2015 Atlantic Journalism Awards Finalists
Attachments
| Slug/Label | |
|---|---|
| Date Aired or Published | June/July 2015 |
| Media outlet where first aired or published: | Halifax Magazine |
| Name of Program: | N/A |
| If co-produced, list partner: | N/A |
| Location: | Halifax |
| List awards, grants: | None |
| Running time (TV/Radio): | |
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Short explanation of the story and how it developed: I decided to write this story while I was at the Collide Conference in Halifax, live-tweeting for Atlantic Business Magazine. The live-tweeting job required me to talk to the attendees of a Women in Tech workshop that was part of the conference, and that’s where I met high school student Mullenger (the story’s subject) and Microsoft developer Mulcahy (source). When I sat down at their table to chat, Mullenger was telling her story—that her mother and step-father lived in different countries but met in an online game, and ended up getting married. She went on to talk about how she wants to make video games herself, and Mulcahy offered to teach her. I spent time with both Mullenger and Mulcahy during the conference in an effort to build a rapport (but also, because I liked them). At the end of the conference, I told Mullenger that I’d like to profile her after she’d had a bit of time to work with Mulcahy, and she agreed. After a month or so, I reached out to Mullenger and Mulcahy to see how things were going. Incidentally, the GamerGate controversy was also in full force, so it seemed fitting to profile Mullenger within that greater context. I pitched the story to Halifax Magazine, and the pitch was accepted. Later, we decided to add Pelley's perspective to the story, since it provides a relevant example of a local, professional woman's experience within the gaming world. During the production process, Halifax Magazine also decided to interview Mullenger as an added online component. They used in-house videographer Bruce Murray. The link is attached. |
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Resources of the newsroom (money and time) available to complete the story: For a freelance journalist, the biggest challenge is using time efficiently. Fortunately, I was able to start this story early in the magazine's production process. By using my time efficiently, I was able to focus extensively on the story and dig deeper into the topic than the schedule often allows for these sorts of storIes. The result is one of Halifax Magazine's most-viewed stories of the year. |
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