Bizzy body

Hi all. Being the young 20something that I am in the fresh, beautiful beginnings of my brofessional career, I have done most networking in my life the new-fangled way. If we’re talking networking that doesn’t involve a [computer] screen and text then I’m a little inexperienced. It’s intimidating being a n00b in the big scary world of grown professionals, amiright? Being young in the business world definitely leaves you feeling vulnerable, but there are a few shining qualities we share that we MUST EXPLOIT. And the most important of those is the fact that you have a fresh-thinking, creative mind fathered by the 21st century. We’re gifted, it’s true!

In the dark ages there was nothing for me but horrible networking opportunities in the form of communications career fairs in college. You stand in line in a business suit with a fancy black folder and a stack of resumes and try to think of a way to stand out. These events were especially sad for the journalism majors when we realized that none of the companies represented at the fairs actually wanted to hire us. I remember frolicking up to the Statesman’s booth only to find they were only seeking advertising interns. But I digress.

Since graduation my tactics have changed — I mean since graduation Twitter changed everything — and I really only network with other media professionals via social media. (I guess technically my co-workers are media professionals, too, but that’s not networking — that’s just plain old working.)

This will all change in March. I’m taking a plunge and hopping a plane to SXSW Interactive Fest this year. Long story short, I am going to need all the help I can get with this in-person networking. I want to make a lasting impression. So, I’ve decided to come up with an unforgettable business card. I’ve come up with a few winners, I believe. Let me know which ones you like best.

On that note — I’m also hoping to find a way to tastefully and zingfully insert a last name joke. I mean my last name is Blewitt. There’s gotta be something there.

And without further ado, the selection of biz cards from which I will suck out all my inspiration:

I’m leaning toward a combo special between two, three and four. What do y’all think!?

Journalists’ lives three times more likely to suck

That’s right, because most journalists are three times more likely to be out of a job. (Or into something else.) According to a study by UNITY: Journalists of Color, while the rest of the country is losing its jobs at an 8 percent rate, journalists are being shed at a 22 percent rate. I couldn’t help but wonder who UNITY’s 2009 Layoff Tracker Report was really tracking. I mean, was I tracked? Because if so, I most certainly was not notified.

Either way that means we have three times more the reasons to wallow and complain.

I especially enjoyed what Onica N. Makwakwa, executive director of UNITY, had to say about the study.

“These numbers confirm that the economic downturn has hit the news industry very, very hard.”

It has finally been confirmed officially, guys. We’ve been hit very, very hard. But wait, there’s more!

“As the news industry shapes a new future and companies battle the financial storm, it’s important to remember that it’s about people too,” said Makwakwa.

Oh my goodness, good point, brah! What about the families?

But before you get too worried about the people battling the raging financial storms, just know that in the end, I finally read down to the last paragraph of this UNITY story. I learned that the report was compiled using SEC filings and self-reported data from media outlets.

But I still kinda wonder how many lost journos there are out there, unrecorded…

And in case you’d like to read a copy of the report, by all means, knock yourself out.

Paper cuts can cause surprisingly acute pain

There’s nothing that online journalists love more than interactive google maps, so it makes sense that a multimedia and graphic designer from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Erica Smith, would take on the huge task of launching Paper Cuts, a blog tracking newspaper layoffs across the country. Click on the map to the left to search around the site. Zoom in, click on a city and get the numbers on individual papers. It’s even color-coded, but of course, by number of layoffs. So far the current count for the number of layoffs and buyouts at U.S. newspapers is — get ready, y’all — 8,484+.

Did that seem like a large number to anybody? We’ve nearly completely the first 1/3 of 2009 and we’re up to about 8,500 layoffs in newspaper alone, I would love to see the numbers for other media outlets (like, let’s say TV, cough).

You can also browse layoffs from 2008 and about half of 2007 (Smith started the project halfway through that year). Additional listings include newspapers that have ceased publication, papers making the switch to “dot com,” and, but of course, layoff rumors. Make sure to contribute any layoff tips if you’ve got ‘em.

Oh and in case you were wondering, the corny headline comes from Wikipedia’s definition of a paper cut.

Are you ready for a layoff?

Yes.

I was reminded of a piece I worked on back in October 2008 called “Are you ready for a layoff?”

Hmmm….

So glad about that nest egg I’ve saved up over the years.

Laid off at 22

Bust out your tissues. This post contains sensitive material.

Last night I had a thought — it went something like “omigawd I haven’t blogged in like four days and I have no clue what I should write about next!!!!”

Well, have I got a doozie of a blog post topic now.

Today I got laid off. Or, rather, my “position was eliminated.” To be completely honest, I knew it was coming. Last week we gained word that web producer positions had “been eliminated” in Dallas and D.C. If those two cities were down to three web producers, there was no way Austin would get to keep four.

I guess I should back up for those who didn’t know, but I worked at the local FOX TV station here in Austin. I was a web producer. I LEARNED TO READ A LOT OF SCRIPTS, E-MAILS, ETC. IN ALL CAPS THERE.

I learned a lot of other things, too. But the all caps thing was definitely a big adjustment for me. It’s all about being flexible.

The real kicker for me, though, is that I feel like I taught a lot while I was there, too. I was the official AP Style guru to one of my close colleagues, I created a Facebook account that began generating about 20 percent of our daily page views, oh yeah, and I taught the reporters how to use Twitter. Now I already know what it will feel like when I teach my child how to ride a bike someday.

When we heard about the layoffs last week, a colleague and I went into states of complete shock and paranoia, but he kept telling me (ever so sincerely) that I deserved to stay because I was smarter, more skilled, more attractive and generally cooler that he was. I hope he knows how much I appreciated those comments, and I’m glad that all the hard work I put in went noticed by my superiors, but those who mandated the layoff on the national level didn’t know me — I am just the entity that fills a position — and I was the newest one on the team. The “position elimination” was solely decided by the fact that I was most recently hired. And that’s fair, I guess.

But you know what wasn’t fair? I worked so hard to become a journalist since the day I switched my liberal arts major over to multimedia journalism. I did everything I could to gain experience, learn new skills and become a concerned, involved and accurate journalist and citizen. I went from general newspaper reporting to web editing to radio reporting looking for a way to become a part of the media. And once I got my job as a web producer I felt like it all paid off. I’d always thought of myself as a jack of all trades but master of none in the worst way. But when I was hired as a web producer everything clicked — all that I’d done had perfectly prepared me to be where I was.

But now here I am at home. At the end of December I had two jobs — my web producer job and another freelance editing job with a local magazine. Now it’s March 9th, and I have zero jobs. The magazine folded and my position was eliminated.

I’ve worked so hard to keep ahead. I graduated a year early and put myself out into the industry as fast as my little feet could take me. I wanted to succeed and grow as a professional as fast as I could, but you know, maybe I jumped the gun. After all, I SHOULD STILL BE A SENIOR IN COLLEGE RIGHT NOW! (Oh my gosh, I guess the caps lock skill really DID stick!) But instead, I’m laid off. Laid off at 22.

SPRING BREAK 09!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No, really though, I have come up with a few options for my future, and I’d like some feedback, so please read this list of possible jobs/ventures I will be looking into over the next few days and tell me which one I should choose.

1. I could become a full-time snarky Gawker commenter. My cynicism index has recently broken through the glass ceiling, and now that I have become “just another statistic” I can really relate to their daily (soon to be hourly) posts about media layoffs. So that’s an idea.

2. I could put myself up for sale on eBay like this Austin family did. (Sorry, I have this bad habit of shameless linking to myfoxaustin.com to generate more page views. I need to stop doing that!)

3. I could go live with my parents in Katy!!!!!

OK I can’t really think of any other options at the moment.

Um, SPRING BREAK!