BY SABRINA WONG
Facebook, a popular social media site, is normally viewed as a place to publish photos, interact with friends and share news. However, Facebook has more of a purpose than is commonly recognized.
On Thursday, March 7, digital trainer Kyle Foster spoke to CCHS journalists from The Lariat, Cowboy Television (CTV) and The Round Up about the Facebook tools that are accessible to them as well as other journalists around the world. She provided them with a detailed PowerPoint presentation, describing how these tools allow journalism students to create and share their own works with the public.
The seminar began at 7:30 a.m. in CTV adviser Alfredo Pichardo’s classroom, lasting for about an hour and a half.
One of the topics Foster covered was the Facebook Creator App. She gave information on how the app functions— after making a video, creators are able to go live with exclusive features, connecting them with their community.
Foster has been involved in the journalism industry for over 20 years, specifically in newspaper. Throughout her career, she has worked as a freelancer and was employed for 16 years with Bloomberg News.
Currently, Foster takes part in the Facebook Journalism Project, associated with the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ). SPJ is the nation’s most broad-based journalism organization, which seeks to promote the free practice of journalism and encourages high standards of ethical behavior.
The Facebook Journalism Project began its partnership with SPJ in 2018. Their main focus was to train a network of professionals who could teach journalists about the Facebook tools at conferences, workshops and numerous newsrooms.
“The whole reason for us coming is to… help them [journalists at CCHS] create communities, be authentic and tell stories,” Foster said. “We want them to use these tools so they can go above and beyond the fake news that is out there.”
Safety precautions were briefly included as well. Foster shared tips on how to keep online profiles from being in danger, such as remembering to never share a password.
One of the topics Foster covered was the Facebook Creator App. She gave information on how the app functions— after making a video, creators are able to go live with exclusive features, connecting them with their community.
“It [the presentation] was a great seminar on how to expand my use of social media in journalism,” sophomore and CTV member Jake Glantz said. “I never knew I could use Facebook, an app I’m on every single day, to find stories and get input from my community on projects I complete.”
In addition to teaching students about all the gifts and gadgets that Facebook supplies, Foster also went into depth on the different ways journalists can tell their stories.
For example, there was a slide which detailed the usage of live videos and 360-degree cameras. These lenses allow the audience to see a complete view of everything the navigator has in sight. Based on her coverage, they are interactive, provide exploratory video experiences and engage the audience right away.
“Even though I don’t have Facebook, it was cool to learn about the platform and hopefully be able to apply the things I learned from the presentation in the future,” sophomore and CTV member Kayla Kissel said.
Safety precautions were briefly included as well. Foster shared tips on how to keep online profiles from being in danger, such as remembering to never share a password.
Toward the end of the presentation, the SPJ Code of Ethics was discussed. Although it is not a set of rules, the code basically guides journalists on how to be responsible with the information they reveal through journalistic works. Just because something is legal does not mean that it is ethical. The Code of Ethics enforces that ethics should always apply, no matter the medium.
Through Foster’s seminar, CCHS journalists were given the opportunity to broaden their brains with knowledge on how social media sites could potentially be used as a source of publishing journalism and connecting with the world.
“Even though I don’t have Facebook, it was cool to learn about the platform and hopefully be able to apply the things I learned from the presentation in the future,” sophomore and CTV member Kayla Kissel said.
Photo by Fallan Patterson
