Category: 11th Grade

C-SPAN Final Videos

C-SPAN’s StudentCam is an annual national video documentary competition that encourages students to think seriously about issues that affect our communities and our nation. Students are asked to create a short (5-8 minute) video documentary on the following prompt: “Tell us about an issue, event, or topic that helped you better understand the role of the federal government in your life or community.” All documentaries must contain C-SPAN footage that relates to the chosen topic.

Tips to master the art of interviewing – CNN.com

Tips to master the art of interviewing – CNN.com.

Interviewing is the cornerstone of good journalism, and the stories you tell are only as good as the information you get. Nine CNN anchors, correspondents and writers share their top tips for conducting successful interviews. Watch the video, read their tips and head over to CNN iReport to interview a person you think is interesting.

Reading List: Tech Blogs

This list was compiled by David Pierce for Digitizd.com

TechCrunch – LOTS of news. Not always right, but always interesting and frequently first.

VentureBeat – A firehose of news about startups, innovation, and cool products coming in the tech world.

ReadWriteWeb– Ditto above. Some news, lots of smart people talking tech.

Wired – Less about startups and the valley, more about tech and real life.

The Next Web – Funnier, more lighthearted, but still great news.

Webware – News, always with a focus on “what does it mean for users?”

Mashable – Nowhere else to go for social media news, this one’s dominant.

Bits – Not a lot of exclusive content, but brilliant writers and smart commentary.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog – An awesome resource for anything and everything Apple.

Google Blogoscoped – Keeping up with Google is darn near impossible, and Blogoscoped makes it a lot easier to manage.

Silicon Alley Insider – Very business-heavy, but great angles on news stories.

Ars Technica – Heavy on the geekery, but full of interesting thoughts and niche pieces.

Smashing Magazine – Perfect site for the designer newbie, full of great tips and tutorials.

Noupe – I love their roundups (like “50 best free icon sets”), and constantly bookmark this site.

Hongkiat – Basically ditto above, but with a slightly broader focus in design.

I Love Typograhy – Love fonts and typefaces? Can’t beat this site.

MakeUseOf – Endless resource of Top 10 Lists, and geeky hacks you might want to try.

gHacks – Deeper cuts in tech than MUO, but still great for news, tips, and tutorials.

Lost in Technology – Much more approachable than the above sites, it’s a great blog to wade into without much knowledge required.

Mac AppStorm – The best Mac apps on the planet get showcased here.

Web AppStorm – Ditto above, but with Web apps.

Daring Fireball – John Gruber is the smartest man on the planet when it comes to Apple.

Pogue’s Posts – David Pogue’s funny, smart, and a great representative of the common man.

Skelliewag – Skellie’s making blogging and the Web her life, chronicling it all the way.

Scripting News – Dave Winer’s as important to the tech landscape as anyone (he’s the godfather of RSS, among other things), and his thoughts on any subject are a must-read.

Search Engine Land – Danny Sullivan knows his stuff when it comes to search—and there’s a lot more to it than you might think.

All Things D – A group of thinkers from the Wall Street Journal, all discussing, analyzing and talking tech. My favorite? Kara Swisher.

Dustin Curtis – I love the way his site looks more than anything, but he’s a great observer of the world of blogging, design, and art.

MinimalMac – Mostly a links roundup, but a phenomenal resource for anyone looking to make their Mac work for them.

Lifehacker – The grand poobah of “little things to make your life more productive, more efficient, and more awesome” blogs.

Digital Inspiration – Amit is clever, easy to understand, and full of cool and interesting tips for everyone.

Unclutterer – Much-needed help for getting the crap out of our way so we can get important things done.

HackCollege – Tons of useful tips on hacking college and succeeding in school, but with ideas useful for anyone.

Smarterware – Gina, the founder of Lifehacker, took to Smarterware to share more great tricks, and never disappoints.

Lifehack – Somewhat broader in its thinking than Lifehacker, but a great place to find tips to make every little piece of your life work a little better.

Productivity501 – Short, simple posts with tangible ideas on how to make yourself more productive.

Switched – All things geek, particularly the culture of techies that is forming.

Make Magazine – Do awesome stuff with your stuff. That should totally be their tagline.

Gizmodo – Gadgets, gadgets, gadgets!

Engadget – Oh my goodness, more gadgets!

Boy Genius Report – They’re full of rumors and leaks, and are almost always right.

jkOnTheRun – Arguably the most seasoned gadget-heads out there, they’re a smart, thoughtful, and objective resource for all things gadget and mobile.

Boing Boing – The interesting, quirky, strange, and weird things in the tech world.

iReport boot camp: Audio guessing game: News & Videos about iReport boot camp: Audio guessing game – CNN iReport

CNN iReport

iReport boot camp: Audio guessing game: News & Videos about iReport boot camp: Audio guessing game – CNN iReport.

Find a place around you that features distinctive noises or sounds. Record an audio track 30-60 seconds long that reveals where you are; no narration, only natural sound.     Don’t tell us where you are with text; let your audio do the talking. If video is all you can do, that’s fine, but be sure to keep your lens covered so you don’t give away the secret.

Submit your sound files to cnn iReport and respond to this post with a link to the file.

Interview Bill Clinton


In the 90’s he was the leader of the free world, and in this century he’s become one of its biggest development advocates and philanthropists. Today, President Bill Clinton is taking your questions in an exclusive YouTube Interview.

In conjunction with this year’s Clinton Global Initiative, a convening of world leaders to discuss innovative solutions to the world’s most pressing problems, President Bill Clinton will be sitting down for an interview in which all of the questions will come from you.

If you have a question about global development, empowering women, the relief effort in Haiti, technology, current events, or another topic — ask it now and vote for your favorites!

Submit now — the deadline for your video or text question is Monday, September 13.