As newsrooms across the country face increasing challenges and decreasing resources, SUNY Oneonta is helping fill the gap with innovative student reporting efforts designed to strengthen local journalism while preparing students for careers in communication and media.
Today, the university unveiled its new OnNY Community Media Lab, an on-campus state-of-the-art newsroom where students will learn to edit and produce multimedia stories, just like working journalists.
A summer-long renovation transformed the ordinary classroom (located in Hodgdon IRC) into a colorful, modern multimedia space where students can conduct interviews, brainstorm story ideas at collaborative working spaces, research and type their stories at computer workstations, all while keeping an eye on developing world news on the surrounding large mounted televisions.
Hands-On Learning
The lab will also serve as the home base for SUNY Oneonta’s iteration of the SUNY Institute for Local News, a State University of New York initiative that lets students work with area media outlets to produce news content while developing experience and a portfolio of work.
Students get to work on professionally published news stories that impact the places they live, while building the skills and confidence they’ll use in their future careers."
"This is more than just a classroom—it’s a living lab where students can collaborate with one another and also connect with the communities they’re reporting on,” said Associate Professor of Media Studies Andrew Bottomley, who is a SUNY Institute for Local News faculty advisory committee member and director of the OnNY Community Media Lab. “Students get to work on professionally published news stories that impact the places they live, while building the skills and confidence they’ll use in their future careers. We are thrilled to offer these unique experiential learning opportunities for our students.”
Senior Grace Tran, a Media Studies major from Albany, NY, will likely be a regular inside the OnNY Media Lab. She and Lara Murray-Sterzel, who graduated in May with a Communication Studies degree, spent the summer reporting for regional media outlets as two of just 18 students selected by SUNY to serve as inaugural Institute for Local News interns.
Funded in part by the Lumina Foundation and in partnership with the Center for Community News at the University of Vermont, the Institute for Local News aims to address news deserts—or areas that lack news coverage—with stories written or created by college students. Tran, who is president of SUNY Oneonta’s WireTV student television club, worked as a video journalist with Capital Region Independent Media.
There’s nothing more rewarding than seeing a video of yours come to life and be published through different local news sites!"
“This was my first-ever job in anything media/journalism related, and it’s been very rewarding to be able to work with such an amazing team and be able to support local news through published videos,” Tran said. “There’s nothing more rewarding than seeing a video of yours come to life and be published through different local news sites! It wouldn’t have been possible if it weren’t for SUNY Oneonta and the SUNY ILN News Program. I think this is a great opportunity to learn and get hands-on experience that more students should be doing and seeking.”
Real Stories, Real Impact
Last April, SUNY Oneonta hosted the inaugural two-day SUNY Institute for Local News Summit, which brought together more than 40 people from universities and organizations across New York to discuss the importance of student reporting programs and share best practices. In August, SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr. visited SUNY Oneonta and got a sneak peek of the new media lab.
Through the Institute for Local News, Oneonta students have covered city council meetings, community issues and local events for local news outlets such as All Otsego, WSKG and The Daily Star. This semester, Bottomley is looking for new Institute for Local News interns who want to learn interviewing, reporting, video production and social media strategy, skills that will prepare them not only for careers in journalism but also for jobs in marketing, public relations and digital communication.
Students who are involved receive a byline and real-world experience, outlets benefit from the extra resources to cover important topics, and community members get to learn the latest news, which otherwise might not be covered.
It’s a win-win: By preparing the next generation of storytellers and supporting local media outlets at the same time..."
“The OnNY Community Media Lab and SUNY Institute for Local News represent SUNY Oneonta’s commitment to applied learning, innovation and public service,” said SUNY Oneonta President Alberto Cardelle. “It’s a win-win: By preparing the next generation of storytellers and supporting local media outlets at the same time, the university is ensuring that both students and communities thrive.”
One of the lab’s first uses was a virtual visit last week called “WONY to ESPN” with ESPN award-winning journalist and author Sal Paolantonio, Class of 1977.