Audio Assignment 3

Link

http://soundcloud.com/comjour333-1/madison-watsonaudio-3



Script 

HELPING TRANSFER STUDENTS TRANSITION

Watson

2-25-14

:120

HERE AT WSU VANCOUVER WE AIM TO MAKE OUR INCOMING FRESHMAN FEEL AT HOME BUT ARE OUR RESOURCES TO HELP CONNECT OUR TRANSFER STUDENTS LACKING? WE ASKED TRANSFER STUDENT ALCIA RUTERIDGE ABOUT HER TRANSFERRING EXPERIENCE.

            IN: I THINK THE HARDEST THING…

            RUNS: 31

            OUT: SOMEONE TO MEET PEOPLE WITH.”

I TALKED TO HANNA MORRIS-PINSON AND GOT HER THOUGHTS ON HOW TO BETTER THE TRANSITION FOR TRANSFER STUDENTS.

            IN: MY NAME IS HANNA MORRIS-PINSON…

            RUNS: 73

            OUT:… WOULD BE REALLY BENEFICIAL.”

MADISON WATSON KOUG RADIO

Reflection

Why did I choose this topic?

                    I decided to do this topic because I started off as an incoming freshman at WSUV and then after a year I transferred to Clark College and then once I received my AA I transferred back to WSUV. Having that unique experience gave me the opportunity to see where our school’s strengths and weaknesses were when welcoming freshman versus Transfers. As a freshman you are assigned a Student Ambassador and are paired in a group of other freshman that share similar interests and you form bonds with. However, as a transfer student you can attend a non-mandatory orientation where you are given the option to take a campus tour. It seems that since a large majority of WSUV is made up of transfer students that it would be beneficial provide them with similar if not the same networking opportunities that freshman have.

            I interviewed several freshman and some transfer students to hear about their experience with coming to college and what they found to be helpful and where they saw improvements necessary. I also talked with Hanna Morris-Pinson. Hanna is a junior and is a current Student Ambassador who just submitted her application to be next year’s Lead Ambassador. Hanna described the orientation for freshman a place to connect where she said Transfer orientation is more about the “nuts and bolts” of WSUV. She suggested that it may be beneficial for both freshman and Transfers if they shared an orientation. This would provide Transfers with more connections and freshman with more opportunities to hear what college is like.

Interesting aspects of the production process:

I think that the biggest struggle was learning the program and getting it to work. It has been difficult learning new program but even harder because there always seemed to be something that would not work on the computers. To try and help this I have been coming to class 1 to 2 hours before our class and trying to get a head start. Just last week I had finally uploaded all my clips and started editing and something went wrong with the computer causing me to lose all my completed work. It has been fun getting to know a new program simply because I think that watching a story form and then hearing the end result is rewarding.

I made sure that I followed the structure in our text by including an intro and a conclusion as well as a couple of interview clips and natural sound. One thing that was interesting was watching my story grow and change throughout the process. I at first was interviewing only freshman about their transition from high school to college and then I interviewed some transfer students and heard their take on transferring. That’s when the topic started to grow and change. It started as a broad topic with perhaps no concrete story and turned into a focused story that is relevant here on campus.

3 Audio Clips

Audio Clip Number 1

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=13938923

This audio clip is known as the sound clip of the day. Jim Culp is introduced and talks about the hummingbird sound. While he is describing and comparing the sound the clip features an actual hummingbird buzz in the background. The sounds at first is played with no voice over and then fades out into the background while cult talks about it. One thing that I really enjoyed about the audio clip was the fact that it was presented in the form of the story. The language provided a visual of what to visualize while the actual sound played in the background. Another thing that I enjoyed about this piece is the tone of voice that was used. It can take a lot of work to talk with a voice that properly projects and is easy to listen to. Both people talking on the clip talked clearly and slowly so that their delivery was easy to follow. The final thing that I enjoyed about this clip was the concluding line.  The final few seconds recapped the name of the featured person and what they were talking about. This follows the same premise that writing does, introducing the topic, the actual story and then a recapping conclusion. I feel that doing this not only helps listeners but also provides a clear ending to the audio story.

Audio Clip Number 2

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2014/02/04/271117790/wanna-smoke-it-could-cost-you-a-tooth-the-fda-warns-teens

This audio clip was particularly interesting because it focused on a commercial from the FDA but was able to describe the news story and the commercial all through audio. The clip starts off by introducing two announcers and the name of the segment, it then transitions to the voiceover from the reporter and clips from an FDA commissioner interview. The audio is pieced together in a manner that is easy to follow and delivers the newsworthy point effectively.  The audio of the commercial that the story is centered around is played throughout different portions of the story and is just as informative and powerful as if it were being watched on television. Rob Stein with NPR actively describes the commercial while the audio is played creating a narration for listeners. I enjoyed the different voices of the interview that were featured in the clip because it gave the story more dimension rather than having Rob Stein just quote the commissioner. This to me drives home the importance of having other people in an audio feature rather than having the reporter doing all the talking.

Audio Clip Number 3

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2014/01/28/267853620/whats-good-for-baby-camels-coul-be-good-for-human-skin

The audio clip starts off with an introduction that focuses on the usage of camel’s milk in parts of the Middle East and then narrows her topic by introducing the spread of usage to Missouri (hourglass). The announcer then introduces Kristofor Husted who reports on the story.  While the Husted is reporting he provides the listeners with ample background information and insight into why camel milk is used his reporting features interviews with a Jordanian woman that has brought camel milk for skin products to the United States. The story keeps the interest of listeners because the topic is something new and interesting but it also features sound clips of an actual person that is involved in bringing this oddity to America. This is another clip that shows how important other people’s voices are when it comes to journalism, especially in audio form.