My blogging class at UCO will have two guest speakers in the next three weeks, Dr. Kurt Hochenauer of the UCO English Department, and Mr. Dave Rhea, managing editor, digital products of the daily business newspaper in Oklahoma City,
The Journal Record. Both of these bloggers have large followings.
Kurt is a former journalist, and also teaches a blog class, as well as maintaining his blog,
Okie Funk,
Notes from the Outback, a liberal blog in very conservative Oklahoma.
http://okiefunk.com/
Dave is one of the bright media gurus in the state, a grad of the Florida journalism school, and a musician as well. His blog on Social Media and its impact on business in the
Journal Record is an industry standard.
http://journalrecord.com/category/Social-Media/
I've asked the student to submit questions to them ahead of time. Here they are:
Both:
· What
are your favorite blogs to subscribe to and why?
What/who inspired you to do what you do today?
·
What have you hoped to accomplish
through blogging, and how have you fared?
·
What are some of the challenges you've
had in blogging?
·
What have been some of the breakthrough
moments you've experienced during your time as a blogger?
·
Although content is the most important
part of a blog, good content doesn't always translate into a growth in
audience. What advice do you have for growing an audience?
Dr. Hochenauer,
·
How important is it to format and
design your blog based on your knowledge of what the viewer will like?
·
Is it important to be an individual
and post material you like or should I find material my viewers will like?
Mr. Rhea,
·
How important is spelling and grammar
in regards to the legitimacy of your blog?
·
Do you think it will affect your
viewership if slang and improper sentence structure is used?
·
How's your life has changed since you
started blogging?
Dr. Kurt Hochenauer,
·
Where do your credentials come from,
why are you qualified to blog about politics?
·
What are you trying to teach people
with your blog? Are you trying to inform or simply bash people?
Mr. Dave Rhea,
·
Do you see any similarities in your
music and your blogging style?
·
What is the most important thing when
setting up a blog?
Questions for Dr. Hochenauer:
·
With the blog market saturated with
entertainment-based sites,
what, in your opinion, can be done to stand out?
·
What do you see as the next evolution
of citizen journalism after blogs?
Questions for Dave Rhea:
·
Were you able to balance your love of
music and writing simultaneously?
·
With so many social media sites joining
the fracas, how many
"links, likes and follows" is too much for a blogger/journalist any
more?
·
In your own words, what is a
"positive digital identity"
·
How would you describe your own
personal identity.
Dave,
·
what prompted this post about hate as
an emotion?
·
How do you deal with the conflicting
physiological feelings, emotions, etc... (do you read or count your breaths-
pray?
Dr. Kurt Hochenauer
·
Since Oklahoma is a mostly
conservative state, did you receive and criticism once your blog became
popular? or even before it became popular?
·
Before becoming a professor at the
University what did you do?
Dave Rhea
·
Do you alone do all of the layout and
design for your blog?
·
Other than being asked to be a media
advisor for the Mass Communication, have you been been a media advisor for any
other organizations ?
Dr. Kurt Hochenauer,
·
Do you take a great deal of criticism
due to your blog being liberal in Oklahoma's conservative political landscape?
·
What are your thoughts on the New
Media movement out of Tulsa (This Land Press, etc.)?
Dave Rhea:
·
Do you feel any stress concerning
audience reception when writing hot topic blogs?
·
Do you prefer writing opinion or
news?
How successful was your band at its prime? Did you
play with anyone famous?
·
How did you get into media and blogging
from being in a band?
Kurt Hochenauer –
·
How long have you been blogging and
what are the positive effects from your blog?
·
What provoked your interest in
blogging?
·
With the blogging experience
that you have as well as teaching a class on blogging what is the most
important recommendation you can give to first time bloggers?
·
How big of an impact, if any, does social
media have on blogging?
·
How do you keep your subscribers
interested in your longer and more specific posts?
David Rhea
·
How many people helped create this blog
with you?
·
How do you advertise your blog?
·
Give us a quick overview of your career
in the music business. How did your time there influence your writing career?
·
What are your top three tips for novice
bloggers?
Dr. Kurt Hochenauer:
·
Do you find it hard to stay objective
in your political writing, especially with the upcoming election?
·
What/who influenced you the most to
start/maintain your writing career?
Both: What
do you see as the future of blogs? Why do you think blogs are so
effective? How have blogs changed the future of journalism?