Even Dad has a Facebook

I never realized how much I still have to learn about journalism.

I came into the PSNE internship with a few years of experience at The Daily Collegian under my belt -- reporting for a couple semesters, and a semester in editing and designing at copy desk. Then my first night in Harrisburg, I was given the very first assignment: a video.

"Okay," I thought. "How hard can this be?"

The answer is, "very." Shooting the video wasn't too bad, but then it was time to edit. This is where I learned all about audio tracks and B roll, and about how pretty much every single video editing software is better than the iMovie that I have.

Then I attended some seminars. At first, I was a little apprehensive about sitting in a conference with a bunch of professional journalists. I felt young and old at the same time -- younger and less experienced than all the reporters in the room, but old in that just a few years I might be one of these people. But then I realized these reporters are here for the same reason I am: to learn about the constantly changing world of journalism.

And learn I did. The first presentation I attended was called "Social Networking." The speaker, Lauren McCullough, was the AP Manager of Social Networks and News Engagement. . . and only 27 years old. But she knew so much. She explained to us that social networks like Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare are no longer "fads," but they are shifts on how the world communicates.

The more I think about it, the more I realized this is completely true. With all the bad reputation Facebook gets with its "stalkers" and indecent photos, it's still becoming increasingly popular with news organizations, companies and markets. Even my Dad has a Facebook. So you can make fun of active Facebook and Twitter users all you want, but let's be honest: What do you check every time you log on to your computer?

"Sites will come and go, but the concepts behind social networks are here to stay," McCullough said.

I also learned that even e-mail is starting to become obsolete. There's just faster ways of communicating now. Why send an e-mail when you can Tweet it? After talking to various reporters, I learned most of them had both Facebook and Twitter accounts. I've signed up for Twitter, but I must confess: I've never Tweeted once, and I honestly don't really know how. These moms and dads are more techy than I am.

All of these things were right in front of me, but I hadn't realized how big of an impact they are making on society until today.

Then this morning, Wendy Warren, the vice president of online newspaper Philly.com, spoke to us about journalism on the web. "Another sore subject," I thought. . .until I realized that this was something journalists are actually getting excited about. At school, my friends keep warning me that print journalism is dying. "Change your major!" they'd warn.

But now I've been opened up to so many opportunities. Think about it -- an article on a website can go up immediately. You can add pictures, videos and links in minutes. And if you make a mistake, you can edit it right away.

As Wendy Warren puts it, "What you can build and what you can create for journalism online dwarfs what you can do in print."

So there it is. I still have oodles to learn, but at least now my eyes are open and I have a head start. Looks like if I want to keep up with the world, I'll have to become a Tweetie.