SAJAforum

CONV: Sree's 10 Social Networking Tips

[ See all SAJA@15 Convention & Career Expo coverage ]

Conducting a social networking workshop in just an hour can be tough, but what's even tougher is using social networking sites effectively as a journalist.

To figure out how to do that, SAJAforum is looking to its resident Internet guru and co-founder Sree Sreenivasan (he's @sreenet on Twitter).

Here are the top ten tips we picked up from him at a convention panel Saturday.

10. Give a little extra when you send friend requests. Standard greetings are impersonal and not effective to build connections.

9. Organize your friends using the lists option provided on Facebook. It's worth the time.

8. Monitor your wall postings on Facebook. If it's not relevant, delete it.

7. Friend suggestions are a waste of time.

6. Be very careful what groups you join. Joining and listening is great, but it may bring credibility questions.

5. Use the "like" button on Facebook. It's a great way to build those connections with your sources.

4. Twitterer? Think about your audience before you tweet, and check out www.muckrack.com, a community for journalists on Twitter. You can sort the updates by beats and sources.

3. Post no more than three Twitter updates a day.

2. The power of Twitter is not necessarily the first tweet but in the RT (re-tweet). It's a great way to keep your followers informed.

1. In Sree's words: "what is common sense in real life is common sense in social networking."

-- By Suvro Banerji, Missouri School of Journalism student.

Photo by Preston Merchant

CONV: A Few Tips That May Help You Snag Your Next Position

[ See all SAJA@15 Convention & Career Expo coverage ]

When students get turned down for internships, they often get a form letter offering little or no reason for their rejection. Thankfully, critique sessions like Saturday's at the SAJA convention can help answer the pesky question of why some of those positions may not have been landed.

Here are five tips from Saturday's session: 

1. Limit your resume to one page.

2. If you have relevant journalism experience, note it high on your resume.

3. Grade point averages are important for graduate school applications not job applications. Delete them from your resume if you're a job seeker unless you've got a perfect one. 

4. Provide no more than six to eight work samples.

5. No matter how you design your resume, keep it is easy to read.

-- By Riya Anandwala, Indiana University graduate student.

CONV: Freelancing In South Asia Isn't A Breeze, VOA Bureau Chief Warns

[ See all SAJA@15 Convention & Career Expo coverage ]

South Asia has become something of a freelancers' paradise, but working on one's own there still is full of challenges, Voice of America South Asia bureau chief Steven L. Herman told journalists Saturday.

The keys for reporters willing to risk it all abroad are “fire in the belly” and “raw talent,” he said.

Of course, having a strategy to support yourself while getting going is also a necessity.

“Making a living out of it is difficult,” he said of freelancing in South Asia.  “Make sure you have a financial plan.”

Wire services can be hardest to find work with he explained, while print and broadcast assignments - for journalists possessing the right assignments and skills - can be easier to land.

Still, no organization is "a closed shop,” he said.  This is true especially if you are located in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kathmandu, Colombo or Dhaka, where stringers with “AP-style” language skills can be hard to come by. 

Organizations hiring freelancers include in the region include Radio Nederland, Al Jazeera English, VOA and others.  Most outlets, however, do not accept pitches from inexperienced journalists, Herman cautioned.

He recommended old fashioned networking to get on editors' radars as well as Twittering and working through such organizations as the Foreign Correspondent’s Bureau of South Asia.

 -- By Gayathri Vaidyanathan, recent graduate of Columbia University.

AUTHORED: Tania James on "Atlas of Unknowns"

[See our previous editions of Authored, with writers Kamran Pasha, Shilpa Agarwal, Minal Hajratwala and Dilara Hafiz.]

Someone handed me an Uncorrected Proof of Tania James' "Atlas of Unknowns" a couple months ago. This would be the promotional, paperback version of the new book, with an additional yellow outer sleeve glued on. On that sleeve, in all-caps, it states: "Announced First Printing: 35,000"

Now, some of you may find that number unremarkable, but if it's more than wishful PR, it's quite a serious ambition for literary fiction. And it got me wondering just how this young Malayali-American talent--a New Yorker by way of Kentucky and Harvard--was going to achieve those kinds of sales, in this market.

It doesn't hurt to have the industrial heft of Alfred A. Knopf behind you, or blurbs by Nathan Englander, Junot Diaz and Ann Packer--or coverage in the San Francisco Chronicle or on NPR--but as Tania writes below, she's pursuing less glamorous routes as well: blogging, calling up Malayali organizations, producing a book trailer, and making the most of own's mother. Her tour is underway, with readings to come throughout Illinois, as well as in New York and Ohio.

But before the author holds forth, a bit of synopsis, not from the SF Chronicle's rave review--"one of the most exciting debut novels since Zadie Smith's 'White Teeth'"--but from Tania's website:

"In the wake of their mother’s mysterious death, Linno and Anju are raised in Kerala by their father, Melvin, a reluctant Christian prone to bouts of dyspepsia, and their grandmother, the superstitious and strong-willed Ammachi. When Anju wins a scholarship to a prestigious school in America, she seizes the opportunity, even though it means betraying her sister. In New York, Anju is plunged into the elite world of her Hindu American host family, led by a well-known television personality and her fiendishly ambitious son, a Princeton drop out determined to make a documentary about Anju’s life. But when Anju finds herself ensnared by her own lies, she runs away..."

Selling "Atlas of Unknowns" - by Tania James

First, a disclosure: I am a terrible salesman. In high school, I briefly worked as a knife salesman for Cutco Knives, a stint that ended soon after I severed my own finger during the paring knife presentation and had to stop because I was bleeding all over the meat cleaver. I quit a few months later, after my only sale came from my mother.

 I like to think of that self-inflicted wound as a revealing moment, a clear indication that I was not meant to be in sales. Years later, I went to grad school for creative writing, where I gained only the slightest understanding of the book publishing process. I had no idea what the process required from the writer once the book went out into the world; I always assumed that, by this time, the writer would simply float to the next project, happily untethered to the grit and grime of having to do the actual selling.  

There are some writers for whom such happy oblivion is accurate, but for me, a debut novelist coming of age during a recession, trying to push a hardcover novel during a dismal period in publishing unlike any the industry has ever seen, the reality looks different.  

It has now been a month since the release of my book, "Atlas of Unknowns." I've learned some things and have remained clueless about others. What follows here is a bit of grit and grime from the trenches, and some humble advice.

ESSAY: Class of '09, exit stage left

While many of my friends are getting their diplomas and moving into the real world this spring, I’m taking the scenic route to graduation – pinning on an extra semester that allows time for a Gainesville Sun newspaper internship, journalism trip to Brazil, volunteer work in north Indian villages, and some extra multimedia classes.

“Oh, you’re such a free spirit,” my mom’s friends tell me as they nudge their children toward law school or MCAT classes.

But my sense of adventure might have something to do with the fact that finding a job has me shaking in my hiking boots.

The other day I looked up from my elliptical to the gym TV to see a headline that read “Worst year to graduate ever?” Soothing.

It’s not just the news, or the demise of the Boston Globe, CosmoGirl or Oprah Home. It’s also the journalism conferences where even lighthearted, successful columnists like Dave Barry have given budding writers the yellow light.

Professors in j-schools around the country are arming students with “backpack journalism” skills like video editing, RSS-savvy writing and Web design, but telling us to be open to PR and advertising.

My mother, who still makes me open up Word or upload photos for her, is pushing me to become more technical. Basically, a computer programmer who might have a couple story ideas too.

AUTHORED: Minal Hajratwala on "Leaving India: My Family's Journey from Five Villages to Five Continents"

This is the second edition of our Authored series. The first was written by Dilara Hafiz, who wrote "The American Muslim Teenager's Handbook" with her two kids. The point of this series, as we noted earlier, is to allow authors the chance to hold forth on the unseemly promotional end of getting a book out. Given the economic downturn, and the onslaught of social networking media like Facebook, the possibilities of marketing a book have contracted greatly on one hand while expanding on the other. If you're an author or even someone with a book lurking in the back of their mind, we're hoping this will become a good resource. And if you have a book coming out soon, please let us know.

Minal Hajratwala's "Leaving India: My Family's Journey from Five Villages to Five Continents" is coming out on March 18, from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (here's her website). Minal's a former journalist with the San Jose Mercury News, as well as a self-described "performer, poet and queer activist," who documented how and why her extended family left their ancestral lands in Gujarat for the far corners of the earth, over the course of a century.

Here she writes about how she's doing the standard book readings as well as exploiting social networking sites and developing a video trailer on her book. She also gets into the advantages of being an author with a journalistic background, and the perils of wearing a red sari for your promotional photo.

Marketing "Leaving India" - by Minal Hajratwala

Days away from the launch of my first book, yikes!  Thanks to Arun for asking me to share here on SAJAforum about the inner workings of a first-time author's book tour process. 

Women authors often use the giving birth metaphor. I might too were it not for the fact that both my editor and my agent are literally giving birth to their babies during this period -- one down, one to go. I like to claim that my book has inspired their fertility, since both of them are actively increasing the size of the desi diaspora. It's all about me right now, no?

The tour

So I'm doing a five-city tour in March and April that consists mainly of bookstore/library events and mainstream media interviews, with a couple of wine-and-hors d'oeuvre evenings thrown in for fun.  I'm planning more community-based events/collaborations/readings as a kind of second round, along with other cities.  And I'm doing community-based media with my various communities as it makes sense: alumni magazine, Asian Am, South Asian, queer, etc. 

We've managed some creative leveraging of funds, so I'll use a combination of the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt publicity budget and a SAWCC/Poets & Writers stipend to come to NY in early March, two weeks before the book launch. That will allow me to be part of the SAWCC lit fest event (http://www.sawcc.org/events) on March 7, which I wouldn't have been able to do if just going with the publisher-subsidized trip only.  I'll also use my extra time in New York to do things like speaking at a diaspora studies seminar at NYU.  

I have a great publicist and it's definitely a collaboration, as many of the venues she has booked are ones where I have an "in." Keeping track of all the logistics and preparations feels pretty much like a full-time job for me right now. We chose the cities using a combination of factors; NY and SF were obvious, with LA, DC, and Toronto rounding out the pack. Toronto was a smart addition by the VP of Marketing who felt the huge South Asian community there made it a good choice.

AUTHORED: Dilara Hafiz on "The American Muslim Teenager's Handbook"

Introducing SAJAforum's new "Authored" series. The idea here is to have writers tell us the back story of their book--how it came to be--as well as the nasty, unwriterly business of getting out there and selling their wares. We think this will accomplish two things: get the word out about new or upcoming releases, and educate other authors (and aspiring ones) about the biz.

Authors, editors, publicists: talk to us.

Our inaugural book is "The American Muslim Teenager's Handbook," by the mother-daughter-son combo of Dilara, Yasmine and Imran Hafiz, who are Pakistani-American. The book is being released on February 10, by Simon & Schuster, but as you'll see in Dilara's account, the work only got picked up by S&S after the family initially self-published it. She also provides some great insights into the marketing of the book, setting up a website, getting blurbs and how going after the NYT can in fact pay off, handsomely.

The Story Behind "The American Muslim Teenager's Handbook" - by Dilara Hafiz, Yasmine Hafiz and Imran Hafiz

The Idea...

“You’re writing a non-fiction book about Islam in America…with your two teenagers?  Are you crazy?”  This was the standard response I received from various friends and relatives - but I’m grateful that it was the occasional comment of “Oh, that sounds interesting - I think you guys could do a great job!”  that we listened to.

The Why…

Life in post 9/11 America has been challenging for America Muslims: the ‘random’ searches at the airport, the impression that hijab = oppression, that Muslims are "the other." We heard so many misconceptions about Islam in the media, yet no coherent Muslim voices ever got airtime.  Where are the Moderate Muslims?  Well, we’re fairly moderate - maybe we should speak up.  So in 2002 we sent out a survey to 44 Islamic full-time and Sunday Schools across the country. The 150 responses which we received displayed such a variety of opinions and stories that we felt motivated to continue with our project - of not only writing an educational and entertaining handbook for the average American Muslim teenager, but also an enlightening guide to the basics of Islam for non-Muslims who are curious about Islam or want to pursue an interfaith dialogue. 

The How...

After three years of writing, re-writing, editing and surreptitious editing (remember, we’re 3 authors here) - our manuscript was finally ready.  Full of quizzes, lists of Do’s & Don’ts, results of the teen questionnaire - we knew we wanted the book to appeal to teens, so it needed to have pictures, humor and variety.  But the response from Muslim publishers?  Too progressive - you have pictures of girls without headscarves - haraam!  The response from mainstream publishers?  Your audience is too narrow, your treatment of religion is too humorous, your information content is interesting…but we’re going to pass on this manuscript. The project was badly stalled, until my Dad decided to go on Hajj in 2006. 

BOOKS: "And the World Changed," short stories by Pakistani women + webcast

[Listen to a recording with the editor and several authors by hitting the play button or clicking on this link. A written report on the conversation, by Maria Tirmizi, is below]

"And the World Changed: Contemporary Stories by Pakistani Women" is an important new book of short stories. It is the only English-language anthology by Pakistani women published in the United States (The Feminist Press, October 2008). Edited by writer and critic Muneeza Shamsie (and mother of writer Kamila Shamsie, who has spoken multiple times at SAJA events over the years), the book features stories by 25 Pakistani women (including both Shamsies). You can learn more about the book in the press release below and in its Amazon page. The book's publicist is Amita Manghnani, amanghnani[at]gc.cuny.edu - write to her if you'd like to get a review copy or interview the writers (please tell her SAJA sent you; working press only, of course).

On Monday, Nov. 24, SAJA hosted a live webcast with the editor and several of the writers, including Bapsi Sidhwa (calling from Houston),  Humera Afridi (calling from NYC), Bushra Rehman (calling frm San Francisco) and Muneeza Shamsie (calling from Karachi) - bios below.
MODERATOR: Kiran Khalid, SAJA Board member; producer, "Good Morning America"; and filmmaker, "We Are Not Free," a look at press freedom in Pakistan.

Listen live or to a recording:  http://www.blogtalkradio.com/saja/2008/11/24/Pakistani
As always, you are welcome to quote from anything said during the FREE, WORLDWIDE webcasts (30+) at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/saja

Here is a written report of the webcast conversation, from SAJAforum blogger and Columbia Journalism student Maria Tirmizi (the bios and official press release are below).

MEDIA BIZ: Rafat Ali wants you to be an journalist entrepreneur

"This is probably the best time in history to be a journalist. I know there's a lot of fear in the industry with all the layoffs and it's hard to look beyond 2009, but the reality is that the craft of journalism and the need for it is the highest than any time in history..."

Those words and the 10-minute video are from SAJAer Rafat Ali, one of the sharpest minds in the world of online journalism. He is the founder of PaidContent.org and ContentNext. He was at Columbia Journalism School today, sharing his thoughts on the state of the media and his mission of evangelizing about the need for more journalists to become entrepreneurs. He also talked about how he went from an independent blogger to an authoritative voice on all things digital and in the process sold his company to The Guardian for $30 million (he says he cannot confirm nor deny that number)

Here's an interview (and video) by WSJ's Kara Swisher when the Guardian deal was first announced.

From ContentNext: Founded in 2002, "the company's news sites chroniclethe economic evolution of digital content that is shaping the futureof the media, information and entertainment industries. Our belief isthat in the near future, all media will be digital media, and we are helping define sustainable business models and innovation within this sector."

See other videos of Ali here.

Post your comments below.

ESSAY: Robbie Corey-Boulet on what he learned in India

Above: HT City, a daily supplement in the Hindustan Times, on the racks at the printing press (more photos in slideshow below). PHOTO: Robbie Corey-Boulet

A few months ago, SAJAforum asked for tips for American journalists heading to South Asia for the first time. We got some excellent responses (including some from senior journalists there and here) - please check out the comments and add your own.

The reason for the request was that there were a lot of U.S. journalists and journalism students heading to India this summer, for internships, fellowships, assignments, etc. At Columbia Journalism School, where I teach, we had four graduates heading for internships at The Hindustan Times - and that was just one school.

One of the Columbia interns, Robbie Corey-Boulet, sent us the following essay about his work in New Delhi. Please post your responses below.  We'd love to run similar essays from other first-time-in-South Asia journos, too: saja[at]columbia.edu

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The "Western perspective" and its perils: One summer at a New Delhi daily

By Robbie Corey-Boulet
Robbie Corey-Boulet, a Brown University graduate, is a freelance journalist whose work has appeared in The Manhattan Times, The Orange County Register, Seattle Metropolitan and on various Web sites and wire services, including PBS Washington Week. He plans to return to India in January on a Pulitzer Traveling Fellowship awarded by the Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University. 

The 24-story high-rise next to the Hindustan Times office building, located in New Delhi's Connaught Place, houses, on its top floor, a restaurant named Parikrama. In Hindi, "parikrama" means "circumambulation," or "orbit"; the restaurant floor completes one 360-degree turn every 90 minutes or so.

Two weeks into my summer reporting internship at HT, I decided, along with the other interns, to visit Parikrama one night for a drink. After we ordered (I chose the "Manhatton"), we reviewed our first days on the job, discussing our first stories and our attempts to report them; devising a plan to ask the editor for more multimedia equipment; and recapping the set of introductory meetings the company had arranged for us, which spanned three days and culminated in a three-hour trip to the printing press.

Eventually, I lost the thread of the conversation and, while the floor creaked through another revolution, looked out the window to take in the skyline. I discovered, however, that there is no view of the skyline at night in New Delhi. The buildings do not glow like those in Seattle or New York. From high up, the only visible lights, apart from the cars, were fleeting — a burst of fireworks off to the right, or a jet passing through the frame.

In the moment, the view was a disappointment, one that added to a persistent sense of disorientation. As the summer wore on, I found it oddly evocative of my first months in India, a period during which I ran around day after day in pursuit of sources but came away, even as I completed my assignments, with only the tiniest flashes of insight into the country.

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