December 2007
14 posts
Jason's Videoblog Year in Review
It’s been another great year at the blog. I’ve been blogging at WCCO.com for nearly 3 years (Karna, my deskmate and web producer, says I wrote “Welcome to my blog” on February 18, 2005), but this has been the year of the video blog for me. We used to just do them in the building, but this year, with the help of a great group of photographers, we’ve been doing them out...
How'd I Get That Interview? Twitter for...
Last week I was doing a story on how Christmas trees can cause serious allergy problems. Senior 10 p.m. producer Scott Howard noticed this story on WebMD talking about the huge amount of mold spores released to the air when we bring a dead tree inside. I lined up an allergist (that was easy) and then went to a Christmas tree lot (also easy). To put this in baseball terms: my effort was solid...
City Leaders Fuming About Stanek 35W Bridge Video
When my colleague Caroline Lowe got a tip that city leaders were fuming about a training video produced by Hennepin County Sheriff Rich Stanek, she did what all good journalists do. She asked for all e-mails sent regarding the video. What she got is fascinating reading, which I recommend you puruse at your leisure. The e-mails include a city council member’s: “This. Is. ...
More Shop Local Ideas
Thanks for all the e-mails about last night’s story on shopping local. Some of your favorite local haunts: Colin Kloecker suggests Sunny Day Earth Solutions at 26th & Como in Minneapolis. (he also wrote: “I’m so glad to see you take such a fair and balanced look at what it really means to be “green” and not shy away from the messy details that are often glazed...
Shop Local, Shop Green? Maybe not.
I love shopping at local boutiques. Almost all of my Christmas gifts will come from independently-owned stores. And I try to buy Minnesota-made gifts as often as I can. Not because of any sort of higher mission. I just like to buy unique presents, and I like to put some effort into it. Conventional wisdom (and a lot of the “Shop Local” hype) pushes this idea that shopping local is the...
Merry Christmas From Santa Jason
For all the kids who love reading the blog, I ask you to skip this entry. I know, it’s hard. You need your daily dose of DeRusha. This one’s for the adults. This Saturday, WCCO had it’s annual holiday party for kids. It’s a great time, and extremely nice that the station hosts the party. My two kids had a great time. Well, at least until this moment: Yes, that’s...
Best Buy Goes After Polo Shirt Bloggers
We all understand that a company’s brand and logo and image are extremely important assets that need to be protected. And trademark law is designed to protect trademark owners (and also to protect the public from being confused or scammed). But this one is a little tough to understand. In April of 2006, a street-comedy group called Improv Everywhere designed a prank at a New York City Best...
Good Question Says Good Bye
Tonight at 10 p.m.: the final “Good Question” segment reported by Ben Tracy. As you may or may not know, Ben is leaving WCCO-TV to go to CBS News in Los Angeles. It’s been quite awhile since we’ve had a WCCO person promoted up to the network, so this is a pretty big deal. I think he’s putting together some of the best clips from the more than 300 questions he’s...
Dancin' DeRusha In Zubaz
Douglas Goherty is a genius. I’ve been impressed with the number of e-mails I’ve received from people who are excited to be able to buy the pants again. It made me feel warm inside to know I may have played a part, in connecting you, the viewer, with an important link to your past.
More DeRusha on Zubaz: And how I got the Story
UPDATE: WATCH/READ MY WCCO-TV ZUBAZ STORY HERE. I never had a pair of Zubaz. In 1986, when Zubaz launched in Roseville, Minn., this is what I looked like in suburban Chicago: Maybe I needed Zubaz. At any rate, almost 22 years later, this is what I look like with the new zebra print on: Note the boots: You can tell how Raul feels about the Zubaz: If you want to buy Zubaz (in time for the...
Shocker! DeRusha wins National Media Award
I’m really excited to share these pictures with you, from an award that I’m really proud to have earned for WCCO. I’ve blogged before about my involvement with the Minnesota Chapter of Family, Career and Community Leaders of America, FCCLA. It’s an incredible group that works with high school students to empower them to make positive live decisions. I’ve moderated a...
Awesome Computerized Holiday Lights
I should have blogged this last night, but I was working on too many things in one day, and I forgot about it. After we finished shooting our story on Tuesday’s horrid snowy commute, photographer Kris Berg and I drove over to a really sweet Christmas lights display in the Longfellow neighborhood of Minneapolis. There are 40,000 lights, all LED, and they’re synched up to a muscial...
Snow Watch 2007: Minnesota Under Siege
I have an update on my last blog entry, the mystery has been solved. It was Chad. My neighbor at the end of the block rolled his snowblower down the street and cleaned my drive. Very cool, and not surprising that it was Chad. Unlike me, he just takes care of business without bragging about it. I’m soliciting e-mails on your commutte tonight. Was it a nightmare? Send me a note. I may use it...