Tour and Visit to USAToday April 23

A reminder that we'll be meeting at USAToday on Wednesday, April 23, from 1:45 p.m. to 3:10 p.m., for a newsroom tour and talk.

We'll chat with multimedia Web producer Joshua Hatch and others to talk about how storytelling, story presentation and reader interaction at Web sites differ from storytelling in traditional media.

You will be given assigned questions to answer about the visit; your typed responses will count as an in-class grade. Responses to questions are due at the start of the April 30 class.

We're meeting in the lobby of the USAToday newsroom, at 7950 Jones Branch Drive, in McLean, Va.--a stone's throw from the Tyson's Corner malls. See mapquest or google maps for directions from your homes; I'll put mapquest directions from the Beltway at the bottom of this post. Please leave roughly an hour for travel time by car to get there--at this time of day, it should take slightly less. You may want to carpool with friends from class.

Please park in the visitor parking lot before you get to the main building. It's marked by flag poles and a guard shack. Parking is free. The guards have been given all your names; they'll have badges waiting for you in the lobby. I'll meet you in the lobby. I may have two grad students from the online news bureau traveling with me.

Please familiarize yourself with the Web site before our trip--including some of the multimedia, blogs and bigger projects! You'll want to be able to ask informed questions of our hosts.

Here are directions from the Capital Beltway, courtesy of mapquest and google maps:

Take I-495 W toward NORTHERN VIRGINIA/ BETHESDA;

Merge onto CHAIN BRIDGE ROAD/ VA-123 S. via exit number 46A toward TYSONS CORNER/ VIENNA; merge onto Chain Bridge Road.

Turn RIGHT onto TYSONS BLVD.;

Turn RIGHT onto GALLERIA DR.;

TURN SLIGHTLY RIGHT, as GALLERIA DR. TURNS INTO WESTPARK DR.;

TURN RIGHT AT JONES BRANCH DRIVE, for 7950.

Parking is on the right, before you reach the building. (See notes above.)

See you in the lobby!