Emerging bloggers

media, slider, Student Blogs

First-year students at La Trobe University have started blogging en masse. Here's where they're up to.

Is Australia becoming Americanised? Who are the up and coming stars of Australian cricket? And what is freestyle rap and how do you become good it?

These are just some of the questions being explored by students at La Trobe University in their new blogs. For the second year running, we’ve asked everyone enrolled in the first-year subject The Emerging Journalist to set up a blog on a topic that they feel passionate about, and to curate a Twitter list that will function as a news feed for their chosen theme.

Why blogging in a journalism degree? After all, “blogging” isn’t synonymous with “journalism”. But blogging can help students (and not just students) develop a personal brand by improving writing and research skills, and developing an understanding of what it takes to build an audience. As British journalism educator Sue Greenwood puts it: “blogging shows would-be journalists that the point of writing a story (or making a video) is that someone who cares about the subject will read it”.

So here’s the list so far (and it’s growing) of the blogs and their authors. Between them, they explore everything from politics to fashion and football and culture.Take a look, and follow this year’s class on Twitter via the #TEJ2014 hashtag.

The List So Far

Jessica Whitby – Spring Street Said

Kurt Bryant – United States of Australia

Val Febbo – The Big Server

Danica Wild – The Packing List

Peter De Stefano The White Board

Xavier Martin – Pub Jive

Josh Schonafinger – Out on 87

Lindsey Martin – Melbourne Arts Profiler

Rachael Ward – Eltham Election 2014

Sheridan Lee – The Young Backbenchers

Ryan Harrison – The Last Second Three