NewsVroom ready for gametime Friday night
Randy Parker, center, interviews sports writer Steve Navaroli as GametimePA producer Matt Goul shoots video for a livestream.
I’ll be blogging tonight from the launch of NewsVroom at Panther Field in York, Pa.
NewsVroom is the mobile community newsroom/classroom of GametimePA, ydr.com, Smart magazine, FlipSidePA.com and the York Daily Record. But tonight it’s a GametimePA van, carrying tents, digital equipment, ice, water, coolers, freebies, tables and chairs for journalists and the public as Central York and West York launch the high school sports season.
Managing Editor Randy Parker is leading the crew here and has headed planning for the NewsVroom launch since Digital First Media greenlighted this project earlier this year. Visual Editor Eileen Joyce is shooting the game for a livestream video. We won’t say how many attempts it took to get the first of three tents erected, but let’s just say it went a lot faster when I stopped leading the effort.
I’ll update this blog through the evening.
Update 7:50 p.m. It’s 10-7, visiting West York Bulldogs over Central York Panthers in the second quarter.
Marketing staffers Cynthia Greco and Lauren Raton made a swing through the crowd, giving GametimePA lanyards out to students who downloaded the GametimePA mobile app. (Lanyards are more popular with younger students than high school students, they report.
People answering trivia questions announced each quarter receive GametimePA t-shirts.
Children visiting the tents can get “paper champ” figures to fold into Bulldog and Panther players.
The hot summer afternoon has cooled into a beautiful evening as the sun is going down.
Update: Last night I was in Oakland, Calif., for the opening reception at the downtown community newsroom of the Oakland Tribune. I flew a red-eye back to the East Coast last night and drove up to York this afternoon for tonight’s football game and NewsVroom launch.
I thought that the ties between the York and Oakland news operations were through their corporate ownership and their joint positions as leaders in Digital First engagement efforts. But I learned from York Daily Record Editor Jim McClure today about another interesting connection: Robert Maynard, the journalism icon who was editor and later owner of the Oakland Tribune, started his journalism career in York in 1961.
Maynard’s daughter Dori was at last night’s event in Oakland. More about the Maynards in my post about the Oakland Tribune and its downtown community newsroom. But that connection is too cool not to mention tonight.
Update 8:40 p.m. I started my journalism career covering high school football 41 years ago. I can’t recall the last high school game I attended. Probably when my sons were in high school more than a decade ago.
Update 8:50 p.m. We’re in the fourth quarter and out of t-shirts. West leads Central 24-7.
Update 9:10 p.m. We’re wrapping up here. West York won 24-7. And the NewsVroom is definitely on a winning streak.
Update Saturday. Here’s the liveblog replay from last night’s game and NewsVroom launch.
Update Sunday: Here’s Randy Parker’s blog post about the NewsVroom launch.
@thenewsvroom Fells mother— Adrian Boxley I. (@abox1) September 1, 2012
@abox1 You got it! Stop over for a T-shirt!— The YDR NewsVroom (@TheNewsVroom) September 1, 2012
Eric Bowman, left, and Connor Perone show off the GametimePA t-shirts they got for downloading the mobile app.
NewsVroom and three tents set up at the end zone of Panther Field.
GametimePA staff gets set up to cover the game.
Central York cheerleaders perform by the GameTimePA tents.
Brad Jennings monitors three GametimePA livestreams at once.
Scan the QR code on the back of the NewsVroom and it takes you right to the GametimePA website on your smartphone.
Come to
@thenewsvroom van at the central york football game and answer the following question for a gift card to sheetz— GameTimePA (@GameTimePA) September 1, 2012
When was the last time central won the division 1 football title outright?
— GameTimePA (@GameTimePA) September 1, 2012
Landon Shorts of Central just downloaded the
#GameTimePA app and won a T-shirt. twitter.com/TheNewsVroom/s…— The YDR NewsVroom (@TheNewsVroom) September 1, 2012
Chris Shoemaker showed us his GameTimePA app and got a rockin’ T-shirt. twitter.com/TheNewsVroom/s…
— The YDR NewsVroom (@TheNewsVroom) September 1, 2012
The Buttry Diary 
Thank you just doesn’t cut it, Steve. Thank you for joining us shining a light on our debut. Thank you for supporting and encouraging all of the community news labs throughout the country. And thank you for championing the effort to help newspapers quickly become multi-platform news organizations.
NewsVroom will help the people of York County better understand how new media can help them learn more about their community and share more about their accomplishments.
It’s a blast to be a part of this.
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It was a real treat to be here for the launch, Randy. Thanks for the kind words.
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