I’m one of the journalists listed here. No, I didn’t post my Twitter profile. Yes, I do twitter (username: stevesaldivar) I’d rather have you go to my website and find a myriad different ways where I’m socially networking (facebook, myspace, and yes, twitter.)

Which brings me to something about socially networking with many journalists. I’ve found that many veterans who have been working in the field and are just getting into multimedia are madly crazy in love with Twitter (and it’s somewhat annoying when you consider that its just a tool, and yes, Twitter may be replaced by a different tool, twitter v.2 in the near future. )

I love twitter. And I use it the same way I use facebook. But I’m also not using Twitter (a tool that will no doubt change in the future) as the main way to keep in contact with me. You’d have to visit my website to do that.

Kind regards,
Steve

Frankly, the number of talented young female journalists who network online is something I’ve noted in the last number of months. Female journalism students are leading the way, as far as I can see at least (from an admittedly distant stand-point) in the previously male-dominated tech, business and to an extent new media, areas. This was simply the first list that confirmed that the numbers of young talented women emerging is larger than in previous decades.

You defensive stand-point is quite disappointing, actually - but…

Go listen to the song “Thou shalt always kill” by Dan le Sac and Scroobious Pip. There is a line in there that goes “Thou shalt not think that any male over the age of 30 that plays with a child that is not their own is a paedophile. Some people are just nice”. Perhaps that has some meaning here in a more reflective context.

Regards the Twitter comment. This a blog post of the future of journalism, Journalism is changing, the majority of the people on this list are inherrently going to be web-savvy, online natives. Twitter is the main platform media-types are using to communicate and keep up to date with what they are doing. It’s arguably a more professional version on Facebook. You say that in this “professional context” Twitter profiles aren’t appropriate. I’d say that Twitter profiles are the most appropriate link.

In fact, if there are more than half of the people on that list not using a Twitter profile to network, debate and learn about the media, I’ll show you a list that is worth very little. Luckily, I recognise quite a few of the names there from (where?) Twitter and would agree that many of them are worth “watching” (don’t take offence) and networking with but most importantly learning from. What’s the best way to learn from someone? By keeping up to date with what they are doing, knowing what they’re learning about, reading their work, asking them questions, getting their feedback and sharing your knowledge with them. Where can you do all those things quickly and easily? Twitter.

That’s why I thought links to Twitter profiles would have been beneficial. Not to “stalk” people, as you inferred.

Kind regards

@Mark_Coughlan

Hi, Vin! Glad you asked.

My criteria: If they sent info, I posted it.

Read back over this carefully. I didn’t say these were the top college students. I didn’t say they won a contest or scholarship or anything. For years, I’ve used this blog as a pulpit to preach networking skills for students and young journalists.

Back in March, I posted a note, here in the blog, asking college students to send in their info for my second annual roundup. Whether they had an internship or not; whether they were graduating this year or not; whether they were visual journalists or not; whether they were in the U.S. or not.

I posted the original note and then posted a number of reminders. I also tweeted it a number of times and mentioned it on my Facebook profile.

The 31 students who responded were the 31 I posted. And I was glad to give them face time.

Mark — a college student in Dublin — writes:

> Interesting to see that 21 of the 31 are female.

Mark, I don’t quite know how to respond to that. Should I take offense? Or was that merely an observation?

Frankly, I’m offended. My wife, Sharon — who looked over my shoulder to see what pissed me off — laughed.

I have no data to explain why more females sent info than males. Perhaps there are more females in j-school these days than males. Perhaps I have more females than males among my collegiate readers. (”Must be the bald head,” Sharon says. “Chicks like fat, old bald men.” I think she’s joking. You can never be sure with her, though.)

Or perhaps these women realized what the primary readership of this blog happens to be — newspaper designers, artists, photographers and editors from around the world — and were smart enough to take advantage of even a small opportunity to get their face and links to their portfolios in front of those readers.

You also wrote:

> No links to twitter profiles? :(

Several of these students list their Twitter names on their web site or portfolio pages. And some do not.

In this professional context, Mark, I’d say Twitter profiles aren’t appropriate. Unless you’re a stalker or something.