Internet Aficionado
Fargo, North Dakota Area
- Current
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- Strategist at Forum Communications Company
- Past
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- Production Assistant at KVLY / KXJB
- Contributing Writer at High Plains Reader
- Field Canvasser at North Dakota Dem-NPL Party
- Shift Manager at M & H gas station
- Education
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- Minnesota State University, Moorhead
- Recommended
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3 people have recommended Zac - Connections
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100
connections
- Industry
- Online Media
- Websites
Zac Echola’s Summary
As a web strategist, I have a solid understanding of how to convert Web technologies into increased, more engaged readership. SEO, analytics, training, networking and planning all play a part, but I'm mostly concerned with making connections and building relationships. I'm keen on all sides of the media business: technology, editorial, business and audience.
Ultimately, I'm best at getting people to do things in better or at least more interesting ways. Every day I try to convince the people around me to try new things.
I work on a few side projects, including a media industry blog. I am a founding member of Wiredjournalists.com, a social network designed for preparing journalists for new media. It's Randomonium! is an almost daily, tumblr staff-picked blog that culls weird and interesting stuff from around the Web.
Zac Echola’s Specialties:
Quark, Adobe Suite, Final Cut, Thinking about stuff, HTML, CSS, XML, Analytics, Associated Press style, audio/video production, copy/pasting, coffee drinking.
I'm also a fine researcher.
Oh and I come Mac, Windows and Linux ready right out of the box.
Zac Echola’s Experience
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Strategist
Forum Communications Company
(Privately Held; Newspapers industry)
December 2005 — Present (4 years )
Think about big picture issues. Plan strategies to make money, engage audiences and advance technology in new and cool ways.
Previously (Lead Producer):
Acted as advocate for community publishing, blogs and community involvement in media and civics.
Worked directly with publishers and programmers to package content and advertising in new ways.
Previously (Producer):
Produced news packages for Forum Communication's flagship Web site (www.inforum.com) as well as supported and managed online content strategies and content development for about 50 other newspaper, television, commercial and pure play online properties. -
Production Assistant
KVLY / KXJB
(Broadcast Media industry)
November 2002 — December 2005 (3 years 2 months)
Made daily news graphics, operated master control board, mixed live audio, operated studio cameras and handled uplink/downlink feeds. I was totally awesome at this job, I loved it and sometimes miss live TV, but it's TV, so the pay really sucked. So it goes.
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Contributing Writer
High Plains Reader
(Writing and Editing industry)
January 2002 — November 2005 (3 years 11 months)
Occasionally wrote feature stories for the area's only alternative weekly paper as well as regularly edited the Best Bets section of the paper and produced the Web site.
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Field Canvasser
North Dakota Dem-NPL Party
(Political Organization industry)
June 2002 — November 2002 (6 months)
Gathered and analyzed voter data for North Dakota Dem-NPL party, particularly Rep. Earl Pomeroy's campaign. He won.
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Shift Manager
M & H gas station
(Food & Beverages industry)
March 2000 — April 2002 (2 years 2 months)
High school job: Managed kitchen at a gas station during the evening shift. Not much more you can say about that. I smelled like chicken.
Zac Echola’s Education
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Minnesota State University, Moorhead
American Studies, Mass Communications 2002 — 2006
Double major. Drop out. Overachieving underachiever.
The truth is, the Mass Communications department was inept, out of step with the times and mind-numbingly simplistic in approach. So, I took on a more academic second major, American Studies, which was not mind-numbing, but the program was dropped by the university as I was finishing up the core courses.
So, when the job at Forum Communications fell into my lap, I took it and moved on with my life.
That said, I never really stopped being a student. I'm endlessly curious about the everything; I go to great lengths to teach myself, for my personal edification.
Additional Information
Zac Echola’s Websites:
Zac Echola’s Interests:
media, technology, management, ice cream and baseball.
Zac Echola’s Groups:
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ThoseinMedia -
Order of Turtles -
Wired Journalists
Zac Echola’s Contact Settings
Interested In:
- consulting offers
- new ventures
- expertise requests
- reference requests
- getting back in touch
