct ties to Juárez and other parts of Mexico.

Sam Donaldson to Young Journalists: The future is Multimedia

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UTEP launches new Multimedia Journalism Degree

EL PASO—At the start of cybertime, back when 56K Internet speed was the norm, Sam Donaldson was at the forefront of multimedia journalism. Now, 10 years later, when high speed Internet is transforming journalism, Donaldson is encouraging prospective journalists to join the revolution. The legendary ABC newsman visited the University of Texas at El Paso Nov. 2, to announce the addition of the Multimedia Journalism Degree, which will enable students to gain multifaceted experience in the field. “This degree will enable you, and this university, to be in the forefront of looking at all these different platforms. At this university you will look at radio television, the Internet, print and look at all the ways you can communicate,” Donaldson said.

Borderzine.com, forging ahead

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During a challenging year for traditional news media, Borderzine has good news and important milestones to share with readers and supporters. Several new academic and business partnerships will mean publication of more journalism content and personal voces on the topic of borders, be they geographic, personal, political or cultural. With the new partners coming on board, we also anticipate more traffic for the site and increased national visibility for this multimedia bilingual website housed at the University of Texas at El Paso. These accomplishments should also increase credibility for our mission to showcase the best of student journalism about borders while helping to prepare the next generation of multimedia news professionals, and getting recruiters to take notice of student talent with an eye to offering them internships and jobs. Two years after its launch, Borderzine is moving forward on various fronts.

Confessions of a first-time journalism professor

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The things that made me drunk with disappointment, challenge and joy are countless—and they all occurred in a period of just 16 weeks last spring after I agreed to teach just one three-credit introductory journalism class.

El Paso’s print media struggles in a waning news industry

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The dramatic shift in how people access the news today raises a question about how democracy and the flow of information will interact in the years ahead. A large segment of the population is moving away from traditional news outlets to alternative news sources. Some have been assembled by traditional news organizations delivering information in print, on television and on the radio as well as via the Internet and mobile devices. Others include the thousands of blogs created by journalists, activists and citizens on the Internet. Readers and viewers, especially the younger ones, don’t want to pick up their news in the morning from their doorstep or wait for the dinnertime newscast. They want their up-to-the-minute news on demand, when it works for them.

Knights Set the Bar for High School Journalism

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Hanksmedia.com is the first fully-operational online high school newspaper in the El Paso area. It is the digital version of the student magazine Scriptoria and like all online publications it is updated daily.

UTEP Media Conference – Video

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EL PASO — Media professionals from KVIA-TV Channel 7, El Paso Times, KDBC-TV Channel 4, El Paso Media Group, KHOU-TV in Houston, KINT-Channel 26 (Univisión), El Paso Inc. and El Diario de El Paso, among others, participated as panelists in discussions about emerging media, Latino population consuming it and the current state of newspapers, radio and TV stations in the country. Video filmed and produced by Elida Perez. Full article by Adriana Gómez Licón: Conference addresses issues between media, community