News media in flux, photojournalist says

Daniel Lapham

“I am going to continue what I am doing to the best of my ability and just grow.”
—Daniel Lapham
OETA Photojournalist

Elizabeth Jones
News Writing Student

The way people get news is changing — and is going to change even more, said Daniel Lapham, a photojournalist with Oklahoma Educational Television Authority, when he spoke to a class of journalism students recently.

Lapham told students these changes will likely affect their careers, including the amount of information available, the increasing media outlets from which to obtain it, and the fervor with which it is reported.

In his own short career, Lapham said, he has worked for a daily newspaper, a weekly newspaper and now television news.

Today, many people get their news from their mobile phones, he said.

Lapham said he is concerned that journalism is becoming a confusing mix of fact and opinion.

Lapham’s best piece of advice to students was to develop a strong foundation in the fundamentals in journalism and writing.

With tattooed arms and pierced gauged ears, Lapham was not what journalism students were expecting when he entered the classroom.

Lapham recounted his journey in journalism to the aspiring journalists, offering advice to the students and providing insight into the profession.

Lapham holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma and an associate degree from OCCC.

Even though he said he considers his current position as possibly his dream job, Lapham did not always know what he wanted to do with his life.

In fact, he deferred college until age 22, opting for snowboarding and hiking in Colorado, before attending OCCC.

Lapham said he began his journalism journey at OCCC, where he landed a job on the Pioneer after taking a news writing class.

After graduating from OCCC in December 2003, he continued his education at the University of Oklahoma, he said.

Lapham said he worked for OU Nightly, the university’s nightly television news program, as a photojournalist and part of the technical staff.

After graduating from OU in 2006, Lapham said, he worked at the Muskogee Phoenix daily newspaper as a feature writer, followed by a move to the weekly El Reno Tribune as a city reporter.

His work at the newspapers offered Lapham two contrasting news-reporting opportunities.

Lapham explained that city reporting involves government news and crime stories.

He said this type of work is much diffferent from the lighter side of covering local musicians and events as a feature writer in his previous job.

Lapham said he found himself committed to reporting on difficult public issues.

Nevertheless, he said he recalled his interview with the local band, Clips Springer, as one of his most enjoyable interviews.

The last leg of his journey, to date, was his move to his current position at OETA.

Lapham said he contemplates becoming a producer or news director,

However, he said right now, he is content where he is.

“I am going to continue what I am doing to the best of my ability and just grow,” he said.

Lapham speculated the secret to his success was: “I just tried really hard.”