Catherine Levett's Blog

Reflecting over the semester…

Cathy's Writings — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 22:00:45 +0000

There is much that I have learned about myself as a writer and about my writing over the past semester in this class. I think that while I still have a lot to improve on, I have improved in some ways. I feel that I have gotten better at interviewing sources and making sure to get a variety and quantity of sources for each story. I also think that I have gotten better at getting good content for my pieces.

I think that I can improve on the overall quality of my writing. When I finish a story, I often feel like it is not as creative or ‘good’ as I would like it to be. I think that I have the mechanics of writing a good piece down but need to work on going that extra mile and making my story that much better.

I was surprised to find out that I am actually NOT alone in improving my writing. I think many other students in my class are also good mechanical writers, but we could all afford to improve on editing our stories and strive to produce the best possible stories that we can. I truly believe that every writer can improve on his or her writing. There are so many areas to improve in and there really is not a perfect writer out there (at least I don’t think there is…)

It’s been fun. So long for now!

Happy Holidays!

Cathy

What role does social media play in the future of journalism?

Cathy's Writings — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 20:15:49 +0000

With social media on the rise, the question of how this will affect journalism lingers in many of our minds. According to an article on Mashable.com by Vadim Lavrusik, all media will eventually have a social element to it. In addition, Lavrusik believes that reporting will become more of a collaborative effort between journalists and sources. Read below to find out more about the future of social media in journalism…

- Bloggers will become more important to reporting because they will be seen as more valid sources.

- The social media community will be consulted more in reporting.

- Journalists will have to find their own role in gathering news from social media sites like Twitter and Facebook.

- Journalists will be challenged to produce more engaging content in stories on social platforms.

- Reporting will have to be adjusted for other up-and-coming social networks like Tumblr and Foursquare.

You just never know what the future holds…

Cathy

Job search from home through social media

Cathy's Writings — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 19:59:01 +0000

Finding a job out-of-state can be a very difficult process that involves a lot of time and money. This doesn’t have to be stressful anymore though, because you can use social media to land yourself that dream job that is far away. A writer on Mashable.com, Dan Klamm, put out an article called How Social Media Can Help With Your Long Distance Job Search. In his piece, Klamm gives several tips on how to use social media to job search anywhere!

1. Stay On Top of Local News

- Use Twitter and Facebook to stay up to date on the latest news in the area in which you are job hunting.

- In addition, follow local personalities and leaders.

2. Grow Your Professional Network

- Use LinkedIn to network with other people at different companies and develop contacts in the city that you are looking to be employed in.

- Alumni connections can also be very useful in your job search.

3. Find Job Postings

- More and more companies are posting job openings on LinkedIn and Twitter.

- Visit twitjobsearch.com to find out which Twitter accounts post jobs that are in your particular field.

4. Save Money on Travel

- In order to save money on travel for job interviews, find travel providers through social media and you can possibly receive discounts or promo codes to use.

- This can potentially save you money on airfare as well as on lodging!

**Be sure to keep this advice in mind when starting your job search in another city or state!

Cathy

Celebrities die on Twitter for charity

Cathy's Writings — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 23:35:20 +0000

I was SHOCKED to read that Kim Kardashian had died on Twitter the other day. The post read,

“@kimkardashian is dead. Watch Kim Kardashian’s last Tweet and Testament here – http://bit.ly/8ZArQq #BUYLIFE“

So… Kim Kardashian didn’t ACTUALLY die… just digitally. Why, you might ask? Well, she wasn’t the only one. Other celebrities including Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga and Usher also “died” in order to raise money for the charity Keep a Child Alive. This charity is a non-profit organization that raises money to supply children who have AIDS in Africa and India with medication and also daily essential items. The goal of this project was to raise $1 million for the organization and celebs were only brought ‘back to life’ if enough donations were made on their behalf. In less than a week, the goal amount of $1 million was reached.

It is pretty remarkable to think that using a social media tactic such as this one to do some good actually worked and will benefit so many sick children. I think that these kinds of campaigns should be used more often, seeing that they work so well. Just think about how much money we could raise for the less fortunate and sick if we continue to use social media as a platform for charity donations.

People are still able to donate towards the cause and can do so by visiting www.buylife.org.

“You must be the change you wish to see in the world” ~ Mahatma Ghandi

Cathy

Tumblr: The new world of blogging

Cathy's Writings — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 22:42:31 +0000

While I should’ve been studying the other night, I decided to set up a Tumblr account instead. Tumblr is a form of blogging that allows people to upload pictures, movies, links, quotes, etc. to a blog to share with others. It allows people to create their own personalities through blogging. It’s convenient because it’s a quicker form of blogging so it’s easier to update your blog more frequently.

It’s nice because “the tone is a lot more conversational,” as said by Mark Coatney, Media Evangelist at Tumblr in a New York Times article last August. There are even some features on Tumblr that Twitter and Facebook don’t have. For example, Tumblr doesn’t show how many followers a user has. In addition, it is very easy to customize because you can add advertisements to your page and you even have your own custom domain name. It’s also a great way to network with others because it has built-in networking elements.

While you might be afraid to try this new blogging platform, I think that you should give it a try! What do you have to lose?! It’s a fun new form of social media that is catching on with many people. Today, Tumblr is up to over 10 million blogs and over 2 billion posts! That’s pretty awesome for only being around for three years!

So, take a chance and join Tumblr!

Cathy

P.S. Follow me at cathylevett.tumblr.com

Refinery29′s guide to becoming a successful style blogger

Cathy's Writings — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 23:43:20 +0000

One of my favorite fashion blogs, Refinery29, put out a guide to becoming a successful style blogger titled How To Become A Star Style Blogger. This step-by-step guide will help to get you noticed in the fashion blogging world. While some of these tips seem sort of outlandish, others actually look doable. This post is of particular interest to me because I have my own personal style blog, It’sJustMyStyle. I could really use these pointers to improve my blog because it’s still in the beginning stages and so has a long ways to come before it gets noticed. I hope someday to be recognized by one of the top fashion blogs. That would honestly be a DREAM for me!

I would describe myself as the “vainglorious 20-something with a shopping habit” (minus the “vainglorious” part). Looks like I need to join Tumblr and change my post titles to “obscure rock song lyrics.” I think I could try out red lipstick and possibly nail art… oh and the “What Am I Wearing” pose. But I’m going to have to get a better camera and brush up on my Photoshop skills. This should be interesting… but well worth it!

Hopefully after doing all of these things I will become a star style blogger too (or at least a better blogger!)

Cathy

Why can’t it always be light out?

Cathy's Writings — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 19:42:28 +0000

“I don’t want it to be dark right now. I wish it was daytime,” she said. “I wish it was daytime for the rest of my life. The night is just too hard.”

Some things in life are just too hard to imagine happening. A death of a loved one, the death of a husband. This is something that no one wishes upon another, but unfortunately it is reality for some people. This is an expected event when one goes into the military field but still, this does not make it any easier to lose someone.

In “The Final Salute” by Jim Sheeler, Katherine Cathey loses her husband, Sgt. Gavin Conley, while on the job as a Marine. Cathey was pregnant and obviously shocked and helpless when she received the news.

I can’t imagine having to report, as a journalist, on an event such as this one. How can one spin such a catastrophe into a sorrowful event? I feel like this would be nearly impossible to do (or to do well.) I give these journalists much credit to embarking on such a hard task. I have a new found respect for them and hope that if I ever have to to do the same, that I can do half as well as them.

Cathy

The POWER of a violin

Cathy's Writings — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 22:51:28 +0000

“What if they don’t like me?” “What if they resent my presence…” These were the thoughts that filled the mind of a very famous violinist who agreed to take part in an experiment that involved playing a violin during rush hour in the D.C. Metro one morning.

What would you do? Would you take the time to stop and listen to the beautiful music coming from the violin of a complete stranger during your morning commute? Or would you be too caught up in your own life and getting to work that you would simply pass this bystander by?

In “Pearls Before Breakfast” by Gene Weingarten, the Grammy Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell agreed to play his violin for strangers during their morning commute in the D.C. Metro. The point was to see if anyone would stop to listen to his music and recognize him. Weingarten took many risks in writing this piece, but all were done very well and helped to make it more interesting for its readers. I personally liked how he broke up his work by capitalizing statements throughout the text. I thought that this helped to section off the different accounts that people had with Bell.

Most importantly though, this piece really made me think about what I would do in this situation. Would I stop and listen to his music and possibly give him some money? I’m really not sure what I would have done, but I definitely think it is something that we all need to ask ourselves.

A little food for thought.

Cathy

Politics actually CAN be interesting

Cathy's Writings — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 22:00:38 +0000

This week I read “The Weasel, Twelve Monkeys and the Shrub,” by David Foster Wallace. Now, I don’t usually like reading about politics or even talking about political things, but Wallace did a good job of making such a boring subject fairly interesting.

I think that all of the background information that he gave on the campaign helped to keep me engaged in the story because I actually understood what he was talking about. I really liked hearing about how down to earth John McCain really is and how he liked to joke with everyone. I also really enjoyed learning about all of the people who work behind the scenes on a presidential campaign. All of his descriptive language helped me to really picture these people in my mind.

This was a surprisingly good story. I would definitely recommend it to others.

Cathy

Blogging & Fashion: Like two peas in a pod

Cathy's Writings — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 02:33:58 +0000

When I first got started blogging, I was pretty unsure about the whole thing. I thought it was kind of strange and saw it as sort of an online diary. The more I blogged though, the more I realized that it was so much more! I really enjoy fashion and so I started searching for fashion blogs and was very pleased with what I found.

One of the first major fashion blogs that I came across was Refinery29. This is a blog that brings you the latest news and trends in fashion and beauty as well as the newest and hottest places to shop and to find a good deal. This is basically my #1 site for staying up to date on fashion. A few of my other favorite fashion blogs are Style Rookie, Who What Wear and a blog by an intern friend of mine that I met two summers ago in New York called Emily Kate Farina.

I became so inspired by all of these amazing blogs, that I just HAD to make one of my own! I named it It’sJustMyStyle and it was created in June. It’s definitely a work in progress, but hey, it’s a start! My advice to you if you are thinking about starting your own fashion blog is… do it! What have you got to lose? It will put your name out there and give you a voice in the fashion world.

Hope you have enjoyed my advice!

Cathy