BLUE BELL, PA--No, it’s not a change to our beloved Buzz Update. It is something new and game changing from a collaboration of USAToday and its partner colleges. “MCCC: The Buzz,” as it will be known, is a new news app that brings together the digital versions of USAToday, USATodaycollege.com and the Montgazette.
Starting September 17, 2014, Montgomery County Community College will be the first community college to pilot this groundbreaking smartphone application. Michael Montana, Regional Sales Director for USAToday and MCCC’s Campus Readership Program contact, says this app will enhance the program and bring it to the “next level” to get the paper into every student’s hands.
Montco’s Campus Readership Program is part of a national program that began with Penn State University in 1997. It’s purpose, like this new app, was to, as Montana terms it, “make students more globally aware, civically engaged and media literate.” The Campus Readership Program now spans more than 400 campuses nationwide.
In this first phase, access to “MCCC: The Buzz” will have no restrictions. To download the app, students just go to the app store of their respective smartphones, search for "MCCC: The Buzz," and tap the install button. Montana says the reason this app is being made so easily accessible is to follow through with the existing mission of the Campus Readership Program: Get the news in the hands of every student. This app will now let every Montco student, including Virtual Campus students, Culinary Arts Institute students, former students, alumni, faculty and others, access USAToday and the Montgazette 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
While nothing for future phases of “MCCC: The Buzz” is finalized, the next phase of this app may include Google, Facebook or MCCC student identification login.
Does this exciting new smartphone application seal the immediate doom of the paper versions of either USAToday or our beloved Montgazette? Jenna Klaus, Montco’s Assistant Director for Civic and Community Engagement, echoed by Montana, says an emphatic, “No.” Despite the decline of paper consumption of the news, both Klaus and Montana say that this app will increase engagement in the news, which is the ultimate goal. Klaus says that “MCCC: The Buzz” will allow students and faculty instant access to Montco news to “use [in] classes, for personal growth, knowledge and education.”
Creating stories for “MCCC: The Buzz” will not change the Montgazette’s editorial process. Nor will USAToday alter what is published for the Montgazette, they will just house MCCC’s content. As Michael Montana puts it, “[USAToday] is for free press.”
“MCCC: The Buzz” will launch an exciting new era for Montco’s newspaper publication. The app will now allow students to contribute to the news, making it easier for them to get involved. Eventually, “MCCC: The Buzz” will integrate user-generated content, commenting, sharing of articles and other social media-like attributes.
Perhaps the best part of this app will be the impact it will have on Montco’s students. It will give them an outlet to more easily interact with news events, share their own news and engage their world in a whole new way.
UPDATE: As of the writing of this article, it was unknown that MCCC: The Buzz would not be ready for distribution. As of October 1, 2014, USAToday is still working on the app and hopes to have it released soon.
UPDATE: As of November 5, 2014, The Buzz: MCCC, as it is now called, has gone live! Download it now from App Store on your iOS device or Google Play on your Android device.
Creating stories for “MCCC: The Buzz” will not change the Montgazette’s editorial process. Nor will USAToday alter what is published for the Montgazette, they will just house MCCC’s content. As Michael Montana puts it, “[USAToday] is for free press.”
“MCCC: The Buzz” will launch an exciting new era for Montco’s newspaper publication. The app will now allow students to contribute to the news, making it easier for them to get involved. Eventually, “MCCC: The Buzz” will integrate user-generated content, commenting, sharing of articles and other social media-like attributes.
Perhaps the best part of this app will be the impact it will have on Montco’s students. It will give them an outlet to more easily interact with news events, share their own news and engage their world in a whole new way.
UPDATE: As of the writing of this article, it was unknown that MCCC: The Buzz would not be ready for distribution. As of October 1, 2014, USAToday is still working on the app and hopes to have it released soon.
UPDATE: As of November 5, 2014, The Buzz: MCCC, as it is now called, has gone live! Download it now from App Store on your iOS device or Google Play on your Android device.
