By Jason Cunningham
The Hartford Courant’s home on Broad Street has transformed from the one that earned America’s longest continuously published newspaper a Pulitzer Prize. The integration of Connecticut’s affiliate Fox 61 with the Courant has created a new kind of media beast.
Students from CCSU’s Society of Professional Journalists chapter who visited the paper’s newsroom on April 30 were greeted by the yellow smiling faces of dysfunction known as The Simpsons. The long-running Fox cartoon family sits in the building’s main entrance, an instant reminder that this house now provides for two.
“TV people are very noisy,” joked Douglas Stewart, Fox 61’s Operations Manager .
Stewart, who led the SPJ’s tour through the building, believes the combination of the newspaper and station provide the greatest extent of coverage possible for their news organizations.
“We’re all adjusting to each other,” Stewart said.
The group first got a look at the massive printing press used by the Courant. According to Stewart it’s referred to as the “Daily Miracle.”
On the third floor Stewart explained how Google Hot Trends is used as a journalistic tool for both media organizations. He also talked of how the Courant and Fox 61 have expanded upon each other’s work, especially for online content. Sharing staff is a common translation for sharing resources between the two.
“Our photography staff is fluent, they work within both worlds,” Stewart explained.
Working within multiple journalistic worlds is Stewart’s main advice for anyone considering a career in journalism. Advising the SPJ members to be trained in as many disciplines as possible, ranging from writing and photography to audio and film editing.
“Be a one man band,” Stewart said, “This is what it’s moving towards and you’ve got to be ahead of the game.”
Regardless of what different news philosophies the Courant and Fox 61 bring to the table, Stewart says the newspaper and station count on each other.
“At the end of the day, that’s a good thing,” Stewart said.
Jenifer Frank, the Courant’s Deputy Metro Editor, calls the convergence an “interesting experiment.”
The group had moved into a conference room next to the newsroom, briefly sitting with Stewart and Frank until Stewart exited, leaving Frank open to the SPJ’s questions.
“Convergence is tough,” Frank said. “What’s going to happen is all trial and error.”
The future of the news industry, print journalism in particular, has taken a dramatic shift with the consuming popularity of Internet-based news organizations.
Frank told the group that while training in the traditional print journalistic method is useful, it’s not enough to base a career of off in the transforming industry.
“If I were your age I wouldn’t go into journalism right now,” Frank said with a laugh. “It’s a whole different ball game.”
Members of the SPJ still seemed confident that jobs in journalism would be available to them after graduation.
“There’s always and interest in sports,” said Andrew Ragali, SPJ President. “Having ESPN in your backyard is encouraging.”
