Where am I, and what am I doing here?

Another year, another long-overdue blog post. I suppose it's worth noting that quite a bit has changed since my last entry.

After finishing up grad school at NYU in December 2010, I officially left New York City in January 2011. It was a tough decision, but it made sense: I couldn't rationalize staying in the city while I continued my job search. And, truthfully, I think I needed a break.

Fortunately, my life as a nomad wasn't long-lived. I was contacted by the Knoxville News Sentinel in December after applying for a job as an online producer. After three failed attempts at flying out to Knoxville for an interview (snow, snow and more snow), I finally made it out to interview in February. Shortly after, I was offered a position -- and I accepted! I moved to Knoxville, Tenn., in March of this year, and here I've been for seven months.

As an online producer, my job is to shoot and edit video/multimedia packages, keep the website fresh and updated with the latest news -- and everything in between. It's been a great seven months, and I'm proud of the work I've produced here. 

This week, in particular, has been a very productive one. I've had some great assignments and produced a good amount of content. 

First, I covered Hugh Jackman's visit to Knoxville for his "Real Steel" red-carpet premiere. I was told not to expect to get one-on-one time with him, but sure enough, he was more than accommodating. I produced two videos from that assignment. One overall video about the premiere, and another video about a message Jackman had to UT football fans.

Later in the week, I had the privilege of going to the UT vet school where Smokey, the Vols' bluetick coonhound mascot, was undergoing physical therapy for his partially torn ACL. That was truly a fun assignment. Aside from being absolutely adorable, it was fascinating to hear about his treatment. I produced a video that showed his day of physical therapy, which his vet explained to us in detail.

One series I'm responsible for is our weekly feature of the WDVX Blue Plate Special, a six-day-a-week midday live-music performance at the local Knoxville radio station. I usually attend biweekly and produce three videos for each artist who performs. This week's act was a bit different from the usual honky-tonk kind of performers -- who are usually very talented and entertaining. The videos for this week -- 'Ain't No Sunshine', 'Mercy Now' and 'I Ain't Goin' Nowhere' -- were a nice change in pace from the usual music.

And then today, a feature I've been working on for almost two months, finally came to fruition. I recently was assigned to pick up a series we used to do called Meet the Chef, which is a look at some of the area's most talented chefs. For this, I've decided to expand the feature from a video series to an entire package -- video, article and photos. I kicked it off with Amber Lloyd, executive chef at The Orangery Restaurant here in Knoxville.

It's been a long journey this past year -- and it feels as if it could have been at least two years -- but alas, here I am. And, in case you weren't sure, I'm happy to be here and excited for what lies ahead.

Recent projects

I realize I'm long past due for updating my blog, but I figured now is as good a time as ever — especially considering what's currently going on in my life.

October was one of the busiest months I've ever experienced. Aside from finishing up my master's at NYU — and juggling all the work that goes along with that — I spent almost half of the month traveling.

My first adventure led me to the Eddie Adams Workshop. The workshop brings together 100 fiercely talented students, incredible photographers and photojournalists, and a host of other photo experts for an amazing four-day experience.

This is how it works: The 100 chosen students are divided into 10 teams of 10, and each student is given a topic on which to base his or her photo project. Additionally, one student from each of the 10 teams is selected to work with a multimedia producer to create a multimedia project instead of a traditional photo essay. My role at the workshop was to work as one of the 10 multimedia producers — an amazing opportunity I still can't believe I was offered.

The student I was fortunate enough to work with was the incredibly talented Alice Keeney. Working with Alice was such a great experience — she is an awesome photographer and a great journalist.

The final pieces each team produced sincerely blew my mind. I was so inspired by each of my colleagues and learned a lot from them. The piece Alice and I produced, "Sunup to Sundown," is something both she and I are very proud of.

The experience as a whole was life-changing for me. The people I met and got to collaborate with are some of the most talented people in the industry. One of the executive producers of our multimedia pieces — founder and CEO of MediaStorm, and the man so many look to for multimedia guidance and inspiration — is Brian Storm. Being able to work with Brian and learn from him was — at the risk of sounding like a total fangirl — a dream come true. Hearing firsthand his philosophies about multimedia and working alongside him taught me so much, challenged me and reaffirmed my love for storytelling and multimedia production.

My second great adventure was a trip to the Arizona-Mexico border with 16 of my classmates, a couple of professors and a handful of freelancers. Our trip, tentatively called "Beyond the Border," was sponsored by the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. Led by our amazing professor and program director Yvonne Latty, and with help from some students and professors from the University of Arizona, we flew out to the Southwest to report on immigration. I spent most of my time there in Mexico, assigned to examine and photograph the fence itself.

I returned with more than 1,000 photos and many stories to tell. I would have loved to produce several multimedia pieces, but I was faced with the challenge of the language barrier while in Mexico. I was able to collect a ton of audio, but in the end, I came out with just one cohesive story, "The Thin Line," which looked at the changing landscape of the border fence and how it has affected the lives of two Mexicans over the past few years.

The work produced by the rest of my classmates is absolutely phenomenal. With only two days of reporting — and a deadline that came as soon as our plan landed back in New York — my peers turned out some unbelievable stories.

The last of my travels came at the end of the month, as I traveled to the 2010 ONA conference in D.C. It was great to meet up with some old friends and meet some new ones — and putting human faces to my many Twitter contacts was an added bonus.

The conference was at the same time as the Rally to Restore Sanity, and D.C. was PACKED. I slipped away to check out the commotion and ridiculous signs. It was complete chaos, but I enjoyed being able to see some of it firsthand.

Now, I'm back in New York and working nonstop to finish my degree in December. I'm working on several exciting projects, in addition to job searching, which is beginning to seem like an impossible task. Regardless, I'll keep at it, hoping to soon find the perfect job somewhere out there... If you hear of anything you think I'd be well suited for, please let me know!

Works in Progress N.Y.C.

Works in Progress N.Y.C. from Rachel Wise on Vimeo.

Story about this great organization TK. Stay posted!

Part four in the great surveillance debate

Apparently this is becoming a recurring them in my blog: the advantages and disadvantages of surveillance cameras. I've argued they encroach on our privacy; I've argued they help solve crimes. I've questioned the changing expectations of privacy in our world today, and I've advocated being smart under these circumstances.

Now I can't help being a champion for surveillance cameras in light of last night's events: Times Square was evacuated after a suspected car bomb was found.

I sat watching the events unfold on CNN after 1 a.m., and the first thing I thought: Good thing there are tons of cameras in Times Square. And sure enough, after my initial thought, that's what I heard everyone else saying. The reporter, the cops, the government officials. They all pointed to the dozens of area cameras that could help them find a suspect.

Obviously, the story and evidence is still unfolding. But the latest information released at a press conference this afternoon is that police suspect a white male in his 40s is connected to the incident after they reviewed surveillance footage.

It's hard to argue against these cameras when something like this happens.

Tenant president stands up for residents

This is a story I just finished about a 67-year-old woman who is president of the tenant association at a public housing development in the East Village. It's also posted on Pavement Pieces here, with some really colorful, entertaining audio. Take a look!

By RACHEL WISE

One morning in early April, an elderly woman awoke to find her stove was no longer working. The woman, who lives in Jacob Riis public housing in the East Village, contacted the maintenance call center to report the problem.

The operator told her the earliest they could fix her stove was May 29. And when she continued to follow up on the request, the operator told her to stop calling. That’s when Odell Tamias, president of the Jacob Riis Tenant Association, stepped in.

“That is unacceptable! You know how Spanish people like their coffee,” Tamias said with a chuckle, before a stern expression swept over her face. “Seriously, though. I don’t play. I really don’t.”


Tenant president stands up for residents
Audio, Features — By Rachel Wise on April 30, 2010 at 7:56 pm | Edit
Odell2

Odell Tamias, president of the Jacob Riis Tenant Association. Photo by Rachel Wise

One morning in early April, an elderly woman awoke to find her stove was no longer working. The woman, who lives in Jacob Riis public housing in the East Village, contacted the maintenance call center to report the problem.

The operator told her the earliest they could fix her stove was May 29. And when she continued to follow up on the request, the operator told her to stop calling. That’s when Odell Tamias, president of the Jacob Riis Tenant Association, stepped in.

“That is unacceptable! You know how Spanish people like their coffee,” Tamias said with a chuckle, before a stern expression swept over her face. “Seriously, though. I don’t play. I really don’t.”

Odell Tamias explains her outrage over the operator’s response.

Odell Tamias, 67, has lived at Jacob Riis Houses for 43 years, but for the past five years, she’s served as president of the tenant association. Her job is to help tenants with any housing-related issues, on a volunteer basis.

“Basically, I’m the medium between housing and tenants. Someone has to stand up for them,” she said.

Jacob Riis is a public housing development comprising 19 buildings and 1,764 apartments. Its borders are East Sixth and East 13th streets, and Avenue D and F.D.R. Drive. And it is home to 4,305 residents.

Tamias was born and raised in Columbus, Alabama, but moved to New York City when she was only 17. She worked odd jobs at factories in Long Island and Manhattan in the 1960s, and moved from place to place, usually staying with friends or family members.

“I didn’t become a prostitute or drug addict, thank God. I’m surprised. But you can’t change a person, especially from South,” Tamias said. “I was doing OK. I was never, like, homeless or anything like that.”


Tenant president stands up for residents
Audio, Features — By Rachel Wise on April 30, 2010 at 7:56 pm | Edit
Odell2

Odell Tamias, president of the Jacob Riis Tenant Association. Photo by Rachel Wise

One morning in early April, an elderly woman awoke to find her stove was no longer working. The woman, who lives in Jacob Riis public housing in the East Village, contacted the maintenance call center to report the problem.

The operator told her the earliest they could fix her stove was May 29. And when she continued to follow up on the request, the operator told her to stop calling. That’s when Odell Tamias, president of the Jacob Riis Tenant Association, stepped in.

“That is unacceptable! You know how Spanish people like their coffee,” Tamias said with a chuckle, before a stern expression swept over her face. “Seriously, though. I don’t play. I really don’t.”

Odell Tamias explains her outrage over the operator’s response.

Odell Tamias, 67, has lived at Jacob Riis Houses for 43 years, but for the past five years, she’s served as president of the tenant association. Her job is to help tenants with any housing-related issues, on a volunteer basis.

“Basically, I’m the medium between housing and tenants. Someone has to stand up for them,” she said.

Jacob Riis is a public housing development comprising 19 buildings and 1,764 apartments. Its borders are East Sixth and East 13th streets, and Avenue D and F.D.R. Drive. And it is home to 4,305 residents.

Tamias was born and raised in Columbus, Alabama, but moved to New York City when she was only 17. She worked odd jobs at factories in Long Island and Manhattan in the 1960s, and moved from place to place, usually staying with friends or family members.

“I didn’t become a prostitute or drug addict, thank God. I’m surprised. But you can’t change a person, especially from South,” Tamias said. “I was doing OK. I was never, like, homeless or anything like that.”

Odell Tamias explains her experience avoiding alcohol and drug use.

Then in 1967, Tamias got married and had a son. When her son was only 8 months old, she applied for housing and was accepted. She moved into Jacob Riis Houses — when rent was only $68 per month. Although she got divorced in 1972, she and her son continued living at Jacob Riis. And it didn’t take long before she became involved in the community.

“I have been living here for 43 years. … I was always involved when something happened,” she said. “When there was another president … I would volunteer my service. I could not be doing nothing — I’m not like that. I have to be doing something.”

Before she became president, Tamias served as tenant patrol supervisor — a part-time job for which she received a small stipend. For 12 years, she was responsible for the safety of tenants at Jacob Riis. Every night, she patrolled the grounds and checked on tenants. After that, she became vice president of the TA.

During her time as president, Tamias said she has done “what’s expected” of her but doesn’t think she’s done anything “special.” But history, and tenants, tells a different story.

“I think she’s great. Always friendly and happy to help,” said Maria, a 12-year resident of Jacob Riis who declined to give her full name. “I know when I’ve had a problem, she really helps to work it out. And she’s got a great spirit about her, too.”

One thing Maria pointed to is Tamias’ ability to build a sense of community among residents, specifically citing her organization of Family Day.

Every summer, Tamias is responsible for putting together a Family Day celebration.

“Politicians give us money, and housing gives us money. And we buy franks and burgers and ice cream. … And we have a DJ and clowns, and sometimes (a bounce house),” Tamias said.

But Tamias takes it a step further: She also provides gifts for all the children who come to Family Day, sometimes using her own money if funds run out.

“I buy book bags for the boys and girls for when they go back to school in September. I put everything in there: the pencils, the pens, the eraser — all kinds of little stuff for them,” Tamias said. As she continued to describe the day’s events, her excitement grew and her eyes lit up. “I love to just help, you know, just buy stuff for the kids.”

In addition to community building, Tamias also has made great strides to improve the security at Jacob Riis. When she became aware of safety issues in the development — such as break-ins and robberies — she immediately took action.

“I did the petition to get surveillance cameras for every building,” she said. “I got over 600 people — 700 people (to sign). It’s supposed to keep out the undesirables.”

The “undesirables,” according to Tamias, are the “drug dealers” who invade the premises and stay with friends in several of the buildings.

“I have a whole apartment of drug dealers in my building — in my building,” she said. “I told the police, I told everybody. … There ain’t nothing much else I can do.”

Sibyl Colon, manager of Jacob Riis Houses, agrees with Tamias that drug addicts and dealers are a big issue in the community.

“(Tamias is) very proactive in trying to get rid of the drugs,” Colon said. “We have constant meetings with the police … and relay the information on.”

And while these drug problems are a source of frustration for Tamias, they’re not the only thing.

“The hardest part of my job is when (maintenance) stuff does not get done fast. … That is what is bothering me. It’s the same thing, week after week,” Tamias said.

She said the problem stems from a lack of funding to hire the proper staff who knows how to fix the issues that plague Jacob Riis — “leaky walls, broken this, broken that,” according to Tamias.

“There’s a lot of work shortage here … because of the budget,” Tamias said. “They got the people that clean the grounds (working on) infrastructure problems. They need a contractor to come in and fix the leaks inside the wall because these people don’t know how to do that.”

But all of this wouldn’t be as hard to handle, she said, if it weren’t for the issues tenants have when they contact the maintenance call center.

Tamias said she has seen dozens of apartments with various problems, but no matter what the problem is, she always hears the same response.

“They’ll tell you a month from now. I swear … it doesn’t matter what you call for, they’ll tell you a month from now,” she said.

Sometimes, Tamias admits, the issues she faces seem overwhelming.

“When I first came here it was beautiful. You know, nice, quiet. But now … it’s gone to the dogs, I think,” Tamias said. “It was like the nicest development in the whole Lower East Side … but now it changed. It has changed, trust me, over the years.”

Despite the problems, Tamias is determined to help Jacob Riis become the development she knew 43 years ago.

“She cares about her community. It’s a volunteer position, so you have to really care to do it,” said Sibyl Colon, manager of Jacob Riis. “She has definite leadership qualities, and the residents respond well to her.”

For more than 20 years, Tamias has served her community. But in only one month, Tamias’ reign could be up. The election for TA leaders is set for May, and the winners will be sworn in in June.

“At first, she wasn’t going to run again,” said Epifania “Fanny” Rodriguez, 62. Rodriguez is TA vice president and Tamias’ longtime friend. “But I told her she had to. She’s done a good job — she really has.”

When tenants and friends urged Tamias to run again, she gave in. She said she’d be happy to be president again, but for a shorter term.

“Two years — I think I can deal with that, right? I don’t think I’ll drop dead in that time,” she said, erupting in laughter. “That’s all I can say. And if they still want me, they vote for me.”

Some good news for print journalism?

If you're talking about "the state of print journalism," or in any way critiquing traditional media, I can almost guarantee what you're going to say: It's bad news. Numbers are bad; readers are dwindling. It's bad, bad, bad.

But what if it's not all bad?

I had begun to give up hope that I'd ever hear any positive news about print media. In fact, sometimes I'd begun to give up hope about media in general. Everyone is so negative, and I feel like it's all we ever talk about.

But then I saw this report: Naples Daily News reports a 22% increase in circulation. That is, print circulation. You know ... newspapers. You remember those, right? (Juuuust kidding. Sort of.)

I was particularly pleased about this report, not because I think it's changing the game or even a trend that will have any significant impact, but because I used to work at the Daily News. And I still have a lot of friends and former colleagues there. And not only that, but I think Naples Daily News is an incredibly strong publication with some really, really talented journalists on staff. Their photo staff is one of the best in the country. Their Web and multimedia teams are amazing. And their reporters, editors and copy editors are just really great people.

But, mostly, it's just nice to hear some good news once in a while.

Pavement Pieces

I can't believe I haven't blogged about this before — but it's time I do. Have you checked out Pavement Pieces lately?

For those of you who haven't, I urge you to. Pavement Pieces is an online publication that features the work of NYU graduate journalism students, mostly those in the Reporting New York and Reporting the Nation programs. And for the past nine months, I have been editor of this publication, taking it from a basic, slightly messy version through an elaborate redesign in September to its current incarnation.

We officially relaunched the new Pavement in October, showcasing our coverage of Navajo Nation.

In fact, just last week we learned that we — by way of our Navajo package — are a finalist for the Harry Chapin WHY award — up against the New York Times and Denver Post. Needless to say, we were thrilled and very honored to hear about this!

And if you need further incentive to visit Pavement Pieces, I point to the latest stories we've posted. There have been some incredibly powerful stories — and very compelling multimedia — generated by my talented colleagues.

Darren Tobia recently reported on a transgender woman and Jersey tabloid who are at odds over a recent report about the prostitution arrest of Coy Gordon of West New York. His audio slideshow is creative and interesting and a joy to watch.

Liz Wagner produced a phenomenal story about a Muslim woman who has been a victim of domestic abuse and who struggles to find the resources to help her in New York. The audio segments she included are chilling and very moving.

Alex DiPalma wrote about a fun, lesser-known sport: hard-court bike polo in the Lower East Side. Her details of the sport and characters she interviewed made for a really fun read.

And Amanda VanAllen covered a story about "soul-food diseases" and their negative impact on the health of the black community. She also produced a slideshow featuring some of these delicious "soul-food" dishes. It was so funny and creative.

Obviously, the pieces we feature are diverse, dynamic and truly innovative — there's something for everyone.

I hope you take a look at the site, and don't forget to follow Pavement Pieces on Twitter and 'like' Pavement on Facebook!