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INDEX Features Opinions Events Obits Sports Arkadelphian
No. 10
Vol. 4
1 2 2 3 4 4
March 17 , 2022
Losing Listopad: Oracle says goodbye to adviser Lance Brownfield OCE Editor-in-Chief Kaela McKim Oracle Editor-in-Chief In the midst of Henderson’s financial crisis, many departments are taking massive hits. The Oracle and the Star are losing one of their own at the end of this semester. Steven Listopad, adviser to the Oracle and the Star is leaving to work as the Communication and Development Director for the Arkansas Press Association (APA) in Little Rock. “I knew I’d be coming to a school where I already had colleagues that I really enjoyed working with and had good times with,” said Listopad. Listopad started working at Henderson in 2017 after teaching journalism at the University of Jamestown and Valley City State University in his home state of North Dakota for many years. He has also taught in China, France, Norway, and Italy through the ieiMedia program. He has worked for an alternative weekly newspaper, a daily newspaper and a military newspaper before beginning his teaching career. And it all started at the age of 15 when he started writing for a local daily newspaper. Since his time in Arkansas, he has personally lobbied for the New Voices legislation, which he was instrumental in first developing in North Dakota. He has steered
multiple publications even during lean times while continuing to do everything he can to advocate for journalism education. Helping to establish the Arkadelphia Dispatch, which later evolved into the Oracle Community Edition, and partnering with the Arkadelphian to provide news coverage in a media desert has been impactful for both the readers and the students learning invaluable journalistic skills. “I appreciate the way he’s worked hard even during times of no travel budget,” said Professor Mike Taylor, who previously advised the Oracle. “He’s worked with the Arkansas Press Association for funding for the Oracle. He’s worked with Mary Beth Tinker and her brother. Henderson students have been lucky to get involved with these nationwide efforts.” Listopad’s decision to step down comes just before Henderson officially declared financial exigency. His choice will likely save at least one other Henderson employee from losing their job. While his position will not be filled for at least a year after his departure, the responsibilities of newspaper adviser will fall on Innovative Media Professor Scott McKinnon, who was formerly the Editor-in-Chief of the Oracle during his time as a Henderson student. Listopad is a Ph.D. candidate at North Dakota State University, where he also received his Master’s
and Bachelor’s degrees on top of also receiving his Certification in Journalism Education from the Journalism Education Association (JEA.) Aside from his extensive resume and education background, Listopad is the recipient of many media and journalism awards, including The Society of Collegiate Journalists’ Louis Ingelhart First Amendment Award, The JEA Friend of Scholastic Journalism Award, College Media Association’s MultiMedia Adviser of the Year Award, the Hugh M Hefner First Amendment Award in Education and more. Taylor, McKinnon and other communication professors from Henderson met Listopad through the College Media Association conventions in New York City and Washington D.C. “Myself, Glover and Taylor,” said McKinnon. “We found a dive bar and they invited Steve to come along. He burst in and plopped down and immediately talked with me like he knew me for 10 years.” As McKinnon looks to take over where Listopad leaves off, he’s faced with some challenging questions such as if the over 100-yearold student paper and twoyear-old community paper will go completely online for good. The Oracle and Reddie Media Group (HTV, KSWHLP, The Star Yearbook and the Oracle) are dealing with some of the lowest staff
Effective ways to land an internship Ty Gibbs Contributing Reporter Internships are a vital part of starting a future career. An internship allows a student or individual to get accustomed to a certain job while getting the necessary experience needed to either start or further their career path. There is certainly not a shortage of internships out in the field and it is not difficult to try and pursue one. Be open to all internship opportunities. Too many times people will get tunnel vision on one job title and just apply to that one in hopes they land it. There is a much smaller chance of getting an interview for one job rather than applying to multiple internships and broadening your chances of getting a hit. Most applicants to an internship have little to no experience in the field as they are looking to gain some with this opportunity. That means that in order to stand out,
you have to highlight how well you performed a certain job rather than listing out as many as you can. In the discussion of an internship, quality is preferred over quantity. Having a resume is crucial to any job applicant, but they can easily become too unorganized and messy. Having a clean resume is going to stand out to employers just as much as what is written on it. There are many resources that can help you create and organize your resume. My personal favorite is the “How To Write a Resume in 10 Steps” article located on indeed.com. Interviewers can ask a variety of questions, so be sure to prepare yourself for any questions that might be asked. For example, a few common prompts are: “Tell me about yourself.” “What skills can you bring to our company?” “Where do you see yourself in five years?” It is important that
numbers in the history of the university. “Problems that Henderson students have faced are part of a nationwide crisis small papers around Arkansas are facing,” said Taylor. “When papers go online, yes they advertise online, but they make a fraction of the ad revenue that they would have made. As long as there is a college, there will be a student newspaper. I think if the university did away with the student newspaper, an independent newspaper would arise because students need to know what’s going on.” The future of the Oracle and the Star seems very uncertain in these trying financial times as college media organizations all over the nation struggle to keep above water in a shifting media climate. “We definitely don’t want it to go away,” said McKinnon, “But there is a lot of room to bring the Oracle into the 21st century. Leverage some of the power of Innovative Media to keep it current with some of the popular trends of multimedia and technology.” McKinnon’s background in the Innovative Media department and his knowledge of emerging technologies could help the Oracle not only keep up but set the pace in local news coverage and state college media. Listopad has also mentioned the opportunity that lies in his new position for Henderson students
Photo from hsuoracle.com
After six years as adviser to the Oracle and the Star, Steven Listopad is leaving Henderson to become Communications and Development Director at the Arkansas Press Association.
pursuing a journalism or media career. His job at the APA can be a bridge to connect students to internships, scholarships and other resources that will benefit fledgling journalists entering the job market. “I’ve been teaching for 23 years,” said Listopad. “That becomes part of your identity. With my new role at Arkansas Press Association, education is still going to be a big part of it. It’s just not going to be the same atmosphere.” In his new role as Communication and Development Director, Listopad hopes to find opportunities to teach from time to time as an adjunct professor and to continue
advising some form of student media if possible. As most of Henderson’s communication professors do, Listopad enjoys playing music and singing. His connection with the other professors in his department sprang up around their shared interest in music. From karaoke to jam sessions, Glover, McKinnon, Stoddard and Taylor have all bonded with Listopad over music and other interests such as comic books and movies. “Five years ago this guy showed up at HSU for a job interview, and it turned into a jam session,” wrote Taylor, tagging Listopad in a Facebook post. “What a long, strange trip it’s been.”
Reddie Radar: Illusory Entities Lance Brownfield OCE Editor-in-Chief Perhaps you’ve seen the flyers around campus. They’re sort of obscure and vague. A little bit of artwork, a few words and a QR code that takes you to a Spotify page of a local artist called Illusory Entities. There is not much info on the artist, as all of their bios are left blank. But maybe that’s part of the appeal of the band, the mystery and uncertainty attached to it. Their number one hit “castlevania” has 27 views on YouTube, while the band currently sits at seven monthly listeners on Spotify. They are also available on iHeartRadio, Apple Music, Bandcamp, Amazon Music and Deezer. The album art, fitting of the title, is a glitched-out 8-bit looking scene. The vocal effects and piercing keyboard sounds match up with the theme as well. The track seems to draw from several genres, with Auto-Tuned vocals, lingering dissonance and a trap-inspired beat. Another song in his top five tracks is “Tap Me Before You Go.” This particular song, which was released on Jan. 17, feels like a tropical-themed Marilyn Manson song. The single has a strong indie surf rock identity, but the vocals stray a little too far into the cold, mechanical
you prepare yourself with clear and concise answers rather than going off on a tangent and trying to loop back to your original point. Use the people you know to get interviews. In the business world, they say that networking is the most important factor when looking for new jobs. This is the exact same philosophy in the internship world as well. Ask around to the people you know and see if they have any connections that can offer you an opportunity. Many times these are the candidates that get looked at the most, especially if the contact is able to put in a good word for your work ethic. Students at Henderson State University typically excel with their ability to land internships as our professors and networks of alumni are more than willing to help find the best internship for you. Also try using the Career Development resources available to all students.
sound that fits better with Manson’s discography. The juxtaposition of bright and chirpy guitar tones clashes with the droning singing style. At the one minute, fiftyone second mark, the song shifts moods with a reversed guitar section. The transition is decent, and the song continues with this new, slightly somber feel before ending abruptly at two minutes and twenty-four seconds. “I’m not up so tap me before you go,” the lyrics say. “The mystic operates in the Caddo. When you can’t even trust your sight, the world is illusory but bright.” These last words of the song seem to mention Henderson’s
dining hall and their own band name in just a few lines. The word Caddo isn’t really going to be found in the lyrics of many people outside of this area, but the distinguishment of “the Caddo” as opposed to just “Caddo” could suggest that the writer of the lyrics is talking about the dining hall and not the people group or any other place. Then, there’s the “strawberries & milk” EP. The three-song release came out on Sept. 14, 2019, and is by far the strongest work of the artist. The album features drum and bass that sounds like it came straight out of a 90s drum machine (that’s a good thing.) (Continue on page 2)
Info from Weather.com
FRI - Mar. 18 a.m. showers
SAT - Mar. 19 sunny
SUN - Mar. 20
MON - Mar. 21 scattered thunderstorms
sunny
TUE - Mar. 22 scattered thunderstorms
WED - Mar. 23 partly cloudy
THU - Mar. 24 sunny
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66o 36
73o 45
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Precipitation: 42% Wind: NW 13 mph Humidity: 73%
Precipitation: 6% Wind: NNE 5 mph Humidity: 55%
Precipitation: 5% Wind: SSW 11 mph Humidity: 53%
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Precipitation: 55% Wind: WNW 9 mph Humidty: 55%
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