Ever have the itch to report and write? Want to go from news consumer to news provider?
We’re honored that the topnotch leaders of the Rapp Center for Education have accepted our pitch to teach a Lifelong Learning class starting in November for Rappahannock County citizens interested in informing and engaging our community. It’s free — no cost to those who sign up.
Citizen Journalism 101 pretty much tells it like it is. Five classes, one per week through November, taught by two journalism pros (and Rapp County residents), Andy Alexander and Bud Meyer (Andy: Washington bureau chief for Cox Newspapers and former Washington Post ombudsman; Bud: Former editor/executive with The Miami Herald and VP/secretary with Knight Foundation) will train you in the basics of researching, writing and reporting local journalism.
Here’s why:
Foothills Forum, the award-winning journalism nonprofit whose stories appear in the Rappahannock News, is expanding its news coverage of the arts, agriculture and school sports. Bud and Andy, Foothills board members who spent decades doing (and teaching) journalism, will train a select group of ‘citizen journalists’ to cover those and other topics.
Interested? Step one: Register with RappCE. Step two: Be prepared to write and submit a short (500-word maximum) story based on this assignment: “If a reporter wrote a profile of you, what would it say?” Step three: A telephone interview to discuss the training program.
Once training is completed, successful applicants will be equipped to report, write (and be paid) as a freelance journalist whose stories appear in the Rappahannock News and elsewhere.
Classes begin Nov. 1 and run on consecutive Mondays (subject to scheduling availability). For more information: info@foothills-forum.org.
Application deadline: Oct. 15.