This video by Amani Channel has its issues – he spends the first 50 seconds or so reciting his resume – but it also sends a clear, important message: The user has to come first in today’s news business.

In 2007, as we began working on 209Vibe.com, a friend told me I should check out self-described Internet punk Rob Curley. Curley had been the online editor at the Lawrence, Kan., Journal-World, and my friend recommended I research (what I was told was) his work on Lawrence.com. The site was, and still is, a model for hyperlocal entertainment coverage. It’s interesting, engaging and its design always seems to be ahead of the curve.

Curley later went on to other media companies in Kansas and Florida before joining Washingtonpost.Newsweek and, in 2008, Lasvegassun.com. There he’s continued to earn accolades and, according to a story this week on Lasvegascitylife.com, he’s ruffled his fair share of feathers. The story says in part that Curley’s Web-first emphasis as well as his efforts to generate revenue have earned him the scorn of some in the newsroom.

Over the past few months I’ve been intrigued by the growing popularity of the free blogging platform tumblr. In some ways – OK, many ways – it resembles Blogger.com; tumblr and Blogger both bring together blogging and social networking in a site that is incredibly easy to personalize and use. They allow users to modify and create their own page themes while also following their friends and keeping up with their blog posts.

Blogger and tumblr differ, however, in their presentation and how they are being used. Unlike Blogger, where the text is the star, Tumblr focuses on visuals and design. Many tumblr templates feature dominant, chunky fonts on simple yet eye-pleasing backgrounds – like American Apparel ads without the nudity.

Tumblr users seem to have picked up on this idea and are focusing on visuals on the site. Take, for example, former 209Viber and local musician Dan Faughnder’s tumblr page, which has a large image in every post.

I faced some new challenges as I practiced on my photography skills last night during a concert at the Plea for Peace Center in Stockton. First, I needed to judge the lighting and pick a good angle for my shots. Fortunately, the lighting and setting at the venue is easy to work with and can make an amateur look like a pro. Promoter Middagh Goodwin has floodlights at either end of the stage pointing at the performers, and the back wall of the venue is painted black, which helps add shadow and depth to most photographs.

Again, that’s most photographs. You also can easily mess up if you’re standing next to the light when you shoot, as your subject will be too bright and appear flat. It’s something I realized as I photographed Scott Bartenhagen, the show’s opening act. Early on I also struggled with the placement of the microphone, which probably is a common challenge for most photographers at concerts. From where I was standing the microphone often blocked the lower portion of Bartenhagen’s face.