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Al's Morning Meeting

Home > Al's Morning Meeting
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Al Tompkins
Story ideas that you can localize and enterprise. Posted by 7:30 a.m. Mon-Fri.
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A dozen sites
I'm diggin'


*1. You thought sub-prime lenders were gone? No way! They are making FHA loans.

*2. Salon investigates "Friendly Fire" incident that leads to document shredding.

*3. Just in time for Thanksgiving, PETA posts a video of turkey abuse on a poultry farm.

*4. Seven key questions about a car company bailout.

*5. The Flip Cam has gone HD with a customizable cover.

6. A fun video to help you with digital conversion.

7. ProPublica's investigation into air marshals gone bad.

8. An awesome storm chaser photo blog

9. Planet Money is a really good blog about money and finance.

10. ESPN's "The Journey of Richard Jensen" -- the comeback of a wrestler -- is an extra good video.

11. You can lay subtitles or text bubbles on video -- any video. I will be using this to teach about storytelling.

12. I now use Utterz to file audio reports. You can use your computer's mic or any phone. It's simple and would be a great reporter's tool.

All of my Diggin' sites are saved on Poynter's del.icio.us page.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Al's Morning Meeting is a compendium of ideas, edited story excerpts and other materials from a variety of Web sites, as well as original concepts and analysis. When the information comes directly from another source, it will be attributed and a link will be provided whenever possible. The column is fact-checked, but depends on the accuracy and integrity of the original sources cited. We will correct errors and inaccuracies when we become aware of them.


Gasoline Prices Lead to Increase in Online College Enrollment
Here is a story I didn't see coming. The Tennessean in Nashville, Tenn., says colleges have seen a spike in enrollment for online classes this summer, and the price of gasoline is a big reason:

The Tennessee Board of Regents has seen online registration jump 29 percent this summer compared with last summer, and is looking at a 20 percent increase for fall.

Online registration had been averaging a 7-10 percent increase year over year, said Robbie Melton, associate vice chancellor for the Regents. Melton is in charge of online and distance learning for the system, which includes six universities and the state's 13 community colleges.

Melton has noticed a common theme among students signing up for online classes, and it has more to do with pocketbooks than textbooks.

"When they call, they keep saying, 'The gas prices, it's just unbelievable,'" Melton said.

Posted by Al Tompkins 3:30 PM
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