Will cybervetting ever be illegal?

It's an interesting topic for me to discuss in particular since I'm a graduating in June, and as many, am currently looking for full-time employment after graduation. Without taking long to cut to the chase, my answer is no, and if it does eventually become illegal, I don't see it happening anytime soon. 

I've never been one to post inappropriate statuses or upload photos that may set a bad image for me on either Facebook or Twitter but I definitely know of close friends and even family members who do. However, I have been tagged in photos that I wasn't exactly thrilled about seeing the next morning (sometimes the afternoon); depending on how much I had to drink the previous night on both Twitter and Facebook. 

No matter how funny the photo may look, I'm never happy to see it on social media networking sites I'm on, especially Twitter. I say specifically Twitter because my ultimate dream job is to be a sports broadcaster for either a professional radio station or professional sports team and in order for me to reach that goal, twitter is essential. So to say the least, I wasn't exactly thrilled when I saw a tweet of my 21st birthday that stated, "If you're not as blacked out as @JaredShlensky then you're doing something wrong." It sets a bad image for me and any future employer that wants to hire me. For the record, I gave that friend of mine an earful after they posted that.

If you don't believe me, ask any broadcast communications major on campus who is affiliated with the school's radio station, WONC, 89.1FM about how important twitter is in our field. And if you don't believe me or them, take it a whole step further and ask the general manager of WONC and broadcast communications professor on campus, John Madormo. I'm quite confident he'll agree with me. That being said, my twitter page is strictly professional and can't stand it when my close friends tweet about my social life experiences. 

Now you may be thinking, why don't you just make your Facebook page and Twitter handle settings private or have two twitter handles? That's definitely a fair question and am more than happy to answer it for you. My Facebook settings are set to private but not my twitter handle. 

This is because my tweets relate to my hopeful occupation in sports broadcasting and in order to be recognized by credible broadcasters, journalists, radio stations, newspaper publications, etc., I need my tweets to be able to be viewed by anyone; therefore making my twitter handle private is meaningless. My tweets aren't about how bad my day is going or about how upset I am with the food on campus, instead they consist of links to sports articles I've written for the school's newspaper, The Chronicle/NCClinked.com, interviews I've uploaded to sound cloud pertaining to NCC athletics, opinions I have about live sporting games, player performances, coaching strategies, broadcasters analysis, etc.  

I've also been asked, why don’t you just have two twitter handles, one strictly professional, and one pertaining to your social life? Again, another fair question, and my answer is, I don’t have any plans or interest of tweeting about my life or any inappropriate activities I may encounter down the road. Therefore I just don’t see any point of having two twitter handles, in fact, it just sounds like more work for me, something I don’t have time for, at least not right now.

My profile photo on Twitter isn't me posing with my two buddies with me at the bar last week, instead, it's me in a suit, hoping to showcase myself as a mature, intelligent and respectable human being. Now you may be wondering, what the hell do your personal experiences have anything to do with the question you proposed back in the beginning. My answer to you is well, it has everything to do with it. 

If you're going to post inappropriate pictures and say inappropriate things via social media, you need to be prepared to accept the consequences for your actions, even if that means a future employer not choosing to hire you, including me. However, I do feel that if someone posts a status about your wild 21st birthday or tags you in a picture that you personally didn't upload, then employers shouldn't be allowed to use that against you. I understand that it may not be the way employers look at it or the way current laws are laid out, but I'd argue that it's a fair assessment of what future employers should and shouldn't be allowed to use against you. 

End of senior year is bitter sweet

For all you underclassmen anxiously awaiting to be done with undergrad at NCC, all I can say is hold up. Now I have to admit back in the fall I thought I'd be so excited for the year to end but now I just want the process to go by as slow as possible.

Both my parents and two older brothers told me that no experience in life is nearly as good as college, but I didn't realize that they were spot on until the past couple of weeks. I mean it makes sense: few priorities, can sleep into 10 a.m.just about everyday (at least I can), drink multiple days of the week, etc.

I compare high school to college and can honestly say these past four years flew by, unlike my high school years. From the days of FYE to living in Seager, (those were the days) to now, it's mind blowing to realize it's coming to an end.

I thought this spring term was going to be a blow off, I mean I'm only taking 8 credits. But with multiple job interviews as of late I really haven't had the luxury to party like a lot of my peers have had. But for the past couple of weeks every time I'm about to hit the hay my mind wonders, and somehow, I always reflect on how this is it!!! Even if I choose to pursue graduate school next year, I know it won't compare to how much fun undergrad was.

For the other seniors in class, I'm sorry if reading this makes you sad or brings tears to your eyes. And for you underclassmen, soak it in. Go out and have fun, even a little too much from time-to-time, because as I realize these days are coming to an end, I realize the best days of my life are too. 

The Power of Google...

Google is essential in today's society, and for most, without Google we'd be lost. But is Google needed for every little detail in our lives? Probably not but it sure as hell makes life a whole lot easier than it was for our parents.

Google clearly does have too much power in our lives but why not take advantage of arguably the best search engine in the world? It doesn't make you lazy, in fact, it makes you intelligent and well aware of just how powerful Google truly is. Throughout my years of schooling ranging from elementary to college, my teachers always stressed the better researcher you are, the more successful you will be academically and in life. Now we're being told not to use Google as often as we do because it's too easy. Sounds like a lose-lose situation to me, but guess what, I don't care, I'm going to continue to use it, and quite often.

As for being addicted to Google, I know I am. But for me, my addiction goes well past my constant use of Google. I'm not proud of it, but I'm addicted to the internet, along with social media outlets such as Twitter, and by far my biggest addiction, my cell phone. I'm always on it and I just can't put it down (except when I'm driving.) I use it during class, when I'm watching a sporting event, at the bar, etc. The question I should be asking and trying to answer is how will my previous mentioned addictions affect my future, my health and my ability to collaborate with others?

In regards to my future, I think my chronic addiction is a good thing, because I seem to always to be aware of what's going on in my desired profession of sports broadcasting. However, studies have shown that an excessive use of wireless technological devices, such as cell phones and laptops, may actually cause cancer. If this study becomes more concrete and credible, this could be life-changing, similar to when the world realized that smoking cigarettes causes cancer. I've always been a pretty outgoing person so I'm not worried about my social skills and ability to interact with others, but if I ever become a parent someday, God I hope not, I'll be sure my kids know how to interact with their peers, even if their glued to a plethora amount of wireless technological devices.

People blogged in 2002?

I read the Fred First interview for my first blog. The second sentence caught my eye and from there I couldn't take my eyes off the page, even with the NCAA Division I Men's National Title game scheduled to tip off in less than an hour. For those of you wondering, I got Kentucky taking it all.

The fact that First started blogging because he knew he was going to be unemployed soon is just as mind blowing as the fact that people blogged in 2002? I know for a fact blogging wouldn't be one of my first hobbies in order to get my mind off being unemployed. Furthermore, I like the fact the First doesn't change the appearance of his blog often. It drives me absolutely nuts that Facebook and Twitter seem to have a new layout every other month. And for the record, I still hate Facebook for adding the cover photo to one's personal page. Maybe it's just me, but in general, I don't really like change and commend First for not changing the appearance of his blog very often. 

Another area that caught my attention was that First doesn't look to profit off his blog or blog for a particular company. Now I'm not totally convinced that's true but if it is indeed true, that's very cool. Personally, I know I wouldn't blog everyday just to relieve stress or keep my audience entertained. I'd rather watch/listen to a sporting event, not blog about my life, hobbies and profession, Trust me, I'm not that interesting of a guy. 

Lastly, I'm going to be honest, I didn't read the entire interview (the national title game is less than 45 minutes from tipping off and I got other homework to attend to before the game. Sorry, but I have to stick to my priorities.) The fact that First spends a good amount of time reading blogs along with coordinating his own and still doesn't really consider blogging for a living is a little shocking, and a little dumb too if you ask me.

 If you spend as much time as First does blogging and has been offered jobs within the blogging industry why not do it? I understand not wanting to give up PT or teaching, I mean if that's his passion go for it. But what about during the summer? First said it himself, he finds a way to blog just about once a day on top of working as a teacher and as a PT so what the hell, make some money for your work,  you deserve it.

Welcome

About Me: 'Sorry, it's not that exciting' 

Welcome to my web blog, Just Another Aspiring Sports Broadcaster. My name is Jared Shlensky and I'm a senior at North Central College studying broadcast communications. Since the day I've stepped foot on campus I knew I wanted to get involved in sports broadcasting at the school's radio station, WONC, 89.1 FM. But what I didn't know was that this would be my ideal dream job until the spring of 2011. I plan on blogging about my sports broadcasting experiences over the past four years, what sport I enjoy to broadcast the most and what sport I enjoy to broadcast the least, what struggles I've encountered in landing a play-by-play job/paid internship over the past two years and all other sorts of related topics to the sports broadcasting industry.